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Fender American Deluxe or Build a warmoth?


SE1081

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I'm tempted just to pass on this topic. If you think your Warmoth will end up being as good as an American Deluxe, you need to just go ahead and do the deed. A bunch of messages on a guitar forum won't change your thinking.

 

Warmoth is a great company. But, listen carefully: Warmoth makes great parts, but the finished guitar will not be greater than the sum of the parts used to assemble it. Fender makes great parts, but the finished American Deluxe will be a lot greater than the sum of the parts used to assemble it.

 

Maybe, parts is parts, as the Chicken Man once said. But assembled parts, that is, WHOLES, are not all the same, IMO.

 

Many people believe, and have said so in this forum, that a guitar is nothing more than its specs plus its parts. I've never believed that, and many others don't believe it, either. It's a fundamental difference in view.

 

So you will need to decide where YOU are in this disagreement. Are parts parts? Is a guitar nothing more than its specs? If you think so, consider the Warmoth. Make sure you love it, because its resale value will be zilch, a market-based decision that will not respond to argument. If you think a guitar is more than parts and specs, get a Fender American Deluxe.

 

The resale value of an American Deluxe will start high and stay high. Because the market -- tens of thousands of individual purchase decisions, mixed together and coated with pixie dust -- has valued the American Deluxe highly.

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Originally posted by Randy G

How come I can never find any Warmoths at crappy resale prices?

 

 

That's been my experience too, they rarely come up, and when they do, they fetch decent money. Yet on this forum, member often post of the bargain MIA's they pick up....I recently struggled to sell my Deluxe, and got 60% of its new value, despite the fact that it was barely touched......it aint all so black and white.

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I had a '98 American Deluxe for 4 years. It was a VERY nice guitar.

 

My problem with it was the Fender Noiseless pickups. I called them Toneless pickups. I wired up another pickguard assembly with Seymour Duncan Antiquities, and it made that guitar come alive.

 

When the chance to pick up an Anderson came along, I put the Am Dlx back to stock and sold it for a good amount. Fenders (especially nice ones) will retain their value much better than a Warmoth.

 

I also have 3 Warmoths. I kept them all, and have no plans to sell them. Personally, I'd build another Warmoth before I bought an Am Dlx, but not because it's cheaper or easier. I'd do it because I get exactly what I want, and the journey is half the fun.

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Personally I feel that Warmoth makes better quality parts and therefore you get a better quality guitar. But if you are planning on aauiring the guitar to sell it in the future...you're barking up a whole different tree. A mint condition 57 Chevy sells for a lot more than a 2006 Toyota Camry...but few will argue which is the better car if you are judging the car solely based on it's utilitarian function.

 

This thread could just as easily be titled: "Purchase a Guitar to Sell or Purchase a Guitar to Play?"

 

Personally I build the guitar myself beause I'm not into all that collecting stuff.

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Originally posted by guitarcapo

Personally I feel that Warmoth makes better quality parts and therefore you get a better quality guitar. But if you are planning on aauiring the guitar to sell it in the future...you're barking up a whole different tree. A mint condition 57 Chevy sells for a lot more than a 2006 Toyota Camry...but few will argue which is the better car if you are judging the car solely based on it's utilitarian function.


This thread could just as easily be titled: "Purchase a Guitar to Sell or Purchase a Guitar to Play?"


Personally I build the guitar myself beause I'm not into all that collecting stuff.

 

 

I prefer to think of Warmoth is to Fender what Shelby is to Ford....but I suppose it's all down to the individual owner/builder, although body and electronics wise I find it difficult to fault Fender. When my current swamp ash 70s Strat is finished, I have 80% of a Jeff Beck Artist that just requires a neck......all genuine Fender but I can have the neck I want, just like the old JB....but that one had less than brilliant pups and nut and no heel contour.

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I think if you are just looking for a great Strat, I would go with the American Deluxe. They are sweet guitars. I would lean towards a Warmoth if you know exactly what you want in a Strat type guitar and it is different from a Am. Deluxe.

Personally, I'm kicking myself for not jumping on the Zion Strat that sold on eBay last week for $650.00! That is a Anderson-Suhr quality instrument at MIM prices.

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Originally posted by Shovelhead


I also have 3 Warmoths. I kept them all, and have no plans to sell them. Personally, I'd build another Warmoth before I bought an Am Dlx, but not because it's cheaper or easier. I'd do it because I get exactly what I want, and the journey is half the fun.

 

 

Bingo!

 

If you don't plan on keeping your guitars, buy a fender. If you want a guitar built to your specs and aren't going to try and flip it for cash or are going to have to hawk it in the near future, buy a warmoth. I have never been unhappy with my warmoths.

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Originally posted by guitarNed

Warmoth is a great company. But, listen carefully: Warmoth makes great parts, but the finished guitar will not be greater than the sum of the parts used to assemble it. Fender makes great parts, but the finished American Deluxe will be a lot greater than the sum of the parts used to assemble it.

 

 

Say what?

 

The dudes slapping the thing together in the Fender factory don't have any special powers or anything.

 

I agree that the quality of the guitar comes down to the assembly and setup, but Fender doesn't have a monopoly on the ability to bolt together a nice guitar.

 

 

 

 

To answer the original question, I'd go with the Fender if you like the pickups, neck shape, hardware, etc. I'd go with Warmoth if there are things you want that you can't get from the Fender. I think you'll find that the Warmoth will cost just as much as the Fender when all is said and done, so it's really just a matter of which company provides the specs you want.

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I like G&L legacies better than any high end strat I've ever played. That being said, I think depending on how it's configured, the warmoths can be just as good if not better. I like a certain radius, neck thickness, neck profile, etc etc so theoretically, I'd be happiest with a custom warmoth.

 

With fender, you have to take what they make. No custom necks or body routes or anything like that. Same with G&L.

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Here's my 2cents. The Warmoth is only worth it if you 1)know exactly what you want, and 2) really really love tinkering/building. I've got a warmoth that I like, but the American Deluxe Strats I've played are the best strats I've ever played IMO. If you really enjoy and excell at working with your hands and are dying to build a guitar, the warmoth will likely yield a very nice instrument.

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I agree with the majority of the stuff here:

 

- Fender has better resale

- Warmoth get's you exactly what you want

 

I think it comes down to what you want. If you are going to build something exactly like the Fender Am Dlx, you are probably better off going for the Fender, due to better resale.

 

As for Warmoth's resale, I'd say that it can vary fairly widely. The asking price is often higher than it should be due to personal attachment, and not realizing that the Fender name add's value.

 

That being said, I don't think the Am Dlx's retain value as well as other models....Eric Johnson, Clapton, Custom Shop.

 

The real benefit of Warmoth is being able to build something generally like an Am Dlx, but with different woods (mahogany with maple cap? Hollow basswod? Flame maple neck w/ ebony fretboard?) and things like different neck profiles, rear routing...things like that.

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Originally posted by Prages



Say what?


The dudes slapping the thing together in the Fender factory don't have any special powers or anything.


I agree that the quality of the guitar comes down to the assembly and setup, but Fender doesn't have a monopoly on the ability to bolt together a nice guitar.





To answer the original question, I'd go with the Fender if you like the pickups, neck shape, hardware, etc. I'd go with Warmoth if there are things you want that you can't get from the Fender. I think you'll find that the Warmoth will cost just as much as the Fender when all is said and done, so it's really just a matter of which company provides the specs you want.

 

Prages,

Where is a pic of that candy tangerine strat you built!

:thu:

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