mis-aligned back strip

[4beagles]

guys- would it bother you if the back strip on a new Gibson is off a bit - not centered on the heel- everything else is good....plays well and sounds very nice

[PrairieSchooner]

Yes.  No matter how strongly I decided I could live with it, it would pop out at me every time I looked at the guitar.  JMO

Edited July 13, 2023 by PrairieSchooner

[gearbasher]

I have a Custom Shop Limited edition J-45. There is no back strip, but the center seam is off center at the heel (about 1/4"). It annoyed me at first, but now I don't even think about it. 

Edited July 13, 2023 by gearbasher

[4beagles]

It's off only by 1/8" I think.............I think the sound and feel overrides the cosmetic element...........but wanted too get some opinions......I do think any concerns would fade over time

( like us)....................

[Murph]

I've never looked. At any of mine,

I will now, if I remember.

Which means....

[rbpicker]

nope, not in the least.  How’s it sound and play?  That’s what matters to me.

roger

[zombywoof]

6 hours ago, gearbasher said:

I have a Custom Shop Limited edition J-45. There is no back strip, but the center seam is off center at the heel (about 1/4"). It annoyed me at first, but now I don't even think about it. 

The very first J45s did not have back strips.  As Gibson flattops sported the back strip in the 1930s, I do not have a clue why this feature was absent in the very first Banners.   All you saw looking through the soundhole was the skunk stripe.  In my guitar though is not off center at least enough to notice.

Edited July 13, 2023 by zombywoof

[zombywoof]

Idiosyncrasies endear a guitar to me.  I will call your misaligned back strip and raise you an accidentally flop flopped book matched top piece. 

[olie]

If it were a painting it might cause me consternation. But, then, I never played a painting.

[Dave F]

It wouldn't bother me but I may have to remove my tattoo so it doesn't bug me looking at it while I'm playing.

[fortyearspickn]

I'd wonder if the center seam and joiner strip inside were 100% right.  I suspect the two back pieces are straight as is the joiner, and that the center strip that shows on the make is less of a a structural integrity thing which may have been SANDED a little bit crookedly when finishing the outside of the back.  .  In other words,  if everything underneath is put together right, it would not cause me to return it.  And, therefore, I would 'accept' it and never give it a thought again.   BUT -  I'm not a luthier and it's your money.  

[PrairieSchooner]

For the kind on money they charge for this stuff that sort of thing is inexcusable. It should never have left the factory like that. Like I said; JMO.

[fortyearspickn]

An 1/8"  misalignment of a straight line can easily occur from a heavy hand in sanding.  I'd want to see if the whole center strip is mis-aligned or just at the end by the heel.  "A picture is worth a thousand words."     If Gibson trashed every acoustic that had 1/8" variances in - what might be a purely cosmetic area on the back - 'the money they charge' would have to be substantially higher.     Like Murph said -  I'll have to look at mine: two with center strips and one without.  I sure hope the later doesn't have an issue.  But, after 10 years, I guess I'll live with it if it does. 

[gearbasher]

Here's a pic of the misaligned seam on my J-45 mentioned in post #3. It is off by 1/4". Sorry for the skylight glare. It no longer bothers me.

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

Why does anyone need another person’s opinion to know if they don’t like something, or if it is, or isn’t acceptable? Have you ever listened to Zappa, and if you haven’t, my opinion is he’s really good. So take that for what it’s worth. Or there is always a Taylor Swift or Garth Brooks out there if Zappa is to much for you. Make your own decision about the guitar.  Keep it or not I didn’t pay for it.

Edited July 15, 2023 by Sgt. Pepper

[fortyearspickn]

I stand corrected - after looking at the center stripe on the back of my SJ200 = it's clear it could NOT appear mis-aligned due to 'sanding'.   Stupid assumption on my part. 

 It is, however, approximately 1/8"  out of alignment with the stripe on the neck.  But the heel cap is in between the two, and makes it harder to see.   

