What's In Zach's Attic Today?
As of January 18th, 2019 we have the following used and vintage instruments in Zach's Attic:
- Carvin LB-70 Bass more >>>
- Washburn Force 8 Bass more >>>
- Taylor 310-ce more >>>
- Vintage Banjolele more >>>
- Vintage 1966 Fender Vibro Champ Amp more >>>
- Heritage Eagle Classic Natural more >>>
- Peavey Foundation Fretless Bass more >>>
- Vintage Hagstrom 'Viking I' Hollowbody more >>>
- Vintage Sunn 1X15 Bass Cabinet more >>>
- Guild X-50 Hollowbody Special price $999 more >>>
- Gibson 1959 ES-125 Special price $999 more >>>
Click on one of these instruments or just scroll down for photos and more information.
Zach's Archives
Want to peek at the extraordinary range of cool and interesting instruments that have passed through Zach's Attic? Just click HERE!
Contributing to Zach's Attic
We're always looking for interesting used and vintage guitars, basses and other fretted instruments that need new homes. (Sorry, we don't accept used band instruments.)
If you have a used or vintage instrument that you think Zach might be interested in, bring it in and show it to him. (Call ahead to make sure he'll be in the store when you come.) If he likes your instrument we can work out a trade or buy it outright.
You can contact Zach by phone at the number above or via our Ask Us! page.
Our Guarantee
Buying a used or vintage instrument can be a scary process. If you don't know what you're looking for, you can easily overpay or end up with an inferior (or even unplayable) instrument.
When you buy a used or vintage instrument from The Minor Chord we guarantee it to be as described. If there are flaws in the instrument that we know about, we'll tell you. If there are significant flaws we didn't notice and disclose, tell us within 30 days and we'll cheerfully give you your money back.
The Minor Chord is a music store you can trust!
Our Used and Vintage Instruments
Zach is our store manager and head instrument buyer. He hunts down the top quality used and vintage instruments that we feature here in "Zach's Attic".
Carvin LB-70Just traded in is this Carvin LB-70 bass in Koa wood. Reminiscent of an Ibanez SR series bass with its long dual cutaway horns, sleek body, etc. Easy to play with its slim neck, smooth satin finish, and ebony fretboard. The active electronics are punchy with nice EQ settings. These are custom instruments and the used price does not reflect how nice the instruments are. Very good condition, with the original hardshell case for $649.00 |
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Washburn Force 8 BassThis is a very nice 1980's-era Washburn Force 8, a solid instrument for short money. Essentially a P-Bass copy, the serial number indicates it was made in Japan in 1983. (The 80's are considered a good era for Japanese guitar building.) It appears to have Japanese hardwood on the back and sides and a flamed maple top with single cream binding. Lightweight overall, nice chunky soft-'V' neck profile, maple neck and fretboard. Single black P-Bass style split pickup. A very 80's-style Washburn headstock logo. This bass definitely does not lack tone! It's straightforward like a P-Bass, plug it in, dial in your volume and tone knob and away you go! A plus is that it's not too heavy to stand with so this would make a really good everyday gigging bass. Nice rectangular tweed hardshell case included. |
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Taylor 310-ceJust in time for the Holidays, another Taylor has found it's way into the Attic. The 310-ce was in the Taylor catalog for many years and was their most affordable U.S. made acoustic/electric dreadnaught with a cutaway.Taylor's in general are bright sounding guitars, and nowadays the dreadnaught has fallen out of favor in their line. So if it's a larger, boomier sound you're looking for, paired with Taylor's signature easy playability, this could be your instrument. Setup with a fresh set of light gauge strings, it has noticeably great low action all the way up the neck. The new 300 series with cutaway V-Class Taylor's go for $1,999.00 now. Offered at $1,199.00 in excellent condition with original hardcase. This is a one owner guitar, sold here originally. |
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Vintage BanjoleleThis special little banjolele was brought in by a local customer who has had it for many years. Upon inspection, we didn't see any maker's marks or names on it. However, the quality of build is very high and it was obviously made by a talented luthier. Our best guess is that since employees who worked for an established company like Martin or Vega were often allowed to build an instrument from time to time for themselves or family, this instrument is probably one of those. It dates to early in the 20th century when banjo and mandolin orchestras were prevalent. It has survived extraordinarily well, appears to be mostly original and still plays with good action. Offered at $299.00 |
