Fake mojo

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 4 Nov 2015 5:06 am

I still don't get the whole relic thing. What's next? Make a reproduction Stringmaster, finish it to period specs then hit it with chains? The emperor has no clothes!

http://larsonbros.com/guitar/euphonon-1934-00-burst-2/

Len Amaral · Post by **Len Amaral** » 4 Nov 2015 5:22 am

I don't get the relic thing either. When I bought a new guitar and it had a few scratches on it I wanted a discount. Now these reliced guitars cost big bucksðŸ˜

If I want a guitar that looks like a hockey team skated over it, I would let my nephew take a new guitar for a week and it would come back looking a mess....ðŸ˜Ž

John Dahms · Post by **John Dahms** » 4 Nov 2015 5:33 am

In the most recent copy of Taylor Guitars "Wood & Steel" newsletter received there is an article on flatpicks detailing materials, shapes and how wear etc. affects the attack and harmonics produced.
The funny thing is that they are offering a model of pick that mimics the wear pattern of a used pick. Essentially a relic pick!
I am waiting for relic strings with rust and grime already on them to get that played in effect.

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 4 Nov 2015 6:16 am

I should tell me wife she has a relic'd husband.

George Piburn · Post by **George Piburn** » 4 Nov 2015 6:28 am

I am with you Andy, Yes it happens in the Steel Guitar Building Community too.

Amazingly enough a few years back , I set a freshly sprayed Lacquer job in the Sun light for a few seconds , and -- It Blistered all the way down to the Wood.

So I hit it with Coarse grit Paper to rough it up, and Called it a Relic.

The Dang Thing Sold in a Day and to some one who dumped his D8 GeorgeBoards KOA Special to grab it.

Didn't get any additional Coins for the smash up job.

In my mind it was a Blemished Second, but not to the Buyer he loves it.

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 4 Nov 2015 6:35 am

A lot of people are concerned with the part their instrument plays in their image. As an example, years ago, a great friend of mine who is a forward thinking luthier, had Keith Richards play his guitar. Keith said he loved it, but also said, "I couldn't be seen playing this!" I should add, the design was pretty radical.

But whatever! Some people will only play a brandy-new looking instrument, so to each his own. And then some might be afraid to play one that looks too new!

Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 4 Nov 2015 8:11 am

Some times "relicing" is necessary. If you refinish an old blonde Stringmaster, you need to finish off with a tinted clear coat to add a little patina. People are so used to seeing a Stringmaster with the yellowed lacquer that a newly finished one just doesn't look right without a little "aging".

Tom Pettingill · Post by **Tom Pettingill** » 4 Nov 2015 8:27 am

I'm not a fan of the fake relic / poser thing either. Honest wear, tear, and battle scars on a well loved instrument is a another thing.

Mike brings up an interesting point though. There are artists that are very much linked to their battle worn instruments. It would be hard to imagine Willy playing a shiny new guitar. It took a long time to wear a hole in the top of Trigger.

Dustin Rhodes · Post by **Dustin Rhodes** » 4 Nov 2015 9:09 am

John Dahms wrote:In the most recent copy of Taylor Guitars "Wood & Steel" newsletter received there is an article on flatpicks detailing materials, shapes and how wear etc. affects the attack and harmonics produced.
The funny thing is that they are offering a model of pick that mimics the wear pattern of a used pick. Essentially a relic pick!
I am waiting for relic strings with rust and grime already on them to get that played in effect.

That has more to do with getting a pick from the get go that has a bevel worn into it without requiring tons of hours of play. Its also nice to have a handful of picks like that and not have to worry about losing the only one you've got worn down.

Jeff Garden · Post by **Jeff Garden** » 4 Nov 2015 9:21 am

What next..."low fidelity" relic recording gear with built in skips and crackles to make your band sound like the 78's you found in Dad's garage?

David Knutson · Post by **David Knutson** » 4 Nov 2015 9:55 am

Jeff Garden wrote:What next..."low fidelity" relic recording gear with built in skips and crackles to make your band sound like the 78's you found in Dad's garage?

There are actually effect plug-ins that do almost exactly that. You can now make your pristine digital recordings sound low fi. About time!

Jeff Garden · Post by **Jeff Garden** » 4 Nov 2015 10:31 am

I was just thinking about this after I posted, David, and thought somebody is probably going to say it's already happened!

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 4 Nov 2015 10:43 am

It took a long time to wear a hole in the top of Trigger.

And that's the point. Honest wear and tear versus purchasing an image.

I've held a few relic'd instruments that played well and had only a subtle amount of finish distress - I recall relic'd shell pink Nash Tele that I actually thought was attractive but, overall, I don't really get it.

Dustin Rhodes · Post by **Dustin Rhodes** » 4 Nov 2015 10:45 am

Andy Volk wrote:
It took a long time to wear a hole in the top of Trigger.
And that's the point. Honest wear and tear versus purchasing an image.

I've held a few relic'd instruments that played well and had only a subtle amount of finish distress - I recall relic'd shell pink Nash Tele that I actually thought was attractive but, overall, I don't really get it.

The thing that I think is funny is one of the main contributors to some of that look is cigarette smoke and most of the purchasers who want these things would never want something that A. smelled like smoke or B. have been a smokey bar.

