Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

[Mincer]

about 18 years ago, a collector I knew bought a prototype Late '53 (!?!) Strat. I know it didn't come out till 54 (what all the books say), but it had Leo Fender's handwriting and date all over it. In fact the guitar was shipped to Leo himself, who confirmed his handwriting, remembered that guitar as one of the prototypes, and confirmed the year with his own records. He sent it back with a letter and picture with it.

I gotta tell you, this guitar was quite rough! Not refined like they were a year later- the neck was a like a bat sawed in half and roughly shaped, and the pickups were early prototypes as well. The guitar was pretty beat up, and played terribly, but of course no one wanted to change that.

no idea of what this would go for on the market, as the collector didn't tell me how much he paid. I guess it was cool from an historic standpoint, but as an instrument, it was awful!

 

[nuntius]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

My guitar teachers tele.

It's the only one this guy built, and the flame on the neck makes a lot of high end US guitars look ordinary... I'll have to get pics of it one day. That'd be the rarest coz theres only one

Most expensive would probably be some PRS...

 

[Rainmaker]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

Most expensive: An ESP KH-2... around 5000 Aussie. Didn't like it either!

Rarest? None.

 

[DirrtyCraig]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I own a pretty rare guitar. My '89 PRS CE 24. I bought from the guitar player in Humble Pie back in '91 or so in Cleveland. The oringal Humble Pie Drummer Jerry Shirley or something like did a local DJ gig at a radio station, so those guys always played around town. My band opened for them and I got to talking to the guitar player and he was selling a bunch of gear because he got some endorsement deal with another company,,

ANyway,, so my PRS supposedly was built as a backup for Sanatana. It was a prototype in '86, sat around the factory for 3 years and was completed in '89. Its rare in the sense that it has a 3-way toggle like Santanas guitars do and crem & black custom wound pickups. No CE's ever had the toggle or those pickups ever. It also is black sunburst which was not a color option for Ce's.

I was lucky enough to have dinner with Paul Reed Smith himself once,, and I tried to confirm all this with him, and he said He remembered the guitar but Sanatana never actually played it or used it and probably never even saw it as they built him many guitars before he chose his signature model style. I had PRS sign the back of the headstock and still play the guitar regularly.

 

[jmh151]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I haven't played anything like a '53 Strat, but last week I was on 48th street in NYC and went into Rudy's Music and met Rudy Pensa, owner of Pensa guitars. Hell of a nice guy, and let me demo many of his guitars which cost upwards of $3,000. Beautiful guitars, but I can't see paying that much for a guitar

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

'65 strat with rosewood board or a 54 LP w/ P90's

 

[xerxes]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I haven't played anything like a '53 Strat, but last week I was on 48th street in NYC and went into Rudy's Music and met Rudy Pensa, owner of Pensa guitars. Hell of a nice guy, and let me demo many of his guitars which cost upwards of $3,000. Beautiful guitars, but I can't see paying that much for a guitar

i have never actually walked into rudy's but i have walked past. mann i wanna go in. but i think i would have a heart attack.

 

[NecroPolo]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

The most famous axe I've ever played was the Fender Custom Shop Fender Precision of the Jon Bon jovi bassist Alec John Such. It was on many videos and can be seen in lots of shows. It is quite a raw, heavy sounding black beast with chrome pickguard. AFAIN there are only 3 in the world with the same specs: Duff McKagan owns the one and Tom Hamilton the other.

The most expensive axe? I've played a couple of PRS Custom Shop guitars at the studio, owned by the sound engineer guy there. They were magnificent but not my cup of T. I played a strange Gibson Les Paul in Frankfurt that had a yellow VW Beetle painted & carved out of it, I guess it is pretty rare and expensive. An another time, at a luthier there was his restored Bobcat jazz guitar I had the luck and honor to play a littlebit. I don't know too much about it, I guess it's from the '40s or early '50s. The proud owner inherited it from his father and just said "as much as a Rolls Royce" for the value.

 

[Luke Duke]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

Rarest guitar would probably be my 1964 Gibson 330. I looked up the numbers shortly after I got it and that year there were x made in a 2 pup configuartion but only 16 330 TDCs were made and my guess is of those 16 mine is the only one with a bigsby, block inlays, and nickel pup covers. 64 was the changeover year to blocks (so I'm sure some had dots) but the nickel covers did not become standard equipment till a year later. Considering it's a jazz guitar I'm guessing most were just trapeze tailpiece. Most I've seen on ebay are.

