houndman55 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Okay, What deal with the les paul weight? I was at my local music store today and I tried holding a Gibson and Epiphone Les Paul Standard sitting and standing. Neither weighted a fraction of what I thought they would weight. I'm pretty sure the gibson one had weight relief but I don't know about the epiphone one. People who hate les pauls often make the point that they're too heavy. I'm 186 cm tall and weigh about 100 kg. But when you look as players like Jimmy Page, he had a les paul (the one he got from Joe Walsh) you never hear him complain that it's too heavy and I'm pretty sure he's not the biggest guy physically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 ...when you look as players like Jimmy Page, he had a les paul (the one he got from Joe Walsh) you never hear him complain that it's too heavy and I'm pretty sure he's not the biggest guy physically. Didn't you know? The thing about Page's guitars is he sends them back to Gibson and has the mahogany stripped off and replaced with balsa wood. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Didn't you know? The thing about Page's guitars is he sends them back to Gibson and has the mahogany stripped off and replaced with balsa wood. P. Hello Pippy! You are kidding, right? Filling a chambered LP with polyurethane foam is the best method to have a light but solid guitar. :D Cheers... Bence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cody78 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 I think I posted on another thread about this a while ago. I love the weight of Les Pauls and I have a few, some non weight relieved and some with relief. I have never had a problem with them being overly heavy. Some of my archtops weigh around the same weight so I am used to fairly heavy instruments. Also your point is true about Page never complaining etc, think of all the little guys who use LP's and many of the female players who use them too! They don't have this problem. Some people just complain because they enjoy moaning about everything I think!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 ... Filling a chambered LP with polyurethane foam is the best method to have a light but solid guitar. ... Some fill the chambers with helium, but the sound is a bit Munchkin like. . B) . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Okay, What deal with the les paul weight? I was at my local music store today and I tried holding a Gibson and Epiphone Les Paul Standard sitting and standing. Neither weighted a fraction of what I thought they would weight. I'm pretty sure the gibson one had weight relief but I don't know about the epiphone one. People who hate les pauls often make the point that they're too heavy. I'm 186 cm tall and weigh about 100 kg. But when you look as players like Jimmy Page, he had a les paul (the one he got from Joe Walsh) you never hear him complain that it's too heavy and I'm pretty sure he's not the biggest guy physically. Uhhh, ya ... you actually do hear complaints about 'back problems' from the weight of the guitar all the time. It makes sense for a smaller guy like Angus young to play an SG because of the weight issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cody78 Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Uhhh, ya ... you actually do hear complaints about 'back problems' from the weight of the guitar all the time. It makes sense for a smaller guy like Angus young to play an SG because of the weight issue. Ah yes, Angus has said he tried Les Pauls and Fender Telecasters but felt the LP was too heavy and the Tele didn't have enough power. He likes 335's apparently and can be seen onstage with the Stones playing one in the early 2000's if I remember correctly. I think it was one of the only times he was without his SG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the dog Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 When Steve Marriott was in Humble Pie he played a LP most of the time. When I saw the Pie in 1980 He wasn't far from me and I'm gonna guess he was 5 feet 2 inches tall and maybe 110 pounds. A little guy but to me the best... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Typical full-size Les Paul guitars, i. e. full depth and carved top, are heavier than the average sixstring solidbody guitar, but that's it. Lots of bass guitars are significantly heavier. The most often heard complaint about them is neck-heaviness, not weight as such. In my opinion, balance is at least as important as weight. All of the Les Paul guitars I ever laid hands on were nicely balanced. I think they don't perform any weight relief at Epiphone. Although it's often called mahogany, they use nato instead which obviously is of less density in the average. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hitman007 Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 I can;t play a full weight LP for a full 4 our gig. The weight relieved models are the only thing I can take for that long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjsinla Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 If I'm not mistaken, I believe Gibson released the SG in the early 60s partially due to the complaints about the weight of the original Les Paul guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 If I'm not mistaken, I believe Gibson released the SG in the early 60s partially due to the complaints about the weight of the original Les Paul guitars. Those days heavy sounds were rather uncommon, but some years later... ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 hey I'm by no means a big dude. 5' 7" about 158 lbs. I love my Pauls,, the heavier the better,, BRING IT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 If I'm not mistaken, I believe Gibson released the SG in the early 60s partially due to the complaints about the weight of the original Les Paul guitars. That would be a new one, I've never heard that before. Fact is, they weren't selling them to anyone to complain about, but I suppose they may have not liked the weight. The old ones I've played in my life were all stupid light. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 Yes. The average weight of the original Les Pauls was under 9 lbs. The reason Ted McCarty himself gave for the switch to the SG shape was that players had been asking dealers for a double-cut design because of the better upper-fret access. Gibson obliged. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
