Electric Guitar, Right, Gold Top, Full size (V100GT)

five stars

Vintage guitars are rock solid but they like many $300-$600 guitars are far from perfect... the frustrating thing is they get SOO close in many ways,...Everything worked fine on mine, but there were little things like really rough nasty control cavity routing + a lame attempt at paint shielding torn up wood, the electronics are not top quality, but it all worked, fretboard was SUPER dry and lightly splitting fretboard, I had to sand down the splits between the frets to smooth it out before hitting it w/ebony stain & then 4x wax/oil treatment. A minor fret level & dressing was needed, fret ends were also rounded, & frets mirror polished.Installed proper set of Gibson Rhythm/Lead P90s,....then swapped them out for Tonerider P90's (astonishing product, WAY better @ 1/2 the price! )Sperzel gold tuners w/ivory buttons, all gold hardware incl. gold Babicz full contact bridge, gold top hat knobs, pure tone jack, gold jack plate, all brass switchcraft toggle, cloth push back wire, 50's wiring, Dunlop flush mount strap locks. were installed. For a touch over $900 I have an fantastic looking, phenomenally good sounding and playing reproduction of a classic Gibson P90 Gold TopI can't imagine what it'll play like with a REALLY scary good set of Fralins or Lollar P90s hell even some of the SD Antiquities...Bottom line,..Great guitars..for a price point, excellent spec. but they can really be SOO much more with a proper set of top level parts and some love and care put into them...I gutted and sanded smooth the cavity walls and shaved the underside for each knob base to use short pots, & angle the knobs properly. then painted 3 coats of shielding paint, & then clear coated the paint shielding to keep everything clean.I can drop another $3-400 on an outrageous set of custom shop P90;s and still have WELL under $1500 into it. & no I don't care about resale I wanted to see if I could build something like a $3500 Gibby GT for a grand or less...done and Done!

OK, so it's not a Les Paul, but, this thing blows the doors off of anything else that claims to be! This guitar was at my local music store and being the proud owner of a Les Paul traditional I always scoffed at the "knock offs" like this and the epiphone clones. On suggestion from a salesman I tried this Gold top with P-90's...If i close my eyes i would swear i was playing a classic Gold top deluxe! This thing is amazing! It is made of solid mahogany, set neck, rosewood fretboard and Screeming P-90's. The fit and finish of everything on this guitar is first rate. I truly cannot say enough good things about it. So, if you're looking for a Les Paul, buy one they're are worth every penny. But, if you want a guitar that truly embodies the spirit of a Les Paul without breaking the bank, you will not be sorry for this purchase. BTW - I plan on purchasing another one in the not too distant future!