D Big Daddy M Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Custom shop (?) project Anyone have any idea on the model of this (mostly husk) Les Paul. The seller claims it is a Custom Shop "Education Series" guitar from Gibson. I have looked and looked and cannot find anything remotely like it on the internet. He is asking a very favorable price for it and I would love some more background info before I buy it. His claim is that he worked at Gibson when he bought it and that he planned to refinish it and never got around to doing so. His story sounds credible but again I can find no such animal anywhere that I have seen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 I hope he doesn't want over $400 if it is a real Gibson. If you want to take that on good on ya. I'd run as fast a I can get something that doesn't look like it was dragged behind a car for a mile or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FemmeParallell Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Never heard of the "Education series", and i dont see how they would put the diamond thing on the headstock and dot inlays (instead of trapezoid or something else) and no neck binding... i dunno, i dont think its a real Gibson but that;s my opinion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 (edited) I would not buy this guitar at any price. Custom Shop "Education Series"....? I doubt it very much. The phrase implies a student or beginner's guitar and they wouldn't (need to) make those in the Custom Shop. The highly skilled Custom Shop employees are busy making high-end Gibsons. Epiphone guitars are more like an "Education Series". It's a great phrase but the only education anyone will get from this is the buyer when they realise they have been fooled. The diamond inlay on the headstock is like a Les Paul Custom, the rest of it looks homemade or like a cheap copy. The control knob/switch positions and holes - what there is of them - are far too close together. If the neck has a scarf joint (headstock and neck are NOT all one piece) and/or is a bolt-on that's another very big red flag. Not legit at all IMO. Edited January 16, 2020 by jdgm 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
01GT eibach Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 (edited) Gibson "Education Series" are evidently Gibson-Baldwin guitars, and nowhere near the stratosphere of regular Gibson, let alone the Custom Shop. Hence, that head-stock is TOTALLY wrong. Other than that, the guitar looks right. It likely has a "Gibson-Baldwin Music Education" neck plate (see pic) for its bolted-on neck. These guitars sell for $100 in good condition. Your example is worth a sub-compact tank of gas. Edited January 19, 2020 by 01GT eibach 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 9 hours ago, 01GT eibach said: Gibson "Education Series" are evidently Gibson-Baldwin guitars, and nowhere near the stratosphere of regular Gibson, let alone the Custom Shop. Hence, that head-stock is TOTALLY wrong. Other than that, the guitar looks right. It likely has a "Gibson-Baldwin Music Education" neck plate (see pic) for its bolted-on neck. These guitars sell for $100 in good condition. Your example is worth a sub-compact tank of gas. Many thanks for this informative post, exactly why this forum is still so good; I for one was completely unaware of "Gibson-Baldwin Music Education" - a forgotten piece of history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted January 19, 2020 Share Posted January 19, 2020 Not sure what your budget is but there is good used real Gibson stuff out there that can be had for almost any price range depending of what you want. I bought a killer SG Special for $600 a few years back. It was clean and stock and a rock machine. Take advantage of what someone else does not what. Used is that way to go. With acoustics I would go new. Getting a nice acoustic and then finding out it need a $400 neck reset is a bummer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callmethebreeze Posted January 21, 2020 Share Posted January 21, 2020 if your budget is tight or you want to limit yourself to a few hundred dollars, i would always recommend going with 90s studio models with real ebony fretboards. Those are fantastic value! If you want a project, maybe you can even one in project shape for less money. The one you found looks shady to me tbh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted January 29, 2020 Share Posted January 29, 2020 (edited) Just to put the cap on this thread..... Being curious, I googled "Gibson-Baldwin guitars" and found out Gibson set it up in 2005 - - Gibson Guitar has created Gibson Baldwin Music Education (GBME), a new division dedicated to supporting music education by offering new lines of affordable instruments and by donating portions of proceeds to music education foundations. The GBME division is based in Nashville, Tenn., at the company’s corporate headquarters. Gibson Baldwin Music Education will focus on producing and delivering a line of entry-level guitars, amps and accessories to retailers across the nation at affordable prices. The division will focus on servicing the beginning player and early music students. The Gibson Baldwin Music Education program will offer Maestro, Echelon, Genesis and Signature brands; the line of instruments will include both electric and acoustic guitars, bass guitars, woodwinds, horns and percussion instruments. GBME will also offer amplifiers and a full line of Gibson branded accessories. Gibson Guitar will also offer select musical education foundations a percentage of proceeds from products sold under the Gibson Baldwin Music Education program. “The Gibson Guitar and Baldwin Piano companies were founded by music educators, and our new GBME division will continue our century-plus tradition of supporting music education,” said Gibson chairman and CEO, Henry Juszkiewicz. “Gibson is committed to telling students about the many rewards of musicianship, and is very pleased to offer such high quality, affordable instruments to beginning music students.” - Is it still going? I didn't look any further into this, but I doubt it. Edited January 30, 2020 by jdgm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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