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Vintage 1966 Fender Vibro Champ AmpThis little Fender classic tube amp has just arrived into the Attic. These vintage Vibro Champ amps have been a staple of the small tube-amp world for a long time now and they are proven winners. Excellent for practice and portability with its lower wattage and lightweight frame. The advantage of an amp this size is that you can crank it full tilt to harness its natural overdrive sound without blowing out the walls. Different electrics will cause it to break up at different overdrive levels as well. Dating to 1966 and with the original speaker, it's ready for its next journey. Offered at $749.00 including a later-era Fender amp cover. |
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Heritage Eagle Classic NaturalWe are very excited to offer this Heritage Eagle Classic hollowbody in natural finish. This is an all solid carved jazz box and it sounds fantastic. These are very expensive new, and if you want a Gibson, you'll pay thousands more. Made in the original Kalamazoo, MI Gibson factory by only a handful of builders, this model dates to 1999. The simple floating humbucker makes things very easy, just plug in, dial in the amp, and away you go. One volume knob, that's it. Overall in excellent, well cared for condition. There are some chemical reaction finish marks on the bottom of the guitar and one area of the back of the neck where the guitar sat on a stand for a while. Because of this, we've priced it down a bit. It does not affect the guitar's playability at all. These don't come around very often. Fresh setup for D'addario EXL115W .011-.049 with the wound 3rd. $2,299.00 in original hardshell case. |
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Peavey Foundation Fretless BassAttention bass players: Have you thought about going fretless? Here is your chance with this Peavey Foundation fretless bass dating to 1991. Made in the U.S.A. it is a solidly built instrument with plenty of life left. More like a jazz bass, the neck is slim and easy to wrap around. Ultra smooth playability with the fretless fingerboard. The line fret markers are a nice visual aid. This is a great deal on a U.S.-made instrument at $350.00. Gig bag included. |
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Vintage Hagstrom 'Viking I' HollowbodyWe are excited to offer this rare 1960's Hagstrom Viking I hollowbody. Brought in by one of our local customers, it has that worn-in vintage vibe that so many players are looking for. The top of the guitar near the neck pocket was damaged long ago, but it was fixed expertly by the late luthier Jim Mouradian. This guitar is fun to just sit around and plunk on unplugged. Plugged in, although it's light and thin, it has a good depth of warmth to the tone as well. Any decent electric from the 1960's typically commands a decent price. Because of the repaired top, we have priced this guitar to move fast at $499.00. Gig bag included. |
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Vintage Sunn 1X15 Bass CabinetJust arrived in the Attic - this early 70's 1X15 inch Sunn bass cabinet. Back in the 60's and 70's, Sunn was one of the top bass amp and cabinet manufacturers. Sturdy pine cabinet, very good condition with minimal wear, and it's not a huge cabinet compared to other 15-inchers. The speaker is located on the left side of the cabinet so when you tilt it onto its side feet, the speaker is right off the floor to dispense the sound. Very nice full and clear tone. We have our G/K MB200 head set up to power the cab and it sounds great! The speaker only has an 80 watt rating, but it's mounted in an efficient open-vented cabinet so it still makes lots of noise. You won't need (or want) to put tons of power through it. Bassists out there...if you're lacking a 15 inch speaker in your rig and appreciate things vintage, this is a great deal at $349.00. |
