poll! are blemishes character or a need for refinishing

[the jayce]

It's been awhile since my last post,  I have an interesting question, or at least i think it is. If you had an unfortunate blemish find it's way on your heritage, specifically the face would you chalk it up to character or have it fixed. 

                    Now the reason i bring this up is because i was on the recieving end of a whopper of a blemish on my h-157 the other day(which was totally my own d-m fault), now  me personally,  i would fix it- that being said i cant afford to have the face refinished so im trying to convince myself it just adds character- so far i havnt been able to sell myself on it.

   

                          Thoughts and opinions on this subject please.  The blemish is just that,  superficial not structual by any means and about the size of a nickle--->  a very noticeable nickle :-X

 

                                      and to -(the rand)-  i know you will get a good laugh out of this post

[Dick Seacup]

If it's through the finish to the wood, I would drop fill it but not worry about raising it. If it's through the wood (a really big 'blemish') I would get it fixed for structural reasons more than cosmetic. If it's a ding or nick, I would leave it (and have, many times) and smile a little every time I saw it...character, personality, charm...and you know it's yours.

[tulk1]

I always prefer to put the dings in new guitars myself. Things is, they're going to happen. And you own them. My '74 LPC has buckle rash well into the wood. Yeah, baby. Gives it character because I know I put those scars there playing the bejeebers out of that boat anchor.

[DC Ron]

Y'know I really take care of my stuff.  Bought a new car about 15 years ago.  Always parked it in the far end of parking lots to avoid door dings.  Washed it every weekend.  Then one night the hail storm of the century hit.  Ripped the roof off my house, defoliated the trees in my yard, and totaled the car.  Kind of.  The car was white, and the surface looked like a golf ball with a zillion little dimples, but was mechanically 100% ok.  The insurance company wrote it off and paid me for it but I kept it for six more years.  Rationalized that the dings made it more aerodynamic, just like a golf ball.  Eventually sold it for $1000, and still see it zipping around town in it's own nature-made slipstream.  Leave the dings, they add character. 

[gopeteygo]

My 150 is dinged up and I think it looks awesome.  And they're honest dings...not those factory relic'd kind (no disrespect intended to anyone who owns one.)  :wink:

[brentrocks]

i dont mind a guitar w/ dings and dents if they are disclosed when i buy so i know what i'm buying....the Blue 555 even has a repaired headstock, but i knew it was done right so there were no issues.....i typically dont ding my guitars, i'm pretty careful, (i'm not in a band anymore and i always use straplocks!)

[smurph1]

My 140 has dings, scratches, buckle rash, and the finish on the neck was ruined by the vinyl in the previous owners guitar stand..But man does she sing!! Enjoy the sound!! Don't worry about the looks!! ROCK ON!!

[yoslate]

Please refer to the exhortation just below....  Thank you!  We'll now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

[peterbright]

If it bothers you, fix it or get it fixed. If you get another one...perhaps you should rethink it.  I can go either way and have had 3 high end guitars repaired (1 shipping damage & 2 damage from guitar stands) with fantastic results. Usually I don't bother.

[brentrocks]

Please refer to the exhortation just below....  Thank you!  We'll now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

 

i used to be a real stickler about cosmetis issues w/ my guitars...but now-a-days, its more about the sound and the feel to me.

[Kuz]

Well, I play all my guitars but I am extra super careful and try to keep them dead mint.

 

If you really love the look of the guitar mint, then have it refinished (I would). But you say you can't afford it now so maybe after a couple months of looking at it you won't care.

 

Funny my Tele has a few weather checks and I don't care because of the whole Fender Relic thing, but if "Greeny" or my 535 p-90 or 525 started to check I would sh*t myself.

[stevieboy]

I've put a ding or two into guitars.  I'm still hoping that they will eventually heal by themselves.

[thehikingdude]

Many years ago I purchased a brand new Alvarez Yairi DY-62 acoustic and proceeded to take it over to a friends house. He opened the case and went to bend over to check it out. As he bent over, the pen in his pocket fell out and took a nice dive right into the pristine top leaving a very nice gouge in the wood. At that very moment he thought I was going to kill him. Yes I was pissed, never had it fixed. Years later I sold that guitar for over $2200 with the gouge intact. I regret selling that damn guitar! Leave it, especially since you did it yourself.

