Sell to Us · Vintage Guitars
Fender was born down the road. Sell your guitar to people who never forgot that.
Free visit · cash offers · no obligation
Leo Fender started in a radio repair shop in downtown Fullerton, and for decades his factory shipped Telecasters and Stratocasters to the whole world. Plenty never left. Southern California garages and closets still hold pre-CBS Fenders, golden era Gibsons, lap steels from the postwar Hawaiian craze, and tube amps that survived a thousand garage rehearsals. We drive out, look at what you have, and pay cash on the spot.
The most important advice we can give you costs nothing: do not clean it, do not restring it, and do not let a helpful friend solder anything. In this market, originality is worth more than condition. A dusty guitar with its factory finish and untouched wiring will beat a shiny one that has been improved. Leave it exactly as you found it, close the case, and call us. The visit is free and there is no obligation.
Instruments and amps we buy
Pre-CBS Fender
Telecasters, Stratocasters, Precision and Jazz Basses built in Fullerton before 1965
Vintage Gibson
Les Pauls, ES models, SGs, and flat-top acoustics from the 1930s-60s
Lap steels and Hawaiian guitars
Rickenbacker, Fender, and National steels from the era when everyone took lessons
Tube amplifiers
Tweed and blackface Fenders, Marshall, Vox, and plainer amps with the right circuits
Cases, parts, and paper
Original cases, hang tags, pickups, and sales receipts add real money
The region that built the electric guitar
The modern electric guitar is a Southern California product. Fender built in Fullerton, Rickenbacker in Los Angeles, and the surf bands of the early sixties bought their gear new from local music shops in Anaheim, Santa Ana, and along the coast. Those instruments went into closets when the players grew up, and they surface now in estates from Long Beach to San Clemente. When we visit, everything happens in front of you: we read the serial number, pull the neck to check the date stamp if it is safe to do so, and read the potentiometer codes, explaining what each one means as we go. Cases get opened together. You see exactly what we see.
Why It Matters
The difference between ordinary and valuable is in the details: a stitch, a hallmark, a date code. Knowing them is our entire job.
How it works
Call or text photos.
A real conversation about what you have, no pressure to sell.
We come to you.
We look at everything, at your pace. We know what we're seeing.
Cash offer, same visit.
A fair price on the spot, or a full estate sale run for you.
Common questions
How do you figure out what my guitar is worth?
We date it from the physical evidence: serial number, neck stamps, pot codes, finish, and hardware, all read in front of you. Then we explain what similar instruments actually bring in the markets we sell into. We are dealers, not appraisers, so you get a real cash offer, not a certificate.
Should I clean it up or put new strings on before you come?
Please do not. Collectors pay for originality, and cleaning, polishing, or new parts can quietly remove value. Old strings, dust, even a musty case are all fine. If the case has not been opened in thirty years, leave it shut and we will open it together.
I inherited a guitar and have no idea what it is. Is it worth a visit?
Yes. The visit is free and we tell you honestly what you have, even if the answer is a 1970s student model worth very little. Values run from under a hundred dollars to, for the rarest pre-CBS Fenders and Gibsons, well into five figures. Most fall somewhere between.
Does a refinish or replaced part hurt a vintage guitar?
Substantially, and more than most owners expect. Originality drives this market, so a refinish, replaced tuners, a changed pickup, or a re-fret with the wrong wire all reduce value even when the work was done well. Keep every original part you still have, including the case candy, and do not have anything restored before it is valued.
Which guitars are worth stopping for?
Pre-1970 Fender and Gibson above all, plus Martin acoustics, Rickenbacker, Gretsch, and the better Japanese builds of the 1960s and 70s. The serial number and the pot codes inside date most instruments precisely. Photograph the headstock front and back, the neck plate or heel, and the inside of the soundhole on an acoustic.
Do you buy amplifiers and cases too?
Yes, and old tube amps are often worth more than the guitar standing next to them. Original hard cases matter as well, because a period-correct case adds real value to the instrument and is expensive to replace. Bring the pedals and the cables out too.
One call. We’ll take it
from there.
(949) 449-12555.0 on Google · Free visit, no obligation · Cash the same visit
Mon-Sat 6 am-8 pm · Sun 8 am-5 pm
A real person answers seven days a week, weekends included. Photos sent today are usually answered the same day.
Prefer photos? Text them straight to the same number · or send them here
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