Is color choice that big a deal when it comes to resale?

Richard Plummer · Post by **Richard Plummer** » 6 Jun 2002 7:30 pm

Ok here goes.If a person knew down the road that he was going to sell a guitar he bought new,but wanted something different than black or rosewood,what colors would be acceptable in the quick sale catagory?Would the midnite blue be in that catagory?I dont in any way want a teal or plum or pink,but I hope you all get the drift of where I am going here.Bobbie Seymour I would also like your opinion as well as other dealers such a Duane at Duanes music.I dont want to be in the same boat as last time,having a 4 month old Emmons that was teal and having to drop the price to unheard of prices to get rid of it.I would love to get input from all.

Rick Collins · Post by **Rick Collins** » 6 Jun 2002 8:37 pm

...white. One day all steelers will wise-up and there will be nothing, but white guitars.

Smiley Roberts · Post by **Smiley Roberts** » 7 Jun 2002 12:16 am

Okay Richard,if your gonna sell one,make sure it ain't PURPLE,or you'll get "ragged" by one forumite in particular. Now,I'm not gonna mention any names,but his initials are M-I-K-E W-E-I-R-A-U-C-H !!!

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mm vita brevis
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Mike Weirauch · Post by **Mike Weirauch** » 7 Jun 2002 4:57 am

......And I thought you liked the color purple! Oh, that was just the movie!

Earl Foote · Post by **Earl Foote** » 7 Jun 2002 5:32 am

Color does matter when trying to sell a steel. I have a loaded Legrande III SD-10 that I put in buy and sell some time back. It is burgandy. Under flourescent lighting it looks like something other than burgandy. I listed the guitar for $1800 which is a great deal for this steel. All I got were e-mails from people that more or less said if the guitar was black they would buy it. I still have it just in case any of you "color blind" steelers are interested

[This message was edited by Earl Foote on 07 June 2002 at 06:33 AM.]

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 7 Jun 2002 6:10 am

It appears as tough the fastest selling guitars on the used market other than Natural Woodgrain, Black and Rosewood, are Natural Woodgrain ,Black and Rosewood . Not that there's anything wrong with that...
tp

Reggie Duncan · Post by **Reggie Duncan** » 7 Jun 2002 6:59 am

My first Emmons was a rosewood, and my second was black. Sold them both, and then bought the Rosewood back.

Greg Vincent · Post by **Greg Vincent** » 7 Jun 2002 7:08 am

Reggie

Is that a limerick?

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 7 Jun 2002 8:01 am

It's not a limerick but would work for a Hallmark card:

"Sho-Buds are red,
Emmons are black.
Get a Push-Pull
And you'll never look back."

As for limericks, I'm still working on "A steel man who came from Nantucket..."

Hey! How about some steel guitar haiku?

Bought an old push-pull.
Had Mike Cass do a set-up.
All is well onstage.

One thing re: push-pulls.
Raises override lowers.
Wow... no split tuning.

That's my wraparound.
Sorry no, it's not for sale.
You just flipped me off?

Emmons cost too much?
Sho-Bud made from pot metal?
Get a Multi-Kord.

Just intonation
Or equal temperament.
Still you're out of tune.

Four Wheel Drive played fast.
Raising the Dickens picked hot.
Still I'm not Big E.

This stuff weighs too much.
And costs way too many bucks.
Think I'll play kazoo.

Mike Weirauch plants stiffs.
Smiley buys plastic derbys.
Seymour loves them both.

This is b0b's sandbox.
He lets us play here all day.
Only if we're nice.

Five syllables and
Then seven syllables, then
Five more is the form.

Must go practice now.
Got a big show Saturday.
See ya round you guys.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 7 Jun 2002 9:46 am

purple is fine...just not on a zum!

Richard Plummer · Post by **Richard Plummer** » 7 Jun 2002 10:15 am

I really dont know if my question got answered or not.If I got on the forum,and said that I had a midnite blue Emmons legrande 111 8-6,how many would want to buy it?I know that it isnt black,but it is a very dark blue.The way it can be described is a sky at midnite.Not blue but almost a black.Ron Lashle told me it almost looks like it changes colors if you walk around it.I had a cadallic once that was a midnite blue and I liked it.It was hard to tell the difference.I sometimes want something different than the black or rosewood.I am also trying to do alittle bit of troubleshooting to head off color trouble before it starts.

Frank Estes · Post by **Frank Estes** » 7 Jun 2002 10:30 am

I like the color blue, but I would not choose to have my steel guitar that color. My personal favorite "color" for steel guitar is rosewood with black as a close second. Red would probably be another color that would sell easier than others.

Color and cosmetics really do play a big part in the ability to resale.

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Frank Estes - 1978 Emmons D-10 8+6 #2441D

Robert Todd · Post by **Robert Todd** » 7 Jun 2002 10:47 am

Well I don't know but I've been told
It's always the black ones that get sold

Jim Cohen · Post by **Jim Cohen** » 7 Jun 2002 10:47 am

OK, so let's take the survey! Using a scale from 0 to 4, where the definitions are as follows:

0= Definitely Would Not Buy this Color
1= Probably Would Not Buy this Color
2= On the Fence; might or might not buy (depending on price, etc)
3= Consider the color "acceptable" to buy, though not one of my favorites
4= Would Happily Buy this Color

Got it? Okay, so here are the colors:

Black
Rosewood
Dark Blue
Teal
Green
White
Red
Burgundy
Sunburst
Orange
Walnut
Purple
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
For starters, here are my own answers:

Black =4
Rosewood =4
Dark Blue =3
Teal =1
Green =1
White =0
Red =2
Burgundy =3
Sunburst =0
Orange =0
Walnut =2
Purple =0

Mark Herrick · Post by **Mark Herrick** » 7 Jun 2002 10:48 am

OK, if you are buying a guitar with the vision to possibly sell it down the road (I think that's a good plan, by the way), here's my opinion and it's just that...

