I once bought a used Ernie Ball Axis guitar and I didn't end up playing like Eddie Van Halen. That was a complete scam, don't fall for that.

I see used guitars where the seller adds a bunch of upgrades, but doesn't substract the value of the bits that were removed. Replacing a set of $60 stock tuners with $75 locking tuners doesn't make the guitar worth $75 more. It makes it worth $15 more.

I recently purchased a Gibson Les Paul. The seller was honest about changing the bridge pickup to a Seymour Duncan. Turned out to be exactly what I wanted. No BS equals a happy transaction.

Two of my favourite tips 1) on expensive strats ask them to take the pickguard off so you can check it's not been routed out for a humbucker in the bridge postion (a favourite mod of the 70's) 2) on Gibsons ask them to take the truss rod cover off and if it's an allen key adjustment rod it's either a fake or repaired. If they won't do either, wish them well and walk away quickly.

im a luthier and yes, neck resets are very expensive, also steaming off the fingerboard and replaciing bad truss rods are some of the most expensive jobs.

A local pawn shop had a samick bass, but the logo was replaced with fender decal. Priced as if it were American mad. Told the guy at the shop, and he just pointed at it and said "it says fender right there". He obviously didn't care, as he was only interested in ripping someone off.

4:40 The best "history" scam I heard about was an auctioneer claiming that a Strat was the one that Hendrix wrote "All along the Watchtower" on.

Good stuff and very helpful insights! Thanks for sharing your experiences with us

Great video! Some other advice would be to get comfortable doing a few things yourself like simple setups or filling a nut slot and replacing parts. This way you begin to know what is a show stopper vs. just a minor inconvenience. I recently bought a MIM Strat that had the upgraded pickups I was looking for and a hard case for the right price. The seller didn't disclose the trem arm was broken off in the bridge but I wasn't sure they even knew that, so I just repaired that myself. Keep up the content and here's to 2024 being a fun and profitable year for you all!

Great tips. Thanks, Alex.

I am a reverb seller, your store has actually offered on a few of my Items. I like the content. Once I sold a Golden Era Fender (pre 65) to a giant music store. So big they’ve been featured on television shows… I won’t say there name. My fender logo was worn away, neck pickup dead but could be rewound (I think), an no case. I saw a few months later the music giants had added a logo, period correct case, an fixed or replaced the pickup but none of those things were mentioned. I don’t think sourcing a period correct case needs to be said and I’ve never had a pickup rewound but I think not disclosing the fender logo was replaced was very deceptive. I’ve also been victim to buying what I thought was a fret less charvel an later learned the frets were removed an the holes filled. I learned from the experience but 99% certain the guy I got it from knew and didn’t tell me. Really I think it was him.

I'm digging this channel! I am a huge Fender Fan and I appreciate all the knowledge!

Thank you for teeing-off on those losers that put Fender logos on Squiers. You should be proud of the fact that you didn't waste money on a "Fender" and instead are rocking a Squier. Squier logos are not hard to find if you need to fix one. But I am so glad to hear that you have the integrity not to sell such items. One alleged "30 year luthier" sells Squier Tele necks with Fender logos on them on eBay. F'er should be jailed for it.

Great tips. Cool jacket you have on.

Very Cool, Thankyou. Awesome tips. All the best. Cheers

Some red flags you can't see. I recently bought an MIJ Strat from Reverb and in taking off the pickguard, there was a small crack. Since I love it and didn't want to do a return, Reverb gave me 50% back towards the repair. It's a fair ending, but there are some Reverb horror stories out there too. Great content Alex! - Another Alex :)

Great video; glad I found it!

excellent content...appreciated

I have a ‘66 Jaguar that did need some repairs. A new saddle spring, a refret and replaced pickup covers. I had a hard choice to keep it all original or fix it, but decided to fix it because it is very much a player grade example that I actually use. I still have the cracked pickup covers, original spring and even the classic leather strap Fender shipped with them in the case. It’s still a super finicky and noisy guitar, and definitely not the easiest to play but I love it and will probably never sell it because I’m only the second owner and I love the story.

Excellent video, I hope this gets the million views it deserves. When it comes to buying used Stratocaster-type guitars, always examine what is underneath the trem plate on the back of the guitar. A while back I bought a Strat that appeared to be in nearly mint condition only to discover that beneath the trem plate the bridge was being held in place by a stack of Euro dollar coins jammed in there (even weirder, I am in Canada). Literally, the last thing I was expecting to see! ps - you mentioned doing a video on fake headstock logos. I'd certainly watch that one.

