[Modify an SG Reissue?]

On 12/2/2020 at 7:50 AM, Larsongs said:

Nobody has a Crystal Ball. & can predict what will or won't become a valuable Collectable. But, it's not likely most Guitars will. 

For me the Neck & the Pickups are the main reason I buy a Guitar. Then aesthetics. 

I can't see the logic of spending $$$ on a Guitar & more $$$$ to mod a Guitar than it would cost to have just bought a better Guitar with the features I want... 

If it's not the right Guitar for you consider how much it will cost to mod it. Compare that to the Guitar you really want.. The money difference for the cost of your Guitar plus cost of Mods compare that the cost of the Guitar you should've bought... Chances are you could sell yours & for about the same total cost buy what you really wanted..

theres always the chance you do the Mods & don't like it any better... Then you go down that rabbit hole.....

Yeah I understand that perspective, and it looks like many others share it. I should also mention that I have since parted with this 1988 Gibson SG '62 prehistoric reissue, though I think the topic is still relevant.

The less common reissues, limited editions, custom shops are probably good collector items when they're in original, exceptional condition. They've already been going up in price over the last 20-30 years, but is it the guitar or inflation? Not sure.

For me making mods goes hand in hand with buying any guitar because it's all about the playability ... neck profile and overall feel. Everything else such as pickups are secondary. I just like the feel of vintage guitars and know I'll need to swap pickups to get the sound I want.

Thanks for the comments. 

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

On 11/29/2020 at 5:44 PM, arcticsg said:

Gorgeous SG!  
Swap the pups if you’d like,  just keep the old pups  to put back in it when and if you go to resale. 

Thanks! And thanks for the info! 

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

On 11/27/2020 at 3:40 PM, 01GT eibach said:

Yes, I agree to reversible mods, and keeping EVERYTHING that gets taken off of it with the guitar (not only the pickups).   If you think at all that you may sell it in the near future, a "wholly original" SG will go for more one that is modified and with the original components.  People LOVE "all original".   The prices of 1980s guitars are definitely going up; even the prices of bad Les Paul copies (and the 1980s was littered with them) are getting obscenely decent prices.  As for me, I have a '79 SG Standard that I did modify (reversibly) with new pickups as the guitar came to me used with the treble pickup changed out for an original Dimarzio SD that did not pair well with the stock neck pup.  That was a great mod for me -- something I wish I did earlier than I did.  I also at that time replaced one of the tone knobs with a phase-out micro-switch (and wiring both pups with a single tone knob), but that was a mod I wish I did not  do (even though it came out fine and was reversible with no new holes created).  The bottom line is that mods can  be very good, especially if it is something  you feel the guitar needs.  Just think before you act, and don't do any drilling no matter what.

Really good information. Appreciate that. It is pretty much what I had in mind to keep everything that I remove. Beyond the pickups and pots, I am don't think I would make other changes and definitely not structural mods. Thanks again. 

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

12 hours ago, Eracer_Team said:

I don't believe a 1988 will appreciate like a 1961 Gibson Les Paul SG.

I think current trend of "holding " value for any post Norlin guitar.

As long as you don't think you can add the value of the new pickups to the total of the guitar on re-sale.

Do what you think sounds best

Agreed. I think this 1988 SG should be a player. Hard to believe though that in 10-20 years the Good Wood guitars could be like the Norlins now. 

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

14 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

 

Presumably you have a main guitar already right? One that this might replace? Or are you cycling through a collection of valuable instruments?

Right I have a main guitar already and others in the collection. I was trying to figure out if this 1988 SG would replace my main one, and being a '62 reissue made only from 1986-1991, I believe, it seemed reasonable that it might appreciate in value in the next several years. The '61 reissues for instance are much more common. But, who knows? The LPs have more of a market for appreciation because of higher demand and SGs have less market. So I think this 1988 SG should be a player and make mods, and maybe other SGs like the good wood custom shops are the more likely guitars go up in value over time. 

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

Thanks very much for the comments and opinions. I always bought guitars after playing them first hand … until the plague happened and now been going online. This one was at a good price and pretty much an impulse buy, but I knew I'd need to swap out the pickups if it was going to be my daily driver. 

I took it out again and played it and still unsure if it should be a closet sleeper and left original. It plays great and the neck profile is just about right for me. Duncans would be going in there, and I'd keep the Lawrences and pots stored if I ended up selling it. I have other guitars that I like to keep safe and sound and not play much because of the collector aspect and value, but if this ends up being my main guitar it may get destroyed on a gig at some point. But anyhow that's a good problem to have....

Thanks again for the comments.

[Pickups for SG]

I'm not sure what year SG Standard you have, but if you bought it new about a year ago then the 2019 comes with the 490R (neck) already and has the 490T (bridge). I have a 2018 SG Standard, and this year models the '61 SG. It comes with the 61R (neck) and 61T (bridge). I'm an SG guy and it's the best guitar I own, even better than my good wood era guitars (that's blasphemy! haha).

So if you happen to have the 2018 SG Standard, you don't need to do a thing to make it sound like the '61.

[Modify an SG Reissue?]

I just picked up a 1988 Gibson '62 SG Standard Reissue. Really clean. I'm not a fan of the Bill Lawrence HB-R and HB-L pickups and looking to switch them out. So my question to throw out there is this.

For a reissue that is all original and in excellent condition, do you think it's better to...

(1) leave it untouched in original condition;

(2) make as few modifications as possible and try to select vintage parts from the era;

(3) who cares, install modern pickups/pots because it won't hurt future resale and has no affect on the value.

Thanks for reading.

[Howdy Everyone]

Thank you guys. Good to be here. 

[Howdy Everyone]

Greetings from Central Oregon, where there's a brewery on every corner and a darn good music scene too. Good to be here on the forum. I purchased my first Gibson SG a few weeks back and what a tone monster it is. Just great. Looking forward to being on here and talking guitars. Cheers everyone. 

[Les Paul 80s to 90s]

Greetings, I'm new to the forum and been playing Gibsons for going on 20 years. Good to be here. I'll get right down to it that I'm looking to buy an 80s or 90s Les Paul to add to the collection and want one with a pretty thin neck. If you own an LP from this era, it would be great to know what year you have and the neck profile. Cheers.