UK used dealers, for used Les Paul

Hairdoom

As much as I like my PRS (SE CU 24),  I have a Les Paul shaped hole that needs filled (snigger).

Financially I'm still a few months away from buying, but I've decided (when I've saved enough) to give into my urges and live the childhood dream of owning a fully fledged Gibson Les Paul. I'll be buying used (limit will be an absolute max of £1500) and obviously I want to get the best I can for my money.

I know there's a lot of discussion lately about Gibson's QC and that any era of Les Paul can have great examples and rather less fantastic ones, so I'd be looking at buying from a dealer rather than a private sale ( I'm in N Ireland, so I'm limited in terms of travelling to try, I will be keeping any eye on the few local sellers there are).

Are there any UK based used retailers that have a particularly good reputation? 

Also are there any years/models etc that stand out about the rest? I'm not fussy, and not after a case queen, I just want a decent Les Paul \m/

Limehouse_Blues

Check out guitars4you among dealers

however, don’t rule out private sellers. You may find a good deal here or at the Les Paul forum classifieds.

if you want a ‘fully fledged’ LP I would wait a little until used historics are in budget for you. Among the non CS stuff look out for a standard faded.

Blaendulais

There are many reliable trustworthy people who sell Les Pauls on this forum.  

zepp76

£1200 will get you a used decent Standard, pre 2006 they weren't chambered just traditional weight relief so it depends on wether or not you are concerned with the weight of the guitar. I picked up my '04 standard for £1200 and its immaculate so there are used deals to be had.

Warblington

I'd be looking for something made in the 90's.I was once told (by a dealer)  that Gibson had some particularly good wood stocks and were making  good quality guitars in that era.I once picked up a stunning 1997 Honeyburst Les Paul Classic for £1000 on the Bay. I knew it was underpriced and moved it on very quickly for £1400. It was a beautiful player, gorgeous wood, superb condition and a great tone.I've bought and sold many guitars as an enthusiast (GAS sufferer) but never regretted selling one as much as that one.If you look hard and long enough you will find the guitar that has your name on it.Good luck.

Fifty9

If suggest a 2017 Traditional for that kind of money (a few hundred less actually).

artiebear

Some of the best LP deals around are right here on this forum, bearing in mind that you are |( quite rightly) contributing to a dealers overheads when going down that route. The upside of dealers is trying multiple examples and, hopefully (but not always ), some kind of warranty on the used item.

rico

Is it just me or is the used market (particularly for 1990's and 2000's) moving upwards slowly?

Hairdoom

Thanks guys. I'm not adverse to buying privately, it's just that I would need to be confident that the guitar is a good one as playing before buying is unlikely.

The classifieds here does seem full of pretty genuine people .

WeZ84

Maybe head to one of the guitar shows - the one in Birmingham in February for example. There will be lots of traders with some used stock and you’ll get a chance to try before you buy. I recently bought a 2014 USA Telecaster at the Northampton guitar show that I’m very happy with.

iseverynamegone

You’ll get a nice used R8 for that. 

crunchman

Warblington said:

I'd be looking for something made in the 90's.I was once told (by a dealer)  that Gibson had some particularly good wood stocks and were making  good quality guitars in that era.I once picked up a stunning 1997 Honeyburst Les Paul Classic for £1000 on the Bay. I knew it was underpriced and moved it on very quickly for £1400. It was a beautiful player, gorgeous wood, superb condition and a great tone.I've bought and sold many guitars as an enthusiast (GAS sufferer) but never regretted selling one as much as that one.If you look hard and long enough you will find the guitar that has your name on it.Good luck.

The 2002 to 2006 Standards have a pretty good reputation.  Don't rule them out.

rico

iseverynamegone said:

You’ll get a nice used R8 for that. 

No chance! 

Hairdoom

rico said:

iseverynamegone said:

You’ll get a nice used R8 for that. 

No chance! 

Lol maybe if I added another £1000!

WindmillGuitars

rico said:

iseverynamegone said:

You’ll get a nice used R8 for that. 

No chance! 

@rico ;
You can find them .. this one went on eBay last week @ £1500

terada

Hairdoom said:

rico said:

iseverynamegone said:

You’ll get a nice used R8 for that. 

No chance! 

Lol maybe if I added another £1000!

Don't underestimate how saturated the market is at the moment. Yes the one that went for £1500 is an anomaly, but there have (according to accounts here) been a couple of others that have gone for a little under £2k.


Won't last forever though, its just a bit of a weird time for Custom shop les pauls.

Warblington

crunchman said:

Warblington said:

I'd be looking for something made in the 90's.I was once told (by a dealer)  that Gibson had some particularly good wood stocks and were making  good quality guitars in that era.I once picked up a stunning 1997 Honeyburst Les Paul Classic for £1000 on the Bay. I knew it was underpriced and moved it on very quickly for £1400. It was a beautiful player, gorgeous wood, superb condition and a great tone.I've bought and sold many guitars as an enthusiast (GAS sufferer) but never regretted selling one as much as that one.If you look hard and long enough you will find the guitar that has your name on it.Good luck.

The 2002 to 2006 Standards have a pretty good reputation.  Don't rule them out.

I was pretty much talking for myself and offering an opinion based on my own experience.I wasn't ruling them out and neither was I ruling them in.But..I'd still try to find a 90's model based on my own experience .Not easy to find but easy to sell and inching upwards in value.I've not played 2002 to 2006 examples so I can't comment on them but that may well be of interest to the OP.

Fifty9

If there was a chance to stretch the budget, I'd buy a used R8 without doubt. ideally a post 2013 version with £2k my goal to spend. I'd push the budget as much as poss and do that.

terada

Fifty9 said:

If there was a chance to stretch the budget, I'd buy a used R8 without doubt. ideally a post 2013 version with £2k my goal to spend. I'd push the budget as much as poss and do that.

+1

Fretwired

Coda often has some great Les Paul trade-ins on their website.

pmbomb

I've bought 2 from eBay, both are good. Get a feel for the seller, are they a player, does their history with the guitar add up? A few messages and you'll get a feel. I'd probably avoid a bedroom dealer.

Also watch the market for a while so you know values. Buy well and your money on the whole is safe. If the guitar doesn't work out for you, you can move it on without much loss.

Both mine were about 30% less than Reverb dealers were asking for similar. This matters as that 30% is your hit if you sell on.