A Beat Up PRS … Anyone Have One?

They used to relic them at the factory, with a long fuse....time delay lacquer fretboard edge bubbles ;)

My satin nitro will age, and I do like that
 
Well, maybe these guitars are just too damn pretty for most of us to beat them up. Not many beaters for sure.
 
Idk...I gig my PRS guitars pretty hard but man they stay pretty...I have some with chips and stuff...I'm able to buff out any scratches made....We will see.

The other day my band was a freakin PRS commercial on stage lol. I shoulda took a pic of that show. We all had our PRS guitars rockin. My CU22 hardtail, my singer rockin his Brushstroke CU24, and the other guitarist rockin my Floyd CE24. With my gold PRS CU24 on a stand as a ready to go spare.
 
The first month I had my brand-new '91, I managed to put a gouge in the back with a coat hanger (I still remember it because it was so traumatic at the time), it was all down-hill from there. The dings in the headstock and body, the finish worn off the bridge. I played it A LOT in my 20s, it was a tool for my career.

That career is long gone, and now I can afford a fair amount of them, and they get babied, but they are amazing guitars either way.
 
I really look after my PRS guitars. However a little wear on my nitro guitar is different from the poly ones. It is softer, less obtrusive. A nick in poly is ugly, hard. In nitro not so much.

And I must say: seeing so many dinged up S type or T type guitars makes a new and shiney one a little weird. I'd say: smash those up a little to give the impression that they are actually played ;-)
 
Black Plaid said:
The first month I had my brand-new '91, I managed to put a gouge in the back with a coat hanger (I still remember it because it was so traumatic at the time), it was all down-hill from there. The dings in the headstock and body, the finish worn off the bridge. I played it A LOT in my 20s, it was a tool for my career.

That career is long gone, and now I can afford a fair amount of them, and they get babied, but they are amazing guitars either way.
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I have a Fender Strat with a modest relic job that somehow just looks right. To me, PRS just looks beat up and wrong when they are relic'd. Psychologically, I think PRS caters to a different crowd. We like our **** pristine lol. Its also part of why PRS players get the whole "dentist guitar" thing. There's a weird thing I've noticed in the guitar world where the less you care about your stuff the better you are at playing the guitar... allegedly.
 
Black Plaid said:
The first month I had my brand-new '91, I managed to put a gouge in the back with a coat hanger (I still remember it because it was so traumatic at the time), it was all down-hill from there. The dings in the headstock and body, the finish worn off the bridge. I played it A LOT in my 20s, it was a tool for my career.

That career is long gone, and now I can afford a fair amount of them, and they get babied, but they are amazing guitars either way.
Click to expand...
Glad to hear this. I think few people are willing to gig these beauties. I’ve seen very few on a bandstand over the years.
 
Bob H. said:
Glad to hear this. I think few people are willing to gig these beauties. I’ve seen very few on a bandstand over the years.
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I went to a mini mini festival a few weeks ago where several bands were playing a PRS and one guy even took the router to customize his core. They're out there gigging. I see them more and more frequently.

100003914215db4b1d90336516.jpg
 
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opnoob said:
I have a Fender Strat with a modest relic job that somehow just looks right. To me, PRS just looks beat up and wrong when they are relic'd. Psychologically, I think PRS caters to a different crowd. We like our **** pristine lol. Its also part of why PRS players get the whole "dentist guitar" thing. There's a weird thing I've noticed in the guitar world where the less you care about your stuff the better you are at playing the guitar... allegedly.
Click to expand...
Au Contraire, mon frere! I do 2 or so open mikes a week. Most of the regulars believe that the more relic’d the less playing skill. Also the more “authentic” (hip) looking, usually the less playing skill. If the guy spends 10 minutes setting up and then has to tune up, the less skill. And last week there was a 50 something hipster who sucked very badly, played tunes at a funeral dirge tempo, made guitar faces while soloing, and closed his eyes for emotional effect while singing badly out of tune. Did I leave anything out? Yes! He was heard bragging to someone that he “made” his own pickups. But, the guitar was relic’d………….
 
SinSir said:
I went to a mini mini festival a few weeks ago where several bands were playing a PRS and one guy even took the router to customize his core. They're out there gigging. I see them more and more frequently.