My dad's LP is pretty unique too it dates to 69 but is a delxue with the volute on the back of the headstock which didn't come out for another year or two. I wonder if it might be the first of the breed? His plays and sounds better than almost any other lp of the era I've heard or played.

Most expensive would probably be a PRS, old Gibson accoustic, or old Martin accoustic.

I once played a 1938 Gibson mandolin too. It oozed mojo.

Luke

 

[Hellion]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

Most expensive instrument I've played was a friend's Turner Model 1 (Lindsey Buckingham guitar). His was a one off, as well, so I guess that makes it the rarest as well. That thing was amazing. Played like butter and sounded like God.

 

[seafoamer]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I had an archtop built for me that I sold to a doctor in Texas for $16,800.00.

 

[aestus]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

My friend's Gretsch 60's Country gentleman (i think it was a country gentleman) with original Filtertron pickups, and real Ivory binding and inlays.

 

[jmh151]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

i have never actually walked into rudy's but i have walked past. mann i wanna go in. but i think i would have a heart attack.

Rudy's is probably the best guitar store in NY. I recently upgraded the pickups on my Ibanez and needed an SSL-1 for the middle position. I went to every guitar store on Long Island and NYC, the only guitar store rhar had a SSL-1, and anything else I could possibly need, was Rudy's.

He has some VERY expensive guitars there, it's a boutique place, but he always has the best of the best.

Rudy's a great guy too if you ever meet him. Just based upon meeting him i'd save up and buy one of his guitars.

 

[B2D]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

Rarest and Most Expensive axes B2D has laid his filthy paws on:

'63 Strat with a Candy Green/Gold flake Finish. - A customer brought this into GC one time and that day the Fender Rep happened to be there. After examination of some dings we found this green/gold flake paint was in the original. The owner of the guitar bought the instrument when he was 12 as a new guitar and had never refinned it... so this put the guitar's value at about $10,000.

1959 Gibson Les Paul Sunburst Std. - You know the one. Owned by one of the luthiers for Tyler Guitars. If there was ever a Holy Grail for electric guitars as far as sound, feel, and looks this was it.

Fender P-Bass #25 - The 25th production Fender P-Bass ever produced. The saddles were carved antler, rather than metal. I've seen other P-Basses (#45 and #62) from this period with the same saddles but this was the only one i got to play, obviously. The owner bought it in 1975 and just wanted a new case for it.

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

Lefty PRS Custom 22....For a lefty,this is a pretty rare guitar...LOL

John

 

[BluesNRock87]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

1939 Martin (forget model) - oh man that thing is sweet, my friends grandfather gave it to him
1968 Martin (again forget model) - another jem, in better condition, sounds just as sweet, only played it once though, friends dad bought it when he was in hs
1969 Guild Starfire IV - great shape, heck of a guitar
1969 Guild 12 String Acoustic (bought w/ the starfire) best 12 ive ever laid hands on

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I've owned a few 50's Les Paul's: '56, '58 & '59.

Two old Teles: '51 and my current '54.

'54, '57 and my current '63 Strat.

'58 ES-335, '60 ES-355, several early 60's ES-335's

All kinds of stuff worth a fortune today that I bought used 30 years ago for $125 to $750!

These days I have my '54 Tele and '63 Strat and that's it for valuable electric guitars.

Lew

 

[Jeffrec]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

1. A mid-'50's sunburst Strat (felt very heavy if I remember correctly)

2. A '58 or '59 Sunburst LP

3. A 1960 335 (natural finish)

4. A slew of old LP Specials and Juniors

5. A few '61/62 LP/SG standards and Juniors

6. Some old Martin's

7. A great old LP Custom ('55 or '56) with the P-90 and Alnico pup.

8. Kim Simmond's '55 or '56 LP Gold Top (until one of the road crew chased me away :laugh2

9. I used to own a mid-'60's Gretsch Tennessean, a 1969 LP Gold Top, and a 1967 SG Standard that I sorely miss. :yell:

Jeff

 

[kevlar3000]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I have a 56 LP Jr. Tons of mojo in that thing. My moms old boyfriend gave it to me a few months back. He bought it in 1969, it was the first guitar I ever played.

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: Rarest guitar you've played? Most expensive?

I played a custom shop Gibson Les Paul owned by Ace Frehley. He used it in a music video my friend helped out with (Ace had multiple ones, so he gave one to one of the music production guys who in return gave it to my friend), it also has the original Gibson PAFs in it and it's probably THE most amazing guitar I have ever heard.