EdwardMarlowe

To my mind, the only shame was they went from the dot inlays to the crowns. I preferred the dots. The unbound fingerboard is a lovely thing, though - probably because I'm much more of a Fender man, but I much prefer the feel of a well-shaped, unbound neck.

That was it, yeah! Big fan of kilts. Just have to remember to shift yer sporran to the side so as not to get in the way of the guitar...

That's the joy of giving them a new voice/ form. Does its former musical life imbue it with a certain mojo that makes 'pianowood' the new tonewood? These look and sound great. I've really taken to slightly offbeat ideas these days - it's much more interesting to me than yet another luxury re-imagining of a Les Paul. The Strat cum Tele is well cool.

Nice stuff!

Last week, someone I know in Washington DC was scrapping an old piano. 100 odd yeas old.... it seems after a certain point, age is no factor in the value of a piano. Which really made me think about the viability here of what you're doing with turning the wood into new instruments.

Very cool. Is the body-shape a nod to Burns? I like the carbo top. Interesting to see new materials being explored.

Your tartan is MCLeod of Lewis, I believe... I rather like it. Also known in some corners of Edinburgh's Royal Mile as "McLeod of Loud". Considering a kilt to match? Used to be a young shredder type that got a lot of coverage in the US guitar mags around the turn of the 90s, Blues something - Blues Saccercho, something like that? Had blue tartan guitars as he wanted a visual signifier people would associate with him. He kept insisting on calling it "plaid", though - Yanks, eh? Looking forward to seeing the rest of this build.

Nice work!

I have a vague memory from the early 90s of Gibson doing an HSH configuration in a Superstrat model - the M3? - They also did it in a Les Paul studio too... Those were wired if memory serves to allow amixof tapped and HB tones.... basically, Gibson were trying to sell a guitar that would also cover the Fender sounds... Yes, here we are: https://www.creamcitymusic.com/1992-gibson-les-paul-studio-lite-m-iii-hsh-translucent-blue-finish/ Something like that could be interesting, though obvs rearrange for SHS. The standard 3HB Gibson operation is a three way switch which offers neck, bridge and middle, and bridge. I remember John Squire's Seahorses guitars were two LP 3HB Customs; at least seeing them live, I never noticed any marked difference between the sound of those and a regular LP. Always been pretty convinced Gibson just put in three on those to compete with the Strat. Middle HB & BridgeSC would, I think, be the stand-out sound on what is being proposed here. Be interested to see it. Always fun to see something different. One of the Thin LIzzy guys - Brian Robertson, was it? - played a Strat with a SSH - standard sc bridge and middle, and a big, chrome PAF style HB in the neck position. I love it when somebody thinks outside the boxlike that. When I started, in my crowd, we all played almost exclusively on bridge pups. I was esoteric in preferring the bridge and middle on my Strat. Only really in recent years I've become more interested in how I use the pups as part of how I play.

Thanks. If and when, I'd probably pay to have it done rather than risk myself, but yeah, a new pickguard does look like probably the best option if I don't want an "unused hole". Either that or I suppose leave the switch in unwired. Thr push/pull post and standard switch might be the more practical option in the end - and I could always add a killswitch separately.

I'm something of a fan of the GFS / Guitar Fetish stuff. Had a few, been pleased with the service. THeir new Kwikplug system is pretty cool - that and the low price would tempt me to try two or three with very quick and easy changing (plug, screw & go). https://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-Guitar-Pickups_c_7.html

