Gibson les Paul's, a mine field on the sh narket ?

mrleon83

so I'm looking for a Gibson les paul standard on the used market , is there any way to be sure it's a standard as appears to classic/traditional ? 

Any help greatly recieved! 

mrleon83

As approsed .. can't spell zz

Arktik83

mrleon83 said:

As approsed .. can't spell zz

I think you mean opposed

Apart from the truss rod cover denoting the model, not really as the Trad's and standards are similar the trads just don't have the weight relief that the standards have, more recent standards had all the switching options where you could split the coils etc whereas the trads have no split coil options unless you see a trad II which has uncovered pickups with zebra bobbins.

The trads have the plastic tuners as well whereas the standards have metal tuners.  Usually locking.

If you're buying one in person you can tell because the neck profiles on the standards is slimmer/more modern.  

The only other ways of telling would be to take the pickups out and check to see if there are any labels, AFAIK the trads had 57 classics and the standards tended to have burstbuckers.

Classics have a thinner body do they not?  Or was it only the "less paul" that had that?  

ICBM

In my experience you'd be better buying a Traditional.

Neil

Trad's didn't appear until 2008 so anything prior to that will be a Standard or Classic. 

mrleon83

ICBM said:

In my experience you'd be better buying a Traditional.

For what reason? The thing that appeals about a standard is the weight relief.. 

mrleon83

Arktik83 said:

mrleon83 said:

As approsed .. can't spell zz

I think you mean opposed

Going back to school ...

HarrySeven

mrleon83 

For what reason? The thing that doesn't appeal about a Standard is the weight relief.. 

Corrected it for you.

mrleon83

HarrySeven said:

mrleon83 

For what reason? The thing that doesn't appeal about a Standard is the weight relief.. 

Corrected it for you.

Haha oh man .. I have an original prs singlecut but in my grand old slipped disc age I'm struggling using it for long periods of time ... 

ICBM

mrleon83 said:

ICBM said:

In my experience you'd be better buying a Traditional.

For what reason? The thing that appeals about a standard is the weight relief.. 

Although strangely, most of the recent Standards I've played have been heavier than the - admittedly far fewer - Trads. Weight relief actually makes less of a difference than simply using a lighter piece of wood in the first place, which seems to be the case with the Trads.

You also get a lot of crap you don't need on the Standard, and worse pickups… usually for a higher price.

The last Trad we had in the shop was a nicer guitar - apart from the slightly glaringly bright sunburst, admittedly - than the




R9 we also have . And a third of the price.

guitars4you

simple and complicated in lots of ways

The LP Standard has had that name since the early 70's - Yet it has had many many face lifts and variations during that period - If original it will say Standard on the truss rod cover - If it has the warranty card with it, then the model name (in code) will be featured on a line by the serial number

Easy way to tell a Classic, again based on original is open coil humbuckers - no covers and apart from a few early examples it will say Les Paul Classic in script text on the headstock facia

Again the Traditional has had a few changes to its format since introduction, but assuming all original it will again state Traditional on the truss rod and if it still has the warranty card, then again the model number will be clearly listed

If buying from a shop, then the dealer SHOULD have verified as appropriate - If buying privately then check in with FB once you've found out what you are looking for and I'm sure we can all help

guitars4you

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^  - sorry pressed post before finishing

In many ways the above guitars can do the same/similar job - The finer nuances between them regarding neck profile and tone is  a matter of opinion/choice - Some will say 'I've been a fan of XYZ hero for 20 years and he plays an LP Std so that is what I want' - on that basis if that is a dream guitar then go for it - But based on tone and playing performance and of course your opinion on cosmetics, then check them out accordingly and buy the one that ticks the boxes

In the past I've known potential buyers come to buy a Standard, but whilst in the store try say a Classic and as such buy opposite to what they intended

mrleon83

Thanks for the help guys! I did try a traditional at pmt. last week, it was a hp model and the neck felt huge, that was a 2016 model .. the standard I preferred the neck .. sound wise I preferred the traditional ... man this is awkward ... I'm (like everyone) looking for a bargain so may not be able to try before I buy which from what I understand is pretty silly ... so who know what I'll end up with 

mrleon83

Thrrrs been a few signature t's crop up, what's the deal with those ? They look like a classic ...

guitars4you

mrleon83 said:

Thanks for the help guys! I did try a traditional at pmt. last week, it was a hp model and the neck felt huge, that was a 2016 model .. the standard I preferred the neck .. sound wise I preferred the traditional ... man this is awkward ... I'm (like everyone) looking for a bargain so may not be able to try before I buy which from what I understand is pretty silly ... so who know what I'll end up with 

The only good bargain is the guitar you like and you end up keeping - buy the wrong guitar on a crazy deal then chances are you'll loose a few quid selling it shortly after to buy another variation

Agree it is a nightmare with so many options but back your own judgement based on ears and hands and eyes if neccessary

prowla

mrleon83 said:

As approsed .. can't spell zz

Never mind - you chucked in an extra apostrophe to make up for it!

I'm sure there are plenty of folks who think they have a Gibson which is really a fake. Not quite as bad as Fenders, where all it takes is a waterslide decal to turn a copy into a heirloom, but definitely buyer beware!

mrleon83

guitars4you said:

mrleon83 said:

Thanks for the help guys! I did try a traditional at pmt. last week, it was a hp model and the neck felt huge, that was a 2016 model .. the standard I preferred the neck .. sound wise I preferred the traditional ... man this is awkward ... I'm (like everyone) looking for a bargain so may not be able to try before I buy which from what I understand is pretty silly ... so who know what I'll end up with 

The only good bargain is the guitar you like and you end up keeping - buy the wrong guitar on a crazy deal then chances are you'll loose a few quid selling it shortly after to buy another variation

Agree it is a nightmare with so many options but back your own judgement based on ears and hands and eyes if neccessary

Just eyeing up that 95 standard on your page, what's the weight on that one ? 

guitars4you

mrleon83 said:

guitars4you said:

mrleon83 said:

Thanks for the help guys! I did try a traditional at pmt. last week, it was a hp model and the neck felt huge, that was a 2016 model .. the standard I preferred the neck .. sound wise I preferred the traditional ... man this is awkward ... I'm (like everyone) looking for a bargain so may not be able to try before I buy which from what I understand is pretty silly ... so who know what I'll end up with 

The only good bargain is the guitar you like and you end up keeping - buy the wrong guitar on a crazy deal then chances are you'll loose a few quid selling it shortly after to buy another variation

Agree it is a nightmare with so many options but back your own judgement based on ears and hands and eyes if neccessary

Just eyeing up that 95 standard on your page, what's the weight on that one ? 

full heavy weight that one - 10lbs and 2oz - common for such period to have more weight - any further questions etc then just ask