I was just thinking about this a couple days ago lol.
Fender Strat. Bought new late 80's...ish???? I think????

Still have it. Did a custom paint job and pick guard on it. Sadly it's been a good 13 years since the last time I touched it much less played just in general. I still do love the guitar tho, and I still drool over new ones on the occasions I wander through a music store.

At this point tho, it's more that I own a guitar vs I play guitar.

Last time I tried to actually play something....well...it is most definitely a perishable skill lol

My first was a Peavey Tracer electric guitar. It had a single coil at the neck and humbucker at the bridge. The local guitar shop was a small dealer so they didn't carry the big brands. Played this guitar for many years. Ended up sanding the black finish off and kept it a natural color. Had an EMG single coil active pickup put in the neck position and that thing sounded awesome. Left for the Army years later and never knew what my dad did with that guitar. He said he thought I took it. He probably sold it in a garage sale and forgot about it. I'm sure somewhere in this house, after many moves thanks to the military, I still have the cover to the truss rod access.

The one that I wish I never had gotten rid of: Martin 000-16GT which I bought used around 2003 or so for $550. Don't remember why I sold it but if it was anything like selling guns or guitars, it was to buy another one.

quote:

Originally posted by just1tym:
This was 1964...

I wonder what event happened in 1964 that seemed to spike kids wanting to play the guitar...

quote:

Originally posted by mark123:
I got a Cort Flying V from Sears on my 15th birthday.

I had the Explorer version, in gloss white, with (ahem) built-in effects.

Very first, dad bought me a red lacquered acoustic from the small town store. Killed my fingers.

Not sure if it was me, or the neck action.

In high school I was in a band that did sweaty, crowded basement keggers, and did a backyard
gig where the crowd lit an old wood console TV on fire. Guess the mostly punk crowd didn't like metal.
Even did a gig in a hall at a bowling alley.

Still have that Epiphone Flying V. My buddy had a beautiful Fender Strat Plus.
The V was just fine for a rhythm guitarist, and his Strat was sooo silky to play
but not really suited to rhythm (we did a lot of covers of Metallica and Slayer).

I've been window shopping for an ESP. Kind of a pricey axe when I was a teen and have
been reminiscing about George Lynch.

Bought this in 1983. 1970 lefty ES335 TD.

Back in the mid 60's I bought a Conrad electric, because it looked the best,and a Gibson Hawk amplifier.

After all the years of playing what were some of your favorite combos? Over the 40 years of playing some of my favorites were this 1965 Strat. Additionally I ended with a small collection of blackface Fenders also.



Though, out of all the electrics the top of my list was my 59' Historic Reissue that had the Gibson factory "Killer top" designation. I had original 58' and 59' PAF's installed along with vintage pots and caps. It was a magnificent playing and vintage sounding guitar above all else. If I could've kept just one, it would've been this LP.

Magnificent, Will, both of them (or all 3).

ETA: I’m sorry you’re unable to continue to play

quote:

Originally posted by kz1000:
Bought this in 1983. 1970 lefty ES335 TD.

Nice to see another lefty onboard!

quote:

Nice to see another lefty onboard!

What about the Lefty Guru?

quote:

Originally posted by TMats:
Magnificent, Will, both of them (or all 3).

ETA: I’m sorry you’re unable to continue to play

Thanks so much TMats, yea stuff happens, and nobody's exempt from these calamities, I'm still blessed to just have these photos of some of the best times and look forward to more good things to come God willing. My only real regret is not having the foresight to have taken more photo's throughout the years of all my guitars, and the endless hours spent playing them. To each and all guitarists I say jam on and enjoy it all!


Oh, and for anybody who may have an interest here's a page of 1999 Gibson factory Killer Tops, I'm not quite certain but I think mine may be the second one but the wood grain will change depending on the angle and light.

>>>Link Killer Tops

quote:

What about the Lefty Guru?

Was Jimi a forum member?

I had a couple of garage sale/basket case strat copies. My first "good" guitar was a Kay black "Les Paul"

I have an older Epiphone 56 Gold Top and recently picked a Schecter Synyster Gates Diamond Series Custom to go with my new Orange CR60.

