How did this pass quality?!

[db1408]

So i was looking on ebay, passing some time, when i came across i Gib Slash for sale . . . How does a guitar like this pass inspection?

Look at the nitro finish around the neck of this EXSPENSIVE guitar.

[armann]

I have seen that on a few Les Pauls recently at GC.

[b-squared]

Yeah, the orange peel look is pretty common on modern LPs. Unfortunately.

BB

[MJG]

That is a disgrace!

[Paul]

Originally Posted by db1408

So i was looking on ebay, passing some time, when i came across i Gib Slash for sale . . . How does a guitar like this pass inspection?

Look at the nitro finish around the neck of this EXSPENSIVE guitar.

Stevie Wonders working at gibson quality controle.

[racerratt]

Someone will come in and stand up for old Gibby and say, "Yeah, but it's a Gibson" and I would say, "Yeah, and their QC still sucks".

[sgberry]

Funny, my 2004 LP Studio doesn`t have that finish flaw and it`s considered as cheap Gibson!!!

[mojofilter]

Hmmmm....just go figure,GIBSON is making sure that they are determine to ruin the name of a company that took 3/4 of a century to establish as one of the worlds,(IF NOT THE WORLDS) finest instruments! few more years of this,and they will establish a negative impression upon themselves that they wont be able to recover from! keep up the good work,....MR.FINAL INSPECTOR! GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS

[snakestretcher]

Originally Posted by db1408

So i was looking on ebay, passing some time, when i came across i Gib Slash for sale . . . How does a guitar like this pass inspection?

Look at the nitro finish around the neck of this EXSPENSIVE guitar.

That is pretty poor; also the bottom edge of the neck p/up cavity is visible-not good.

[Harpozep]

I'll second that. Recently got an SG that is real rough around the neck/body joint. Painted oK, but it has wood scrapes not sanded, but painted over.

Here's the resting place for some of thoe ones they reject:

[MJG]

Ah is that the Hard Rock Cafe in New York?? I've been there and seen that wall - very cool. Although quite sad too (mass guitar slaughter and all that...)

[dwagar]

hmm

I wonder if someone has a way of buying these, at a big discount, out of Gibson, so they can blow them out on Ebay?

Maybe it didn't pass QC.

Does it say 'I'm not a dealer so there is no warranty' in the ad?

[armann]

Originally Posted by dwagar

hmm

I wonder if someone has a way of buying these, at a big discount, out of Gibson, so they can blow them out on Ebay?

Maybe it didn't pass QC.

Does it say 'I'm not a dealer so there is no warranty' in the ad?

Don't know about that I have seen it at GC on some guitars.

[docadillac]

Unfortunately, this happens even though it shouldn't.

[dennistruckdriver]

It's a tough spot to get real smooth. Car guys have problems like this too, but a good hot-rod painter wouldn't let it get out of the shop like that.
Just about every Gibson I have ever looked at had it, even my Custom Shop '58 (which I foolishly sold a couple of years ago!).

[JPizzzle]

i got a late 06' and it doesn't have it. guess i got lucky

[BobbyK]

that guitar wall makes no sense to me... keep all of the electronics, hardware, and working parts? they had to buy them.
They could save stuff like pickguards and pots

[LoKi]

My Kalamazoo doesn't have it, and even my '88 doesn't have it.

Gibson is getting lazy these days. That area is not hard to reach with the buffing wheel. The guy buffing and the guy inspecting just plain lazed out on it.

If I bought that I'd demand Gibson refinish it. If they refused, I'd bring about hell to pay. I don't think they'd refuse.

Makes you wonder though... I saw a couple Slash's that were unplayable, twisted neck, raised fret pieces of junk. Worse than some of the Chinese knock offs I've seen around town.

Only 1600 of these were made. Limited run... So far I've personally held 2 that were garbage, played others that had a couple minor things *file marks, orange peel, terrible nut ect* and have seen a couple on here that have had similar problems... A few people here had to return their first Slash and get a second...

Out of this 'limited run', how many do you think were total garbage? Gibson should not let out a special, super hyped up and advertised run of guitars leave their factory in this sort of shape...

[LoKi]

Dare I say it... How many Epi's came out of Korea that were flawless..?

[diceman]

Loki - I'm with you - the fact that they overhyped this guitar and then released a bunch of the USA models with glaring flaws - and then made the Epi version available for presale at a few vendors for $700, only to have them all pulled and re-released at $1000 is a total load of bullshit.

