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SD Curlee, late 70's to early 80's. Rare. NEED HELP.


Janwender

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Okay, this is my Dad's old SD Curlee. SD Curlee stopped making guitars in 1982, and made around 15000 instruments, 12000 being basses, so I'm saying this guitar is rare. It's all worn down, my Dad played it alot. The electronics work fine, the humbuckers are great. Headstock in very good+ condition. Nice Grover tuners too. Needs to be stripped down and then a polish with beeswax, etc. Other than that, I know nothing about this guitar. I don't know the year, the model, and most importantly how much it is worth. I need to sell it to buy another guitar. Does anyone know how much it would be worth? And it'd be nice to know the model aswell, because I can't find any names, only for the basses.

 

Pictures:

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May look badly scratched, but the scratches are not deep at all.

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I'll get some better quality pics when I can.

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Well I'm either selling it or trading it for an Ibanez Roadstar II. I like the SD Curlee, it sounds good for classic rock, but that's not my style. I play metal, hardcore punk, etc. How much would it cost to get the whole thing stripped and refinished?

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If you strip and oil it yourself it'll cost about $3 for sandpaper and $10 for a bottle of Tru-oil, so say $15 tops?
:)

 

Awesome, that would probably get me to sell it easier... I've seen them go on eBay for quite alot. Dad sais he bought it for $800 back in '81. I can probably throw in my other crap Washburn PS80 at the local store so I can have the Ibanez on lay-by while I work on this guitar. Depends what comes up. The guitar also has 20 year-old strings on it haha.

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From a collector's perspective, the refin is a bad idea. Think of it this way-if a guy wants it, but wants a refin, it's only a couple hours and $15 away, as RC pointed out.

 

If a guy wants it all original, and you've refin'd it yourself, you're out of luck. Best to offer as-is, and let the buyer make the choice. I think it keeps the potential buyers pool bigger.

 

Larry

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That thing would be PERFECT for metal and punk - I'd wager over the years the pickups have slackened with their magnetism some and whatnot.

 

Raising the pickup screws, put some new strings on there and you'll have a much more suitable guitar for what you want than the roadstar. Oh and new strings for sure.

 

The roadstar is a cool guitar but that thing is a sleeper. The SD will scream if you snazz it up.

 

My question: did your dad do anything else but play guitar? Wow. Heavy wear.

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Seriously, selling it is a rookie mistake. You're still probably going to do it, but what do you expect, you're a rookie. This your DAD'S guitar, it could (and should) remain YOUR guitar and some day it could be your son or daughter's guitar. There are other ways to earn money, selling a high quality family mojo filled unique instrument to buy a generic instrument isn't sound logic. I'm also guessing your dad didn't really give it you thinking you'd sell the thing...

 

A refinish might lower the value, they generally tend to no matter what the guitar. And don't expect to get too much for a refinished non-brand guitar. There are times when such items go for a lot, but it's usually because they are in very good condition and there's a random couple of folks that know and want the guitar and happen to have the money at the time of the auction/sale.

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Seriously, selling it is a rookie mistake. You're still probably going to do it, but what do you expect, you're a rookie. This your DAD'S guitar, it could (and should) remain YOUR guitar and some day it could be your son or daughter's guitar. There are other ways to earn money, selling a high quality family mojo filled unique instrument to buy a generic instrument isn't sound logic. I'm also guessing your dad didn't really give it you thinking you'd sell the thing...


A refinish might lower the value, they generally tend to no matter what the guitar. And don't expect to get too much for a refinished non-brand guitar. There are times when such items go for a lot, but it's usually because they are in very good condition and there's a random couple of folks that know and want the guitar and happen to have the money at the time of the auction/sale.

 

^^^^^^This x100

 

Seriously, don't sell it or refinish it. You will regret it later.

 

SD Curlee guitars were made in a small shop on the south side of Chicago if I remember correctly. I played a few of them back in the 80s. Damn nice guitars. The pickups were DiMarzios. Usually Super Distortion and/or some PAF variant. I'd buy if from you as is if I had a job. I'd love to get my hands on one. If the electronics work well and it plays well then learn to do what you want with it musically. If you want to buy another guitar you can. But don't sell this one to do it.

 

This is a family heirloom. Keep it and cherish it as a gift from your father.

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New strings, a setup and that thing will kill the roadstar. You still have the two humbuckers, and as someone pointed out, you could throw another pickup in there and still be able to go back to the stock setup later if you ever want to sell it or keep it stock.

 

I think you should get a dimebucker and call it good.

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Well I'm either selling it or trading it for an Ibanez Roadstar II. I like the SD Curlee, it sounds good for classic rock, but that's not my style. I play metal, hardcore punk, etc. How much would it cost to get the whole thing stripped and refinished?

 

 

You saying that thing can't play hardcore? The dudes from Hour of the Wolf recorded their albums on 60's Jazzmasters, Burny Les Paul copies, and Peavey T60's. The guy from Ceremony plays a Lucite Dan Armstrong. I use an old Univox Westbury Performer from time to time, or an Epiphone ET270 to play hardcore punk/metal. I think the problem this time might be in the player, not the guitar.

 

Don't sell it for the Roadstar. You'd be getting rid of a unique gem for a run of the mill superstrat.

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Ibanez Roadstars are a dime a dozen. I know they're MIJ, and that makes them desirable now, but they really aren't anything special. I've never heard of SD Curlee, but regardless, it's something relatively unique, and your dad ingrained some love into that axe. You can't buy that.

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I've only ever seen one Curlee. It was in a pawn shop here around a year ago. Beautifully made and very heavy. I think you'd be insane to sell that. Hand made vintage USA goodness. As for a refinish...if you do, it'll hurt value...but since you should never sell it, what does that matter? Make yourself happy, I'd say. IIRC, the pawn shop was asking $1200. I have no idea what it sold for, but it did sell as they no longer have it.

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