[TalismanRich]

You might consider putting some stickers on there....  a peace sign, marijuana leaves and a Woodstock logo worked for Alvin Lee.  >

 

I had the same thing happen with my 157... one day it got pulled off the stand and the way it hit put a ding right down below the pickguard.  I left it since it was almost invisible unless you know what to look for.  It stayed that way until the basement flooded and the guitar was sitting in water up to the knobs.  The finish showed water damage and cracking.  At that point I sent it to Heritage and they refinished it, and fixed the little ding at the same time.  Other than a bit of overspray on the neck by the joint, it looks excellent. 

[Scooter]

For me if it's a cosmetic issue only I just keep the booboo there.  It's like in the movie Jaws when they were all on the boat that night comparing their scars and telling stories of how they got them.  To them the scars were a mark of pride/character.  I have a guitar that I've had for 22 years where I can say, "This little divit happened when I picked up may case and it wasn't locked up and it opened up and fell on a pile of legos of some kids I was babysitting...back in '88."  I know the story of most of the marks on it.  It's part of the guitar's history.  I remember I was horrified by the "lego" incident at the time.  The guitar was still kinda new and I was really concerned about it staying pristine.  Now I'm still careful to keep my guitars from getting any more dings but it happens once in a great while.  I see it as character.  It would also kinda stink to get it repaired only to have it happen again in some way.  Character.

jaws, she broke my heart.jpg

[barrymclark]

I guess it depends on the person. Personally, the dings don't bother me a bit. If they are there, great. If they aren't, great. I am easy that way.

 

Just so long as it isn't just beat all to hell. What concerns me there was what caused such an issue could have affected the guitar structurally. Another possibility was the guitar ended up that way through negelegence. Then... you never know what is wrong with the guitar.

[Thundersteel]

After the first ding, the next one doesn't hurt as bad.

[barrymclark]

After the first ding, the next one doesn't hurt as bad.

Kinda like paintball.  :afro:

[smurph1]

Or Hand Grenades..LOL

[shook494]

I have dings in some of my gits.  They sound just as good and have some mojo now.  That's how I look at it.

[Gitfiddler]

guitars are made of wood.  Wood has natural beauty as well as blemishes.  Add to that the subtle man-made flaws of a hand made instrument, and the end result is nothing short of...PERFECTION!  8)

[Guest Guest_millennium maestro_*]

Most dings and boogers are a reflection of the lack of respect for your instrument... Accidents happen though, just dont expect everyone(especially me) to appreciate the charater.

I look at it this way " if my 69 judge got a door ding, would i like it?...No" I try to take care of my stuff. I get annoyed when i see a new ding in my Yukon!!!

 

some repairs to guitar boogers are easy... others not so easy.... I would always try to repair anything that effects playaility.

 

One final note... Brents 555 has a repaired heel break on it, looked like it was repaired well.... Is a gorgeous guitar, i am sure that repaired crack scared some buyers off when he was selling it the first time... It took me out of interest!!

 

M.M

[Mikenov]

If you are going to play them, they are going to get the ocasional ding. Its just inevitable. Especially if your are going to play them some place with a low ceiling

As long as it doesn't effect the playability its not a problem. I think people sometimes can get a little carried away with the cosmetics of an instrument. ultimately its a tool with the purpose of making music. Nobody is going to care if your hammer has a ding in it as long as it can drive a nail

[Dick Seacup]

One final note... Brents 555 has a repaired heel break on it, looked like it was repaired well.... Is a gorgeous guitar, i am sure that repaired crack scared some buyers off when he was selling it the first time... It took me out of interest!!

 

M.M

 

It had a heel crack? I thought it was headstock crack. Did it have both? Regardless, it's a nice looking guitar, and it certainly sounded just fine at the PSP.

[Millennium Maestro]

It had a heel crack? I thought it was headstock crack. Did it have both? Regardless, it's a nice looking guitar, and it certainly sounded just fine at the PSP.

Headstock break, sorry guys