PrairieDog

That’s an interesting thing about the collector mind. I have several “collections” minor and serious ones I’ve amassed over the years. Perhaps the heftiest is our art collection. By the time we were over that, we had amassed nearly 200 pieces of work. Except for a handful of slightly nicer pieces, nothing to brag about, much less retire on, just works that were of specific interest to us. My point is, besides our actual catalogue, I wander around thinking I have a pretty complete mental census of all the artists and works we have. But, as time goes by —and my head has been turned by guitars— things are getting a bit murkier. I find now, I often stumble across something tucked away I realize I had forgotten all about. The good thing is it’s like a finding a little treasure all over again. I get to go “Hey, we DO have a piece by this guy! I forgot how much I liked this one! Let’s hang it back up!” And best part is, I didn’t have to spend anything but get to feel like I got a new toy all over again 😀

This is going to pop Sarge’s brain! Bonamassa’s just a dilettante now.

This is just a fan forum, Gibson doesn’t interact with posts here, as far as we know. Just a friendly hall monitor to keep us in line. If you have an issue the best thing to do is to call/write Gibson directly if you want to give them a heads up about the quality. Just wondering, did you happen to catch the serial number on the first one? Maybe ZZounds screwed up and just shipped you back the same guitar because they had it handy. I’ve seen worse happen before.

It appears to be adjustable in all directions. there are sliders there on the sides that look like they adjust the length for different length cabinets. But yeah, a good old dolly sure works fine.

You can also search the sold prices which are more accurate. Good luck!

Grin, okay I’ll bite: We float in both worlds. We do environmental surveys so from the git go we are measuring the crap out of everything. In the office, we measure the terrain using GIS to create the maps for our study. On the ground we measure the size, depth and plan views of our tests and project areas, and anything in it, using GIS, transits, and tapes, Back in the lab we’re working with rulers, calipers, and weigh scales. But we don’t have to record quite detailed as Saturn does, thank god 🙂 And we work mainly in metric, because it is the industry standard, even in the US, but some sites also need to be recorded in imperial, so I’m fluent in both measurement systems 😜

hah! Yes, I could have written your post! that is us exactly. By the nature of the work, the owners and the employees are all doing the same job, the owners just do more of it. the employees get the last week of the year off, paid, as a reward for all their hard work. The owners spend Christmas Eve finishing up the reports and taking care of what need to get done. I’ve had terrible crummy jobs, and I swore I would never treat worthwhile employees with anything less than total respect and support. We do try to make as much fun for them as the job allows. We take them on side trips if we are in an interesting area, we give them impromptu days off when they need them, we profit share and offer full bennies, even though we are so tiny we are exempt from many of the mandates. Our labor is the only thing that makes the company run. I gotta treat them right. It’s just the right thing to do.

