Does refretting a "vintage" guitar impact re-sale value?

[Lerxt]

I am currently restoring my 1979 Fender Stratocaster back to its original condition, and when examining the neck I noticed that the frets are all VERY worn! I intend to keep and gig this Strat, so I really want to have a complete refret job done for playability's sake. However, I'm wondering if a refret job would impact any future re-sale value? Is it better to keep the original frets on an older guitar, or is it common for players to have their older guitars refretted?

Also, my local guitar tech charges about $300 for a complete refret job: does that seem like a pretty good price?

Thanks!
Jim

[cSuttle]

It shouldn't, as long as you use a similar fret wire to the original. That would just be concidered standard maintenance. Afterall, if you play the guitar it is already not in mint condition.

[Bill McDowell]

Here's what I've seen mixed with my opinion.

If its a true collector buying the instrument - they want it unplayed in the box with even the original strings on it (sheesh). This will fetch the top dollar.

Second level would be all original parts and lightly played.

Third - would be played, refretted but with all original parts.

Fourth is modified.

Good luck - my opinion, play the damn thing and do a refret - after all its not a painting it is a guitar.

Now - let me give you my personal experience. I have a 74 strat, and I am the second owner (my buddy Chris was the first).

When I got the guitar, the neck rocked around in the neck pocket so bad that the guitar wouldn't hold tune. The culprit - a 3 bolt neck design of that time. So my only option was to replace it with a 4 bolt - to get the neck steady for playing and tuning. I'm told the guitar's value dropped significantly when I did this.

I also had the original pickups removed years ago and sold them (like 20 years ago) - because I don't have them - the guitar's value dropped again.

And of course, the guitar has been played - and refretted once - the story goes on.

I'm told the guitar is probably worth $1200 - but would be worth more than double that if the original 3 bolt and pickups were on it.

Anyway - for its 30th birthday, I'm taking it in today and having some fender noiseless pickups put in with their new tone and volume pots (taking out some seymor duncan hot rails), a set-up done etc. Since I haven't been able to part with the guitar since I've owned it (1984 I bought it from him) - I'm going to fix it up a bit, make it sound like a strat again - and play it occasionally.

So much for mine not being a painting.

[Lerxt]

Thanks for all the info! Bill, that was exactly the kind of info/opinions I was looking for. Any more war stories like Bill's would be greatly appreciated. My Strat will never fetch top dollar, but on balance I think it has got a lot going for it:

PROS:
1. Original pickups. All original electronics.
2. Original 3-bolt neck (The joint does have a slight amount of wiggle, but nowhere near what you described in yours.)
3. Almost all original parts, except for replacment pickguard, pickup covers, and tuning machines (replaced with a cleaner set of 70's Fenders, so no extra holes were drilled.)
4. Original case.

CONS:
1. Body has been refinished. In my foolish youth, I decided to paint the guitar black, over a beautifully-grained natural finish ash body! :( A few years later, I had it professionally refinished to a nice Blueburst finish which was a little bit better. Now, I'm refinishing it back to it's original natural clear coat.
2. The Strat has been played a lot and the neck has lots of REAL relic-ing, including very worn frets. I've had this guitar for 18 years (since age 16), so this was the guitar I learned on and played for most of my life.

At this point, I'm leaning towards doing a complete refret. I think the Strat has enough other strong points that will outweigh the refret issue. Any more advice would still be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jim

[Bill McDowell]

My opinion, and it is only that - once it has been refinished - this is considered modified.

So - quit worrying about resale value then and refret it and make it playable for you.

[Buffalosix]

John is on it.

Go ahead and do the refret. Its a '79, and its been refinished. Heck, a refin will even make a pre-CBS strat somewhat affordable! Its probably a great axe, make it play right for you. Value is no longer a factor. Its not an "asset" any more, if it ever was. Its just a great guitar!

[johnreardon]

I agree with the sentiments expressed below. Guitars are for playing, so make sure they are fit enough for the job. I've recently changed some tuners on a 64 Guild Slim Jim, because the original ones were slipping and useless. I've kept the old ones just in case I decide to sell to a 'fanatic'.

If you want a 'collectors' guitar, then you should not touch it, leave it in it's original condition. If you want to use it as a gigging tool, then by all means change frets, tuners and even pickups. I wouldn't bother having a refinish paint job, old guitars do look good.

Anyway as John says it's never going to be regarded as one of Fender's best, so make it work for you.

[Lerxt]

Thanks for all the feedback! I'm definitely leaning towards a refret at this point.

Didn't mean to ruffle any feathers or imply that a 70s Strat is in the same class as a 50s or 60s. I know all about the bad rep of the 70s Strats, so I never really considered it to be much of an "asset" or "investment." Just trying to do the right thing with what I've got and not make things any worse. But despite its faults, my '79 has tons of mojo and is probably still my favorite guitar. (Maybe just because it's the guitar I grew up with!)

By the way, I saw Robert Plant on "Austin City Limits" over the weekend and his guitarist was using what appeared to be an undesireable 70s Strat (big headstock, maple fretboard, worn sunburst body). It looked and sounded pretty sweet to me!

Jim

[Lerxt]

John,

Thanks again for all the info. I didn't know that some of that 60s Strats had big headstocks, or that some 70s Strats had 4-bolt necks! I still like the look of the big headstocks, even though I've heard that the smaller headstocks are better for tone.

>'67-'70 Polyester-finished (but thin)
>'70-'72 (or so) staggered-magnet pickups, 4-bolt neck
What kind of price range would you be looking at for Strats in these categories? I'm trying to decide if I could afford a big headstock, four-bolt, late-60s or early-70s Strat...

Also, do you know what size frets would have been used on the "S" series Strats, or where I could find this info? Either my frets are VERY worn down, or I'm starting to think they were very flat to begin with.

Thanks!
Jim

[tulk1]

Any chance the reputation of the 70's Strats falls into the same catagory as the Norlin LP's? Maybe not the best ever, but certainly not the anti-guitars that we've been told they are? I've got a '75 LPC, my brother has a '74 Strat (3 bolt). We played the crap out of those things in the day. :) . Yeah, his Strat can get ice-pickish, especially with a bad OD (try Fender's 70's distortion pedals - ow!!!). But he sure put out some other nice sounds with it. Or am I just waxing nostalgic?;)

[Lerxt]

>Any chance the reputation of the 70's Strats falls into the same catagory as the Norlin LP's? Maybe not the best ever, but certainly not the anti-guitars that we've been told they are?

From John's information, it seems to be more a question of varying levels of quality within the 70s Strats. Your brother's 74 is a lot higher up on John's list than my dreaded "worst-ever" 79! :)

I think there is also a question of "good" and "bad" examples of guitars within any given range. Maybe I just happen to have an above-par example of a 79? I certainly remember my guitar teacher's eyes lighting up when he played it the first time I brought it in, and how he kept offering to buy it from over two or three years of lessons! Of course, this was back in 1983 or so, before the "S" series had acquired such a rotten reputation!