The love of your life.

blazer · Post by **blazer** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 3:42 pm

Let's talk about that single guitar that means the most to you, the treasured one, the one that you wouldn't borrow to anybody not even if they offered you a thousand bucks.

In my case that honor goes to "The Veteran" which is a 1989 Squier Stratocaster in Lipstick red.
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/guitarman91/My%20musical%20instruments/Veteranrestored.jpg

I bought this guitar new on my fifteenth' birthday back in 1991 to replace a cheap Telecaster copy with an Yngwie Malmsteen approved scalloped neck, the damn thing just wouldn't stay in tune. I knew I wanted a strat and I had saved up enough money to buy myself a Squier, the shop from which I bought it carried Squiers in Black and in white, only one example came in red and I bought it. This particullar shade of Red was apparently a rare color for squier because I haven't seen another one since. The Squier became my main guitar as I started gigging with it almost the day after I got it.

Later as I entered my final teen years and passed the 20 mark in age I began to experiment with the guitar, it became all covered up in stickers and I eventually began replacing the stock single coils for something more powerful, putting in several Humbuckers in the bridge position before settling on a Dimarzio DLX soapbar pickup, leaving the empty holes where the neck and middle pickup sat vacant. And I replaced the original neck (I never really liked the profile of that neck anyway) with a Telecaster neck and to keep the sweetheart in tune I installed a Kahler vibrato. In that guise "The Veteran" survived for many years.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/guitarman91/Ikmetgitaar.jpg
Here I am playing "The Veteran" live. December 2004

Last year I decided to clean "The Veteran" up, I removed all the stickers, replaced the pickguard and put the neck and middle pickups back in.
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/guitarman91/TheVeteran.jpg

But wear and tear began to rear their ugly heads and it became apparent that the old faithful was ready to retire. So I brought her back to strat hood by installing a 1985 Squier Strat neck, replacing the Dimarzio with a single coil and wiring it all up like a Strat is supposed to be wired. I did keep the Kahler vibrato, loving the smooth way it worked and the way it kept my guitar in tune.

So as a tribute, I made a matching copy of "The Veteran" using the Dimarzio and a similar Kahler bridge. A playable snapshot of "The Veteran" as it looked with the tele neck. I routed the body myself it became a real labour of love, the resulting guitar got the nickname "The Rookie"
http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e22/guitarman91/My%20musical%20instruments/P1010098.jpg

But "The Rookie" didn't replace "The Veteran" as my main guitar as I intended it to do, my red Epiphone Les Paul did that.

Just today, I came home and I noticed that "The veteran" was missing from the stand, suspecting my younger brother (Who also is my next door neighbour) who owns a key to my appartment, knew more of it, I decided to check things out ant his place, and sure enough, there it was. Before I walked out with "The Veteran" I told him:

"Look, if you want to borrow a guitar please ask me first and second, you can borrow any guitar you want from me EXCEPT the red one, NOBODY but me touches that guitar, understood?"

fatcat · Post by **fatcat** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:01 pm

My favourite guitar has to be my Rick, a McGuinn ltd.If I only wore one guitar all night, it would be the one, and it has served that way.

sloop_john_b · Post by **sloop_john_b** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:27 pm

My Rickenbacker 4003 (See "Dale Fortune 4003-to-4001 project" thread in Vibrola forum).

As far as guitars, if I had to reach for one, it'd probably be my 330 w/ Accent Vibrato.

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 4:28 pm

Mine was my first good bass. I got it in 1986 & it's been through countless gigs.
I actually couldn't let someone borrow it.
The brother of a friend of the original owner wanted to borrow it for a night & I just couldn't do it. There was no reason to think anything would happen to it, but I couldn't bear the thought of not being able to play it anymore.
It's a 1976, never had the rods adjusted...there is still a small dab of red paint on the truss rod nuts.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 5:44 pm

Mine seems to always be "the next one". And I never can part with 'em once I get 'em. Heck, I have a tough time parting with the ones I do for customers!

Right now, It's a tossup between the 75th bass and the BB 325/12 that Mike Parks sent along last week. Both are gorgeous and superb players, too. Pics soon.

And, as the first acoustic nears completion (Aquaglo 700C), I have to say I'm truly gonna miss it...

Separation trauma. Next come Night Terrors.

Yikes!

jdogric12 · Post by **jdogric12** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 6:04 pm

Easy. My Epiphone Casino, for sentimental reasons. It was the first non-**** guitar I bought, and used it extensively from 1996-1999 with my college-time swing band, the Tri City Trio. (There were four of us.)

