epiphone les paul custom b stock?

[voxac30dude]

im thinking about buying an epiphone les paul custom b-stock. is it safe to buy a b-stock guitar? i dont wanna buy it if b-stock means cracking in the wood. i really dont care if it has minor blemishes in the finish.

[Termanator7]

I don't know, I've saw the comments about the B-stocks and they didn't sound so good..

[ikon_dc2]

i have a b-stock alpine white lp. it looks and sounds awesome. was not dissapointed.

[diceman]

The B Stock items are supposed to just have cosmetic blemishes, as far as I know.

[ninny404]

sorry for the stupid question, but in "b-stock" do you mean factory second?

if so, i think the only issues with those is the finish. which, i've heard usually isn't even a noticeable flaw.

[diceman]

Isn't "B Stock" a blemished item at musicians friend?

I've seen a couple of Epi 2nds recently at the shop - they have "2nd" stamped on the back of the headstock, which looks absolutely terrible since the Poly just cracks around the stamp. The rest of the guitar looked good, though - by far the largest blem was the big dent in the back of the headstock that vaguely resembled a "2"

[ninny404]

Originally Posted by diceman

Isn't "B Stock" a blemished item at musicians friend?

I've seen a couple of Epi 2nds recently at the shop - they have "2nd" stamped on the back of the headstock, which looks absolutely terrible since the Poly just cracks around the stamp. The rest of the guitar looked good, though - by far the largest blem was the big dent in the back of the headstock that vaguely resembled a "2"

i have no clue. that term is new to me.. if it is a term referring to the MF blemish stock then i might shy away. i haven't heard too many good things about their so called "blemished" items. as most the time it's actually severe damage

the 2 thing made me laugh haha. i'm curious to know why they stamp it rather then. say, print? maybe put a big ass 2 on the front like pete townshend haha

[voxac30dude]

im sorry i didn't mention where im buying it from. im getting it from musicians friend. i just wanted to know if the b-stock ment cracks in the wood. if the finish is cracked around the number 2 they stamp on the headstock it's not that big of a deal to me. i just dont want the neck breaking or anything.

im scared to buy the custom now. what is the best epiphone les paul under the $600 range?

[ninny404]

Originally Posted by voxac30dude

im sorry i didn't mention where im buying it from. im getting it from musicians friend. i just wanted to know if the b-stock ment cracks in the wood. if the finish is cracked around the number 2 they stamp on the headstock it's not that big of a deal to me. i just dont want the neck breaking or anything.

im scared to buy the custom now. what is the best epiphone les paul under the $600 range?

you can always buy it and return it if it's not up to par. i'm just basing what i say on the accounts that i've come across. i'm sure they're not all bad seeds.

[Big_dawg]

theres a couple of guys on here that have B stocks, no problem with theirs...

as stated they should just be cosmetic blemishes not structural defects... Get it play it if you dont like it return it....

[dcooper830]

I have several Epi "B-Stocks" and "2nds"

Aside from minor cosmetic flaws, I'm EXTREMELY happy with 'em!!

[Termanator7]

It means the condition. A-Stock is really good. B-Stock is pretty good. C-Stock is kind of bad. And you don't want me to say about the letters beyond C..

[Blue]

When someone returns something to MF (or Zzounds etc.) they cant sell it as "new" and it is sold as a "Blem" (Not B-Stock) Some stuff has been banged on and used hard but works great still and was returned within their generous return period. Most stuff returned is returned in as good of shape as you would see hanging on a Guitar Center wall. BUT its not new and its sold as a "blem"

Warehouse Re-Sealed - is when a contaner opens in the store and is re-sealed or the item was used as a display. The item hasent gone to a consumer yet and therefore it is still new but the package is not pristine.

At Musicians Friend if things are realy "damaged" they are sold at their MF Outlet store in Kansas City. Sometimes you can find a GREAT deal there someitmes they just dont make any deals on the broken stuff. Some stuff is increadibly minor damage and some stuff MAJOR. This stuff IS NOT sold on their web site. Its an actual store! If you dont see it in person you cant get it. This is not the items in their "clearance" center that you see on thiew web site!!!!!

