toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 I recently bought an early Swamp Ash Les Paul from a guy on Craigslist, and I just wanted to ask some questions to make sure I didn't get taken. First of all, the thing is a HEAVY beast! I thought Swamp Ash was supposed to be lighter than most other tonewoods. I don't have a lot of experience hefting Les Paul's, but I have played up one at GC and it seemed much lighter. Second, the serial number I plugged into guitardater said it was a 2003 which seems to jibe, but the neck doesn't have a Smartwood stamp. Did the early SA LP's not have this stamp? The pots have Gibson stamped into them and they are mounted on a metal plate. Is this common? It came with what appears to be an authentic Gibson hardshell case (grey plush interior with the satin over-bag). I also wanted to know if there were any other things to look at on the guitar to determine its authenticity. Thanks in advance for the help. -Todd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flight959 Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 Hi, The plate the pots are fixed to is called a screening plate....Thats normal... The reason you picked up what you beleive to be a lighter LP in GC is you probably grabbed one of the new lighter chambered LP's... As for the guitar dater project its ok but not 100% Pictures of the front and rear of the headstock would be good...and the control cavity if you still have the cover off.. Flight959 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundergod Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 I recently bought an early Swamp Ash Les Paul from a guy on Craigslist' date=' and I just wanted to ask some questions to make sure I didn't get taken. [/quote'] ...should have come here before buying it ... (just sayin') If you post some pics someone might tell you if it is real or a fake, welcome to the forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrosurfer1959 Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 Swamp Ash is usually described as 10% lighter than a typical Hog or Maple so don't expect light weight! Hi' date=' The plate the pots are fixed to is called a screening plate....Thats normal... [/quote'] the screening plate? that's the correct term for the thin copper plate used in Fender and similar cavities but isn't the heavy metal plate in the Gibson the ground for the electronics. Ive always just heard it called a Ground Plate and that's what you used to order if you needed one, anyone really know. This plate right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Author Share Posted December 16, 2008 OK. Here is something that bothers me. It looks like waterslide decals on the headstock. I thought Gibson actually screenprinted these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Author Share Posted December 16, 2008 And here is back of the headstock: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Author Share Posted December 16, 2008 And the control cavity: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Author Share Posted December 16, 2008 So, any speculation about the lack of a Smart Wood stamp? Overall impressions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KSG_Standard Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 The early swamp ash lps had an ebony fretboard, no fret marker inlays (not even dots) and no smartwood sticker. Supposedly these early models are worth more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 16, 2008 Author Share Posted December 16, 2008 The early swamp ash lps had an ebony fretboard' date=' no fret marker inlays (not even dots) and no smartwood sticker. Supposedly these early models are worth more.[/quote'] Ebony fretboard - check. No fret markers - check. (Mine has side dots, though) No smartwood sticker - check. Maybe I lucked out. By the way, does Gibson use lacquer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KSG_Standard Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 Ebony fretboard - check. No fret markers - check. (Mine has side dots' date=' though) No smartwood sticker - check. Maybe I lucked out. By the way, does Gibson use lacquer?[/quote'] Yes, Nitrocellulos lacquer. It just looks different on the swamp ash because of the grain structure. I think you lucked out. I played a swamp ash SG recently and I loved it, almost bought it. It wasn't as light as I thought it would be. I have swamp ash tele also, it's not that light either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myspace.com/jessenoah Posted December 16, 2008 Share Posted December 16, 2008 looks legit to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 17, 2008 Author Share Posted December 17, 2008 So, what's the verdict on the Les Paul and Gibson logos. Does Gibson do waterslides or do they screenprint directly on the headstock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeRom Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 Ash is not really a light weight wood. Just pick up a strat sometime . How about some shots of the whole thing ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 17, 2008 Author Share Posted December 17, 2008 Here are some shots of the front and back of the guitar in the case: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitar slinger Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 Is the pickguard factory installed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 17, 2008 Author Share Posted December 17, 2008 The pickguard is factory installed? No idea. That's the way I got it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitar slinger Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 No idea. That's the way I got it. Not saying there is a problem with it. It actually looks quite legit. The ones I saw never had a pickguard. It makes sense to be a black pickguard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 17, 2008 Author Share Posted December 17, 2008 Not saying there is a problem with it. It actually looks quite legit.The ones I saw never had a pickguard. It makes sense to be a black pickguard. Yeah, I thought it helped draw the eye away from the broad mass of raw grainy lumber! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 17, 2008 Author Share Posted December 17, 2008 I'm kidding. Actually, it's simple "woodiness" is precisely the reason I bought it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitar slinger Posted December 17, 2008 Share Posted December 17, 2008 I'm kidding. Actually' date=' it's simple "woodiness" is precisely the reason I bought it. [/quote'] You could try the LP standard Raw Power (not the one with EMGs) pickguard. But then maybe you'd have to change all the plastics to cream, to look better. I'm quite a fan of the looks of the Raw Power =) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 19, 2008 Author Share Posted December 19, 2008 You could try the LP standard Raw Power (not the one with EMGs) pickguard. But then maybe you'd have to change all the plastics to cream' date=' to look better. I'm quite a fan of the looks of the Raw Power =)[/quote'] I didn't even know they made those. Quite beautiful! I too am now a fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toddler68 Posted December 25, 2008 Author Share Posted December 25, 2008 Well, I finally forwarded all the pics and serial to Gibson and 6 hours later, they confirmed that I've got a genuine '03 Gibson Swamp Ash Les Paul. Whew! They were really quick on the response time and couldn't have been nicer. I highly recommend contacting them with any questions you might have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitar slinger Posted December 25, 2008 Share Posted December 25, 2008 Well' date=' I finally forwarded all the pics and serial to Gibson and 6 hours later, they confirmed that I've got a genuine '03 Gibson Swamp Ash Les Paul. Whew! They were really quick on the response time and couldn't have been nicer. I highly recommend contacting them with any questions you might have. [/quote'] Yes, they are quite fast with those counterfeit/fake/serial mailing. Feeling lighter now, eh? hahaha Regards Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HankCole Posted December 26, 2008 Share Posted December 26, 2008 OK off subject...How do you get these little pics to enlarge. Want to see what we're talking about here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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