I bought a Squier Standard Telecaster at the start of the Pandemic that turned out to violate your Number 1 rule. What I got WAS a Squier Standard Telecaster neck most likely on an older Squier Affinity Tele body. The reason I say this is that it is a three piece body but it's considerably thinner than my Squier Standard Telecaster that was stock when I bought it. I was going to message and ask the person for some money back (this was the time where the price of used gear, especially Squier for some reason shot through the roof) and I got a thank you message that the guy (who was older) said "Thank you, I can afford to pay my bills this month." Yeah, so I looked up and asked the Guitar Gods for some help. This guitar was over $200 but the finish was cool (in the pics was a midnight blue with a abalone looking pickguard which turned out to be really cheap) and I turned to my buddy and asked if he had any good pickups to put in there and I got a set of Fender Noiseless pickups plus the pots, switch and jack. So I saved there My Partscaster turned out PRETTY MUCH what I wanted it to be, a modern version of a "Lawsuit Era" knockoff guitar with actual Fender and Squier parts. It has a GFS X Trem on it and a very nice Gotoh bridge that is made for Bigsby style vibratos. I also took off the old Fender original style tuners (too hard to turn, didn't stay in tune that well) and had to plug 22 holes and I put on my favorite budget locking tuners on it. So a bit of 1970s meets 2020. It came out well, the bad paint job is actually a good thing because I did put nice Tiki stickers on this and it looks like a Tiki Bar threw up on it (in the best of ways 🤮🗿👍✨) and even with the warts and scars (I covered it up in blue and turquoise finger nail paint) it looks epic. Budget wise I did ok, paid too much (all my used Squiers have been $40-$80) on the guitar, paid very little (I had to use an Import switch on the shallower body along with free pickups) and I did have to replace tuners and the bridge plate (the GFS bridge with the X Trem was not to my liking) so the whole project was on budget (more or less about $400ish) but it did not spiral out of control as easily as it could have. It's a fun guitar to play and my loudest Telecaster style guitar (I have Teles with Filtertrons and those are LOUD pickups).

1. Make sure the truss rod works. 2. Make sure that neck isn't warped or isn't curved weird.

I’m 74 years old now. I’ve gone through a few guitars and it’s always a journey. I didn’t take guitar up and till 20 years ago although I was in band since I was literally nine and played everything and sang. My problem was I forgot one thing that I noticed with guitar players economy of motion lol especially when it comes to moving amps that being said, I have a nice collection. Not too crazy, but really nice all usable which I do all the time. These are very good tips for anybody dipping their beak in the world. Used guitars are frankly, the best, usually.

I used to have one of those mid-late 80's juniors in your background. Cool guitars with the tune-o-matic.

Cool video! I noticed on your website you have a Highway One Strat that says “thin nitro finish”, these (2002-2006) are actually Acrylic finish and they only did the nitro finish on the second run of these (2006-2011)

great video - love your work.

i have a thrift store guitar that is a genuine Dean Strat. Was treated by a renowned local luthier. Love it and is my second to go guitar after my BC Rich. I love both of them :)

Enjoying your channel.. Would like to hear how you deal with the issue of stolen instruments being offered to you. Or worse, when you buy an instrument from someone, put it on your store and then get contacted by the rightful owner?

This channel is amazing and the Quality of every video is 10/10

For all the Strat players out there, the back plate middle screws should be at an angle, right screw hole should be about an inch higher then the adjacent left one. I’ve seen tons of people taking fender necks and putting them on Squier bodies 😅

There seems to have been some shanagans on Reverb. So I just asked the seller to send me a quick picture of him holding the guitar. He did and I paid immediately. I now have a lovely new to me guitar.

About 12 years ago I bought a right handed PRS custom 24, 10 top, without the certificate and paid about £100 more than the seller was asking for. I made a 450 mile round trip for it too. However it did the job of helping me to transition from a leftie player (due to injury) and it was worth every penny. Most of my guitars are used (apart from my RK Barnbuster) and now I want to find a cheap partscaster or make my own!

I'm looking at my Orville fotoflame (looking to sell) and wondering how skillful one would have to be to switch the Orville logo to Gibson's, can you please enlighten & was it a good job? And you still looking for Orvilles?

What a fantastic video have a wonderful weekend Alex ❤😊

So I made a partscaster with all Fender parts, what am I to do? Should I sand the logo off the Fender neck?

