I just ordered a new guitar on monday I rarely buy things other than to resell.

this one I just could not pass up. so I went for it

1) Sumthin' new/different to add to the tonal palette

2) Me likey

3) I gots za money

The visual aesthetic, the tonal palette, the feel, and the price point all become inescapable - given what I've been needing/looking for. Rarely do I buy on impulse (though it does happen).

Also, the little voices in my head make me do it...

1) Today is a day ending in Y

Best answer so far!

My problem is thinking of a reason NOT to purchase one but Yeah I agree, Rob.

I buy only used instruments, so its down to price for me,if its a good deal and i have the dosh,it will be mine!

My dad use to say "You're a long time dead son,so go for it "

I think that it can take a while to discover the instrument which fits the way you play and makes the sound which you hear when you think of your music. You can spend a lot of money trying to find that instrument.

On the other hand, I honestly think that most guitar purchases are done because of the misunderstanding that shiny objects make you a happier person.

Shiny objects can be a source of great pleasure. How pleasure correlates to happiness depends upon how one defines happiness.

Poor impulse control.

1. it's a kind of instrument i've wanted since i was knee-high to a half-stack. since i started acquiring guitars in earnest in the mid-00s i now have a Tele, a Tokai Les Paul Standard, a (MIK Epiphone) SG with Vibrola, a pedal steel, a fretless electric bass, and a really good 000 acoustic.

2. it appeals to me when i play it. this is how i wound up with my Blueridge acoustics and my Epi Les Paul Custom, none of which i intended to buy when i walked into the shop but all of which had a sound that felt like me or was exactly what i needed for something.

3. trying to fill spots in the toolbox. this is where my blue Stratocaster, and to some extent my matching Tele, come in. they're not guitars i play a whole lot, but they're there because i know that at some points in my process i'm going to need to make a 70s Strat noise HERE and a Tele noise THERE.

4. wanting to Be Like Mike. my sunburst Strat has been pieced together over years to resemble Richard Thompson's right down to the MIJ '56 neck, and i bought my Tokai Les Paul Special with P90s in pursuit of the tone Jerry Garcia was getting on a similar doublecut guitar for a brief period in the summer of 1971 as documented in the 8/6/71 portion of the Dead's Dick's Picks Vol. 35 release.

but for now everything has been subsumed by the larger question of "can i afford it?" and the answer "no, you can't."

I went guitar shopping because I didn't have a guitar. I saw the Gretsch and it looked cool. Then I played it and loved the tone and the feel of the neck. That's all it took for me.

For the same reason people climb Mt Everest.

Because it's there.

I buy 'em for a different tone...like a tele a strat...are similar but then not...also I bought a 50's road worn tyele because 1.) the road worn has a FAT neck...I love that and 2.) my 1974 tele (I bought new in '74 is worth too much to get ripped off playin out... So in my "collection" I try to cover all of the tonal bases...to cover the tones and genera's I like... but.... really...can you have toooo many???

If I want it and can afford it (after the family's needs are met), then I'll buy it. So far, it's been a whole lot of wanting and only a couple of instances of buying.

I can see that changing in about 14 years, when my youngest graduates from college.