Rick with a Bigsby

[wittyair]

I'd like to get everyone's opinion. I've come across ( OK, bought ) a very nice 340 in one of my favorite colors.....Montezuma Brown. It's a beautiful guitar but for some reasons beyond my comprehension the previous owner had a Bigsby installed. The installation was done very well so it looks natural. Does the Bigsby detract bigtime from the value of the guitar? Would you leave it like it is or try to remove/repair the guitar. I respect this forum's opinion.
Thanks
Craig Witty

[jcreasy]

Leave it. I don't think it detracts from the value.

JKC

[goofyfoot]

Wittyair.... A Bigsby vibrato tailpiece would come in handy for me. I know I would use it. Leave it on, IMHO. It would not detract from the 340/6 MB's value if I was looking at it. Play on, play often. Regards....G-foot.

[jdogric12]

Here's my thoughts. There are different things to consider here. Its a somewhat 'regular' production model, although the 3rd pu option was just discontinued, so that shifts it over to the 'collectible' side. Also, the COY makes it more collectible. So we're racking up collector points as opposed to player points. The Bigsby doesn't hurt the value drastically. What would be worse is if you removed it and the holes were visible. Even with repair, it's likely you'd see the marks and that would be bad. If you like the guitar, like the Bigsby, and plan to keep it, you should have nothing to worry about leaving it as is. Congrats! it sounds cool.

[squid]

Do you know what model of Bigsby is installed? Is it the B5 (the one that mounts to the top of the guitar)? That's the normal arrangement.

Some folks would pay extra for a guitar with a vibrato installed. It shouldn't really be a hinderance if you choose to sell it. You might just have to wait a bit longer to find your buyer. I think it sounds pretty cool, myself.

Someone's sort of made the decision for you, haven't they? Having purchased the guitar, you now get the benefit of playing the heck out of it without the "should I or shouldn't I" debate. That's a nice luxury to have.

[wittyair]

Thanks everybody....I knew I could count on the forum. The Bigsby stays!

[squid]

See? Now that looks pretty rock 'n roll! One thing I rarely see done is to see one of the other Bigsby handles installed. There's one of them (I think it's the "Duane Eddy" handle) that's a little sleeker than stock. I don't know if it swings out of the way, though.

[jcreasy]

I'll give you a little more detailed reply now that I have the time and have seen the guitar... Absolutely leave it. Ricks look so modern and sleek (particularly the 340, 350 and 325). To my eye, at least, the Bigsby doesn't... But for some reason, it just looks cool on a Rick. I've previously seen them on 325 and 350's and one 360... Looked cool on those but never a 330/340... Looks great on your guitar.

All of that is aesthetics anyways... Now you get to pay with a tremolo, which can be fun.

JKC