Nod, exactly… you don’t have to be your employees best friend, but you do have to appreciate they are giving a part of their life to work for you. And if they are doing their jobs, that is all that really matters. As a business owner/manager, I can pretty much guarantee nobody is pulling the wool over the bosses eyes when it comes to whether an employee likes the job, or their bosses. But all we really can care about is if folks are doing well at the job they were hired to do. If the person with the attitude isn’t interested in improving things, and isn’t bringing down the morale, or riling up the rest of the group, then the best we can do is keep giving them what they need to do the job, take the usually not well disguised digs, and hope for the best for them, all while keeping the door open if they want to address the issues they have. If I can fix anything I always will. But if they are producing, and the attitude isn’t disrupting their co-coworkers, then we just deal. We’ve had some pretty arrogant employees, but they did their work well so they got a pass. I’ve only had two folks in over 20 years I had to let go. And that was only after multiple attempts to help get them comfortable with us. But they had egos that wouldn’t quit, chafed at “working for the man” and thought they were smarter/more qualified than the bosses, and/or were damaging morale with the other employees, who saw the shirking and had to put up with the snark. One was a young college intern we took on for a hot, difficult project that was going to last most of the summer. At the beginning of a big project like this it is important we have crew that clicks, is willing and knows what needs to be done, and trusts each other. It can be dangerous work. It quickly became clear this kid was not prepared and not cut out for the work, or the social responsibility. They had such a sour attitude. they actually had a tantrum when a boss offered to buy folks ice cream after a particularly hard day. They actually hissed at the boss, “I don’t need any of your stinking gas-station ice cream!” To their credit the rest of the crew snapped back with, “then you don’t have to have any.” When the truck pulled into the Dairy Queen, they tried to back-track, “Oh, I didn’t realize you meant DQ”. Yeah, they still got a cone, but hoo boy was that an awkward trip back to the hotel. The next day they bragged to the crew, when everyone else was beat after a brutal day, that they weren’t tired because when it got hard they just handed their work off to a co-worker to finish. (We pulled the co-worker aside and told them they should never put up with that, and they had our blessing to tell anyone to go find a boss if they were having trouble finishing tests.) Besides the goldbricking, they were generally insulting and made inappropriate comments, including about co-worker’s disabled sibling. We could see the rest of the good folks were getting sick of it and the wheels were turning about whether it would be worth putting up with the clown for the rest of the summer. As bosses we knew, if we didn’t step in, the whole crew could fall apart. But we couldn’t coach the kid out of it, in a field where interpersonal conduct and personal responsibility is everything. When we called them out on the disruptive behavior, they didn’t apologize or even acknowledge they might have inadvertently overstepped. Just doubled down with, “I’m only joking. Nobody here gets my sense of humor.” I gently observed if no one else is laughing, it’s not a joke. Even after daily coaching with warnings they were in jeopardy, they were completely shocked when I told them we were ending their internship after one week. The other person we had hired as a project manager. A few months after they started, they began padding their timesheet, lied about completing assignments and reasons why they couldn’t complete others, and tried to get a fellow employe to fudge results when they were caught out by an agency they had done a project improperly. We didn’t even enter that last coaching conversation intending to fire them, just help with clarifying our expectations again, and set an improvement plan, but by the end of it, they were so volatile and threatening, it became clear we had to let them go. That was the only time I called the sheriff to ask for some extra patrols in the aftermath. Sure, it’s irksome, and a bummer knowing you are making the unpopular decisions that are keeping the company open even so a disgruntled employee can keep their job. Even while the employee makes no secret they think they know better, or that you are an idiot or an ogre, but as bosses we have to keep our eyes on the bigger picture, and what’s best for everyone and the firm. I always make clear that we will do what we can to help an employee if they are unhappy, even if that means making it easier for them to transition out, or even actively helping them find another, more well-suited position. I’ve worked at jobs I hated and I knew the best moves I ever made were the ones that got me out them. I don’t want my employees to feel as if they are trapped in a place they aren’t happy. There are always options.

The roadie who had that light bulb deserves a medal.

The folks in the institution were likely what we call autistic/spectrum now, and they do often have amazing mental skills, their brains are just not organized the way we are used to, or can always understand. They also used to call them “idiot savants.” I suspect my dad was probably on the spectrum. Insanely high IQ (185) Sheldon-esque type, he was extremely successful in his academic career, but he had the interpersonal skills of a gnat in common social situations. When I was a kid, he used to give me birthday cards with clever puns he made up based on things like idiomatic, medieval French, then be disappointed I didn’t get the joke he worked so hard on.

Aw so sorry to hear this, may you and mom and the rest of your family find comfort in each other and in your fond memories of your dad. Be gentle with yourself in the days ahead.

@Retired 😅 just shows how little I know about the competitive chess world. I just grew up hearing my dad was “ranked.” I have no idea what his rank was. Sounds like you are a tremendous player. All I knew was my dad won the state trophy back when I was a baby, and there was an article in the newspaper about it.

Not sure what, but I’m living proof that something is going on. I come from a long line of alcoholics and other addictions. I even married one the first time around. But despite my best efforts to crash and burn in my youth, doing a prolonged tour of everything that could possibly ruin a person, I came out the other side virtually unscathed. I finally got sick of feeling sick, and realized I needed to grow up if I wanted any kind of real life. Now, decades later, I might have an occasional cocktail on a summer evening on the deck, but that’s about it. I’m just glad I dodged the family bullet at the last minute.

In my insatiable desire for all things sparkly, I now have fatal case of inlay lust… that Vine is just breathtaking. Congrats, and the others are way cool too!

Chuckle, my dad was a ranked chess player. He tried to teach me the game when I was 7 or 8. I was excited he wanted to engage with me. However, his version of teaching saw no value in “helping” me win by explaining strategies or coaching me on which moves to make when. He just explained what all the pieces could do, then went to town playing against every naive move I made. Of course, I would lose within four or five moves every time. Suffice to say, I don’t play chess.