That Schechter looks really nicely put together. The Dinky reminds me of Ibanez-based customs I used to see a guy in a Belfast Band playing, way back in the early 90s.... Rachel's Asylum was the band, later just "Rachel's", Guy went by the name of 'wild Bill', was a hell of a player. Same visually interesting combination - the stripped down, 'natural' look, but with the hi-tech SuperStrat vibe. Back when these were 'new' designs, it was a big departure from the dayglo pink / metallic paintworks that were all the rage. Worth trying something alternative with the pick-ups if the guitar is otherwise excellent. Guitarfetish always impressed me with the quality of their pickups - they have a huge range of HBs. Scroll past the ones obviously designed for rockabilly, and they have everything from PAF-types to double-rails to actives. Always very decent in my experience, and at the price you could afford to try a few. On that basis, their 'quickplug' design is an excellent option if available on the pups you like - easy way to try a couple of different options very quickly, just a couple of screws and a plug. Doesn't seem to have any perceptible effect on the sound. They also do pre-wired harnesses, which I've never tried personally but about which I hear good things, if you need to rewire and , like me, you'd rather not get things too complicated! https://www.guitarfetish.com/Humbucker-Sized_c_578.html

Nice looking guitar. Interesting thread... I've recently noticed the same difference in dimensions. My long-term acoustic, bought back in 2002, is a Tanglewood TW15NS LH... this one: https://www.eaglemusicshop.com/prod/left-handed-guitars/tanglewood-tw15ns-lh-guitar.htm I'm quite shocked by how much they are now - Tanglewood were not quite as big a name (more known as a sort of 'Tokai for acoustics') back then as they are now in that world - it was seen as a "budget all-solid" at the time. As I recall, the full retail was £300 / £330ish. I don't think I want to part with that guitar. Cosmetically, I'm not a fan of dreadnoughts, but it has a really nice sound, and it has aged well. Years ago I foolishly left it sitting out in warm weather and it developed a small crack in the top, but it can barely be seen, and the guys at a local guitar shop (used to be the Bass Centre in Wapping, then move to Whitechapel - alas now long gone, as seem to be very many guitar shops round here save the ever-disappointing Denmark Street) did a lovely job of patching the back to keep it strong without it affecting the sound in any way. Thing is, though, I'm very much jonesing for a pre-war type looking guitar with a smaller body, and the look of something that some old, dead, unheard of blues guy might have played. A lot of that sort of stuff does seem to have the 45mm nut. Clearly I do just have to get out there sometime and play some.... FWIW, my Tanglewood is a 43mm nut. With an electric, I much prefer a 42mm. I know my American Std Strat (1994) is a 43mm nut, and I find more recent, 42mm nut Strats noticeably more comfortable to play for a lot of stuff. I have long wondered, though, how far it's the nut width alone that makes the difference, and how much it's the actual neck shape... A modern or a 50s 'c', and a 50s soft-V are profiles I definitely find much comfier than others. It seems my hand works better with something slightly narrower at the nut **but** deeper front to back. Lesson learned from the Westone Thunder IA I bought some years ago -and which I am going to sell: it sounds (especially with the actives kicked in) like *that* LP/SG sound I could never find in an LP/SG, but it's not for me asa player - that very 80s, wide/flat neck. That Auden has lovely, clean, simple lines. I remember when Lowden guitars first became a big 'thing' (in NI, at least - their "home") in the early 90s, guitars like them and Takamine to an extent bringing this simpler, clean-cut look to things. Those Audens look really nice. The Emily Rose catches my eye in particular - the Neo versions look like a great price for this sort of high end acoustic. Given that the wife has (quite reasonably) suggested I concentrate more on playing a smaller number of guitars than having a pile of 'em around, I'm sort of torn between stretching to something high end like this with a pre-war vibe, and picking up something more budget from Thomann that's in some other ways closer to the spirit of what the likes of Robert Johnson actually played. Compared to back in the day when I started, the fact that I - as a left-handed player - have the range of choice I do now - is really quite something. It's still limited compared to you non-sinister types, but gone are the days when the words "no left handers" were almost guaranteed to be on the spec chart of any even slightly of-mainstream guitar I cared to look at. Enjoy that Auden!