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Vintage 1960 Guild X-50 Special clearance price $999You just never know what will come through the door! Amazingly, a customer just consigned another vintage hollowbody similar to the 1959 Gibson ES-125 that just arrived in the Attic. The new arrival is a Guild X-50. A full hollowbody with a slimmer body than the ES-125, the X-50 features a single P-90 style single coil pickup with the same simple single volume and tone controls. The neck is a mid-profile shape, very easy to wrap around and play. The guitar has a gorgeous lightweight vintage feel to it. Excellent for blues, jazz, folk rock. Guild was founded in 1952, and these earlier models are very collectable. The guitar appears to be all original with the exception of a second strap button. Overall in very good condition, it's certainly been played, but those years of play have resulted in a rich, well broken in tone. Offered at $1,199.00 with an Access bag included. To hear this vintage guitar in action click here. |
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Gibson 1959 ES-125 Special clearance price $999Freshly traded in, we're excited to offer this vintage 1959 Gibson ES-125. A full hollowbody with f holes, this guitar can be enjoyed acoustically while just sitting around. These 50's dog ear P-90 pickups have an excellent full/meaty tone. Roll back the tone knob and get those jazzy sounds, make it brighter and the sound can yield much more treble and snap. The neck is a nice chunky profile without being baseball bat sized. Nicely worn in, plays great. We have it setup for regular electric .011-.049's. Putting on bronze or flatwound strings will immediately beef up the tone and we will accommodate a setup of the customer's choosing. The input jack was relocated from the side of the guitar to the top. There is an older (well done) neck heel repair. The trapeze tailpiece appears to be non-original and the pickguard is missing. Because of this we have priced the guitar accordingly at $1,099.00. A non-original Gibson deluxe hardshell case is included. |
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Common problems with used instruments
We see a lot of used instruments at The Minor Chord and a few common issues seem to show up in many of them. If you are thinking of buying an instrument on the private market, make sure you can spot these common flaws.
Lifting bridges
Most bridges on acoustic guitars are simply glued to the guitar top. If the glue joint starts to separate you are looking at a dangerous guitar. Six steel strings exert a huge tension on the bridge, and if it suddenly comes loose it can seriously injure anyone nearby. The staff at The Minor Chord has seen this happen - so we always inspect the bridge of an acoustic guitar before restringing it.
Piece of paper under a lifting bridge
If you can slip a sheet of paper under the bridge of your guitar (see picture) you should relax the string tension immediately and bring the instrument to us for inspection.
An experienced luthier can remove a bridge and reglue it, but the time and labor involved makes the process too expensive for beginner and intermediate guitars.
High action
The distance between the strings and the fingerboard is called the action height. If the action is too high the guitar becomes hard (or even impossible) to play because it takes too much effort to press a string against the fingerboard. In addition, the guitar will probably not play in tune because each string has to be stretched so much (which raises its pitch) as it is pressed down.
Proper action height depends on two factors: The alignment of the neck and the height of the saddle (the point at which the strings rest on the bridge).
Electric and steel-string acoustic guitars usually have a truss rod running down the neck that can be used to adjust neck alignment. Classical-style guitars with nylon strings typically do not have a truss rod, and the only way to realign the neck is for a luthier to remove, shim and reinstall the neck - a major operation. The same operation is required on electrics or steel-string acoustics if the truss rod doesn't have enough available play to achieve the needed adjustment.
Saddle height is easily adjusted on electric guitars using a very small allen-head wrench. The saddles on acoustics and classical nylon strings may simply lift out of the bridge and can be shaved or shimmed to achieve the correct height. If these adjustments cannot bring the action height to a playable level, an expensive neck reset is required.
A low action height is desirable for easy playing but the action cannot be lowered so much that the strings start buzzing against the frets. Inexpensive guitars tend to have uneven frets, which means that the action height cannot be brought very low at all. Resetting or dressing the frets can even them up but it is a time consuming and expensive process, worthwhile only for valuable guitars.
All of these adjustments related to action height are fussy and interrelated. It's best to leave them to an experienced luthier, which means it is usually not economical to rescue an inexpensive guitar having these problems.