american cheez Posted October 17, 2014 Share Posted October 17, 2014 i played a heritage lp before i bought the studio i have now. (at the store i mean) and that thing ridiculously heavy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi Mac Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 When Steve Marriott was in Humble Pie he played a LP most of the time. When I saw the Pie in 1980 He wasn't far from me and I'm gonna guess he was 5 feet 2 inches tall and maybe 110 pounds. A little guy but to me the best... I love Marriott! His playing skillz are mad!!! Some of his blues work in the 1980's is untouchable, his runs and licks are flawless, fiery, and passionate! My 2004 LP LE is damn heavy, right around 10 pounds and from years of abuse from playing American football for about 10 years as an adult I've ended up with neck and back issues from countless violent collisions, a few concussions, and a smattering of tendinitis... (and I loved every second of it!!!) It does make a difference, but I put up with it when I'm in the mood to play my Les Paul. There's just something about it that makes me want to play it! My Corsa Double-Cut is so much more comfortable that I don't get any residual pain after playing it for hours... The next day after a gig with "Blue" I have some tendinitis and some aches and pain. To me it's worth it, but it does make a difference... It is one of the reasons I'm willing to sell "Blue"... "Scarlett" is more reasonably weighted, but still not as light as "Manalishi." I knew it going it when I bought them so it didn't come as a surprise nor did it stop me from following may heart... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Balsa Wood guitars are great when you want it imitate PT. Oddly enough I was kidding in my OP (yes really). The originator has posted numerous only-half-silly threads to wind folks up and has no apparent interest in any replies - I think he has only contributed once more to any of the nonsense he has started - so I didn't mind posting nonsense in return. That said; when Gibson were examining possible ways of lightening the Les Paul one of their designs - which was marketed for a few years - was one version of their 'Studio Lite' model (introduced circa 1990-01 - I can't remember off-hand) which featured a sort-of chambered body the cavities of which were filled with balsa-wood inserts. So as not to sound to 'cheap' the wood was described as 'Chromite' I believe the Rev B.F. Gibbons also has a few balsa-wood bodied guitars and at least a few of his 'Pearly Gates' lookalikes have chambered necks! True. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
houndman55 Posted October 18, 2014 Author Share Posted October 18, 2014 If I'm not mistaken, I believe Gibson released the SG in the early 60s partially due to the complaints about the weight of the original Les Paul guitars. Then why the heck didn't they discountinue it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eracer_Team Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Then why the heck didn't they discountinue it? discontinue what? the SG or the LP they did cancel the LP from like 62-67/68. Ted McCarty was probably in a heated battle with Les after signing another 5 year deal (1957-61), Les was on the road with Mary.. they're marriage was falling apart, and Jazz that Paul played was not popular of the day and his record sales was off. (remember this was like 60 and rock'n'roll was just coming of age) Les Paul guitars cost more to make than a SG Ted was trying anything in body shapes to compete with Fender and the others at that time. and from what I've seen or read.. Les walked past a 61 SG in the window of a store and it had the label Les Paul on it. Les as told didn't like the SG with his name on it. as the story goes Les called up Ted told him he didn't like the SG, after that since it was at the contract was ending, Gibson stopped making Les Paul guitars and renamed the new guitar to SG. somewhere along the way through the 60's some 'cool cats' learned to 'dig' the LP sound and since they weren't being made and where being sold 'cheap' as used discontinued guitars, it caught on the sound. that required need for LP's made Gibson bring them back into production.. but by then Norlin was taking over and making 'their' version of the LP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 Duchosoire, Bacon, and several others will happily tell you what happened in their various books. 1. A. Uno. NUMBER ONE.) Les Pauls were not selling well at all. 2. Les was divorcing Mary Ford. It was ugly before divorce, it was only going to get uglier. He did not want her getting any money he possibly could stop her from getting, so no more deal with the guitar, even though it wasn't much. People didn't buy the guitars, and Les was d1cking his wife over. THAT'S IT. THERE IS NO MORE. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cody78 Posted October 18, 2014 Share Posted October 18, 2014 I am a guitar player and like many guitar players I also own a bass. It is an '95 American Standard Fender Jazz with a Warmoth Birdseye Maple neck and it is heavy as hell. It is probably just as heavy as a LP. I never hear bass players complaining about the weight of their basses. We all know LP's are heavy. If you don't want heavy get a full hollow body. Funny thing is, my Switchmaster weighs nearly as heavy as my heaviest LP! It's built like a tank even though it is hollow! True, most hollows are fairly light in comparison to an LP though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 A friend of mine had a studio lite with the balsa wood insert. Interesting. I've never even seen one in real life far less had the chance to play one. Have you had a go of the one belonging to your friend? I've read that they are very 'lively' in character. Is that right? I must say I'd quite fancy having one. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knucklebut Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 1413296542[/url]' post='1577253']Didn't you know? The thing about Page's guitars is he sends them back to Gibson and has the mahogany stripped off and replaced with balsa wood. P. ROTFLMAO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dg77 Posted October 24, 2014 Share Posted October 24, 2014 My best guess is les weighed around 150-160lbs in his younger years but probably closer to 185-190 when he died. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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