100003914215db4b1d90336516.jpg
Click to expand...

Red Beauty

dogrocketp said:
Au Contraire, mon frere! I do 2 or so open mikes a week. Most of the regulars believe that the more relic’d the less playing skill. Also the more “authentic” (hip) looking, usually the less playing skill. If the guy spends 10 minutes setting up and then has to tune up, the less skill. And last week there was a 50 something hipster who sucked very badly, played tunes at a funeral dirge tempo, made guitar faces while soloing, and closed his eyes for emotional effect while singing badly out of tune. Did I leave anything out? Yes! He was heard bragging to someone that he “made” his own pickups. But, the guitar was relic’d………….
Click to expand...

Us 50 somethings are good at guitar faces and closed eyes!
 
dogrocketp said:
Au Contraire, mon frere! I do 2 or so open mikes a week. Most of the regulars believe that the more relic’d the less playing skill. Also the more “authentic” (hip) looking, usually the less playing skill. If the guy spends 10 minutes setting up and then has to tune up, the less skill. And last week there was a 50 something hipster who sucked very badly, played tunes at a funeral dirge tempo, made guitar faces while soloing, and closed his eyes for emotional effect while singing badly out of tune. Did I leave anything out? Yes! He was heard bragging to someone that he “made” his own pickups. But, the guitar was relic’d………….
Click to expand...
My original inquiry was not about reliced guitars. I was asking about legitimate wear and PRS’s. I see precious few being gigged and the ones I’ve seen look clean. I’ve seen well worn Tele’s, Strats, 335’s, LP’s, etc by professional musicians who are quite “skilled.” So, I was wondering if there are beat up PRS’s out there. So far, not many.
 
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dogrocketp said:
Au Contraire, mon frere! I do 2 or so open mikes a week. Most of the regulars believe that the more relic’d the less playing skill. Also the more “authentic” (hip) looking, usually the less playing skill. If the guy spends 10 minutes setting up and then has to tune up, the less skill. And last week there was a 50 something hipster who sucked very badly, played tunes at a funeral dirge tempo, made guitar faces while soloing, and closed his eyes for emotional effect while singing badly out of tune. Did I leave anything out? Yes! He was heard bragging to someone that he “made” his own pickups. But, the guitar was relic’d………….
Click to expand...
I think you missed my sarcasm haha, I was poking fun at people who think a beat up guitar is indicative of playing ability.
 
Bob H. said:
My original inquiry was not about reliced guitars. I was asking about legitimate wear and PRS’s. I see precious few being gigged and the ones I’ve seen look clean. I’ve seen well worn Tele’s, Strats, 335’s, LP’s, etc by professional musicians who are quite “skilled.” So, I was wondering if there are beat up PRS’s out there. So far, not many.
Click to expand...
In my mind, it's like owning an expensive car. Most people are going to take care of them, realizing what they cost. That's a large part of why I'm not afraid to buy them used. I play them all the time, but they're never left out of the case during breaks, and they're the first thing I take care of after the last set. Most of us cherish them for the high quality they are. I even take care of my spare SE stage guitar, the one that get's grabbed if a string breaks or there's a short in the wiring.
 
This. If you are comparing non-nitro PRS to nitro finished Gibson or Fenders, yeah, not gonna be the same.
Never seen a 90s PRS that looks like my own R6*.

Better to compare those PRS to Ibanez, or even 70s Fenders. They just don't get the same kind of road worn look. They do look used. In some cases heavily. Just not in photos. It's chips, dings, mike stand bonks and cymbal collisions. General R&R handling and play wear. Or what the prissy might call "carelessness", but it doesn't matter. Play whatever instrument inspires you to keep playing and keep artistically reaching, have fun and you'll be a happy camper.

*Casper and others of that ilk are very few and far between. If Frankie had played a nitro guitar, it would have looked like SRV or even Rory's strats. That is for certain.

p.s. look at enough reverb listings and you'll find plenty of seriously played instruments. Often in the bottom $ bracket for any given model. Seems most guitar buyers really really don't like wear and tear on their instruments. I love me a good deal if the instrument itself is special.
 
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