Just wish my skill level was commensurate with the 35 years or so of loving and playing the guitar.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Marcushoss,

I have two basses and two guitars. Hopefully, one day, I'll be able to play at least one of them.

My first was a bass guitar - a Spector NSQ4. Got it almost 20 years ago!


My first 6-string guitar was an Epiphone Les Paul Standard Pro Plus. Got it this summer when I decided I wanted to learn to play guitar.


I also have a Spector Euro 4lt, and a Fender American Ultra Stratocaster. The Euro was something of a dream bass that I treated myself to. The Strat I picked up after some discussion here, and as the forum promised, I love it.

I enjoy all my instruments most thoroughly. I think I love the Strat most of all, though. It feels so natural to play, and I love the single coil sound with just a little overdrive on it. If I'm in the mood to make some noise, I usually grab the Strat first.

It was an “F hole” acoustic. Either Kaye or Silvertone. Horrible action.

just1tym,

Please send me an e-mail to the e-mail in my profile.

I started taking lessons in 1968 and I was using a guitar that my dad had borrowed from a co-worker - it was a Gibson - don't remember the particular model but I think my parents have some photos of me with the guitar - I should probably get a copy of them

For you guys who are Hendrix fans, and/or lefties, if you haven't heard of the man, check out Eric Gales!

I located a snap from my last and favorite blackface amp, the 65' Fender Deluxe Reverb. It was actually the last one I parted with. This one had a 12" JBL in the cab and sounded great. The only thing I have left still was suppose to be a last restore is my Ampeg Gemini I. I was going to restore all the electrics, tubes and speaker but leave the cab with it's old smokey grill cloth just to keep the vintage flavor. I loved the old Ampegs as much as I did the Fenders, they always seemed to have such a great reverb channel though they marketed it as echo channels I was always drawn to that flavor of tone. In all my years of playing and collections of amps I never owned a Marshall. Many of my friends did though. And the last memory of my blackface twin that was a backbreaker was loaded with 2-12" Altecs, that was a heavy little sucker that I preferred to roll on it's castors because it was heavy for a Fender. Likely because the magnets on the Altecs tipped the scales. It was definitely the loudest amp of all the Fenders. I had 2 bass cabs custom built to stack it on, I think I got that idea from a outdoor Ted Nugent concert where his flavor was the twins stacked on bass bottoms if I remember, it was long ago.

I was also reminiscing that old pic in the OP and remember that I loaded that old Silvertone with medium gauge flat wound strings. I didn't have a lot of experience with guitars but I remember how those flat wound med cables built up the calluses. At one point the calluses were so thick they had string lines left in the calluses. Many years later a lot of my friends would mix their flavors of favorite string gauges but I settled on setting up light gauge packs they lasted a little longer than ex-lights and bending strings were tolerable on the electrics, a bit more so than on the Martins.

A ton of good memories still come back in the quiet moments that I still have that I cannot shake, what great days and good friends...anyways.

The 65' Deluxe Reverb, a mint one at that.



And the only one I have left sitting gathering dust under a bunch of junk in my guest room. I still have the schematics that I purchased thru Ampeg and just never had the heart to just toss it. These days I don't even have the strength to lift it so it just sits.

Seeing how I already posted a "younger me" image in the OP I'll toss out the "young adult me" at late teens stringing up the Martin D-28 at the channel 2 studio here where my buddy Tim who played a 59' D-18 was a producer and director. We would go into the studio and record using the studio mixers and sound boards. Those days were spent with a mix of college classes in the mornings, going to the beach playing our guitars, and some late night studio jams at channel 2.

Stringing up my very early 70' D-28, what an amazing sounding acoustic!



Sadly I never took a photo of my later HD-35 where I also purchased my D-28. This price was in the 90's and compared to the current pricing of over $3,000 now, I almost feel like I got a deal. It was a very nice Martin but as I was telling another member here, the D-28 was one of the best sounding Martins I owned and eclipsed the HD-35 easily.



Just nostalgia..