Why Do So Many People Want Nitrocellulose Lacquer On Elecric Guitars

thegummy

TINMAN82 said:

You’re overthinking this. In fact you’d probably find a high proportion of those buying relics rarely or never play in front of other people. Many of us simply like the aesthetic of relic guitars on their own terms, which is perfectly fine.

I don't just mean audience members, I mean just their friends who see the guitar in their house etc.

Depends what you mean by the "simply the aesthetic" thing - of course they like the way it looks, obviously not doubting that. But that's because they resemble old vintage guitars. If guitars were a recent invention and there weren't any that naturally looked like that and some company decided to do the deliberate damage thing purely as an aesthetic thing then almost nobody would like them.

It might not be clear what I'm meaning with this - I don't think it's a big thing in the thoughts of most relic owners or even necessarily a fully conscious thought that they planned to trick anyone. Just that they know people who have seen them who aren't guitarists will have assumed the damage is real and if the owner was honest with himself would admit he liked that and didn't point out otherwise.

No point going on about it any more, was initially just replying to a question about it.

Alex2678

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

TINMAN82

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

This

LastMantra

TINMAN82 said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Incorrect…the insightful few realise it’s all about ego and pretence, much like a fake Rolex. 

Not because beat up Fenders just look very cool.

(And allow us a little further into the road warrior fantasy that 99.9% of us will never live out for real).

I'm a hobby/home player. Only a few people have ever seen my guitar. 

TINMAN82

LastMantra said:

TINMAN82 said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Incorrect…the insightful few realise it’s all about ego and pretence, much like a fake Rolex. 

Not because beat up Fenders just look very cool.

(And allow us a little further into the road warrior fantasy that 99.9% of us will never live out for real).

I'm a hobby/home player. Only a few people have ever seen my guitar. 

Me too (the above was sarcastic). And I have a journeyman relic strat that is only ever seen by a select few who all know fine well it wasn’t made in 1961.

LastMantra

TINMAN82 said:

LastMantra said:

TINMAN82 said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Incorrect…the insightful few realise it’s all about ego and pretence, much like a fake Rolex. 

Not because beat up Fenders just look very cool.

(And allow us a little further into the road warrior fantasy that 99.9% of us will never live out for real).

I'm a hobby/home player. Only a few people have ever seen my guitar. 

Me too (the above was sarcastic). And I have a journeyman relic strat that is only ever seen by a select few who all know fine well it wasn’t made in 1961.

Yeah, I find it really strange the way some people (all guitar players in my experience) react to these things. 

dazzajl

I like things that are made of wood to look a little weathered and feel like wood. The way nitro is used tends to mean more nitro guitars fit the bill. I do have some thick plastic poly finishes too that I love, so it's not a hard or fast rule for me.

thegummy

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Do you think non-guitarists think that when watched Rory Gallagher, SRV etc. playing?

Or do they think it's cool that their guitars are so well worn?

Surely no one needs to guess what non-guitarists think, didn't we all see a beat up guitar before we found out they're sold deliberately like that?

Alex2678

thegummy said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Do you think non-guitarists think that when watched Rory Gallagher, SRV etc. playing?

Or do they think it's cool that their guitars are so well worn?

Surely no one needs to guess what non-guitarists think, didn't we all see a beat up guitar before we found out they're sold deliberately like that?

Maybe it’s a waste of time to speculate about what anyone thinks?

thegummy

Alex2678 said:

thegummy said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Do you think non-guitarists think that when watched Rory Gallagher, SRV etc. playing?

Or do they think it's cool that their guitars are so well worn?

Surely no one needs to guess what non-guitarists think, didn't we all see a beat up guitar before we found out they're sold deliberately like that?

Maybe it’s a waste of time to speculate about what anyone thinks?

How's that?

SteveRobinson

Could be a job for Ipsos MORI?

Alex2678

thegummy said:

Alex2678 said:

thegummy said:

Alex2678 said:

If I had a relic I would guess that people who are into guitars would assume it to be a custom shop relic and those who aren’t into guitars would wonder why I played it and why I don’t buy a new one. 

Do you think non-guitarists think that when watched Rory Gallagher, SRV etc. playing?

Or do they think it's cool that their guitars are so well worn?

