ctguy1955

I had recently bought a 1997 Epiphone ( my very first epi ) and when I bought it, I had not looked at the first few frets but only the ones in the 12th fret area, and they had some normal wear and tear. As soon as I got home and took it out of the case, I saw THIS: http://s968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/CTguy1955/Fretsworn.jpg ( 350 buck was what I paid ) I went online and found out a full fret job could cost 350 to 400 bucks and that just to have the 5 or 6 really bad frets replaced and then the board leveled, it would be over 200 bucks, and the guy had advertised the guitar as being in "Excellent" condition. The body was very nice. I was able to return the guitar and get my money back. That 1997 was made in the Unsung Plant in Korea in Nov. I had heard that the older korean epiphones were of a better quality build then the newer ones, so I jumped on it. Lesson learned to look at the entire guitar, but I was sitting in the back of a hatchback with a vox mini in the back, so I could plug it in and hear it. So to make a long story short, I got my money back and when I got home I looked online and saw a Guitar Center "just arrived" transblue plus top that looked the same as the one I had just returned. This one was a 2007 and was made in EE Qingdao in October and was the 0059th guitar. I have not received it in the mail yet, but the good thing about Guitar Center is you can ALWAYS return things within 30 days for a full refund minus the 17.62 for shipping. I know the other epiphone sure was heavy and that the sustain should have been really great, but the strings were really old and when I tested the attenuation, it was really off. It would not stay in tune very well either, but old strings can do that. I put brand new D'Addario 10's on it with a earnie ball Wound G string and spent about 20 minutes waxing it up really nice. Even with the new strings, the sound was not all that great, and I think the worn frets made a big difference in the way chords sounded. The new used 2007 looks really nice and I was told the guitar is not only mint, it could be put on the wall as new...that is how nice it is, so at least this guitar wont have any expensive fret issues. I have a 2012 wine red studio Gibson, and it looks great, and I just decided I wanted one more, but did not want to spend the money on another USA made one. I have good hopes for the 2007 and cant wait to get it in the mail this coming wednesday or so. http://s968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/CTguy1955/SAM_56361.jpg neck http://s968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/CTguy1955/SAM_5635.jpg Body I was very happy to see that many here liked the work at the EE factory. I have my fingers crossed !!!!!

The 2012 studio has a LIFETIME warranty, but only if you use their Luthiers. I dont know about setups as you can do one yourself, so if your had GC do one, Im not sure if that would void the warranty, but if you bought it there, I would think it would be ok. I am just guessing, though. Try a trick of using some Vaseline and then putting graphite powder mixed in with it and using a tooth pick to put a dab on the nut slice area. Just loosen up your string and move it over a bit. I hope you get this taken care of, as I have owned my guitar for almost 5 months now, yet Ive only had it in my possession for less then 26 days total. I should be getting it back soon, and this time I know it will be done the correct way. Good Luck

I bought the 2012 one with the new coil taps push pull, but they delivered it with creme plastics instead of black. Guitar Center was nice enough to send my Gibson authorized all of the black plastic parts while he is doing a setup on my new guitar so when I pick it up in a few days, it will look like the one I ordered from the GC site. I have to keep the creme plastics and switch the parts back, if I ever have to have work done on my Studio. The 2012 model ONLY comes in creme, which I did not care for. I look forward to seeing how yours looks after you put some clear coat layers on and polish the edges up !! Great Job !!! http://s968.photobucket.com/albums/ae168/CTguy1955/2012gibsonmay2009.jpg

What a great job you did !!!!!!! You must be soooooooooooooo proud of the way it came out !!! My new studio was received in the mail on May 1st and was unplayable. The Gibson authorized luthier has had it for 10 days now and Im getting really impatient to get it back. He said he is very busy, but my guitar should be ready by tuesday or wednesday. I cant wait !!! I would never even attempt to try this to my studio, although if the results were like yours, I would like it done. Too bad some company did not have a white 3D tape temporary thing that would not strip off the lacquer if you removed it. Im getting a used HSS strat in the mail this morning, so at least I will have a new axe to play with in the meantime !! Congrats on your great job !!!!!!