Matching headstocks

mart

... on a tele? What do we think?
https://content.andertons.co.uk/2/1/images/catalog/i/xl_110546-tmpCAF2.jpg?_ga=1.176770661.1785729776.1419592978

webrthomson

Somehow for a Tele (and Strat) it does not work for me!

mort

No, looks wrong. 

stickyfiddle

I'm not a big fan, but they're usually only done on otherwise excellent models which then get blown out at low prices, so it's hardly the end of the world!

guitars4you

those surf colours on a Jag or Jazz look fine with a MHS but not on a Strat or Tele for me

Sporky

Need to see the whole instrument, but in general I'm not mad-keen on matching.

AndyR

My rule of thumb for a very long time has been "matching headstock on a strat or tele? NO WAY, yuk, horrid"

But, I've been seeing examples recently that I might consider owning. Even the example in the OP is a "maybe".

I dunno, I'm getting old, I probably need glasses... 

usedtobe

Each to their own, but not for me. 

peteri

I can't stand it. I don't know why but a tele or strat should be natural 

guitarblaster

Bridgehouse

I don't get matching head stocks myself. I'm probably just weird

guitarblaster

But I love mine ... It's a surf colour, it's a strat ... it's  CS1960 relic.

Voxman

I think there's something very retro and vintage about a Strat with a matching headstock.  I love my 2010  limited Edition in Daphne blue - the matching headstock makes it very different in a nice way, and everyone who's seen it says it gorgeous - including my wife and daughters who normally think all my guitars look the same!  My Photobucket seems down at the moment, but here's a generic pic. 

Modellista

Really like it.  The colours are generally beautiful which helps.  Not sure I'd go for black, but for those classic colours I think it works.

Fez

I have a strat with matching headstock I think matching headstock and body colour is OK might depend on the colour though. Here it is a very old picture but the only one handy. 

meltedbuzzbox

Fez said:

I have a strat with matching headstock I think matching headstock and body colour is OK might depend on the colour though. Here it is a very old picture but the only one handy. 

Looks like a country and western band

Voxman

I think you're right Fez re colour.  Seems to work well with the lighter colours, but perhaps less so with much darker colours.  But even then all down to taste.

My pet Fender hates are the antiguan Fender sunburst and tortoiseshell pick-guards, but there are plenty who love these.  If we all liked the same thing it would be a boring world. 

siraxeman

I am like most of you - traditionalist luddites. Its because we're so accustomed to none matching bare wood faced headstocks. Had Fenders been matched from the beginning and suddenly now they was unpainted we'd be in uproar! It'd be like the Les Paul signature scrawl on the 2015 LPs....hideous to our eyes - so different its unacceptable. We're pre conditioned to expect certain things on certain established guitars and traditions and if they're changed we're not easily willing to accept the changes. Probably why Gibson haven't bothered to fix the dodgy headstock issue on all their guitars. Most other brands have painted headstocks. Some matching some not but often painted all the same. Fenders are usually 'nekkid' so we expect that. Some folks are more open to change. Thanks to companies like Ibanez we have things like AANJ instead of a big bulky neck joint/plate...innovation is a good thing but not for everyone...

guitarfishbay

Wood colour or black, works with pretty much everything.  Coloured looks ok on some white guitars, and most sparkle finish guitars, but other than that I'm not a big fan.

meltedbuzzbox

Matching headstocks rule

I even like the ibanez approach 

Gassage

@siraxeman

Word from Gibson HQ suggests they've been looking at innovation to solve their issues.