So far then... RE- Sealed hasnt been sold yet. Blem is a return. Damaged is sold at the outlet

B-Stock is usually new from the factory with a MINOR blemish. It has the warranty in tact (if bought from MF) It hasent been bought by another consumer yet.

A "REFURB" from MF for example is often warrantied like new but has been refurbished by a seperate company and now is being re sold by a legitamate Epi dealer (such as MF) This may be marked "2nd"

A "2nd" can also be bought by a "refurbisher". These are companies that buy in bulk guitars that dont pass Epi's QC (along with other manufacturers) and they take them and "refurbish" them. Here its things like fretwork redone or electronics re done and so on. These are fully functioning from a playability and appearence stand point with the exception of the finish flaw or repair. They may have been returned to the factory for warranty and the factory just replaced it instead of repairing it (usualy the case with factory returns for overseas guitars.) They usually DO NOT have the warranty and therefore have the dreaded 2nd stamped in them. There is virtually no resale value either as the refurb discount has de valued the piece.
You see these often on e-bay and in mom and pop shops on occasion. These are the best deal if you can find one used and you can play it. But e-bayers tend to want near street price of a "new" item after they refurb it.

So the hierarchy goes like this:
1 Re-Sealed
2 Blem
3 B-Stock
4 Refurb / 2nd from an authorized dealer
5 Refurb /2nd from a refurbisher (non authorized dealer)
6 Damaged from a clearance center

All of the above are somewhat subjective too! So your b stock may very well be a better instrument than your buddies re-sealed one and still not as good as the refurb your neighbor bought from e-bay! But on the surface the above outline should lessen the price as you go down the list. With Items 2 and 3 they are equivelant sometimes b stock is more than the blem sometimes vice versa.

Last word. DONT BE AFRAID of a b-stock / 2nd etc from MF or ZZounds or other internet site with a track record and a good return policy. Ive bought tons of gear in these catagories and have returned very very very few things. But they always let me return it within the review period no questions asked.

[voxac30dude]

thanks for the help.

do you think a les paul custom b-stock is worth $499.99? also i can't decide weather i should get the custom, standerd or the classic? please give me advice on witch sounds better. i like how the custom looks best but also want a good sound with the good looks.

[ninny404]

Originally Posted by voxac30dude

thanks for the help.

do you think a les paul custom b-stock is worth $499.99? also i can't decide weather i should get the custom, standerd or the classic? please give me advice on witch sounds better. i like how the custom looks best but also want a good sound with the good looks.

only difference between the three is cosmetic. only difference between the classic and the standard is the open coil pickups, as the standard has covered pickups. custom of course, squared inlays, binding of front & back, and then the diamond on the headstock... other then that, they're pretty much the same guitar

[Blue]

This is not 100% true always but a good rule of thumb to "kinda" go by: The quick math on instruments is: List Price / 2 = GOOD DEAL. Usually the retailer sells an item at approx 70% of LIST price. and there cost is around 50% of LIST price. Retailers like MF etc. can often buy them cheaper because they buy huge numbers (MF owns GC and Music123 and Woodwind Brasswind so think about the enormus orders this company can submit to any manufacturer) and as well they agree to NOT send any items back to the factory. If the customer finds something a little "off" and returns it, MF eats it. But, deeply discounts it as a blem to recoup the single unit cost.

Therefore if an LP Custom lists for $1000 and is being sold as a blem or scratch and dent or sometimes "b-stock" for $500.00 its a good deal. Eventualy depending on the reason for the discount the item will be reduced to 450 then 375 etc etc. but along the way someone will snag it and get a potentially GREAT deal below cost.


The Epi Custom MAYBE worth 499.00 It also may be not worth 100.00. Hard to say until you see it but it would be worth the chance to me to see it and play it if I was in the market for a custom provided the store/site was reputable with a good return policy. Like Musicians Friend, Sweetwater, Zzounds, Sam Ash, GC etc. My custom was a blem and as far as I can see it is perfect. Some others Ive seen didnt do it for me. But the saying is..."For every lock there is a key"

So....Id go for it!