Gin Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 I'm planning to buy an Epiphone Les Paul Special II from a questionable dealer here in the Philippines... after further examination of the said item and after comparing it with authentic pictures of the Epiphone Les Paul Special II which I got online, I'm having doubts about its authenticity because of some minor discrepancies. First, I noticed that what he was selling has different tuning knobs compared with real ones and the "i" on the white "Special II" logo on the guitar head is missing a dot... Am I just being paranoid and this is just because of factory manufacturing issues or is it really fake??? *attached are some pictures of the questionable item(the knobs I'm talking about are basically identical to the one in the picture shown last but but I got the picture from a different guitar color of the same brand and model. *BTW, its serial number is MC2309XXXX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animalfarm Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 I'm planning to buy an Epiphone Les Paul Special II from a questionable dealer here in the Philippines... I'm having doubts about its authenticity because of some minor discrepancies. Am I just being paranoid and this is just because of factory manufacturing issues or is it really fake??? *BTW, its serial number is MC2309XXXX Gin, Welcome to the FORUM! Right place to ask your questions. Good eye for detail on your part, and good that you did some research. I believe your potential git is NOT an Authentic EPI ( ) Just MY opinion, others may also comment... I'll state what I DON'T like about what I see, then post some comparison pics from a Special II I did up as a project... 1. Serial Number - Indicates the git was made in Muse, China in....SEP 1923! 2. Front view - Looks legit, but I don't see any EPI factory Lettering/printing on the plastic stickers covering the pickups. (Could be camera angle?). 3. Front of Headstock - You're right, the dot on the "I" is missing. Tuners also have a chrome washer under the insert, which is NOT normal. Your Epiphone Logo is also TOO straight across, no "angle" to it... 4. Rear of Headstock - NOT EPI Factory Tuners. Factory tuners have "Stamped out" covers with 2 screws. The ones on it look like the lower cost ones I can buy from "Guitarfetish". 5. Rear of Git, Control cover plate - Real EPIs have a smaller oval-shaped cover plate. The git in your pic has a larger "D"-shaped cover like what I would find on a DEAN Guitar. PICTURES: First pic will be REAL EPI, second will be guitar you're asking about... Front of Headstock - Rear of Headstock - Control Cover Plate - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 The body looks like its the same shape as a set-neck Junior. Control cavity as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersonic Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 The "Epiphone" logo on the headstock looks off centered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brianh Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 4. Rear of Headstock - NOT EPI Factory Tuners. Factory tuners have "Stamped out" covers with 2 screws. The ones on it look like the lower cost ones I can buy from "Guitarfetish". The stamped tuners that Epi uses on their low-end guitars are total crapola and should be replaced anyway. The ones on the fake actually look like better tuners. Why not buy from an authorized dealer and get a "real" Gibson copy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rewddawg Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 I'm sorry, but I do not respond to the posts by potential counterfeiters I refuse to reply and so should others. I'm not going to teach others how to fake a guitar. Especially since this is your 1st post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 the "special" logo is too close to the truss rod cover as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animalfarm Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 The stamped tuners that Epi uses on their low-end guitars are total crapola and should be replaced anyway. The ones on the fake actually look like better tuners. brain - 100% agreement on the tuners. Out of the 6 on my last Special II project git, ONE had SO MUCH slop that I had to dig out the tuners from the 70s Hondo and replace the internal EPI tuner gear with the Hondo Gear. EPI ACTUALLY would do better by using the other tuners shown. I'm sorry, but I do not respond to the posts by potential counterfeiters I refuse to reply and so should others. I'm not going to teach others how to fake a guitar. Especially since this is your 1st post. Rewd - We've ALL got to have a "First post" sometime! My first post was around Jan 2009. I THINK I remember being "warmly Greeted". Don't think you've got to worry on this one. If I was planning on starting a "Makee-Fakee" business with potential world-wide distribution, I wouldn't ask for advice, I WOULD BUY a REAL ONE and use IT as my guide as I could SEE the "real deal" and take all my measurements, etc. from it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The.Traffic.Lights Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 The tuners were the first thing I noticed as well. Looks fake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supersonic Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Am I the only one wondering why someone would even bother to make a fake version of a $160 guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 I'm sorry, but I do not respond to the posts by potential counterfeiters I refuse to reply and so should others. I'm not going to teach others how to fake a guitar. Especially since this is your 1st post. Good point Dawg, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The.Traffic.Lights Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 Am I the only one wondering why someone would even bother to make a fake version of a $160 guitar? Well, that seemed strange to me as well, but who cares. Maybe they tried to fake more expensive ones, but the fake was so obvious no one bought them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LedZep2112 Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 the 12th fret dots are closer together, backplate is different, switch washer is askew (just cosmetic), the headstock looks a little stretched to me, and the tuners are different. Just my observations Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LedZep2112 Posted October 8, 2010 Share Posted October 8, 2010 and is it just me or does the body shape look a little PRS-y and not les paulish? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plymouth58 Posted October 10, 2010 Share Posted October 10, 2010 Am I the only one wondering why someone would even bother to make a fake version of a $160 guitar? Because then it's $160 in the pocket of the chinese instead of Epiphone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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