Buying a 71(?) SG - help

[Martin60]

Hi,

I've been wanting to own a vintage guitar for a while now, and I've always thought that old SGs with vibra. looks great! And now there's a 71' SG for sale and i just want to check with the experts before i buy Do you have any advise on what should i look for, and what a fair prices should be? Also the saler doesn't seem to be too sure that it's a 71, and all i could get from the Serialnr. is that it's from between 70-72, is there a way for me to be sure that its a 71? Does it matter?
Last but not least - Is 70-72 a good period for SGs?

-Martin

 

[SoloDallas]

Martin,yes, it's a great period for SGs. Despite what "critics" used to say about these - preferring earlier ones - these kicks major ass. I have every model produced from '61 to '71, and '71s are among my favorites. Tough guitars. RAW sounding, very playable (MAY need professional setup, like any other model/year).
IF it has a vibrola - a Maestro "Lyre" Vibrola - it has to be a '71. '72s lost the vibrola (the Maestro) and had a different body shape.
I would say the Maestro is the single most striking feature too look at - MUST have "Lyre" engraved - as all the other features - if you don't know - might be harder to describe for me (bevel shape, heel shape, volute was there even on '72s, ... ).
Color should be either walnut or a very dark cherry. I believe yours will be walnut, which was the most common in that year.

I'm here to help.

 

[Martin60]

Martin,yes, it's a great period for SGs. Despite what "critics" used to say about these - preferring earlier ones - these kicks major ass. I have every model produced from '61 to '71, and '71s are among my favorites. Tough guitars. RAW sounding, very playable (MAY need professional setup, like any other model/year).
IF it has a vibrola - a Maestro "Lyre" Vibrola - it has to be a '71. '72s lost the vibrola (the Maestro) and had a different body shape.
I would say the Maestro is the single most striking feature too look at - MUST have "Lyre" engraved - as all the other features - if you don't know - might be harder to describe for me (bevel shape, heel shape, volute was there even on '72s, ... ).
Color should be either walnut or a very dark cherry. I believe yours will be walnut, which was the most common in that year.

I'm here to help.

Thanks!
It has a Maestro. The colour looks like walnut, but the saler says that it's Cherry under the pickguard. There's pictures of it here: Elguitar, Gibson SG, Cherry – dba.dk – Køb og Salg af Nyt og Brugt

 

[Martin60]

By the way, i have tried it, and it feels, looks and sounds great! But there's one thing that concerns me - the lower strings(Especially the E and A strings) sounds really doll, dead, undefined. But it could be because of the strings are worn - I hope so! But I'll ask if i can try it with fresh strings before i decide to buy!

 

[SoloDallas]

Oh yes, I know that one, someone - probably a Danish - brought it up to my attention on solodallas.net
It's a '71 (or a '70) alright! Unsure about the "real" color, probably a very dark cherry.
Go for it, you will NOT regret it.
About the dull strings: VERY typical of SGs, especially of the latter '60s. No worries.
Things will change with a new set of strings.
Be prepared for a pro setup if you intend to bring out the best of it.
I have ALL of my guitars PLEK'd, and I strongly suggest just that.

PS you should join my site, I think it has a LOT of info on Gibson Guitars - old ones - that you may be interested into.

SD

 

[Martin60]

Super! How about the value, what is a fair prices for a guitar like that?

 

[SoloDallas]

Super! How about the value, what is a fair prices for a guitar like that?

Can't read description - Danish? - so I do not know what is original and what not. What issues and what not.
Assuming it's in original condition - all parts there, most importantly (you want it for the tone) harness and PUs - from 2.5k up to 4k is the price that goes around for these.

Keep in mind that Angus Young's first and most seminal SG was a 1971.

So much for "pure" vintage.

 

[Martin60]

It should be all orginal and it is in pretty good condition!

 

[SoloDallas]

Around 4k is the max he should be asking.

 

[Martin60]

But i don't know about the electronics and the PU's. The saler doesn't sound too sure that it's the original pickputs and electronics

 

[SoloDallas]

Feel free to open the control cavity, take pictures and/or read the potentiometer codes. Same for the pickups: open and look and possibly, take pictures.
Than post either here or at solodallas.net, I'll be there.
Pot codes are rather informative about originality. In the sense that, they have strong dates readable (deciphering the codes) and it is possible to determine exactly when they were made.

 

[Martin60]

Feel free to open the control cavity, take pictures and/or read the potentiometer codes. Same for the pickups: open and look and possibly, take pictures.
Than post either here or at solodallas.net, I'll be there.
Pot codes are rather informative about originality. In the sense that, they have strong dates readable (deciphering the codes) and it is possible to determine exactly when they were made.

Super! Thank you very much for the help!

 

[SoloDallas]

I love those SGs. It's fun for me and I share your passion for owning one

 

[circusboy28]

Early 70's SG's are fantastic guitars,

 

[SGACE]

Instead of making a new thread I prefer to post here that the discussion has a flow. I live in Greece where the vintage guitars are quite rare. Anyway I found a guy that sells a 1970 SG standard for 2150 € but the price is negotiable. We spoke at the phone and he indicated all the points for a 70's SG (volute, stamped USA, maestro, pickups with stickers, etc). The problem is that at some point the neck broke (he desribed it as a smile breakage) and been fixed well so it doesn't affect its playability. My question is simple, does this SG worth 2000-2150 € as a broken/fixed guitar? What would be a fair price?

 

[SoloDallas]

Sgace what's your name? I'd rather call you by name.
Anyway, yes, it's worth it. Most of my SGs have had a break somewhere, which was fixed. In no way - IF the fix has been done properly, with the right glue, etc. - this will affect either tone or playability. Go for it now. Post a picture if you can. Pictures speak.

 

[SGACE]

Phil, thanks for the quick answer.. My name is George, my friend.. I try first to check the guitar from outside the box, because I know that if I go there to ckeck it, I will be emotional and I dont want that. Yes i will follow your suggestion to
go and check the guitar (check pots, pickups, etc) to be sure that it is a real 1970 model..

 

[SoloDallas]

You know it's a pleasure George. Parakalo. Now, it's VERY easy to see if it's a 1970/'71.
Crown inlays (later ones are block), MAYBE volute, USA stamp (MAYBE!), shallow cutaway beveling, slightly larger body, color is dark usually (either walnut or dark cherry), MAESTRO Lyre vibrola, .... you know it already. And you got plenty of pictures at solodallas.net to compare. I feel it's a legit one. If I were you, I wouldn't let it slip. If for some reason you won't get it, please pass it on to me. At that price - + shipping - it's still near-bargain.

These will go up - maybe slowly - in time, but they will. These are the first Norlins. Considered very little in previous years, these are excellent players and imho they look even better than earlier ones. Angus Young's first SG was JUST like one of these.

 

[SGACE]

"And you got plenty of pictures at solodallas.net to compare".. This is true, by far the best library of information, for vintage SG's and Gibsons in general. First with the videos in Youtube and then in this new site, my eyes opened and my ears started to seek THE RIGHT sound...Grazie!

 

[SoloDallas]

Parakalo (I was in Crete in July, by the way, and I grew up studying ancient Greek. Do you know what an old man told me in Crete: "Greci e Italiani, una faccia, una razza". He knew it in Italian. The phrase means, "we look the same, therefore we're from the same race. My Irish teacher used to tell me, always "we're all Greeks" because of the fact that Greece - ancient Greece - set the western culture basis for good back then. He was right).

George, you know I'm experimenting just like any of us. It's all an ongoing process.
Later,

Fil (Philos Ippos)