I think I'm going to hold out for a Historic - I've given up hope after playing a ton of new USA models that just don't make the cut in my eyes.

[Jims Les Paul]

I had the same finish flaw on my 2008 standard cherry burst. Not only that, you should have seen the back of the guitar. The finish was all rippled..just horrible.

I returned it for a faded finish which I'm happy to report is doing real fine. No major flaws and terrific tone!

Jim

[uOpt]

This issue looks like it might have developed between leaving the factory and now. Looks like the paint lifted.

I am much more concerned about the neck pickup cavity being visible under the pickup ring. That's more difficult to explain.

Why do the Chinese and Korean guitars not show these issues? Maybe because you get a beating if you let them out that way?

[LoKi]

No thats a factory problem. The Nitro wasn't sanded or buffed properly in that area. The reason being is that if they get too close to the binding, they risk screwing that area up as well. While the nitro was still curing it should have been buffed out.

They paint and finish these guitars with the necks already bound and attached. No other luthier who does this has orange peel problems around that area. Ask Roman or Greg if they'd ever let that happen in their shops. The answer would be a backhand to the mouth!

Chinese and Korean don't have these issues for a couple reasons, 1 they use poly instead of nitro, which is easier to touch up after the fact, and 2 they actually care about their jobs because even though the money is shit, it's all they have. These aren't full blown sweat shops. They aren't taken out back and shot when they screw up, but they have a lot to prove because there is ALWAYS somebody somewhere else in those countries who will do it better, faster, and cheaper just to make a living.

[Mikeeeeh]

Would gently heating the nitro and rebuffing by hand work out here? Like the old iron and hankerchief trick for buffing out small dings in a nitro finish

[Roman Rist]

Originally Posted by Mikeeeeh

Would gently heating the nitro and rebuffing by hand work out here? Like the old iron and hankerchief trick for buffing out small dings in a nitro finish

The problem is not the buffing, it is the sanding.
The problem with the sanding is the amount of finish.

The reason it was not properly sanded is on purpose.

If sanded properly, they would have sanded through, because there wasn't enough finish there.

What it boils down to, is Gibson RUSHED to cash in on the Slash hype.

[st.bede]

One thing I notice is that the quality of "cheap" (from Korea) guitars has gone up in the last six years..... Many years back I always told students to buy a used Yamaha (insteed of a squire, ibanez, ect). Now days I could recomed alot of these Korean built guitars.

Why a usa made gibson would have problems just baffels me.........

[Mikeeeeh]

Originally Posted by RFR

The problem is not the buffing, it is the sanding.
The problem with the sanding is the amount of finish.

The reason it was not properly sanded is on purpose.

If sanded properly, they would have sanded through, because there wasn't enough finish there.

What it boils down to, is Gibson RUSHED to cash in on the Slash hype.

Thanks for the breakdown of the problem Roman... When you speak about finish I'm assuming the paint and not the cap?

Its just shoddy plain and simple...

[Roman Rist]

Originally Posted by Mikeeeeh

Thanks for the breakdown of the problem Roman... When you speak about finish I'm assuming the paint and not the cap?

Its just shoddy plain and simple...

Yes it is the paint, not the top.

They are just rushing, I am sure there was a shitload of pressure to get the slash model out on schedule at all costs.

I had a Friend that used to work QC at ovation.

Believe it or not, his job was to see how quality could be cut back. They would drop the standards to a point where they got 20 percent complaints.

When they ht that 20% mark they would then make it better. SAD.

[uOpt]

Exactly.

So what if the thing doesn't play properly? Maybe it gets bought by somebody who doesn't play in the first place. Maybe it gets sold to somebody who takes it to Russia before noticing the problem. Maybe somebody who passes it on and doesn't complain. Maybe it goes some channel where warranty isn't carried on (that's easy to achieve with Gibson, BTW).

With 20% complaint rate you probably have 50% less than really satisfied customers.

In China or even Korea you and your family could starve if your workbench produces customer complaints. Anybody surprised?

For what it's worth, the thing that got me to seek the holy grail in Burnys and Grecos now is a thread on this very forum, the one where somebody X-rays the bublebees on a historic and found them to be fake. I was ready to buy a historic, but no more.

[Seymour Duncans]

This is why I am starting to wonder about Gibson, I can tell you something, you wouldn't find that on a PRS. And I'm a Gibson guy.