Bunky Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Looking at buying one, want to make sure everything checks out. thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted January 14, 2013 Author Share Posted January 14, 2013 Looking at buying one, want to make sure everything checks out. thanks I had another question too. Are they 100% made in the USA or were all the parts mades in USA and then assembled in Japan? I know they came with a sticker that said made in USA or something Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 The sticker says "Assembled in the USA." The bodies were built in Japan by Terada. It's almost certain that the nitro finish was applied there, too. The hardware and electronics were added in the USA by Gibson. Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gilgamesh Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 Hello Bunky, I have #83 of 1965 produced, a coveted very low number. I purchased it from Rainbow Guitars here in Tucson last summer, still as "new", never played over the years, because the headstock required repair after an accident in shipping from the factory. The guitar remains excellent, as new, not a blemish. I wouldn't have noticed the headstock hairline remnant of the repair if it hadn't been revealed. So I bought it as a player, a bit cheaper than a new es330. It is a magical guitar. I had bought it to replace a Gibson es320 with musicmaster pickups that I decided weren't tonally what I wanted on my recordings. However, at this time, I have come to know that I prefer PAF's. I came to this site tonight to ask the Epiphone forum what sacrilege it would be to pull the p-90's on a JL Revolution and replace them with a set of vintage T-Tops I have had surplus for some time. The body would need routing... I should really buy an es335, and to first sell the Revolution intact... But in my mind it is a player, as excellent as my 1968 Les Paul Custom. Would you be sympathetic to such an instrument? Gilgamesh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I should really buy an es335, and to first sell the Revolution intact... But in my mind it is a player, as excellent as my 1968 Les Paul Custom. I'll give you my take on it, FWIW. I have the AIUSA John Lee Hooker Sheraton, which was the companion "Assembled In USA" model to the Lennon Casino. No doubt about it, these AIUSA instruments are extremely well built, and reasonably true to vintage specs. I also have an Elitist Casino made by Terada, which likewise exhibits high build quality & a wonderful tone. So I am fairly knowledgeable and impressed with what the Terada factory puts out. In the world of Casinos, the AIUSA Lennon was arguably the best P90 hollowbody available for a number of years. Then Gibson came along and released the ES-330L, and last year we were treated to the ES-330 VOS. I am fortunate enough to also have both of these instrumets, and I have to say, the VOS model is in a league of it's own for vintage vibe & tone. Because of these new releases, the AIUSA Lennon Casino is not quite the rarity it once was in the world of high quality P90 hollowbodies & I could more easily accept someone modifying one, since top notch examples of the genre are more readily available. Would I do it myself? No, but it's your guitar. Just be aware that if you ever want to sell it, you will most likely will have destroyed it's value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted January 14, 2013 Author Share Posted January 14, 2013 I'll give you my take on it, FWIW. I have the AIUSA John Lee Hooker Sheraton, which was the companion "Assembled In USA" model to the Lennon Casino. No doubt about it, these AIUSA instruments are extremely well built, and reasonably true to vintage specs. I also have an Elitist Casino made by Terada, which likewise exhibits high build quality & a wonderful tone. So I am fairly knowledgeable and impressed with what the Terada factory puts out. In the world of Casinos, the AIUSA Lennon was arguably the best P90 hollowbody available for a number of years. Then Gibson came along and released the ES-330L, and last year we were treated to the ES-330 VOS. I am fortunate enough to also have both of these instrumets, and I have to say, the VOS model is in a league of it's own for vintage vibe & tone. Because of these new releases, the AIUSA Lennon Casino is not quite the rarity it once was in the world of high quality P90 hollowbodies & I could more easily accept someone modifying one, since top notch examples of the genre are more readily available. Would I do it myself? No, but it's your guitar. Just be aware that if you ever want to sell it, you will most likely will have destroyed it's value. I did play the vos es-330 with bigsby and really liked it. How good is the USA Revolution compared to the elitist and the 2012 es-330 (not long tenon model). