Custom Chibson Experience (Internals vid added)

Forge

Not flaming these copies on their quality but why would you buy an under £200 junior copy and pay the 24% taxes and duty at the border rather than buy a safe second hand PRS SE One? Also you do realise that if the guitar is identified as a counterfeit instrument you are at risk of seeing it destroyed by customs officials if Gibson (rights holder) confirms the goods are not genuine? Your personal details will also be sent by HMRC to Gibson should they chose to take you to court. What these manufacturers need to do is to come up with their own brand, apply subtle design changes and so on.

I fight daily against unbranded competitors in my job (not guitars), I can tell you that Chinese factories build products to a price point - the spend on materials, components, hardware and labour is minimal. 

jesone

Eagerly waiting on a hands-on review from those who have jumped in already. If these are on a par with the current Epi's I'm definitely buying one (or two)

guitargeek62

Forge said:

Not flaming these copies on their quality but why would you buy an under £200 junior copy and pay the 24% taxes and duty at the border rather than buy a safe second hand PRS SE One?

I agree, hence why I've bought a model that isn't available anywhere for less that Gibson CS prices. I don't see the point in taking a risk on unknowns when perfectly good solutions already exist at reasonable prices. As for the rest of your comment... that's what the other thread's for

Anyway, moving back onto topic, I have some more photos.

The Trini is now ready for approval prior to shipping - a nice touch imo, and one that's very much appreciated by myself. It has highlighted a couple of points that I've raised prior to acceptance though, and I've now asked what can be done to address them;

1) The biggest problem is that appear to have missed the binding on the f-holes - as I'd pointed out to them initially when I first received progress pictures! At the time I gave them the benefit of the doubt that the binding just needed to be scraped etc, but clearly it wasn't there. I'm not really sure what they can do at this point except either strip the entire top, bind the f-holes, and refinish it. Or scrap it and start over if it's cheaper to do so?

2) Moving onto lesser problems: The truss rod cover is wonky. As is one of the tuners, although I suspect a bit of man-handling would fix those as the screws appear to be nice and straight at least, so as long as the distance between them is correct then it's an easy fix. They did get my serial number correct though, and they've corrected the headstock inlay to the bronze type as requested. Note that I hadn't asked for any other fake decals on the back either.

Definitely looks to be an ebony fingerboard here;

Here's a shot of the back, no noticeable problems there, nice to see that the control cover didn't get missed off. It's going to come in handy quite quickly as I've already bought one pickup for it, and have some electronics ready to replace what's in there;

I'll keep you posted as to the outcome of the problems. I'm only concerned about the f-holes really, otherwise I'd have accepted it as is and corrected the alignment issues myself. I've also asked them to check that a pickguard and bracket is included, although I'm actually happy that it isn't as I'd like to use a "proper" ES-335 bracket over the usual LP bent-metal type. I'd have eventually replaced the pickguard anyway with the correct 5-ply material (I have a sheet of it here).

Additionally, it's hard to confirm from the pictures but it looks like they have carved my soft-v neck profile as requested. The heel in these photos is a different shape to the rest of their builds - it has a much more pronounced curve here. This usually is a good indicator of the neck profile, but I won't know for sure until it's in my hands. I've asked for a few shots of the side profile of the neck though to check if the depth is as desired.

Consider me about 90% happy at the moment!

sunshinewelly

looks very nice indeed. i am seriously tempted to get one of these myself.

how much has it cost you delivered (i assume they will put a low value on the shipping invoice to keep customs down)

why did you pick a non standard control cover

TTony

Minor problems @guitargeek62, considering the price.  I'm really surprised - given the price - that they entertain any customisation at all.

Tell them to knock £100 off that one, ship it to me (unbound f holes are not a problem) and try again to get yours right ...

My "buy now" finger is twitching ... 

guitargeek62

Haha, I'll run that by them, Tony!  

I completely agree - if anything the lack of binding on this one opens up a nice motive to buy a second one in a different finish at some point anyway! My expectation is that they'll offer some money back before attempting to fix it, chances are I'll take it.

@sunshinewelly - I'm expecting it to come in at £350ish, depending on taxes. I've spent £280 so far so that factors in 25% for taxes and duties at full value.

I wanted the control cover because I'm a natural tinkerer, and it makes working on a 335 so much easier than faffing about with f-holes! As an added bonus, it'll give us chance to see what the internal build quality is like too.

kelvinburn

If my firebird vii passes muster im going to get an ovation gp ultra next but spec a gibbo type headstock and custom logo.

[Deleted User]

Would anyone be able to let me know via PM or otherwise where you are ordering these from please?

guitargeek62

pm'd

monquixote

THE LINK TO THE SITE IS IN THE THREAD

[Deleted User]

I looked for it but couldn't find it, hence the questions. Thanks

guitargeek62

I'm beginning to feel I should edit the original post and just post it now... 

GuitarMonkey

Who'd have thought that Chibsons would be so popular on  theFB 

jesone

Those frets look huge!

guitargeek62

Yeah, I asked for jumbos

JookyChap

GuitarMonkey said:

Who'd have thought that Chibsons would be so popular on  theFB 

I must admit I'm stunned

Edit: Though to be fair it'll save @SirAxeman hours of searching on ebay to flag them up

Bogwhoppit

underdog said:

that's my worry, as the fakes get very good it could ruin the used market in frequently faked guitars, as no one will risk it.

Hence why I'm anal when I buy any new or used Gibson.  If new, then I keep the original invoice, case contents, tags and other provenance; if used, I contact Bob Burns at Gibson, send him detailed photographs, serial numbers etc and he confirms authenticity.

I'm aware I've bought a Gibson, but having sold a few, its amazing how quick a buyer will part with their cash when I open a case, produce all the original paperwork, or letters from Gibson. Additionally, I also get the asking price into the deal.

In a market full of Gibson fakes, taking this action allows me the best chance of selling when the time comes around. 

Although I had to laugh when a guy in Coda-Music told me it would be easier to spot the Gibson fakes in years to come. They would be the better made ones lol

breakstuff

Just goes to show how easy it is to swallow ones principles when faced with nice,new shiny things.Not a criticism,I'd have one in a heartbeat >:D<

ThePrettyDamned

Not fussed on the fake aspect, but it's interesting that there is an affordable custom shop

Probably has more options than the new fender customising thing

I wonder if they would happily send an unfinished body?

underdog

I see no reason to be shocked that a Chinese replica would be popular, as all those viewing know it's a fake, and everyone is thinking reasonably priced guitar I can spec, not oh sell it a high price and pretend it's the real thing.