Mica Guitars:
Stick with a solid, "neutral" color. Dark is probably better. Black is classic. Reds, purples, green, "teal", light blue, and patterns, etc. seem to carry too many personal connotations. The very dark "midnight blue" seems like it would probably sell pretty easily.

Lacquer Guitars:
Since the wood itself can be so beautiful, I think there is more leeway here for color selection. The classic colors are probably best: natural, red, blue, green, those beautiful Sho-Bud orange-reds or walnut-browns.

Forgot to add a couple of things:

I personally don't care for rosewood that much.

If I were a professional musician (which I'm not), and sound were the primary motivating factor, I wouldn't care what color the guitar was if the sound was right.
[This message was edited by Mark Herrick on 07 June 2002 at 11:52 AM.]

Johan Jansen · Post by **Johan Jansen** » 7 Jun 2002 11:22 am

Don't forget the influence of color on the sound !!!

Richard Plummer · Post by **Richard Plummer** » 7 Jun 2002 11:56 am

I certainly hope that people who say that color has an impact on the tone and the sound are not serious.Certainly I feel that you all are smarter than that.The color of the guitar has no impact whatsoever on the tone.It is just a color and nothing else.

Post by **Joey Ace** » 7 Jun 2002 12:21 pm

Maybe so, but Red ones are faster.

If Buddy comes on stage at the ISGC with a two tone - Pink and Lavendor - guitar, there will be an instant demand for them.

Jerry Roller · Post by **Jerry Roller** » 7 Jun 2002 12:47 pm

In a mica guitar, I prefer black. I have a plum mica LeGrande that is beautiful under any light, I like it very much. Played it at Texas show this year and Gospel show at Indy. I have had offers to buy it many times. I don't think rosewood would hinder the sale of a guitar. I think like cars, red is a popular color that would not be turned down by most purchasers. I think dark blue would not be objectionable in most cases. A lighter blue, any green, white on a mica guitar I believe would be a detriment for selling. I personally like green but I think it is not a popular color for mica guitars. Black is the safest bet, with a wood grain such as rosewood second, red third, plum (for my taste) next then they start getting "iffy". I think the brand of guitar has something to do with it. I have seen some beautiful ZumSteels with the pretty front designs in many colors and combinations that I am sure would not hurt the sale of the guitar. I would never buy a guitar that I was buying with the intentions of it being my personal guitar yet let the choice of color be decided even in part by whether the color would affect a possible future sale of the guitar. I would buy what I want with no regard to color having an effect on future selling of the guitar.
Jerry

Duane Dunard · Post by **Duane Dunard** » 7 Jun 2002 12:50 pm

Hi Richard. The color issue has always been a problem for me when I order new store-stock guitars. Anything other than black, red, or rosewood mica finish guitars may be as Mark said, a personal connection of the future owner's personality, so I usually, but not always, try to order "safe" colors for the shop and leave the other colors for pre-sold orders.

Lee Baucum · Post by **Lee Baucum** » 7 Jun 2002 2:49 pm

And what about the wood-grain mica colors that are available? I've seen "birdseye" blue, "birdseye" black, and "birdseye" red mica guitars.

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Lee, from South Texas

Rick Collins · Post by **Rick Collins** » 7 Jun 2002 3:00 pm

I certainly hope that people who say that color has an impact on the tone and the sound are not serious.Certainly I feel that you all are smarter than that.The color of the guitar has no impact whatsoever on the tone.It is just a color and nothing else.

Richard, your statments as they stand are correct, if the guitar is only heard and not seen, such as on a recording.

When playing to a live audience, the appearance of the steel guitar is very important,___just as the clothing the band wears is important. Many factors determine how one's performance is received by the viewer/listener;___color and appearance of the instruments are major factors.

Pink cabinet, lavender necks, and yellow pickups might look O.K for Barbara Mandrell. No matter how well you and I played this instrument, audience perception would not be the same as with Barbara.

Rick

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 7 Jun 2002 3:52 pm

I think that black sells best on the resale market. Other than that, I'd recommend a natural wood finish or stain (not formica). Many players drool over wood guitars, myself included.

In response to Herb, I remember a steel guitar haiku contest a few years ago. My favorite (I forget the author):

If you've heard it once
You've heard it a thousand times
"Play Steel Guitar Rag"

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<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/b0b.gif" width="64" height="64">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (Emaj9, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic) Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6)

Greg Simmons · Post by **Greg Simmons** » 7 Jun 2002 4:53 pm

Something to ponder:

If James Burton was a steel player, would he have played a paisley steel...?

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Greg Simmons
Custodian of the Official Sho~Bud Pedal Steel Guitar Website
shobud.cjb.net

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 7 Jun 2002 6:09 pm

Paisley steel,hmm,there is an idea.Richard, I would stick with Black,can`t go wrong with that.When I first started playing steel they told me that I will play better on the black colored steel.Wich is,if you ask me,total nonsence.
"I suck on black
and I suck on pink,
no matter what I play
it always stink"
~would that be,like,haiku or something?
my two cents Damir

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