Need advise.

[dkilpatrick]

let's do a bit of rational analysis,

1. very few guitars have stains that don't fade, some fade more than others.
2. 20th anniversary guitar was made in 2005 is that correct? 13 years of fading
3. I think it might be well known that the purple dye that PRS uses has been noted to fade more dramatically.
4. that particular fading is still quite spectacular, however less spectacular than it was 13 years ago.
5. I am convinced that 1st picture looks like the original 13-year-old picture factory fresh spectacular paint job.

I had a purple hazel tremonti looked spectacular the day I received it 2010,, the guitar was left out and played every day never in direct sunlight, but in indirect sunlight and florescent lights.
I sold it in 2016, I took the pickup rings off to look at the pickups, shocking fade. even though it was still quite gorgeous.
it faded to a beautiful completely barely purple almost black-and-white looking charcoal flame with a touch of purple.
so I've definitely seen the purple being the most dramatic fades.
I guess your next question is how much more will it continue to fade as the years go by.
very interesting.
but I think it is to be expected given its age. the seller should have provided you with more current pictures.
I'm sure guitar sanctuary will do whatever you want.

That’s a 20th anniversary of the private stock program, which started in 95 or 96 I believe.
That would make this guitar a 2015/16 and only a couple of years old.

 

[Dirty_Boogie]

Maybe it's a higher power trying to tell you that you have enough PRS guitars?

Seriously though, I'm sorry for your disappointment. I wouldn't keep it.

 

[Ironwolf]

Got it private stock 20th anniversary, 2 years old I see,
yeah that's a lot of fading for 2 years,
so it will definitely fade some more, it's not stable yet.
so if you keep it, it will become more and more gray.

my purple hazel faded to completely charcoal gray. in 5 years.
I accepted it, mostly because the maple tops still look phenomenal no matter what color they are.

it's all about expectations. and what you desire, I'm 75% about the sonic joy, 25% about the beautiful gorgeous craftsmanship into the piece of wood, that will still look pretty good in 10 or 20 years.

so I think you are going to have a hard time realigning your expectations, it's always going to be less beautiful than you would wish.
is it more about the sonic qualities, or the collectibility? tough call.

Northern lights is a finish that will always fade somewhat quickly,I think you're seeing this fading phenomenon repeated, so don't expect a different result. even if you get it refinished,
the guitars need to be used, in my opinion

I believe this is a universal phenomenon of all things collectible, 1959 Gibson Les Paul red burst, within a few years the burst almost completely disappears. musclecar / automobile collectors, paints, plastics, change color unstoppable.
comic book collectors obsessive about colors. antique collectors things crystallize and fracture.

you will always lose. so I try to split the middle, use it !! to try to keep it as clean as I can.
if you enjoy something you can't maintain it in pristine condition.
if you want to keep it in pristine condition you can never use it.
you have to put it inside of a vacuum sealed Steelcase.

you cannot stop oxidation
you cannot stop photons
you cannot stop moisture hydrolysis
you cannot stop radiation
you cannot stop hot and cold cycles
you cannot stop chemical reactions

I have seen some obsessive comic book collectors, spending inordinate amounts of time and money to preserve a $10 comic book,
and most of the time they lose money on the deal, the comic book slowly becomes worth 50 or $60. but no one's ever allowed to ever read it ever again. seems very counterintuitive, it just becomes an experiment to see if you can preserve something for 100 years. see if you can get lucky and make $10,000 after 100 years. who doesn't want to make $100 per year, on their collectibles. I would spend $10,000 a year to make $100.

my wife used to look beautiful and gorgeous when she came out of the factory at her 20th birthday
I knew I should've put her inside of a glass case, never let her see the outside world.

 

[dmatthews]

You either like it and want to keep it or you don't.
It is either what was originally represented or it isn't.
You are either disappointed or you are not.

I'm thinking you already know what to do.

 

[WA Paul]

NL stain has the most variation of nearly any color I’ve seen over the years depending on the lighting the room, really wild. But that is clearly faded, like what Windsong went through. I’ve heard good things about Guitar Sanctuary so hopefully everything will work out well for you in the end! We already know PRS can restore that finish to its original beauty.

 

[elvis]

I think Serge would be willing to refinish it for ya.

 

[Outlier22]

So I thought it was purchased brand new and the first photo was a stock photo taken to represent what the color should look like. In this case, I know there is a lot of art that goes into these finishes so there will be variation, but the guitar you got was drastically different. And to spend that kind of money on a new guitar and not be happy with the finish... you would have the right to return it for sure.

But I didn't know it was a used guitar. That explains some fading in the finish but it doesn't explain the sellers pictures. If they had the guitar in stock, they should have posted pics of what the guitar looks like today. That seems shady to me.

On a side note, windsongstudios posted a pic of a 2016 private stock DGT (I think) in northern lights that had faded drastically as well. The blues had faded almost completely but if you remove the bridge or pickup rings you can see what the finish used to look like. He contacted PTC and they re-finished the guitar again for him. Although he was the original owner I believe. - https://forums.prsguitars.com/threads/private-stock-is-fading.32484/

I would probably keep it and live with it, but it's a lot of money. return it if you don't LOVE it.

 

[László]

I have one from that run. It’s been cased and hasn’t faded. That one originally looked like mine, so it was obviously left out in the light on display.

I’d either return it or ask the dealer to have PTC do a refin.

 

[drjenkins]

I've seen more than a few NL's and other color schemes that have blue or purple in them, that have faded pretty drastically like this one. Some that look like totally different guitars in just a year or so.

Personally, I'd have to send it back, or if you just love it like others have said, see what the PTC can do for you.

 

[dcm_guitar]

IF it was me, I'd send it back. Only you can decide.

 

[matt3310]

Well the dealer offered to return the guitar or refund me $800 and I keep it. Thinking about keeping it and sending it to the PTC.

 

[veinbuster]

Well the dealer offered to return the guitar or refund me $800 and I keep it. Thinking about keeping it and sending it to the PTC.

Sounds reasonable.
Keep it and send it to PTC. The last northern lights refresh worked out well.

 

[Alnus Rubra]

Best of luck Matt!

 

[Ironwolf]

Can I ask a stupid question? Out of curiosity.
why did you want that guitar? I'm certainly attracted to specific guitars for multiple reasons, but usually there is one dominant reason.

Theoretically it should be an unbelievable tone machine designed to be played every day. 3 pickups Narrow field. multiple switching. tremolo, premium woood, tonal nirvana.
but also a high level work of art that should be kept in its case and never played It is almost a museum piece.
what was your original attraction and Hopes and desire for the guitar?

Somebody bought a red burst in 1959, I wonder if they sold it because the burst faded.

 

[elvis]

Big difference between turning to honey vs. turning to... Bruise burst.

 

[garrett]

Big difference between turning to honey vs. turning to... Bruise burst.

It's just a modern version of the same thing. PRS blue dye is akin to the red dye used in the late 50's on Gibsons and Fenders. Some of those faded (or darkened) in the span of a few months. That '58 pictured could've looked like that since '59.

 

[Elliot]

You should pop up one of the pickup rings and see what it looks like under there. If it's a whole different color, I'd be much more inclined to send it back.

 

[Birdsofprey]

You should pop up one of the pickup rings and see what it looks like under there. If it's a whole different color, I'd be much more inclined to send it back.

Bright idea, insensitive use of words on my part. Send it back