Greg Moynihan · Post by **Greg Moynihan** » 4 Nov 2015 10:50 am

I have appreciation for the relic instruments. Many years ago, I tried a used Sadowsky bass in a shop. It showed a bit of wear, and it was the sweetest, most beautiful playing bass, it felt like it played itself in my hands. A few years later, I was visiting Brooklyn, and I looked up the Sadowsky shop. I tried a couple of basses in their showroom. They were totally amazing instruments, but I couldn't get comfortable playing them because I was intimidated by their new-ness, perfect-ness, and starting price of 4 grand. It felt like wearing a tuxedo to a barbecue party. A couple months later, I tried a Fender relic strat I think it was a Mary Kay edition, and it felt relaxed and comfy, like a nice old pair of jeans.

Andy Henriksen · Post by **Andy Henriksen** » 4 Nov 2015 11:21 am

A few years ago I toured a high-end furniture manufacturer in Grand Rapids, MI. Beautiful bedroom sets, dining room furniture, etc. Several thousand dollars each. It was a combination of high-tech assembly line, and old world artisan hand work. The last step in the process was spattering the pieces subtly with paint, and beating them up slightly with various chains, cat-o-nine-tails, etc.

Prior to that tour, I would have argued that it was totally stupid to do that. Afterward, though, I realized that when properly done, it added a dimension of life to the pieces that wouldn't be there without it. Because they were such pros at making and finishing that stuff, and because they used only the finest materials, the pieces would have looked fake/plastic without getting beat up a bit.

That all said, the guitar in the OP looks pretty ridiculous.

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 4 Nov 2015 11:59 am

phony is phony no matter how you look at it.

Jeff Garden · Post by **Jeff Garden** » 4 Nov 2015 12:07 pm

Interesting that antique car enthusiasts spend lots of money to restore a "relic" to original showroom condition. I'm pretty sure if someone made a modern day replica of a Model T they wouldn't be taking a sledgehammer to the fenders to make it look "more used". For the guitar relic-ers, if you found a near mint virtually unplayed 60's Strat at an estate sale would you have an urge to "antique it" with cigarette burns, dings, and paint chips for "street cred"?

Mark Eaton · Post by **Mark Eaton** » 4 Nov 2015 1:22 pm

Jeff Garden wrote:Interesting that antique car enthusiasts spend lots of money to restore a "relic" to original showroom condition...

It's been a head scratcher to me for years - that it's cool to restore an antique car to original showroom condition, but it's totally uncool to restore a vintage guitar to showroom condition.

But in the steel guitar world it's okay to restore something like a beat up Sho-Bud to showroom condition, we have many examples here on the forum. Maybe because a pedal steel is sort of half guitar and half machine?

The relic guitar thing has been beyond me for years. If I'm paying good money for something like a brand new Tele or a brand new Martin and the UPS man is bringing it to my front door, when I take it out of the box and open the case I want it to look pristine, just like the brand new Schwinn parked next to the Christmas tree I got when I was a a kid. I don't want to open the case and see the thing looking like it had been dragged behind a pickup truck for a half mile.

The only possible reason I can see for a relic'd guitar is that once you inevitably bang it into the corner of a table or a steel music stand, you won't be stressed out over the ding, because it already has plenty of dings fresh out of the case.

Jim Fogarty · Post by **Jim Fogarty** » 4 Nov 2015 1:25 pm

I say, whatever works for you is fine with me. Not really my thing, but I've seen some ok relic guitars I'd play......mostly because the "worn" finish on the neck feels better than lots of the new poly they use these days.

What gets me is when it looks like some dude took a belt sander to it in his basement.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v118/ ... sgobad.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v118/ ... gobad2.jpg

David Matzenik · Post by **David Matzenik** » 4 Nov 2015 2:54 pm

Andy, I have to congratulate you on your terminology. "Fake Mojo" is a brilliant metaphor. I think it started with bleached Levi's.

As one who has watched the whole post-war guitar phenomenon evolve, it seems to me that "fake mojo" was inspired by the interesting development in the 1990s when players of roots music began to appear on stage with any old beater guitar. This was so unlike the showmanship of the previous eras. It was a development that I loved. Once those old guitars became hip again, the relic guitar concept was inevitable.

Niels Andrews · Post by **Niels Andrews** » 4 Nov 2015 3:49 pm

I think certain people or maybe cultures are fascinated with old looking stuff. 20 years ago I had a Japanese guy give me a $1000.00 for an old G-1 flight jacket that was worn out. So it isn't just instruments because worn out jeans were selling for more than new. Now they pre wear them out before you buy them so go figure.

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 4 Nov 2015 5:08 pm

obviously these people don't wear the same pair of jeans for 30 years like me.

Niels Andrews · Post by **Niels Andrews** » 4 Nov 2015 5:43 pm

Are those the kind that stand up by themselves?

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 4 Nov 2015 5:44 pm

I started out at the same place about the silliness of relicing an otherwise new axe, but I've come around. While some are just cosmetic posers many, like Nash and Fano, are also meticulously copying the roll on fingerboard edges, amount of goo rubbed into the fingerboard, and other factors that can make a new relic play like an old friend. And no, you don't cry anywhere near as hard after the first big ding...

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