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted January 14, 2013 Share Posted January 14, 2013 I did play the vos es-330 with bigsby and really liked it. How good is the USA Revolution compared to the elitist and the 2012 es-330 (not long tenon model). Well, every individual piece is different, so I'm hesitant to generalize. With the purchase of both the Elitist Casino and the ES-330 VOS, I was able to compare three of them, and in each case, one clearly stood out above the others (particularly in tone). But high build quality combined with a concerted effort to remain true to original specs can create the opportunity for a great guitar. In that respect, the AIUSA Casino should be at least as good or better than an Elitist Casino. I suspect the bodies are virtually identical in construction, but there are a number of specs where the AIUSA is closer to an original Casino. So comparing my Elitist to the 330 VOS, their tonal characteristics are similar in being highly responsive & resonant, but the 330 VOS has more depth (fuller & richer) both plugged & unplugged. Also note that the necks are vastly different, with the Elitist being very narrow, and the 330 VOS being somewhat chunky (I did find neck variations among the three 330s sampled, and the one I brought home is slightly slimmer & personally a better fit). My conclusion would be that a stellar example of an AIUSA Casino should be very close to a 330 VOS, and maybe better than some. But a really good 330 VOS will be another cut above & darn close to a vintage piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted January 15, 2013 Author Share Posted January 15, 2013 So were they built in Japan and Assembled in the USA? If that is the case what supposedly makes them so much better than the Elitist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted January 15, 2013 Share Posted January 15, 2013 So were they built in Japan and Assembled in the USA? If that is the case what supposedly makes them so much better than the Elitist? There aren't too many guitars better than the Elitist series, in general. I think the Lennons have more sentimental value to most, and are probably more desireable as collectables, not necessarily as instruments, unless you must have a true 1960's spec instrument. If you search this forum, you will find several posts detailing the differences between the Elitist and AIUSA '65/Revolution Casinos. Without opening up the cases to look at mine, I think (if memory serves) that the main differences are that the Lennons have nitro finish, while the Elitist has poly. The Lennons also have USA hardware, while the the Elitist has metric. The Lennons have nylon saddles (1960's spec); the Elitists has metal. The Lennons have the '60s carve to the headstock, while the Eltist does not. The Lennons have a true one piece neck; the Elitist has a one-piece neck with a heel extension. The Lennons have binding over the fret ends; the Elitist does not. The Lennons have the 1960's Epiphone logo; the Elitist does not. I don't know this for a fact, but it my OPINION that the PUPS on the Lennons are different from those on the Elitist, even though they are also made in the USA. It maybe the effect of the nylon saddles, but the Lennons have more of a growl to them. I will have to look, but if memory serves, there is also some difference in the composition of the 5-ply bodies, too. Having both the AIUSA '65 Casino and AIUSA Revolution Casino and an Elitist, I'd say the AIUSA are a slight step up from the Elitist, probably due to the number of small differences in build technique and hardware. Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 One other difference re the AIUSA vs Elitist instruments > My AIUSA Sheraton has a Gibson style truss rod & takes the standard Gibson adjusting wrench (I'm guessing this holds true for the AIUSA Casino), while my Elitist Casino takes an allen wrench for making adjustments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted January 16, 2013 Share Posted January 16, 2013 One other difference re the AIUSA vs Elitist instruments > My AIUSA Sheraton has a Gibson style truss rod & takes the standard Gibson adjusting wrench (I'm guessing this holds true for the AIUSA Casino), while my Elitist Casino takes an allen wrench for making adjustments. Good one. I guess that's consistent with the rest of the hardware: the AIUSA's are US spec, while the Elitist uses metric. The wiring in the AIUSA is the old style, too, and the pots are full size. They are the smaller, metric pots in the Elitist. Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 Wow beautiful information folks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted January 16, 2013 Author Share Posted January 16, 2013 btw what years were they produced? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunky Posted February 26, 2013 Author Share Posted February 26, 2013 btw what years were they produced? Bump for last question. Also what is the average going price for these on the used market? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted February 27, 2013 Share Posted February 27, 2013 Bump for last question. Also what is the average going price for these on the used market? Both the AIUSA Sheraton & the Casino were released in 2000. I believe the Sheraton remained in production through 2005, and the Casino through '08 or '09. I've seen both of them selling recently in the range of $1800-$2000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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