Ron G

On second thought, I see that it is a can of worms. Caveat emptor is really all that can be said.

That's pretty damn vague, and only mentions Gibson, not Epiphone. Not nearly good enough, in my opinion. If the company is as serious as they allude to, they need to do more.

Duane and Bender: Good points. Therefore, if that is in fact the case, Gibson/Epiphone can clearly state their views on their corporate web sites and on this forum.

Of course, it's impossible to have an absolutely definitive and foolproof reference to identify counterfeit Epiphones, but the company could still publish its best guideline on the subject. And at the same time, they could encourage purchase only through authorized retailers, recommend seeing the original receipt for used guitars, etc..

Customers need to know.

After more than two years seeing this issue come up again and again, it seems that it isn't very important to Gibson/Epiphone, considering the surprising lack of information posted on their corporate web sites. Perhaps they are afraid that too much publicity will cause potential buyers to avoid the brands altogether. In any case, it is the buyer's responsibility to do necessary research before such an important and expensive purchase. Such "due diligence" applies to any such purchase, and careful, critical thinking is the best insurance.

I really like my Gator GL-Dread lightweight case. Almost as strong as a hard case but lighter. It has shoulder straps like a gig bag, too. Best of all, it has double zipper pockets, perfect for music books and other accessories. Highly recommended. http://www.gatorcases.com/Default.aspx?Section=Products&Page=Details&CategoryID=4387&CatalogID=9710

I'm pretty sure full-size Grovers will fit without modification, but I'm curious as to why you want to replace them. One of my guitars is a Dot Studio, equipped with Jinho Grover look-alikes, and they work very well.

What's wrong with the tuners it came with? Mine (Jinho) work just fine. And if you're worried about tuning stability, why the hell install a vibrato?

Well, LPVS44, it appears that you're judging your pickups through an amp that you characterize as a POS. I'd say wait and see what you think after playing for a while through your Marshall and the new pedal. IMO, the amp upgrade is way bigger than a pickup upgrade, which will be subtle, at best.

The age old question, LPVS44, what amp(s) are you using?

Often the pole piece spacing is different to match the string spacing at the relative positions, although it's not critical (335s use 2 identical pickups, for example). Bridge pickups are often a bit "hotter" for volume balance.

This one, Rich: http://www.epiphone.com/default.asp?ProductID=274&CollectionID=1

I'm pretty sure that Grovers haven't been made in the US for many years.