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Epi Les Paul - cracked neck heel joint


ChrisD70

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I pulled the neck pu and discovered this large crack directly under the fingerboard where the neck joint is. I checked with the retailer where I bought it and his tech guy said all Epi LPs are manufactured this way. Is this normal? Thanks!post-89563-029347400 1516623660_thumb.jpg

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I wonder how far the crack goes under the fingerboard. I have disassembled quite a few Epi's and Gibsons and I have never seen anything like that. [crying]

 

I measured it with a feeler gauge and it goes back 3.25 inches. I sent the photo to the retailer and their tech got back to me. Said it was how they're made. That it's an expansion joint.

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I wonder how far the crack goes under the fingerboard. I have disassembled quite a few Epi's and Gibsons and I have never seen anything like that. [crying]

 

I measured it with a feeler gauge and it goes back 3.25 inches. I sent the photo to the retailer and their tech got back to me. Said it was how they're made. That it's an expansion joint.

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That is definitely a manufacturing issue and i would be calling Epiphone directly.

 

You can also reach us by phone

 

In the USA:

1-800-4GIBSON (1-800-444-2766)

 

In Europe:

00+800-4GIBSON1 (00+800-444-2766-1)

 

That's my next step if they don't make this right. I've purchased from them many times and their customer service has been great. Thanks!

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I have been really intrigued by the photo of the crack. Its looking more like a cut mark to me now, like someone replaced the neck. Set necks are very difficult to remove and would require a very high skill set and special tools. The way Les Paul's are built there is not a lot of Body material on the right side. So if a neck was cut out, a craftsman may have cut farther inboard, using something like a small hand radial saw, leaving part of the old neck. This would ensure that the thin part of the body would not get stressed. Then the new neck heel would need to be notched out to fit. This is what it looks like to me, partly because some of the wood to the left of the crack/cut looks like it doesn't belong there, like its a wedge. If this guitar was playable at all, it would indicate that a very highly skilled person did the work and it looks to have a matching finish..

 

[confused]

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Your guitar is structurally compromised.

 

If the store won't immediately make it right with an equal exchange, do as mentioned above and get the process started asap with Gibson support. I've dealt with them one time on a return, and all went smoothly. In the end, the guitar (a five year old Gibson LP) was deemed unrepairable, and I was offered my choice of any equal value model being currently manufactured.

 

Best of luck in sorting this out.

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I have been really intrigued by the photo of the crack. Its looking more like a cut mark to me now, like someone replaced the neck. Set necks are very difficult to remove and would require a very high skill set and special tools. The way Les Paul's are built there is not a lot of Body material on the right side. So if a neck was cut out, a craftsman may have cut farther inboard, using something like a small hand radial saw, leaving part of the old neck. This would ensure that the thin part of the body would not get stressed. Then the new neck heel would need to be notched out to fit. This is what it looks like to me, partly because some of the wood to the left of the crack/cut looks like it doesn't belong there, like its a wedge. If this guitar was playable at all, it would indicate that a very highly skilled person did the work and it looks to have a matching finish..

 

[confused]

 

Yes, 900 dollars worth of work on a 300 dollar guitar.

 

rct

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Yes, 900 dollars worth of work on a 300 dollar guitar.

 

rct

 

Not if the work was done in China before it even got here..

 

Imagine if someone who worked at the Epiphone plant took a Les Paul to put a counterfeit Gibson neck on it. Customs has been seizing counterfeit Gibsons when they find them. Someone who built a counterfeit Les Paul could have cut the neck off and replaced it with an Epiphone neck. Then somehow put it back in stock at the plant.

 

Look at the Les Pauls on Aliexpress, the photos do not usually show a readable shot of the headstock, but sometimes they do even with USA stamps and serial numbers. These are usually built with Epiphone parts.

 

Ok so this is a mystery scenario.... But the photo, I am certain, shows the neck was cut out and replaced.

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Not if the work was done in China before it even got here..

 

Imagine if someone who worked at the Epiphone plant took a Les Paul to put a counterfeit Gibson neck on it. Customs has been seizing counterfeit Gibsons when they find them. Someone who built a counterfeit Les Paul could have cut the neck off and replaced it with an Epiphone neck. Then somehow put it back in stock at the plant.

 

Look at the Les Pauls on Aliexpress, the photos do not usually show a readable shot of the headstock, but sometimes they do even with USA stamps and serial numbers. These are usually built with Epiphone parts.

 

Ok so this is a mystery scenario.... But the photo, I am certain, shows the neck was cut out and replaced.

 

Dude. Yer watching way too many James Bond movies. It's a friggin 300 dollar guitar, not a friggin satellite.

 

rct

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Dude. Yer watching way too many James Bond movies. It's a friggin 300 dollar guitar, not a friggin satellite.

 

rct

 

A skilled Asian craftsman could knock out several of these a day for just a few dollars. :)

 

Factory built Epiphone Les Paul's heel joints do not look like that, if you really look at the photo there are several things that don't look right.

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A skilled Asian craftsman could knock out several of these a day for just a few dollars. :)

 

Yes, they knock out lots of Epiphones in a day for a few dollars.

 

Epiphone is in the...counterfeit...Gibson business now? Someone at the Epiphone factory is...putting...what on Epiphones?

 

I can't understand at all where you are going with this.

 

rct

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Yes, they knock out lots of Epiphones in a day for a few dollars.