That guitar was a real workhorse, and I've had a lot of "small" work done to it. Numerous setups, finally settled on very low action with D'addy Chrome .012 strings, and replaced all the elecs with good American (no offense foreigners) parts. It has the factory "Bisgby" style Epi vibrato and is that cool baby blue turquoise finish.

There is even a cool story behind the original purchase. I walked into "STORE A" and they had this exact guitar, but with serious finish flaws on the headstock. I said, "Come on, it's messed up!!! How much?" They quoted a very low price. I drove down to "STORE B" and said "look, store A is selling it for X amount of dollars. are you going to let them get away with that?"

Store B had a numbnut that said, "Sure we'll hook you up, man!!!" So I got the same guitar with no flaws for a "flawed" price. Same finish and vibrato, everything. Case too.

A few years later, I was expanding the collection to boost the Rick count, and sold the Casino to someone I thought was my friend. He was a slimeball I knew since 5th grade. That didn't stop him from avoiding paying me the money he owed me for wedding videography work... to the tune of... $11 less than I paid for the Casino.

I saw an opportunity to get the guitar back, and was happy to lose $11, because today I still own that wonderful guitar. I am looking at it right now, here in humble One Room Records, as I post this text.

melibreits · Post by **melibreits** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 6:05 pm

The love of my life?

As far as guitars go, it's a toss-up between my 700 Comstock and my beloved Purpleburst 330.... I will never, ever part with either one. All of my Rics are special, but those two are irreplaceable to me.

freshmattyp · Post by **freshmattyp** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 6:09 pm

I have 2, the Fireglo 330 I bought in 1994 to celebrate finally graduating from college and a Martin D15 my wife bought me the first Christmas we were married.

wmthor · Post by **wmthor** » Thu Oct 12, 2006 7:23 pm

I also have two special ones that were both Christmas presents from my Mom. I was given a acoustic at Christmas, 1965 and it was stolen the following summer. I didn't play guitar again until I was given my second guitar, a MIM Strat at Christmas, 1996.

At the time, I was recovering from a surgery and couldn't walk for about three weeks. That Strat and I bonded even if was a right-handed one. I had it flipped and played a-la Hendrix until I bought a lefty Strat in 2001. Afterwards, I returned it to it's right-handed state and now keep it for family and friends to use if they stop by without a guitar.

All three of my lefty Rics are special in their own sort of way. The 360 was my first lefty and the 360/12 CW was paid for with casino winnings. However, the 1997 RI is really special. I found it at a shop in Houston (not Southpaws) where it had been sitting for three years. The story I was given is that someone had ordered it and then passed away before the guitar came in.

I didn't walk out of the store with it and wasn't really surprised when it wasn't there the next time I was at the shop. However, I was surprised on Christmas morning (1999) when it was sitting in a 6 foot stocking that my Mom had stuffed it into. She had gone back to the store and bought the week after I first saw it.

It is my #1 go-to guitar.

1997 RI with a bunch of other makes.

loverickbass · Post by **loverickbass** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 3:42 am

I trade and sell alot of guitars, but the one that will always be there is my 381/12 signed by Roger McGuinn and "fixed" by Mark Arnquist. Very Special insturment.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v464/loverickbass/IM002661.jpg

Cole

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 4:24 am

for many years this was THE bass for me ...
http://www.3dentourage.com/425/68-ric-2.htm

now I play 5 strings ...
http://www.3dentourage.com/425/98-4004ci5.htm
http://www.3dentourage.com/425/1990%204003s5%20mg.htm

and I build my own basses
http://www.3dentourage.com/425/c5pbass.htm
http://www.3dentourage.com/425/fender-bird2.htm

admin · Post by **admin** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 4:34 am

I love your five string conversions Jeff. What would a 4005/5 look like?

tony_carey · Post by **tony_carey** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:22 am

I've had loads of great gtrs, but nothing that's really stuck. I like good players & there are plenty of those out there, so I'm not actualy precious about any of my gtrs....they all have a price & then you can have a lot of fun finding the next player!

teeder · Post by **teeder** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:23 am

The love of my life? Here's the youngest at her first birthday Oct 10th.

As guitars go, I guess I'd have to say my '65 Jazz Bass. It's been in the family for 30 years, and mine since 1989. I've thought about selling a couple time, but every time I pick it up I come to my senses.

In a couple weeks I'll see how this one stacks up!

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:50 am

Peter: ... a 4005 4-2-5 ...

it would look like this ...