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Posted
Meant to post this one. For some reason I really like the sky blue on a Firebird.
8569256bbb1c7123d45a7aeed8852194.jpg
Last of my feed


Interesting. I always thought they looked like derpy Explorers. But a lot of my heroes play pointy guitars so I’m biased.
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Posted
21 hours ago, sidis said:

Damn good looking MIM....like the double cream bound/rose board/blackguard & didn't realize it was road worn. Nice....

Posted (edited)

The upper end MIM stuff is nice, but doesn't seem as nice now that they are no longer $700-800.

Glad I got my Baja and Esquire then. Kicking myself for not snagging a nitro lacquer finish one when they were still that range.

Edited by Deej
Posted
What’s the actual difference in a current MIM and a USA, other than the neck plate says USA?
They say it's just which side of the border the person who built it lives on.

I like to think USA gets the superior woods and more QC. Who knows?

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

Posted
2 minutes ago, AnotherUTFan said:

They say it's just which side of the border the person who built it lives on.
 

That, and resale value. 

Posted

It’s ludicrous that I’ve never owned a SSS Strat given that so many of my favorite players play them and I love the sound. My HH Strat is also my favorite to play. I think the reason is that I’m in a steady state of analysis paralysis on what to get. There are so many variants it is overwhelming.

If I want to get Hendrix, SRV, Chili Peppers, and Floyd sounds does it really matter what I get? Should I just pick one that looks cool? I do know I want the smallest neck possible because I have annoying carny hands and I have trouble hooking my thumb over the top.

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Posted
On 5/11/2021 at 12:49 PM, Storm the Field said:

Welp, I wasn't necessarily planning to buy a guitar today, but I just did. That's, by far, the best price on a player tele I've seen in weeks of browsing and I love that color.

Sweet, I paid the extra $15 for 3-5 day shipping vs. free 7-10 day. Was expecting it on Monday, but shipping notice just said it's coming tomorrow. I get to play around with it this weekend. I'm like a kid on Xmas Eve. First new guitar in over a decade.

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Posted
16 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

It’s ludicrous that I’ve never owned a SSS Strat given that so many of my favorite players play them and I love the sound. My HH Strat is also my favorite to play. I think the reason is that I’m in a steady state of analysis paralysis on what to get. There are so many variants it is overwhelming.

My advice for Strats and Teles - If you think you're looking for a "forever" version of those, think about late 80's-early 90's Custom Shop versions.  They're not so old that you pay ridiculous "vintage" prices, but they *do* come from an era where I think the Custom Shop really did better (and more unique) finishes, materials, and set-ups.  

I have a mid 90's custom shop Strat that I bought new, and a late 80's custom shop Tele that I bought used (which got relic'ed the old fashioned way).  I am just totally head-over-heels for each of them, and I would never sell either one.  

I also think that if you don't bond with it for whatever reason, you can either send it back, or you can sell it for pretty much exactly what you paid (i.e. the financial downside is pretty low).

My .02.

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Posted
40 minutes ago, Storm the Field said:

Yeah, amp upgrade is definitely on the priority list, but probably wait until holidays.

Good idea.  Our forefathers would be proud when you bring home a new amp in celebration of Flag Day and Independence Day.  

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Posted
3 minutes ago, hullabelew said:

Good idea.  Our forefathers would be proud when you bring home a new amp in celebration of Flag Day and Independence Day.  

Fuck that, Memorial Day is less than 2 weeks away.  Order now, avoid the rush.

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Posted
31 minutes ago, Chad Fuck said:


Plays like a dream too. It’s about time. I’ve only been waiting about 30 years for the right one to come along.

So, a gold top, a classic and a as good as science will allow R. That is the trifecta, a fine collection. 

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Posted
9 hours ago, DougO said:

Dang, would love to be back on team Lake Placid blue, but just can't justify the purchase.  I know, I know...

Since you're the village artiste, I was going to recommend Guitar Reranch.  But it appears they've closed or at best are sporadic now:

https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/alternatives-to-guitar-reranch.2231554/

Then I popped over to Warmoth, as they usually have pages of pre-painted tele bodies at a relatively inexpensive price.  Right now, they have three.  Jaw dropping, but I guess we're all doing guitar projects right now.  

Posted
11 hours ago, Scooter Monzingo said:

So, a gold top, a classic and a as good as science will allow R. That is the trifecta, a fine collection. 

Thanks.  It was years in the making.  I've told the story before, but the '82 Custom I bought used for $500 at the Dallas Guitar Show when it was in the Convention Center downtown.  I worked all summer mowing lawns to pay for it.  It probably has the most hours of any, as it was my main guitar from 8th grade until the time I got my first real job out of grad school.  Those were my big playing years before grown up shit intervened.  It has a nice thin neck, but not late '60s thin.  

The R6 I got just before Chad Jr. was born.  It's a 2008 model that I got used at GC just as they were closing shop for the evening back in 2012.  It has the "baseball bat" neck typical of its era.  It's not my preferred neck profile, but I've grown to love it.  I especially love the P-90s.  They hit that Chess Blues/early Freddie King sweet spot.  

The R8 is pretty much everything you'd want in an LP.  There is no sunburst at all to it though.  That top is very nice in person.  It's got a few dings here and there and the tuners and pots have been changed, but I got such a good deal on it I don't care.  It was meant to be a player as far as I'm concerned.  It's neck is a little thinner than the R6, but still pretty full.  If I was Jimmy Page, I'd shave it a hair.  But I'm not and I'm not trying to do that to this instrument.  Maybe one day I'll find an R9 or R0 that is right in the middle.  Probably sometime around 2050 at the current rate.