 

Epiphone is in the...counterfeit...Gibson business now? Someone at the Epiphone factory is...putting...what on Epiphones?

 

I can't understand at all where you are going with this.

 

rct

 

 

Sorry if my explanations went off the deep end. I was trying to illustrate how a Skilled craftsman in Asia could replace several necks a day.

 

Most of the Gibson style counterfeit guitars are made using Epiphone parts, Epiphone is not in the counterfeit business. they don't have to be, they are licensed builders. There have been a ton of youtube videos by accredited luthiers dismantling and examining Chibson's finding Epiphone labeled hardware. This doesn't mean Epiphone is supplying them but they are using Epiphone materials and could be supplied by vendors. I have been researching this topic for a long time. Checkout Aliexpress's link below..

 

Aliexpress LP's

 

Not to detract from ChrisD70's topic there is something really wrong with his Les Paul Prophecy, which I'm sure cost quite a bit more than $300. Closely examine his photo.

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I have been really intrigued by the photo of the crack. Its looking more like a cut mark to me now, like someone replaced the neck. Set necks are very difficult to remove and would require a very high skill set and special tools. The way Les Paul's are built there is not a lot of Body material on the right side. So if a neck was cut out, a craftsman may have cut farther inboard, using something like a small hand radial saw, leaving part of the old neck. This would ensure that the thin part of the body would not get stressed. Then the new neck heel would need to be notched out to fit. This is what it looks like to me, partly because some of the wood to the left of the crack/cut looks like it doesn't belong there, like its a wedge. If this guitar was playable at all, it would indicate that a very highly skilled person did the work and it looks to have a matching finish..

 

[confused]

 

I think you may be right about this being an intentional cut, not a crack as it looked to me. I've been in contact with the retailer and they sent me photos of 3 different Epi LPs with the same placement of the cutout.

 

I've sent an inquiry to Gibson as well to get confirmation, or not, and waiting to hear back. I'll update the post.

 

Thanks for all the input!

post-89563-079065800 1516750409_thumb.jpg

post-89563-048243100 1516750434_thumb.jpg

post-89563-098903500 1516750477_thumb.jpg

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I think you may be right about this being an intentional cut, not a crack as it looked to me. I've been in contact with the retailer and they sent me photos of 3 different Epi LPs with the same placement of the cutout.

 

I've sent an inquiry to Gibson as well to get confirmation, or not, and waiting to hear back. I'll update the post.

 

Thanks for all the input!

The new photos look a little more uniform, but like overcut necks from a bad lot. yours was not quite so neatly done. There still shouldn't be any gap at all.

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Sorry if my explanations went off the deep end. I was trying to illustrate how a Skilled craftsman in Asia could replace several necks a day.

 

Most of the Gibson style counterfeit guitars are made using Epiphone parts, Epiphone is not in the counterfeit business. they don't have to be, they are licensed builders. There have been a ton of youtube videos by accredited luthiers dismantling and examining Chibson's finding Epiphone labeled hardware. This doesn't mean Epiphone is supplying them but they are using Epiphone materials and could be supplied by vendors. I have been researching this topic for a long time. Checkout Aliexpress's link below..

 

No thanks, I have a great Les Paul.

 

This type of thing isn't unusual. When I was a kid we used to buy Amps made at home by workers that were employed by Massey Electronics. Massey Electronics built the original Fender amps.

 

No. Just no. Just no, stop saying that, stop repeating it, it just is not true. There is no evidence anywhere, from anyone, that anyone but Leo and his shop made his amps, not ever. The St. George that everyone thinks is some kind of clandestine Fender is not, it was commissioned by Georges Music, he knew all about that amp that somehow got this rep. And you are not helping by repeating that.

 

So, again, just no to "Massey Electronics built the original Fender amps". No.

 

Not to detract from ChrisD70's topic there is something really wrong with his Les Paul Prophecy, which I'm sure cost quite a bit more than $300. Closely examine his photo.

the attached image is a China Gibson..

 

I don't care about fake guitars, how they are made, who makes them, why, how much they get for them. I just don't care.

 

rct

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I think you may be right about this being an intentional cut, not a crack as it looked to me. I've been in contact with the retailer and they sent me photos of 3 different Epi LPs with the same placement of the cutout.

 

I've sent an inquiry to Gibson as well to get confirmation, or not, and waiting to hear back. I'll update the post.

 

Thanks for all the input!

There is another critical option I forgot to mention.. If your guitar sounds and plays good don't mess with it.. :)

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good for you...

 

Good for me is fine, I'm fine with that. Whatever your deal is with Epiphones and super secret counterfeit building is fine too, so I came on a little strong in front of all these people and I apologize for that in front of all these people.

 

But not the Massey stuff. That is just not true, it is wrong, and it should not be repeated. Things are on the internet all the time that just are not true, that's a great example of them. Unfortunately for whomever that Massey idea benefits, the entire history of Leo is written down, and a great starting place is The Sound Heard Round The World, a really comprehensive man and company biography. Check it out someday, and then you won't repeat such things.

 

Good luck with your guitars and with trying to help the original poster, that's what really matters.

 

rct

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But not the Massey stuff.

 

rct

 

I removed my comments about the Massey stuff.. I misspelled Massie...I visited the Massie Plant in the pre CBS days with an employee, I was very young, we just walked in the back door and I may have misunderstood what I thought I saw. The plant was just a warehouse with work benches that had amp components spread on them.

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