Can You Still Find Vintage Guitars at Garage Sales?

Vintage guitars that are at least 30 years old are becoming even more difficult to come by in this day and age. 

Whether it is at a local garage sale or on an online marketplace such as Facebook, Reverb, or Gumtree, it is always a challenge to find the vintage guitar that is best suited for you. 

Yet, at the same time that is what is making the hunt for a vintage guitar more hungersome. 

With more time passing, the value worth of these vintage guitars located around the world is only increasing and can raise huge investment opportunities for either a guitar player, collector, or simply someone who is looking to make a profit from something of such high value. 

Can you still really find vintage guitars at yard sales?

There are likely still some vintage guitars available at some yard sales. However, the more time that goes by means that the value of these vintage guitars keeps increasing and the number of available vintage guitars for sale are decreasing. 

If the number of vintage guitars is decreasing due to them being sold or remaining in people’s vintage collections, it may also mean that you will have to search further for a vintage guitar. 

This could include driving across states or countries to see various yard sales or any private sale or just simply scouring the internet for any available vintage guitars on online marketplaces including Facebook, Reverb, Gumtree, or eBay. 

However, an online purchase can be risky for vintage guitars as they are much more prone to damage and may not be worth the risk of being sent through the post. 

What should you be looking for?

Fender and Gibsons tend to be the most popular brands when it comes to searching for vintage guitars but it would be worth doing some research into which guitar brands are the oldest. Some examples would be Fender, Gibson, Martin & Co, Yamaha, Rickenbacker, and Taylor. 

Having the knowledge of these guitar brands that were established as early as the late 1800s/early 1900s, will surely increase your chances of finding a vintage guitar as there are likely to be more of them compared to other brands.  

What to do if you find something interesting but you’re not sure

There are multiple steps you can take if you are unsure about whether the guitar you have found is truly a worthy investment for a vintage guitar. 

Firstly, use online guitar marketplace websites such as Reverb to find the exact make and model of the vintage guitar you have found to determine the true value and its age. 

Secondly, find as many guitar enthusiasts in your local area as you possibly can and be open to traveling far to meet them. These could include guitar technicians, luthiers, session players, or maybe even a store member team at a guitar shop (both independent and chain e.g. PMT). 

The important thing to remember if you are unsure is to essentially meet with as many people as you possibly can within a reasonable radius if local, and to make note of every opinion from each person to determine the average age and price as quoted from these guitar enthusiasts. 

This would ensure accurate primary research in your findings and bring comfort to you in your vintage guitar hunt. 

Other places where you might find a catch

If you are one that isn’t so keen on searching online for a vintage guitar, there are other options that may include some dedicated traveling. 

This could include pawn shops, garage sales, car boot sales, local markets, and essentially any possible situation where someone is looking to sell a load of personal belongings to either create more storage or simply save money. 

In these kinds of local sale situations, if you find a seller with a vintage guitar, it could possibly be that the seller may not be aware of the true value of the guitar which means you could save a lot of money. 

Although these days this rarely happens, there is always a higher chance with local sales as most people selling will tend to use the internet to determine how much their items are worth before selling.   

Don’t limit yourself to guitars

It is absolutely crucial for someone who is passionate about vintage instruments to not miss out on any chances to miss a vintage item even if it is not a guitar. 

It is important that you do not limit yourself to vintage guitars even if you are not specifically looking to play one. 

It could prove massively in your favor if you open up to other vintage items such as guitar amps, pedals, bass guitars, any orchestral instrument (violin, trumpet, cello, piano, saxophone, etc.) speakers, and cabinets.

Essentially, the main thing to remember is that any vintage musical device is always worth the research and investment whether you are a player, seller, or collector. 

It can prove to be a worthy purchase whichever one you are.