Black Beauty Block Inlays

[carverman]

Neither of my customs have a headstock that looks like the one posted by jcwillow.

Both are closer to aero's' date=' but have the TRC from jc's.

 

Here's one from Sweetwater: [/quote']

 

Looks like mine too. Mine didn't come with the Epi sticker on the back of the headstock

and it "hummed" until I ran some shield wire from the pots to the 3-way.

 

It's got the Jinho asian grovers with the flat washers and threaded hex bushings,

not the raised washers on the string posts, , but it does have figured MOT

though. Workmanship (binding) and finish is very good, IMO.

 

This was the first LP I have ever owned, but now that I have made two of my own, I prefer

the tones and reduced weight of my own and I prefer to play my own over the Epi which

I modified with a built in sustainer..as a "one trick pony".

[Stevie Nazarenie]

have a look at the wood. i had a thread on a fake white les paul custom. it had nice inlays and stamps on the pickups etc. it came from china and still has a strong gluey smell to it. it was made of mdf.

[carverman]

have a look at the wood. i had a thread on a fake white les paul custom. it had nice inlays and stamps on the pickups etc. it came from china and still has a strong gluey smell to it. it was made of mdf.

 

I already investigated mine inside the control cavity. Scraped off that black coating and took a slice with my

carving knife of course..white asian mystery wood..not alder but could be *possibly* some white luan mahogany.

I know what mdf (at least in NA looks like)..more brown and sands easily into dust..because that's what it is..

sawdust mixed with some form of glue. This wood on mine was more "waxy" and had some kind of grain to it.

 

This "is it real or is it fake" thing is becoming more and more of an issue. I would suggest to Epiphone China that

they come up with some kind of sticker that has a hologram or something (like they use on credit cards) differentiate

the "authentic"..from the "clones" out there. What's to stop these other factories from taking one LP, and reverse

engineering it and then setting up production to pump out thousands of fakes...nothing! If they have the nerve

to sell fake "G*bson LPs direct from China, they can sell Epis as well.

 

Well, I definitely won't be buying any more of these LPs, as I can make my own now..out of real Canadian walnut and

figured maple...that's as good as our back bacon, beer and maple syrup.

[ef_in_fla]

Well' date=' I definitely won't be buying any more of these LPs, as I can make my own now..out of real Canadian walnut and figured maple...that's as good as our back bacon, beer and maple syrup. [/quote']

 

Are you cutting up your own bodies?

[V-Type]

Nice pics.

 

I put up a pick of the headstock of a BB from MF. Notice the difference. The diamond comes down much lower. Three white lines in the inlay around the headstock. TRC is different' date=' not just the name but where the screws are. Quite an angle on "Epiphone" on yours. I hate to say it, but I think you may have purchased a fake.

 

[img']http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q232/jcwillow777/Les%20Paul/BlackBeautyHeadstock.jpg[/img]

 

 

In the future I would recommend NEVER buying from someone that is shipping directly to you from China. I have seen several companies selling Gibson, Fender, Epiphones, etc. for about $300 new - FAKES. If it looks to good to be true, it probably is.

My headstock and truss rod cover are identical too the pic. The tuners are different but the rest is right on.

The gripe I guess I have on the subject of the Epi LP Customs block inlays is that the closer too the head stock the width gets narrower and the blocks seem to be a bit Odd.

MY Gibson LP Custom had larger block inlays and they were all the same width.

The upswing I guess is more wood and less plastic.

[aero1281734089]

Thanks for the posts

 

I have opened the control cavity, and there is fair amount of black gunge painted inside, and not too impressed either with the wire soldering, and lack of wire sleeves.

OK, i have to accept the BB is a dud which I can live with, bought it at half the price what Thomanns are selling for. Its not a bad looking guitar though, and has got the feel and weight of a proper Epi Les Paul.

I dont think a real BB would have helped me play any better anyaway so I'll use it as daily practise tool. And when I eventually master the art of left hand fretting, I'll treat myself to something real and decent.

 

Have to agree with Carverman's comments. There are tons of "new EPI standards and BB's" on sale on ebay at similar prices. Can only conclude people are taking a risk on buying them as the price is so attractive, and then possibly passing them off as second hand a few months later.

I guess Epiphone are not helping themselves and the public in not taking steps to ensure that their product is easily identifiable as a genuine article, so that we all know what we are buying. These fake copies really do look good and diificult to indentify for the unwary.

[carverman]

 

Are you cutting up your own bodies?

 

Yes. the neck, body and headstock all made from scratch and real wood.

 

I buy my wood from a local sawmill. Black walnut about 2.25 inches thick x 8 feet

quarter sawn for grain stablilty. Same with the figured maple.

Definitelt not cheap to buy these days, even from a sawmill,

but at least it's air dried for several months in a shed (12% moisture content)

I select the boards for appearance, then thickness plane the

boards, cut them into more appropriate sizes for machining later.

[carverman]

I guess Epiphone are not helping themselves and the public in not taking steps to ensure that their product is easily identifiable as a genuine article' date=' so that we all know what we are buying. These fake copies really do look good and diificult to indentify for the unwary. [/quote']

 

That's the big problem these days with asian production..it's hard to maintain control now.

With millions.. well hundreds of millions actually, of people that want to work and set up

factories to make just about anything..something low tech like a guitar is no problem

to set a factory and make a few thousand or tens of thousands. And perhaps

as the world markets get saturated with these "clones", the distributors of these

products will (eventually)start to rethink whether it's still worth their while or not..even on

E-bay. However, there will be so many of these being sold as second hand for

half price or less, that the demand may will taper off as people start to realize

them for what they are.

 

It's a shame really to start to see what can happen. It hurts the sales of legitimate

guitar stores that are there to service the customer and hope for some repeat

business on accessories and the like. If the one I have is also a fake, (and I

can't tell for sure), because they can take ONE serial number and reproduce it

several times on a decal to put on their production... how are buyers going to

know if the guitar is real or fake ...(besides the obvious comparisons?).

 

If the buyers are scattered all over the globe and don't have any way of communicating with each

other (other than a legitimate run forum like this one), no one will know that the

serial number on MY LP Custom is the same as "joe's" LP Custom in Europe or

anywhere else.

 

Serial numbers are becoming meaningless in a global situation such as this.

 

The only way I see to defeat this kind of thing is to have EPIPHONE come up with some kind of

NEW STRATEGY, such as hologram sticker that they (counterfeiters) can't reproduce or some kind of

microchip inside the guitar that can be scanned by a hand wand and the

code is secret and only known to those who have a need to know.

 

Sure, some of these holograms and microchips could go "missing" but not on a

large scale at the factory, because somebody there * is going to know* in the final

checkout of the guitar..unless there is no final checkouts done anymore.

 

Any thoughts on this?