Lots of people ask me if there’s a process I go through when I want some gear, if I have any tips for buying gear, so I thought I’d share some ideas. Before I dive into details, let me advise that you should first evaluate your need. I came up with a great way to do that – as long as you’re completely honest with yourself. Check out my GAS Management Page.
So let’s say you’re definitely going to get some gear. You’ve done the GAS test, and it says, “buy, Buy, BUY!!!” You still need to come to terms with acquiring it. If you have the resources, it’s a simple matter of ordering, but if you’re like many of us with limited financial means, you need to find some creative ways to get the gear. So here’s some do’s and don’ts….
- DO: Try bartering first. I’ve bartered my talents as a web developer for lots of things. It’s a win-win for both you and the seller, and most of the time, all it takes is time.
- DO: Wait a week or two to see if your wanting settles down. In many cases, you’ll find that you don’t really need the gear, though it would be nice to have.
- DO: Put gear on layaway. It’s a financial commitment to buy within a certain period of time, but you don’t get charged interest.
- DO: Negotiate the price. Everything is negotiable in some respect. If you can’t get the price lowered, see if the seller will throw something in with the gear. You’ll find that even major retailers will do this. I’ve gotten lots of sets of strings this way, to the point where I haven’t purchased any strings for a few years. 🙂
- DON’T buy on credit or financing, unless you plan to pay off the entire purchase within a couple of months. I’ve racked up thousands in the past doing this, and it’s not a pretty sight getting rid of that debt.
- DON’T be impulsive. Make an acquisition plan, and stick with it.
- DON’T bail and settle for something cheaper. You’ll be sorry you did. But let me qualify that. If that something cheaper fits your need better than the more expensive item, by all means get it. I did this with my Strat, literally saving $2000!
Oh well… that’s it for now… If I come up with more DO’s and DON’TS, I’ll post more…
Rock on!!!
Guitar Gear 
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