6th Stringer

I am thinking that just the neck pickup is coming through in the middle position. Maybe the pot is bad? Is there a way to test it without taking it all apart? I ran a single lead jumper from the switch to the bridge volume pot middle lug - bypassing the braided wire - and still nothing.

I just installed some P94 style pickups in my 2001 SG Standard and I got all new 330K pots to go with them. I got everything pretty much wired up, but I am not getting a signal when the switch is in the bridge position. Everything should be correct and all the solder joints are solid. The neck position and the middle position come through, but no bridge position. How can the middle position work, but not the bridge by itself?! I got a pre-wired control harness to theoretically save time, but that didnt work out. I didnt like the switch it came with, so I undid that one and wired up the old original switch. A multimeter on the + and - of the volume pot show the 8.60k pickup reading. There is a metal shielded wire from the middle lug of the vol pot soldered to the top of the pot and going to the switch. I spent hours trying to figure out why there is a signal at the pot, but not the output? And why will the middle position work, but not the bridge by itself?

I am going to change the pickups in my SG Standard. I looked at some Gibson pots on their web site and they want $15 EACH!! Are they really any better than CTS or Bourns or something similar? I imagine they are probably made by one of the major suppliers and we are just paying for the logo. I could re-use the stock ones that are in it now, but I have to disconnect the braided shielding that is soldered to the tops. and by the time I get everything re-wired it will look like a mess. Although, I was thinking of using humbucker style P90s, so I would better off with some 330k pots anyway.

This is my ES - LP Special II. It Is Rad. It's the only Gibson hollowbody I own at the moment. I do have a Korean Epi Casino and a Vantage that is an L-5 style. The ES-LP is all maple, but still has that classic Les Paul tone. The neck is FAT - .95" 1st fret and 1" at the 12th. It has '57Classic and Classic + pickups. I got it for $850 as a "floor model", but it was like new. I think the quilt tops are even rarer than the plain ones.

I have about 17 or 18 right now, but the nicer ones generally stay in the cases most of the time. Some are on wall hangers and are easy to grab if I feel like it. Right now in my bedroom are my 1991 American Standard Strat and 2017 Les Paul Studio T. I am trying to sell the LP Studio because it has the slim neck profile and I prefer the thicker necks. Out of all my Gibsons ( '91 SG Special; '01 SG Standard,; '10 LP Studio; '16 ES- Les Paul Special; and '17 Studio T) They ALL have the 50s neck profile except for the Studio T. Someday I hope to get a Les Paul Standard 50s.

Hey guys - I just traded for a 2001 SG Standard a few days ago. Everything seems stock, so it should have the 490R/498T pickup set. They check out with the multi-meter : 13.5K Bridge and 7.6 Neck. All the pots and wiring look original an unmolested. The pots are Gibson branded and marked with the production date of 1-15-01. Both pickups are basically the same height from the strings, but the neck pickup is significantly louder than the bridge pickup. This is counter-intuative since the bridge pickup is almost twice as hot. I used contact cleaner on the switch contacts. It did not work. I can not think of any other reason why the weaker pickup would be the loudest. I am thinking of swapping them out with some humbucker sized P90s. I would not want to dis-assemble the original wiring harness, so I would probably replace it all with quality stuff and keep the original harness intact.

So I just opened the electronics cavity and all the insides appear stock. The pots have a Gibson logo. The Guitar Dater Project places my serial number at January 11th 2001. One of the tone pots is marked 1-15-01, so I am pretty confident everything is cool. That marking on the headstock that looks like a decal is just SO odd.

I have 5 Gibsons and the only one I have with '57 Classics / + is an ES- Les Paul Special II and they sound RAD. Although, it is ALL maple, so it is hard to tell how they sound in something else, but I'm sure they would be good in whatever. Solid bodies and hollow bodies are quite different. Hollow guitars give you a bigger and rounder tone. Think Ted Nugent's "Stranglehold". But, they are bigger physically and prone to feedback at high volumes. The advantage is that they are better to play acoustically if you don't feel like plugging in!

I just traded my white re-fin Flying V for a 2001 SG Standard. It all looks totally legit - the tattered brown case with pink interior and cover; the headstock inlays; the tuners; the nibs on the fret ends. The only thing I find curious is the stamps on the back of the headstock. The serial number and "Made in U.S.A." have a line around them that looks like a decal. They feel recessed - as a stamp should, but have a visible line around them. I am thinking that it is the die marking creating an optical illusion. Does anyone have any input on this from other guitars of the period? I am pretty confident that it is real, but It looks different from other Gibsons I own. I have noticed the die markings on my other guitars. but not on the Made in USA part as much as the serial numbers.

This was my first total guitar refin. I had painted several motorcycles before. For the clear, I used a 2-part poly from the auto paint store that is kind of like epoxy. It has plastic qualities, but it's flexible and resists gasoline well, so it would probably be resistant to sweat and oils. It dries/cures quickly because it is chemically activated. I sprayed it on with a Preval. Then smooth with progressively fine sandpapers and polish with McGuire's Ultimate Compound.

More angles.

Check out Guitarfetish.com ! They have really good stuff at reasonable prices and plenty of USA Gibson spec pieces.

Cool. That makes sense. Thanks for the info.

My good friend had one just like that. Unfortunately, he accidentally discharged a pistol in his house and the police came. They knocked his SG off the stand and it got a headstock fracture.

There was nothing wrong with the V. Its all structurally solid. I just do not like the open pore/grain finish style. Some Taylor acoustic guitars are like that on the neck. I always liked the late 70s Les Pauls with the metal flake finish. I believe they were mostly red or blue. I though the LP Studio would be kind of a tribute to that. A "goldtop" , yet non-traditional. I have a bunch of gold flakes left over from painting my motorcycle. I also have an old Peavey Mystic that I am refurbishing and will have to paint it as well. It had a really bad rattle can job when I rescued it from a pawn shop.

What are your thoughts on re-finishing low end Gibson models? How does it effect the value for you? Does a nicely done non-original re-finish deminish or add to the value? I re-finished a 2003 Flying V. It started as "faded"or worn Cherry. I stripped it, sanded it. filled the grain and re-sprayed it in Olympic White as sort of an homage to Hetfield. I left the neck the original cherry stain finish and made the headstock white on the back and metallic black on the face. I have a 2017 LP Studio T that is also Cherry with the gloss top. I was thinking of re-doing just the top in gold metal flake and leaving the sides and back red.

I have an SG Special that I got at a pawn shop for $375 because it has an ugly - yet functional - headstock repair. It has all the specs of the 1992 model - 50s neck profile; ebony fretboard; large pickguard. The pickups are most likely stock. They are 7.8k (Bridge) and 8k (Neck). The serial number dater at Guitar Dater Project says it is from 1990, but the serial-number-decoder.com says it isfrom 1994. The serial is 94010462. The second to last is either a 6 or 8. It is stamped so lightly it's hard to tell. I don't think that is consequential to the date of production.