I agree with all these thoughts. I think much blame can be laid on these anonymous keyboards. Life was very much “nicer” in the before times. Back then, If you were rude or ticked somebody off in real life, you had to deal with the immediate consequences and all the fall out. Real life matters. I saw your other post too, And I really appreciate your comments and your reminder to be kind. You’ve got a good attitude, and you posted some great reasons this forum can be a really cool place. As far where are the women? there is one glaring explanation: look to the tone of the comments here. Women, LGBT, liberals, anyone “other,” are repeated targets of very rude, cruel, and sometimes vicious snark by a small set of vocal commenters. It’s clear that some some folks here aren’t looking beyond the mirror over who might be lurking or reading their words. I tried observing that once in a thread when I first came on, and hoo boy, did that stir up a tempest. I admit, it bums me out when folks I otherwise enjoy reading lift the veil and I get an eyeful of ugly. That’s when I just focus back on we are here for the guitars. I know I irk some people because I write a bit stilted and don’t always have time to finesse my thoughts (And I have a very low-tolerance for posts that seem meant to just stir up snark about Gibson, and will call it out) but I am working and listening to learn how to moderate my posts and be a better forum member. I am at the point where I’m probably deleting more knee-jerk responses, than posts I make 🥹 which is at least a start. Thanks again for some really good missives. I always enjoy reading your comments and thoughts. Thanks for being here. And just so you know, I haven’t forgotten. I’m still nagging my buddy who had the Moderne to dig out the info he had on that CSE series. 🙂

And the corollary is posters taking offense and reading tone where none is intended. Not sure how I “insulted” him. On the contrary, I understood exactly what he was asking. In my answer, at least, I was merely observing the question is a bit pedantic. Look at it this way: He’s asking the equivalent of, “my car was rated to get x miles per gallon, but when I drive it I get different mileage, unless I drive it in a way I don’t like. Has anyone ever been able to get what the sticker says they should, and still drive the car they way they want?” The car sticker is based on wheels running on a treadmill inside a testing lab and means nothing to how we drive in the real world. Apparently what’s got him miffed is the range of answers observing folks here at least don’t seem to worry about the factory numbers. I thought the answers he got were pretty good. I suspect he thought he was going to get a chorus of agreement, not a bunch of folks saying they just work around what he finds to be an apparently unacceptable problem. Shrug, he knows his options.

Geesh, you just posted the question 6 hours ago! That is the middle of the night for the US folks here on the board. Let the experts here have a cup of coffee before they try chime in to try to address your quibble. And for the record, you did get a couple answers from two folks who observed it may not be a universal issue… but you didn’t like that. I suggest you go listen to some EVH or Slash, and ask if all those high E string bends above the 12th were “not possible.” Really, dude, if you can’t play the guitar the way you like, you know you aren’t married to it. Just toss it back for one with the specs that pleases you better.

Why do you care about the measurements? Just set it up so that it works for you. Plenty of well known players are bending their high E above the 12th and seem to be mighty successful, at least they haven’t lost their record deals over it. The factory is just the common suggestion. It’s not gospel. Most folks tweak the set up to suit their style. What do you want? To have them change the otherwise overall well designed fret board just so that high E strings can bend fine above the 12th?

Love that harp!

Grin, yeah, we feel the same way. About the only thing I’m still in the hunt for is that slippery regular hog J-45, (mine is a walnut studio so it is brighter) but that urge has moved down the craving ladder a bit. The Lucille though, has nudged open the door on electrics. My wife initially wasn’t that fond of it, being so much heavier, but as I suspected, she is warming up to it. I’m worried about where we may be heading next if she gets bit by the PUP bug 😁

Aw thanks, I wish I could say I was being shrewd, or strategic, but they were all pretty much bumbling accidents being in the right place at the right time. Usually we were out searching for something completely different.

Nod, I buy used when practical (except cars, I used to buy used all the time, but finally got tired of footing the repairs and breakdowns). I go used when all things being equal the used price fits my wallet better. And bonus, with guitars, used is usually better than new, as we are seeing here 🙂 I do have to be careful though being honest with myself about what it “should” cost vs what I “want” it to cost, chuckle. Back in the 20th century I bought a nice two story 3 bed 2 bath brick house with mahogany woodwork, leaded glass windows, and a generous backyard (for the city) for $73,000. That of course forever set my gauge on what a “nice” house in the city should cost. I sold it for what I thought was a nice profit back in 2003, got my money out and then some in appreciation. I just heard the folks who bought it from me sold it a few years ago for over half a million 🙄 It’s always gonna be a $73,000 house to me 😆

Wish you all could hear my long appreciative whistles… Here’s mine: 1910 L1, 2023 J-45 Studio, 2020 Hummingbird Original, 2006 Lucille, 2017 DIF Honorable mention to our 38ish Cromwell by Gibson Oh and this little dude 🙂 1926 TB1

Nodding emphatically. As I’m getting know my “on trial” Hummingbird (I was initially disappointed didn’t sound like a bigger J-45 😆) I totally agree. Used to be with a song coming on, I’d just switch up between my DIF, the L1, the Studio J-45, or a couple of the Taylors. Didn’t make much difference, they all worked “fine” so I just went with the feeling I wanted. Now my hand just goes right to that ‘bird every time I want to sing. I guess I probably should stop referring to it as the on trial Hummer. It appears to be staying put 😄