PETETHEBANDIT Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 Howdy! Happy holidays! Recently picked up a 2008 Epiphone custom shop Zach Wylde les paul. Bought it off the very close friend. Upon looking it up, I can’t find another guitar like it online. The guitar is completely factory. It was owned by one person for the entirely of its life, and was supposedly bought from a legit retailer in 2008. The issue is, upon doing research, I cannot find a single other guitar like it online. No guitar matches all features of this one. Also the color is white. Almost all Zach Wyldes I find online are off white, with different knobs, and headstock design. After taking it to a few guitar stores to get their opinion, nobody knows what exactly this guitar is! Half of the stores said it was legit and worth around 800, the other half said it was a knock off I was only worth about 100 bucks! I am not so quick to assume that it’s fake, because its play ability is fantastic! It sounds incredible and feels real! The person I bought it off of is trustworthy, and claims it’s real, I just can’t find another one that’s the same! Looking for any information anybody has on this guitar. I would be appreciated. Is it real? Is it fake? Is it super special custom? Who knows! Pictures linked here for those curious: https://ibb.co/j3dqcgm https://ibb.co/4mr0MpB https://ibb.co/M6bw5pz https://ibb.co/6r9rDXf https://ibb.co/64h2yMR https://ibb.co/Hh2fvMH https://ibb.co/0Z4Cwm0 https://ibb.co/VqKHktY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narwhal6 Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 Pic links don't work. 🫤 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 1 hour ago, Narwhal6 said: Pic links don't work. 🫤 The links worked for me, but I am no Epi or Zack expert. Where is Allegan. I just visited my aunt and cousin in Bellaire, Michigan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 It's fake. Can see at a glance. It certainly wasn't supplied by an epiphone dealer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10PoundLester Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 48 minutes ago, Farnsbarns said: It's fake. Can see at a glance. It certainly wasn't supplied by an epiphone dealer. What gives it away? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
10PoundLester Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 14 hours ago, PETETHEBANDIT said: I am not so quick to assume that it’s fake, because its play ability is fantastic! It sounds incredible and feels real! If you like it then who cares if it's fake or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 (edited) And.... The EE at the beginning of the serial number implies it was made in the QongDao factory in China. However the font for the letters is larger than the font for the numbers which, according to the info in my next link, means it's a fake. This is an old Reverb listing for another counterfeit one, also in white - please have a look AND read all the text description. https://reverb.com/item/1677154-epiphone-zakk-wylde-les-paul-custom-2008-white-emg-pups-flamed-maple-neck-w-case-counterfeit If you repost in the Epiphone forum you may get some more info....it's definitely not 'super special custom'!! good luck! Edited November 30, 2023 by jdgm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narwhal6 Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 5 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said: The links worked for me, but I am no Epi or Zack expert. Where is Allegan. I just visited my aunt and cousin in Bellaire, Michigan. About halfway between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo. Closest I've been to Bellaire is Tawas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted November 29, 2023 Share Posted November 29, 2023 They actually fake Epiphones? Mind you, I have owned a few Epiphones in my life. I never knew. 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 30, 2023 Share Posted November 30, 2023 11 hours ago, sparquelito said: They actually fake Epiphones? Mind you, I have owned a few Epiphones in my life. I never knew. 🙂 Yes, the top end ones a lot. The first giveaway on this guitar is the domed tail piece stud heads. Only ever seen on fakes. Next is the tuners. Fake Grovers, in the wrong positions, never found on real epiphones. Finished in paint, not polyurethane and it's the wrong colour. The custom split diamond is the wrong shape and too big. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted November 30, 2023 Share Posted November 30, 2023 12 hours ago, sparquelito said: They actually fake Epiphones? Mind you, I have owned a few Epiphones in my life. I never knew. 🙂 I found that a surprise as well. I bought my daughter an Epiphone acoustic many years ago that is a fantastic guitar for the money. But I have no idea how anyone could make any money faking Epiphones unless you did it by the thousands. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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