I'm fortunate that the first time and only time I've bought used gear online was a positive experience. I bought a used Fender Deluxe Lonestar Stratocaster and I love it.

I have a late 50s gibson lg2 acoustic...neck is great still..never had it adjusted ..had it since the 90s.. 👍🤟👍

Great video, just found your channel! What is that “Fender” partscaster? I’m looking for something along those lines I think

Very good video, good guy!

Two more spot in buying second hand guitar 1. Twisted neck 2. Not functional truss rod

Love that line: “There’s no reason to not be honest.”

The "this guitar was played by x" is the same as martial artists claiming "I learned it from the ancient old man on the mountain". Both claims have the same potential for being authentic. Years ago I was given what looked to be an old Fender blackface strat (obviously modded) that someone found in an attic. Left the guitar to sit for years before I picked it up and started playing. Something felt off. The guitar played well and had good action but was too heavy. The sound was good, but not quite "Fendery/Stratty" enough. Finally decided to give the guitar a proper cleaning and setup. Turned out the body was carved from a single piece of yellow pine and the electronics were all after-market. Upon removing the neck I discovered that there was no serial number stamped into the heel or anywhere else on the neck. Although a decent enough playing instrument, it was obviously a fake. At least I didn't pay anything for it.

Great video!

Your video has some excellent points. Hopefully this causes some shakes in the used market. I’m tired of those big stories that make no sense

Thanks Alex Your expertise is gospel

How do you feel about gear that has been hand built? Specifically name brand DIY pedals? What red flags would that impose? I am in the process of selling a pedal that I built and works as it should. Does selling a diy pedal kit that you build warrant a higher price? or should it be sold for less or equal value to the price of the un built kit? One potential buyer mentioned that the building of a diy kit does not warrant a mark up in price and does not add value to the pedal. Yet, I find that if something is built properly and a buyer is looking for a pre-built pedal it does add value. Maybe I'm the crazy one idk..

I do a lot of mods on damaged guitars working on other people's guitars. However if I do something I am going to sell, I do remove the manufacture's name/logo and put my own label on the guitar. Then I give a full explanation for what the instrument is/was and changes made that make it not original.

Fender stamps the word 'USED' into the wood on the back of headstocks and places a new serial number decal over the old one after it's made illegible. The story that I've heard is that those guitars didn't pass QA for some reason. I would think that electrical issues could be resolved. So that makes me think that there are either esthetic issues or problems with the neck, nut, bridge alignment, or something else that might be difficult or time consuming to address. Any opinions on this topic???

Great video. Solid truth.

I bought a tele that turned out to be a fake fender neck with a 96' squier indonesian tele body. The truss rod was placed in there diagonally, but for now its somewhat play able, and only had fret buzz on the higher frets. Since the guy only asked for €120, i bought it since its fun modding platform

I purchased a used Breedlove dreadnought that's no longer in production. It's all mahogany and it's really a fantastic guitar. Great tone and has sustain for days. BUT, one thing I didn't check and really didn't notice for quite a few days. There's a single fret on the high E string that doesn't fret properly. Fortunately, it's just the one so it didn't set me back TOO much to get that repaired, but since it didn't cross my mind to check them ALL before I made the purchase since the ones I "normally" hit when playing worked fine, -- well, you see where I'm going. CHECK ALL THE FRETS!!

I by pawn shop usually. I bought a lefty Squier Strat standard Previous owner SUPPED it Up SD PICKUPS Bourns pots Fender 5 way Pro soldering. Then bought a Squier Affinity Tele With a set of Rio Grande pickup set . But my best one PEAVEY EVH WG USA 🇺🇸 WITH CASE 😮😮 before his passing. I tripled my investment.

There’s a local shop selling a 70s Epiphone 12 string that the body is pretty beat up but I think it’s salvageable? It’s pretty complete but no idea if the pickups are working. What’s your opinion?

I'm a total newb and this was great info. Thanks. The fake logo sticker thing shocked me. Never occurred to me there would be fake logos. Putting a Fender logo on yes, but not a fake logo! Geez, some folks...