Very similar in style. Never actually seen one of the higher end Thunder III models with the thru-neck in person. I have a lefty Thunder IA in the guitar, and the Thunder IA Bass, lefty again, a very early one with the MKI logo. At that end of the line they are bolt-ons, though mine are both the 'natural finish' version which was considered the one to have back in the day because from the front they were designed with a sandwiched body to mimic the appearance of the thru-neck. Never owned a thruneck of any sort, but I'd consider the right Ric as long as it didn't look too "Beatles".... Very well made instruments indeed, though not really my style these days, so they're going to have to go eventually. When we first got into guitar easy back in the early 90s,a friend had a Thunder I, the very basic passive version - essentially a p-bass set-up, sounded great. Back in those days when they turned up they could be had for half the price of a new Squier. Value seems to be creeping up now, I suppose a mix of the kids getting into the eighties aesthetic and the word getting out about the quality of Matsumoku guitars...

Tell you what strikes me might be interesting - and easily done without even changing the wiring as an experiment - moving the middle pup to beside the bridge. A *bit* like the new Squier "Contemporary Strat" https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/squier-electric-guitars/stratocaster/contemporary-stratocaster-special/0370230506.html , though those are wired slightly differently. Would be interesting to see how just moving the middle pup alone affected the tone.

Used to be a guy played in the Mike Sanchez Band maybe fifteen or so years ago, saw him using one of these JVs. I think the only one I ever saw in person. Stunning guitar. Looked and sounded every bit as good as the MIA 57RI one of the other guys was playing that night.

Is there such a thing as a two-way selector switch on a Strat? Once lockdown is done and I'm able to sell off a lot of gear, one thing I want to buy is a new Player Strat. I am, however, toying with the idea of a little switching modification. I was initially just thinking of an on/off push-pull pot, but.... I've always thought it would be cool to add three mini toggles as separate on/off switches. ~If I did do that, would there be a way to use a traditional selector-switch as a master/on /off - i.e. something that looked like the traditional pick-up selector, but worked as a two-way on/off?

Fender have some really nice ideas this time round - I've really enjoyed what they've come up with this 'virtual' NAMM. I'm particularly intrigued by the concept of those Strat models where they've moved the middle pickup much closer to the bridge and added in some interesting wiring options. At some future point, I'd love to have a Strat with the selector switch replaced by three mini toggles to give me an 'on/off' for each pup, so I can have any combo I want (adding in neck and bridge as well as all three on to the usual five options). Could be tempted to do that on the Tidepool Player I have my eye on.

Very nice. If I was going with one of those F type offsets, that's what I'd want - two p90s, simple set-up. I wonder did Fender ever see these, given their 2021 Noventa Series?

My Tele was a real discovery for me. Every othe guitar I've ever owned I sought out. This one.... I just happeneed to be in Resding on day visitng a friend who also plays,and is also a lefty. Much to our surprise, GuitarGuitar in Reading had two lefty CIJ Fedners in the window, both white - a 71RI Tele and a 68RI Strat. Needless to say, it would have been rude not to give them a go. So we went in and spent avery pleasant hour or so. Six months later, I had the scratch and the Tele wasstill there, so.... FWIW, if I'd had the money, I'd have bought the Strat too, such a gogeous neck profile, matches a 50s soft V for comfort for me, but there was just something really special about that Tele that got to me. If I can ever sneak it past the wife, I'm really keen now on the idea of a Classic Vibe 50s Tele rewired as a Broadcaster. The Gibson I still have a lot of affection for now is the LP Junior. In some ways, the ultimate utilitarian guitar for me would be a TV yellow one of those Teles Fender just grought out with the sole p90 in the bridge. I've never played a regular Esquier, though the CV version looks really nice. Don't think they have lefties, though. The other guitar I'd buy very quickly if they did a left hander is the Slick 59 model...

