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previous: Hi Whoa, you can buy a '50s strat for ... -- 9/12/2000 8:31 PM

Re: Canada's standard of living higher than US?

9/13/2000 3:52 PM
Craig	Re: Canada's standard of living higher than US? It goes without saying, if you live in an environment, you can take advantage of deals that come up. I regularly see guitars and amps going for what is normal Toronto prices. In the Traynor amp example, you might pay $250.00 - $350.00 (CDN). This compares favourably to buying the same amp in the US for $250.00 - $350.00 US (a winning deal given an exchange rate of 1.5). This is normal given that they were made here and supply is good. Someone who lives here and watches classified ads, though, can buy the same amp for ~$100 bucks, if you know what you are looking for and are ready to "pull the trigger" when it comes up. The Strat example is similar, but different. They weren't made here, but it seems that the markets are about the same in absolute dollars. The '57 Strat you buy for $10K in the States (just picking a number) would cost you about $10K CDN in Toronto. Such a deal!!! There might be people who would disagree, but I have seen it over & over. I think the key difference is the ability to buy these things outside of the retail environment like the guitarists pro shops, who monitor the US market and are going to try to squeeze the last cent out of any deal. Example - I just rounded out my Strat collection with a '57. I now own a '63, a '61, and the '57. The '57 body has been refinished, but otherwise is all original. It came up in a local paper for $3,500 (CDN) and I hightailed it over and got it for $3,000 bucks the day it came out. I have been told by the Twelfth Fret, one of the GREAT local vintage shops, that they would have put up that guitar for between $7K & $9K (CDN) and it would probably sell in a week or so. Based on what I know about US pricing, the US selling price wouldn't be too far off that in US dollars. If you compare ~$7K US to $3K CDN (about $2K US) - I think you will get my point. I have bought all my beloved axes that way, and agree that the collectors market pricing is hard to deal with. It makes it hard for us guys who just really want to play a really cool guitar. I assume you can still get deals in the US, but since the number of potential buyers is so much larger, they would be fewer & farther between. Craig

9/13/2000 3:52 PM

Craig

Re: Canada's standard of living higher than US?

It goes without saying, if you live in an environment, you can take advantage of deals that come up.

I regularly see guitars and amps going for what is normal Toronto prices. In the Traynor amp example, you might pay $250.00 - $350.00 (CDN). This compares favourably to buying the same amp in the US for $250.00 - $350.00 US (a winning deal given an exchange rate of 1.5). This is normal given that they were made here and supply is good.

Someone who lives here and watches classified ads, though, can buy the same amp for ~$100 bucks, if you know what you are looking for and are ready to "pull the trigger" when it comes up.

The Strat example is similar, but different. They weren't made here, but it seems that the markets are about the same in absolute dollars. The '57 Strat you buy for $10K in the States (just picking a number) would cost you about $10K CDN in Toronto. Such a deal!!!

There might be people who would disagree, but I have seen it over & over.

I think the key difference is the ability to buy these things outside of the retail environment like the guitarists pro shops, who monitor the US market and are going to try to squeeze the last cent out of any deal.

Example - I just rounded out my Strat collection with a '57. I now own a '63, a '61, and the '57.

The '57 body has been refinished, but otherwise is all original. It came up in a local paper for $3,500 (CDN) and I hightailed it over and got it for $3,000 bucks the day it came out.

I have been told by the Twelfth Fret, one of the GREAT local vintage shops, that they would have put up that guitar for between $7K & $9K (CDN) and it would probably sell in a week or so. Based on what I know about US pricing, the US selling price wouldn't be too far off that in US dollars.

If you compare ~$7K US to $3K CDN (about $2K US) - I think you will get my point.

I have bought all my beloved axes that way, and agree that the collectors market pricing is hard to deal with. It makes it hard for us guys who just really want to play a really cool guitar.

I assume you can still get deals in the US, but since the number of potential buyers is so much larger, they would be fewer & farther between.

Craig