“You could be screwing yourself”: Kirk Hammett explains his philosophy for buying vintage guitars
It’s safe to say Kirk Hammett knows a thing or two about vintage guitars. After all, the Metallica lead guitarist, has built up a seriously impressive guitar collection over the years, including being the current steward of one of the most famous Bursts of them all, Greeny.
But a collection this good doesn’t come without learning a few hard lessons along the way, and if you’re hunting for a first-class vintage guitar, Hammett has some advice. Speaking to Gibson TV, he explains that, if you only try to find pristine instruments, you’ll miss out on the true vintage gems. “One thing I do not go after is absolutely mint stuff,” he says [as transcribed by Ultimate Guitar].
READ MORE: “People say a lot of things have changed about me since I got that guitar”: Kirk Hammett on how acquiring Greeny has transformed him as a player
“I realised that you could be screwing yourself with the condition thing if you pass on something just because the condition’s not right,” he explains. “If it’s rare, it’s rare!”
He mentions the aforementioned beloved 1959 Greeny Gibson Les Paul as proof. Once wielded by Fleetwood Mac’s Peter Green, the axe may not be the most clean example of a ’59 out there – but it sounds incredible.
“Greeny is the ultimate player guitar,” he says. “Two headstock repairs and two knobs are switched out — I’m always switching the pickup selector. There’s so many nicks, so many dents. The finish is almost completely worn off. I used to sweat, bleed all over that guitar, and the value’s never going to diminish.”
In terms of his own vintage collection, he’s still on the hunt for more Gibson goodies. “There’s so many variations of Gibsons,” he says. “They have their standard line of guitars, and there’d always be a custom order, or an employee request, that made it different from the standard line.”
“There seems to be a number of those type of guitars out there… and that’s what I’m interested in,” he expands. “The super rare, maybe one of two or three known to exist. That’s the type of stuff I tend to gravitate to. Low supply, high demand.”
Collecting has been a life-long obsession for Hammett. “I collect all sorts of stuff, not just guitars,” says. “As a collector, since I was five or six years old, with comic books [or] toys, I just know that [low supply, high demand] things will always hold their value. As time goes on, the demand just gets bigger.”
But it’s not all about the money. “I don’t think about that,” he insists. “I just like to think about how cool the instrument is!”
If you’re eager for a vintage guitar but don’t have time to hunt around, just last year Hammett collaborated with Gibson to release faithful recreation of Greeny. It’s currently available for £2,999, while the Epiphone version is a little more affordable at $1,499.
If you really want to save on a Hammett guitar, however, the insane $6,000 Black Friday reduction on his Custom Shop Flying V is still currently live for a limited time only – hit the link below to check it out.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