The p90 Goldtop ones are nice. If mine had been one of those (I don't think they did 'em lefty, at least not 22 odd years ago) I'd probably hang onto it. The LP is an odd guitar... a good few of my guitar heroes (Jones, Mick and Jones, Steve in particular) played one, but in my hands I find it's my CIJ 71RI Tele of all things that gets me that sound, never a LP! The best "Gibson" sound I ever had in a guitar is a Westone Thunder IA, with both HBs on and the actives engaged. It's one of the guitars that has come time to move it on, though.... I think I'll be hitting Reverb hard once we get to a point where I can let buyers come in to collect.

I don't doubt the Epis are good. I've always said that the Gibson was twice the guitar for five times the price of the equivalent Epiphone, but it seems the price of the Epis is ever pushing upwards. The Tribute seems to be a well thought out model - less sparse / more trad looking than the Studio, but at a price where they don't look crazy for the hobbyist. Epis seem to be going upwards price-wise, I wonder are Gibby just charging more because they can, or is it a strategy to make the Epiphone line look higher quality - you know, like the way they solved dwindling sales of the Gibson LPs by doubling the price and repositioning it as a lifestyle brand?

Funny though how those stereotypes can change. Look at how Gretsch are considered "the" Rockabilly guitar by so many now. Before Brian Setzer played one because Eddi Cochran did, it wasn't so.... in fact, more of the original recordings were apparently played on a Tele than anything else. So there's a now powerful stereotype that wasn't even based in reality... Audience expectation can dictate a lot, of course. The rockabilly scene is notorious for shunning an act that doesn't get the look right. That's at least those who will listen to new bands. I've been at weekenders where people spend the whole weekend dancing to old records in the dj'ed room, no interest in the live bands because they're "not authentically fifties acts". People who refuse to listen to any music other than that which was recorded decades ago for purely ideological reasons.... I also know of people who have never owned an album by some of their favourite bands because they won't buy CDs, only vinyl.... I prefer vinyl too, but not to the exclusion of missing out when it's not an option!

Personally - and this really only is a subjective personally opinion - it's a rare Gibson I would find worth the spend. (Bear in mind, of course that the left handed options I see are more commonly the closing in on two grand end of things new; I'd struggle to justify that when I could go to a reputable builder and have something custom made to my specs for that....). These tributes look nice, though, and around the price that I'd feel comfortable with if I wanted a Les Paul again. Buying new given these price points, I'd stump up for the Gibson,. I'm sure the Epi is a fine guitar (I've never played an Epi I thought was truly "bad", beyond muddy HBs), but for my tastes Gibson have rather started to push the prices of Epiphones up. After yeas of them selling Epi as a budget brand, I'm afraid I find it hard to look at their new guitars and thing "expensive Epiphone-alike" rather than "Bargain Gibson!" If I was already going to buy a copy of a Gibson, I'd probably look at Vintage or Tokai instead, rather than spend more on something which, no matter how 'official' it is, is no less a 'copy' just a more expensive one. I still believe that's a major reason why Epiphone's Elite/ Elitist series failed - if they'd badged it 'Gibson Japan', I honestly think they'd have made a mint. Course, it's still very early days for these new Epiphones, so it's possible they will begin to hold their own moneywise. Proportionately, I think Epis always did (at least for the LP models) hold a similar proportion of their resale value to higher end (non-rare) production line Gibsons, but to me they're no longer worth the new prices given the range of competition out there. At least their marketing department have finally cottoned on to the impact of headstock shape in the market, though - always seemed a strange choice to me in a world where the market does care about these things that Gibson would give its own budget line a headstock shape that immediately made it less close a replica of the real thing than many other legit copies on the market (I'm not talking counterfeits). TL/DR: if I was going to buy a LP nowadays, the Tribute would be the one I'd choose, especially if available used.

That's what intrigues me about it, I think... it just seems so offbeat. Be interesting to see how it played left handed. I like that it's a bit different from another variation of the same thing, though the logical thing for any hardcore Hendrix fan to do is to buy a 60s spec Strat of the other orientation and flip it if what they want is Jimi's guitar. I'd love to hear from the guys who designed this one about how it came to be.