Guest Spengler7 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 Hey guys, I've got a question concerning the fretboard of my gibson sg standard limited. it is made of maple - baked maple that is and now that I unpacked it and closely looked at it I saw that the fretboards color close to the bridge is different than it is close to the head stock. the fretboard is much darker at the head stock, becoming lighter lighter closer to the bridge. also the smell is different. where its darker it smells sweet, burnt. it does not at the other end of the guitar. so I guess the baked maple hasn't been baked evenly... now my questions: does this have any effect on the durability of the fretboard or on the stability of the entire guitar? do you think the part of the fretboard that is lighter might be "softer"? or is it just something visual that will not effect the playing of the guitar at all? would it change the sound of the guitar? and my final question: should i keep the guitar or send it back? Thanks fpr answers, W.S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spengler7 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 and I've got another question. in the booklet it says the guitar is a Gibson SGSTVSCHI - means SG Standard Vintage Sunburst...and what does the Chi mean? THX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pfox14 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 I don't know a lot about this new baked maple stuff to give you a definitive answer. I would think the color should be fairly uniform up & down the fretboard, but don't know if the lighter colored areas are softer. Sorry I couldn't help more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 . CH = Chrome Hardware . . . (NH = Nickel Hardware; GH = Gold Hardware) Is that last character a "1" (one) or an "I" (i) ? . . . Usually it's a "1" (one) meaning first quality, not a second. The baked maple is a new thing - I don't have enough experience with it to answer that for you. You could try a dab of Fret Doctor oil or lemon oil to darken that F/B area a bit. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spengler7 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 its just a line. as the other characters are all caps, i guess its an i and not a 1, but i can't tell for sure. thanks for the advice with the oil - u know its not about looks, i think this kind of transition doesn't look bad, i only worried if the quality of the wood used is affected in any way. if that would be the case i hoped i had bought the non-limited version of the sg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM2112 Posted February 6, 2012 Share Posted February 6, 2012 its just a line. as the other characters are all caps, i guess its an i and not a 1, but i can't tell for sure. thanks for the advice with the oil - u know its not about looks, i think this kind of transition doesn't look bad, i only worried if the quality of the wood used is affected in any way. if that would be the case i hoped i had bought the non-limited version of the sg. I have not seen the SG's with the baked maple yet, but I do have an LP Classic Custom with the baked maple fretboard. The color is uniformly dark from one end to the other. Being new there are some things we will just have to wait and see to know the answers since only time will tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strat-o-steve Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 I don't worry about the baked maple holding up. Maple necks and fretboards have held up for 60 years on Strat's and Tele's LOL. I doubt the wood is "softer", and even if it were, it would be just as hard as any run of the mill maple fretboard. :) Show a picture....let us see too! If it looked way off color, and stood out too much, I would likely swap the guitar, but not because of the structural integrity, just the visual aspect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spengler7 Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Sure, take a look. Uploaded two pics for you guys: S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 . Here's your pics - From what I can see of the burst it looks great - how about a pic of the whole guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff-7 Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Is there a finish over the baked maple? If not it might darken to a consistent color with age and use. Might throw some fret doctor or lemon oil on it. Looks pretty good to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cabba2203 Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Hm...I actually like the way the fretboard transitions in color. It goes well with your burst. Nice SG! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outforblood Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 That transition is cool... lots of character. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Tough call. You might want to first go look at some other guitars with the new baked maple to see if yours is truly out of the ordinary. If so, it might be wise to return it & get another that appears consistent throughout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DiamondJig Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Looks nice and with a life time warranty I wouldn't return it unless she doen't play and/or sound good to you. I have a BM and she does get darker each time I oil her. I've seen dark and light BM boards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Spengler7 Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Well I did that, looked at some other guitars with the baked maple fretboards and they all were uniform in color. meanwhile i also talked to a carpenter and he told me i could be that the fretboard was baked and then afterwards they probably used a wood plane on it. he said that is quite common and could be an explaination for the transition - but to my mind it should not happen at a gibson sg standard made in the USA... but once more i have to say i'm not concerned about the looks. i'm a lot more worried about the wood-quaility diminishing...the guitar sounds great and feels great. so no complaint about that. @DiamondJig: Life time warranty? what you mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GibSinCity Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Hm...I actually like the way the fretboard transitions in color. It goes well with your burst. Nice SG! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JM2112 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Sure, take a look. Uploaded two pics for you guys: S. I think the fretboard looks great. [thumbup] No issues color-wise as far as I'm concerned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Rutherford Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 I must say the colour of my Baked Maple fretboard on my 2011 SG Junior is no lighter than the fretboard of my 2006 LP Junior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigtim Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 I would not be so concerned. I think it is a good looking fret board myself. Maple is going to be harder than rosewood anyway. I would not worry about it, I would be showing it off like crazy!!!! Tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lungimsam Posted February 26, 2012 Share Posted February 26, 2012 You've got a "burst-board"! You could always darken it if you want. There is a product with a dye or stain in it a tech guy I know uses if people want their rosewood darkened. I can find out the name of the stuff if you like and find out if it would do the job for baked maple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slavestate Posted March 1, 2012 Share Posted March 1, 2012 Would this type of product would work even on Rosewood to darken it a bit? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted March 1, 2012 Share Posted March 1, 2012 Would this type of product would work even on Rosewood to darken it a bit? Yes, of course, it's what member "Guitarest" uses.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goatradio Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 hey your SG looks awesome. Ive always like those burst SGs. Concerning your inquiry, I would have to say that time will only tell. A good point was made about strat and tele fretboards lasting forever. I would've definately been concerned at first glance too. I just bought an SG Standard with coiltappers and It has a rosewood fretboard. But Ive been pickin around on some of the baked maple ones lately and I like what I feel. Particularly The SG Junior single P-90. How do you like the baked maple? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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