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Posted
14 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

Not a LP guy . . . not that I don't love them, just not something I've pursued (much) . . . what's the breakdown on the different R versions?

Pretty simple.  R6 = '56 RI; R7 = 57 RI, etc. etc.

The main changes across the originals are the necks got thinner over time.  In the '56 year, the really are quite round and fill up the hand like a ball bat.  By the time Gibson got to mid/60s, they were very thin.  More like the late 50s Fender "C" shaped necks.  There are also some subtle differences.  56/57 Standards (not Customs) were gold tops.  Some limited number towards the end of 57 were sunbursts, but they really got going in the 58/59/60 years.  The knobs changed from the all gold ones like you see on my R6 and R8 to the gold with the silver dome on the R0 (1960 RI).  

As to the variations in the reissues themselves, they are quite different over time.  The first "historic" collection (i.e., reissues) that Gibson did were in 1979.  They probably weren't straight reissues, just a "well, we'll give it a shot of looking like the old ones with what we have on hand."  There were wide variations in accuracy and quality, especially over the first 20 years or so.  The last 20 years or so, they've done a really good job of nailing the look/feel/quality of those early guitars.  The main change over time is the quality of the finishes.  Now not only can you get accurate factory paint, you can get any variation of that you could possibly think of.  Did it sit in a shop window and all the burst went away?  Cool.  They can do that.  Did it turn brown (tea burst)?  Cool.  They can do that.  Did it get put in a closet or under a bed for 40 years?  Get played in bars for it's whole life?  You name it.  They've done a variation on it.  

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Posted

I also forgot about the '52/'53 reissues with either the trapeze tailpiece or the one piece bridge.  Man, forget those.  Those bridges suck and are impossible to intonate.  

Gibson-Les-Paul-60th-Anniversary-Limited

54lp.jpg

Posted
Not a LP guy . . . not that I don't love them, just not something I've pursued (much) . . . what's the breakdown on the different R versions?
JJ, basically in the late '50's Gibson was getting their ass kicked by Fender and Gretsch, so they tweaked the Les Paul every year in and effort to keep up, finally culminating and ditching the LP as we know it all together in favor of the SG design (solid guitar, like Fender w a glued neck), though it was then just called a Les Paul.

The R series recreates all those variations. R7 is a 57 Reissue, R8 is 58RI, R0 = '60.

By the mid 60s the magic of the 58 and 59s with the PAF caught on with the blues revival crowd and Gibson was rushing to keep up, renaming the SG instead of it being a Les Paul.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk

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Posted

While I've owned a few modern Gibsons (some fadeds, SG, LP Studio type) I can't imagine going with anything but a classic Standard humbucking design if I ever bought true LP #1.  What R versions does that limit it to?

Posted
3 minutes ago, AnotherUTFan said:

JJ, basically in the late '50's Gibson was getting their ass kicked by Fender and Gretsch, so they tweaked the Les Paul every year in and effort to keep up, finally culminating and ditching the LP as we know it all together in favor of the SG design (solid guitar, like Fender w a glued neck), though it was then just called a Les Paul.

The R series recreates all those variations. R7 is a 57 Reissue, R8 is 58RI, R0 = '60.

By the mid 60s the magic of the 58 and 59s with the PAF caught on with the blues revival crowd and Gibson was rushing to keep up, renaming the SG instead of it being a Les Paul.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 

All of this too.  To put it in context, my Dad, a child of the 50s, said when the Strat came out, "it was a rocket ship" that made the LP look like "Dad's '49 Buick."  Totally uncool.  

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Posted
Just now, jimmyjazz said:

While I've owned a few modern Gibsons (some fadeds, SG, LP Studio type) I can't imagine going with anything but a classic Standard humbucking design if I ever bought true LP #1.  What R versions does that limit it to?

Humbuckers started in '57.  So R7-R0 you're good. 

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Posted (edited)
6 minutes ago, jimmyjazz said:

While I've owned a few modern Gibsons (some fadeds, SG, LP Studio type) I can't imagine going with anything but a classic Standard humbucking design if I ever bought true LP #1.  What R versions does that limit it to?

Just check this page out.  And these are just the variations for the 2021 model year.  Then think to yourself, "they've been doing this for 40 years."  

https://www.gibson.com/guitars/les-paul

Also - I'm pretty sure the "R*" nomenclature is not official but something that developed among the gear heads.  I don't think that's official Gibson branding.  I could be wrong about that though.  

Edited by Chad Fuck
Posted
8 hours ago, jimmyjazz said:

While I've owned a few modern Gibsons (some fadeds, SG, LP Studio type) I can't imagine going with anything but a classic Standard humbucking design if I ever bought true LP #1.  What R versions does that limit it to?

Do not sell a gold top with P90's and that '56 baseball bat neck short. 

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Posted
3 minutes ago, Deej said:

Do not sell a gold top with P90's and that '56 baseball bat neck short. 

Oh, I love gold tops with P90's, but it's now how I see myself diving into the real LP world.

Posted (edited)

Well, the first LP's had P90's, so depends on how "real" you want it. Haha. 

I'd take a good set of P90's over humbuckers any day, but I like me some single coils. 

Edited by Deej

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