Vintage models exempt. Just cause Gibson put on or in it and you swap out p/u's or bridge, nut to make it better should NOT devalue the instrument! All my Gibson L/P's have no pick guard ( the wood is gorgeous and that's a piece of plastic Gibson installed back in the 50's! ) All my pick ups have been exchanged, nut improved, professional luthier setups! One of mine had to replace the tuners, so less money, absurd! No touring professional guitar player plays an off the shelf Les paul. mine as well as their's are not worth less money cause there not as set from factory! People who want off the shelf all factory original are collectors not players! My only regret is I didn't keep my 70's Z28 all original! 2005 Swamp ash, 2013 Gary Moore. ( these two came without a pick guard, good call Gibson) 2019 tribute, 57 PAF Classics with other mods. Who wouldn't, given the chance, to buy Doug Aldrich L/P? It's NOT factory!

So I have a lower end squire jazz bass I was thinking about buying some nicer fender noiseless pickups.

Last year I was in a pawn shop in Nashville and while waiting to get waited on, I overheard this salesperson trying to snow this unsuspecting lady (who was looking for an Xmas present for her kid) that a Fender Strat she was looking at once belonged to Johnny Cash. I HAD to jump in and inform that lady that it was obviously a fake and Johnny Cash NEVER used Strats. She walked out and I was escorted out. Oh well, I at least saved her some grief.

what about partscasters with real, licenced fender necks, like the ones you can get from stewmac?

Thanks for going over artist-owned guitars, I see this all the time, and it always makes me wonder why people think a guitar the was owned or played by x-artist from some mildy famous group 20 years ago is worth 10x what the guitar is worth. Fluff documents this kind of thing on his Ridiculous Reverb Segment all the time, and in the camp of “who cares?”. I like the guitar for what the instrument itself is, I don’t care that a famous artist owned it. There are tens of thousands of guitars that have been owned by famous musicians and it never impresses me, but the prices you see these things listed at let’s you know how much value some of these people think that brings to the table. I also like your take on a seller who knows better disclosing what they can about gear and the fact that an honest person won’t sacrifice their rep for a few $s

you are good guy !!! I like your videos !!!!

I agree and totally concur with everything you said

I mostly go for sound feel and playability- names scan be a good source but im not interested in paying for extra name recognition on its own

100% agree to walk if you suspect someone is being dishonest. Before I seriously engage with any seller, I send a message asking a benign or simple question just to see how they reply. If they fail to address my question appropriately, I'm usually done right there. If someone doesn't care enough to answer your questions, they don't care if you have positive experience or they are withholding information. Both bad.

If I make a partscaster exclusively from official Fender parts and/or from Fender-licensed manufacturers, should I still try to remove the logo from the headstock? I’ve replaced I bunch of the parts on my squire for original Fender branded parts, and have considered replacing the body and neck as well over time, not to trick anyone but just as a fun project (And yeah I know I could have just bought a genuine Fender for the same cost as the parts combined, but that’s not as fun)

ALWAYS ask if the neck is straight and if the truss rod works (in both directions!)

Personally, the best experiences I have had with used gear is buying midrange guitars/basses with mods done aftermarket. 2/3 of my experiences doing this, the mods are things that have badly improved the performance of the instruments. My guess is these are the instruments people but when they are starting to get more serious about playing and they will want to improve that gear as they improve before they finally upgrade to higher end stuff.

That shop is gear heaven. No contest.

Note or request the serial number. Generally, you’ll be able to find when and where a guitar was made. Or, you may find that the serial number doesn’t check out. Also, it can differentiate between price levels of guitars of the same brand, such as between a Squire Classic Vibe and a cheaper Affinity.

I’ve been buying most of my gear used for over fifty plus years. When I was in undergrad university I used to buy and sell all types of gear. It helped me learn a lot and assist my tuition’

any interest in ,,a hofner violin bass, pot code 393 (electrics done sep 63) paul mac"S was 283 (july63) that code means 39th week of 63)

I changed out the strap buttons with strap loks on my fender bass. Does that mean it’s been modified. Or is that really meaningless

i heard that some majo factories make new guitars look old

I have to agree with you on your point about your reputation. I move gear on Reverb from time to time more as a hobby and I have no problem, Refunding a customer for legit issue that we didn’t know about or they discovered. I’m not going to be that guy, who’s gonna give a customer a hard time over one piece of gear. It’s not worth it. Helping people get what they want is one of the great keys to success.

Thnx for a great educational video. If its to good to be real its not real. Great to see this generation right on the money.

Great info, I prefer used over new but there's more and more scams out there

I suggest doing your homework if your buying a used guitar. I see used guitars priced as much if not more than if it were new at guitar shows. I don’t think all are trying to be dishonest, just don’t conclude they know what they are doing when pricing. Some are shocked when I look it up and show them the guitar is selling the same or less brand new

I saw a squier bullet strat with 1 hum for sale. The kid that owned it put stickers ALL OVER it including a few on the fret board. I believe this bullet is abt 20 years old. I want to get it for my grandson an take all the stickers off. I ha e good off for the body but what would I used for the fret board. The guitar is 100.

