How many years old does a guitar have to be to be called a “vintage”?
Posted by on 30th June 2010 in Hobbies & Crafts
Edward T asked:
Just wondering…..is there a rule/law? I have a 1980 Fender stratocaster and it is 30 years old…when will it qualify to be called a “vintage”?
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Just wondering…..is there a rule/law? I have a 1980 Fender stratocaster and it is 30 years old…when will it qualify to be called a “vintage”?
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July 2nd, 2010 at 4:33 pm
if it’s like a vintage car, it’s 20 years, i think
July 3rd, 2010 at 1:00 am
i see vintage as 20 or more years
July 5th, 2010 at 1:26 am
Its kind of a funny thing to say this, but vintage is relative. If you ask some guitar players the “vintage” tag only applies to guitars from the 50′s and 60′s; they won’t even consider something from the 70′s or 80′s vintage. However on the opposite end I’ve seen people in auctions describing guitars from the mid 90′s as vintage. I personally believe that 30 years or more should be considered vintage. Most insurance companies won’t even consider a car vintage until it turns 30. A lot of items won’t be considered antique either until they approach 30 or 40 years old. As for calling a guitar vintage the easiest way to discover if you guitar has “vintage” status is to look at similar ones at auction sites such as ebay. If the buying prices are still relatively low compared to new guiatrs then your guitar probably hasn’t reached “vintage” status yet. For example. A Stratocaster from 1980 is still worth a few hundred less than a new American Stratocaster. Therefore 1980 may not be “vintage” for this particular guitar yet. Now if you were to look at a Stratocaster from 1970 they are going for 2-4 times as much as a new American stratocaster. Therefore 1970 stratocasters have achieved vintage status. Unfortunately age isn’t the only factor that determines vintage status. The market also plays a very important factor in determining if an item is vintage or not.