Edited July 15, 2023 by fortyearspickn

[BluesKing777]

11 hours ago, gearbasher said:

Here's a pic of the misaligned seam on my J-45 mentioned in post #3. It is off by 1/4". Sorry for the skylight glare. It no longer bothers me.

 

 

Get out the measuring sticks, Gearbasher and 4Beagles!

Is the join exactly in the middle of the guitar? If it is, the neck could be in the wrong spot! Is the soundhole on the front in the  exact middle of the guitar top, or off a way?

I only mention it because ........I use to own one with the neck slightly off - I thought it was the soundhole off, but no. Played OK....well, to me it did.... so they make the guitar box, add the blocks both ends, slot the neck joint area.....wrong spot, oh well, nobody will notice....except the dweebs from the forum. Chuck the neck in the slot.......

 

BluesKing777.

 

 

[Murph]

6 hours ago, BluesKing777 said:

 nobody will notice....except the dweebs from the forum. 

 

Yep.

And only half of them...

[Sgt. Pepper]

56 minutes ago, Murph said:

 

Yep.

And only half of them...

Actually none of us have seen it, due to no pics of it. Others posted theirs and a tattoo. The tattoo ties the room together like Lebowski’s rug.

[gearbasher]

8 hours ago, BluesKing777 said:

 

Get out the measuring sticks, Gearbasher and 4Beagles!

Is the join exactly in the middle of the guitar? If it is, the neck could be in the wrong spot! Is the soundhole on the front in the  exact middle of the guitar top, or off a way?

I only mention it because ........I use to own one with the neck slightly off - I thought it was the soundhole off, but no. Played OK....well, to me it did.... so they make the guitar box, add the blocks both ends, slot the neck joint area.....wrong spot, oh well, nobody will notice....except the dweebs from the forum. Chuck the neck in the slot.......

 

BluesKing777.

 

 

Everything else on the guitar is perfectly aligned. Neck, bridge, top seam etc. Just the back is on crooked. The seam at the tail block is centered at the heel it's off.

[Murph]

I knew a guy who's nose was crooked.

 

[Sgt. Pepper]

1 hour ago, Murph said:

I knew a guy who's nose was crooked.

 

Did he pay $2500 for it? Prolly not?

S K Y N Y R D

Edited July 15, 2023 by Sgt. Pepper

[MissouriPicker]

I’ve never noticed any potential visual imperfections on my guitars.  In all sincerity, I don’t look for them.   Don’t know that it matters to me.   Maybe it should, but it don’t.  I can understand why some people take it very seriously.  ……..If I like a guitar, I just play it.

[RBSinTo]

6 hours ago, MissouriPicker said:

I’ve never noticed any potential visual imperfections on my guitars.  In all sincerity, I don’t look for them.   Don’t know that it matters to me.   Maybe it should, but it don’t.  I can understand why some people take it very seriously.  ……..If I like a guitar, I just play it.

MissouriPicker,

RBSinTo's Law: 

"Everybody does what they do. You do what you do. He does what he does. And I do what I do."

Or, as Uncle Sidney always said, "That's why we have chocolate, and why we have vanilla."

RBSinTo

[gearbasher]

7 hours ago, MissouriPicker said:

I’ve never noticed any potential visual imperfections on my guitars.  In all sincerity, I don’t look for them.   Don’t know that it matters to me.   Maybe it should, but it don’t.  I can understand why some people take it very seriously.  ……..If I like a guitar, I just play it.

As I said, it doesn't bother me, anymore . As far as looking for imperfections, I bought my guitar online. When I received it, I couldn't help but notice how much the center seam was off. Then again, I worked for 30+ years doing mechanical and electrical repairs and everything I did had to be neat, orderly and aligned. I was also into woodworking and all my joints had to be aesthetically pleasing. I'm also a little OCD. To the point where, when my next door neighbor installed his new gutters, one downspout was crooked. It annoyed me so much to look at it, I used to keep the shade closed on my window, so I didn't have to look at it.