Yeah, I’m not necessarily disagreeing with you on the logo thing. I have put a period correct Fender logo on my Squier Strat after paint and ‘65 pickups in it. However, it’s just for me not to resell. And if it somehow does leave my hands, the original serial number and original year and make has been handwritten and sealed under the finish on the heel of the neck.

My biggest red flag is when some dude starts talking about neck resets right away…

Les Paul style guitars that are made oby other manufacturers other than Gibsons and Epiphone are cool! And good quality from what I can see. Like the Orville you mentioned.

I want your tube lamp 😉

Great vid Alex. There are some shonky bastards out there, fact. And there's NO WAY, I'd EVER buy a guitar because it had been 'looked at', by that famous bloke, Blort Flengle, of the Ducks Nuts. I just WON'T do that. I buy a guitar to play, not idolise. I talked a mate of mine out of a J45, Slash model, it was over a grand premium. Not a chance. Keep up the good work.

man those les pauls in the intro where was that ?

Man when certain Japanese sellers on eBay lie and don't tell people the truth that a guitar their buying is coming from Japan but made in China /Korea/Taiwan/Korea/etc

Are you aloud to sell a squier with a fender neck?

I built a few Partcasters over the years but with Licensed Mighty Mite necks and Fender bodies, I think there is no issue with putting a Fender logo on licensed parts.

I would find it bewildering to try to determine 100% original equipment (Strat pickups, for example) when there is such sheer volume of available aftermarket parts.

If someone won't let you take the neck off a old Fender to see the no.s, walk away 😊

I've seen guitars for sale, and I feel sceptical when they are describing the guitar , and end it with a ? That leads me to believe they are to pull a fast one.

I love when people say the guitar is tuned when they post it for sale.

As to partscasters, they are either built well by veteran musicians enough to go head to head with premium brands.....or they are built by amateurs. My modded monoprice tele is excellent- and I'd only hand it off to someone who'd appreciate it on my deathbed. You're taking a gamble with most partscasters. Better to buy budget Brand with a decent neck and mod it to your specs.

Many form fitting cases , warp a neck Had a V in original case , I ripped the neck rest out . When you closed the case , it would back bow the neck . Take the guitar out , and out of tune every time, then would settle in Drove me NUTS till I realized it !

Yes.

good article

Thanks for the enthusiasm, my downfall was a 94 LP std prem plus,when That guitar played a cowboy G the tone was god Worthy to the point I traded 2 LPs for it plus I got some cash. I wish I had been more dedicated because that guitar could take you on a musical journey, it sits with my other coffins.Has anyone ever uad that experience with a guitar. My LP has a 50s style neck. Now its not a 59 but for tone and tenor I will put This instrument up to anything...Does this have any no thing to do with who be set up the instrument at the factory or is this just one in of the good ones?? Think what you want! This LP has has tone your LP will never have, its like this guitar plays itself in and makes you go where you only dream about.I need yo give it up so sombody can take this instrument where it belongs,Iam older now and fucking lazy.I believe this guitar can take someone to stardom and beyond,I look now I sound crazy but once you hear instrument it will take you ovet,, thanks for letting me let it all out.....LP std prem plus Honeyburst it has a blank truss rod cover excellent condition,my other babys LP 77 std Goldtop excellent condition,LP Classic reissue 60s neck,non drilled top. Gretch 59 Silver Jet,52 Tele reissue 1989, JACKSON RR1, others , Marshall tube amps MESA BOOGIE TRIPLE RECTIFYET

About 8 years ago I walked into a small shop and saw a Les Paul Custom hanging on the wall. Before I got to it I could tell it was a fake.

There are certain years for Fender and Gibson where the stock parts are shit. I have a 1980 Les Paul Standard and the original pickups and tuners were shit. I put on Seymour Duncan 59s and most recent Gibson "vintage" tuners and have the originals if I ever sell it. But I can't imagine anyone ever hearing and choosing to reinstall the original pickups. Fender and Gibson had bad cost-cutting years.

I could care less who played it unless I can channel their talent.

I once bought Jon Voight’s guitar

Your "Fake Fender" has 23 frets. I have never seen a 23 fretted guitar before. That in itself should at least bump up the price by about $3, at least!