Surely no one needs to guess what non-guitarists think, didn't we all see a beat up guitar before we found out they're sold deliberately like that?

Maybe it’s a waste of time to speculate about what anyone thinks?

How's that?

You’re saying that I’m wrong about what non-guitarists think. I think that you’re wrong about what people who buy relics think about what non-guitarists think. Maybe we don’t know what large groups of people we’ve never met think. 

I feel like we’re detailing the thread a bit. 

To answer the op, I like nitro because I know/believe it’s ‘right/the real deal’ and because of the way it ages not so much in terms of the bits that chip off or the checking but the multitude of tiny little dings and dents that don’t seem to appear in thick ‘poly’ finishes. May well be that thin poly ages the same but the people that offer very thin refinishes seem to use nitro, and fender don’t seem to do thin poly finishes.

v12cat

The whole 'reliced' thing is new to me. 

It's basically harmless deception in the same way  a 4" tail pipe is on a Corsa. Beyond that, I think what it says about the owner is in the eye of the beholder.

thegummy

v12cat said:

The whole 'reliced' thing is new to me. 

It's basically harmless deception in the same way  a 4" tail pipe is on a Corsa. Beyond that, I think what it says about the owner is in the eye of the beholder.

I wouldn't know if a tail pipe was unusual for a particular car or what it was meant to signify but it's like someone buying a t-shirt in Turkey that has a big Nike logo on the front.

Basically harmless and no reasonable person would really care that they'd bought it but if they tried to say they just liked how the logo looks and weren't kidding on to have a Nike shirt they'd be laughed at.

v12cat

thegummy said:

v12cat said:

The whole 'reliced' thing is new to me. 

It's basically harmless deception in the same way  a 4" tail pipe is on a Corsa. Beyond that, I think what it says about the owner is in the eye of the beholder.

I wouldn't know if a tail pipe was unusual for a particular car or what it was meant to signify but it's like someone buying a t-shirt in Turkey that has a big Nike logo on the front.

Basically harmless and no reasonable person would really care that they'd bought it but if they tried to say they just liked how the logo looks and weren't kidding on to have a Nike shirt they'd be laughed at.

Exactly....

But if they aren't saying anything then refer back to my comment.........

Sassafras

I always tell people my relic Strat used to belong to Jimi Hendrix.
If they don't believe me I hurl abuse at them to reinforce the lie.
That's how I make up for my lack of personality.

thegummy

Sassafras said:

I always tell people my relic Strat used to belong to Jimi Hendrix.
If they don't believe me I hurl abuse at them to reinforce the lie.
That's how I make up for my lack of personality.

Hurl the fucking guitar at them mate

Voxman

meltedbuzzbox said:

but but but, nitrocellulose gives you all the toanz!

I realise this was probably a bit tongue in cheek but I was wondering how long it would be before the subject of tone came up as there are those who ardently believe that woods breathe and sound better with thinner nitrocelulose finishes.  To say that's highly debatable is an understatement to put it mildly!

the_other_ed

I don't know, maybe its just me, but I don't think I ever infer anything about a player from their choice of instrument...

The instrument is its own thing, and representative of itself. The player is merely its caretaker. What a player can do with that instrument is then another matter altogether.

Sometimes, those two factors, player + instrument, create something magical , which I'm sure affects us as admirers of the magic.

But if a player likes a vintage, classic looking guitar, and a lot of us do, I don't assume they are at all attempting to fool me - they just have a nice guitar. 

I spend a lot of time admiring instruments, and most often, it has nothing at all to do with the player behind that instrument. True. 

thegummy

Voxman said:

meltedbuzzbox said:

but but but, nitrocellulose gives you all the toanz!

I realise this was probably a bit tongue in cheek but I was wondering how long it would be before the subject of tone came up as there are those who ardently believe that woods breathe and sound better with thinner nitrocelulose finishes.  To say that's highly debatable is an understatement to put it mildly!

As much as I find the whole thing very far fetched, if someone believes the way different solid body guitars resonate noticeably affects the sound then I don't think it's much of a jump at all to then think the paint job could have an effect on it.

Take a reverb plate - if someone coated the whole thing in thick paint I reckon it would probably sound different.