epi studio?

[nfrgcs]

Hey everyone!
This is my first post, but I've spent quite some time on here. I have a gorgeous '08 standard plain top in honeyburst and I absolutely love it. Anyway, I was wondering what you guys think about the epiphone les paul studio. What kind of mods are a good idea for these? Also, does the worn cherry finish really look like it does in the ads? I was thinking about getting one of these as a second lp to do a little work on, but only if the finish is darker than the pictures look. Thanks.

 

[TWANG]

I have the dot studio.. it looks a lot warmer if you use a little lemon oil on the whole body.
I have the lp studio in sunburst.
I've done this to it:

locking tuners.
roller bridge.
bigsby.
new pickups.
new electronics.
added two switches so I can get three sounds out of each pickup.
new guard.
straplocks.

I consider it money well spent.sounds killer, plays great and I think it looks good, too.
Here it is without the new switches.
and my worn cherry dot studio, also modded.
and my vj, also modded.
and my sheraton. also modded.
I'm kinda freaky about modding stuff.

 

[ElhazGuy]

Beautiful ones, Twang!

 

[nfrgcs]

Twang, those look amazing!
I'm really liking the way that bigsby looks on the les paul. Did you have to fill the holes from the tailpiece to install that?
Also, would you just apply the lemon oil directly to the guitar, or is there any prep-work involved? I like the red on your dot.

 

[TWANG]

thanks for compliments!

re: lemon oil.
paper towel.. very little oil on it.. smooth it all over.. use it all up..
let sit a few minutes.. wipe it off.. get as much off as you can without digging into the finish..
warmer color.. non greasy.. the difference right in front of you is greater than the pics show.

I was gonna sell Big Red but noone would offer me even 400.00 with the hard case, new pots, switches, plastics, pickups, bridge, graph tech saddles, tuners.. so I guess she's mine.
which I don't understand since you'd pay 380.00 for a new one with case dead stock..
which mine would blow away in a split second.

oh well. live and learn. and play!

On the bigsby. you have to drill four holes actually.
First, the tail takes three screws. Pretty understandable that a single screw might still, after months of use, allow the bigsby to rock.
and I say four, even though there is already a strap hole on the lp. it's not quite centered.. they weren't adding a bigsby so they never considered centering it. So it may be a little off.. and you redrill.
You also have one hole on the top.

In the first pic on the low e side you'll see a little half circle of aluminum. I made that to cover the bushing hole that was left exposed.
Get your bigs from me and I'll make you one free.. and beat other prices.
two in stock.. chrome and black b70s.. *if anyone needs one*

right next to it is where the bigs needs anchored.

some people go with the vibramate. It cost something like 50.00 and lets you mount the bigs without drilling.

I could understand that a little with a gibson of some cost.. but on an epi studio? The bigs is nothing BUT an upgrade so who'd care about the hole? It's gonna be there forever.

I put a hardwood dowel inside each bushing hole..
you can get a hardwood dowel stick at Ace hardware.. file it to fit.. slip it in.. don't even have to glue it..
just measure the depth and mask around it then sand/file the top to flat with the paint
and you're done.

There are two places that show the tops of those bushing dowels.. the aluminum cap
we just talked about.
On the high e side it's about ten time smaller.. I used a tiny piece of black pickguard material there.. since it's under the handle anyway.
Looks good to me.. works fine.. guitar was improved in every way!
TWANG

 

[zeppelin101]

The other guitarist in my band has an orville LP and a korean epi studio and for some reason uses the studio almost as much. Its a great guitar, but I like the orville much better. Get it in black, the tops dont look good there.

 

[nfrgcs]

I absolutely agree that a bigsby is a definite UP-grade for an epi. If I do end up putting one on a studio, I highly doubt it would ever come off. I'll keep you in mind if/when I get that bigsby.
So I guess you'd say it wouldn't be a waste of money then? I have a friend that had a studio in black, but he sold it because he couldn't get the action where he wanted it. I'm assuming if you get it set up by a professional this shouldn't be an issue.

I've narrowed it down to either the black or the worn cherry. I guess I'll just have to find one and compare, then look into this lemon oil

 

[TWANG]

I build guitars and modify amps and sell pickguards and wiring and all that jazz.
so these were all done by me.
I've never run into an epi I couldn't make play like butter.. the fret work is consistent on these things and even on the lower priced bolt neck models I've found the light weaknesses to be almost always in the exact same places.
and not hard to fix.

guys ship their guitars to me.
if you bought the bigsby, I'd install it free.
and probably do your frets for practically nothing.
I always do a complete set up before I let a guitar leave here even if it's not asked for.

But all that crap aside..
the lp studio is well made. sure it's pieces of mahogany.. sure it's a little heavy!
but solid.. dependable. and toneful and can play as nice as almost anything.
with the right choices in upgrades it's got everything but the cosmetic fancys.. but so what? they have their own look is how I see it!
TWANG

 

[nfrgcs]

Seems like you really know your stuff! Great advice. Sounds like a good deal. Unfortunately cash is a little short with the holidays right around the corner, but I think I may have to spring for one of these sometime in the future. Definitely putting the bigsby on too!

 

[TWANG]

I think it's a good idea. I think it's a really good guitar at a fair price.
I like the Rondo stuff as well but you asked about epi and I'm an epi fan, too.
TWANG