Thoughts on purchasing the les paul body.

[appetite4gnr]

What are your opinions on buying a les paul body such as this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2016-Gibson-USA-Les-Paul-Standard-T-BODY-NECK-Project-Guitar-Parts-Tea-Burst-/142020213532?hash=item2111107b1c:g:TWwAAOSwWBJXBCtf

and then installing everything your self? Don't you think you could save a few hundred bucks and also have it to your specs?!

Figure:

Body $1700
Bridge and Tailpiece $100
Pickups $200
Chrome Tulip Tuners $50
Toggle Switch $20

Total approx $2100

If I ever bought a les paul I would likely want chrome tulip tuners and different pickups in it anyway. I do not even like the bean tuners on the 2016 les pauls.

Also, I am not sure how much of the body is wired already. Not sure if I would have to route wires through the body etc.

It is hard to fathom how a hunk of wood (the body) could cost so much! I assume its the laquer finish and binding and all the other bells and whistles.

 

[Oranjeaap]

It's because sellers like them get more money out of a guitar when they sell it in parts.

So, you think it would be cheaper if you'd buy all the parts and a husk?

 

[Donal]

What are your opinions on buying a les paul body such as this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/2016-Gibson-USA-Les-Paul-Standard-T-BODY-NECK-Project-Guitar-Parts-Tea-Burst-/142020213532?hash=item2111107b1c:g:TWwAAOSwWBJXBCtf

and then installing everything your self? Don't you think you could save a few hundred bucks and also have it to your specs?!

Figure:

Body $1700
Bridge and Tailpiece $100
Pickups $200
Chrome Tulip Tuners $50
Toggle Switch $20

Total approx $2100

If I ever bought a les paul I would likely want chrome tulip tuners and different pickups in it anyway. I do not even like the bean tuners on the 2016 les pauls.

Also, I am not sure how much of the body is wired already. Not sure if I would have to route wires through the body etc.

It is hard to fathom how a hunk of wood (the body) could cost so much! I assume its the laquer finish and binding and all the other bells and whistles.

Generally speaking there is nothing wrong with it if you were going to replace everything on the guitar anyway.

Here the body seems quite steep at 1,800$

Also on our list you foregot:
4 Potis or complete wiring set.
Knobs
Jack socket and plate
Pickguard

I might do it if it was a very special finish etc.

 

[appetite4gnr]

Yeah the wiring is probably the trickiest part. It would take me a while to do some research on how to wire it but have to remember its not rocket science!

Also, I really wish those bodies had stainless steel frets. From the looks of it, they look like nickel. I think Gibson should always have stainless steel installed on all of their guitars, especially for the price they are charging nowadays!

 

[MSB]

If you have enough spare parts lying around, I think it could be cost effective, if not, too much $ to complete it imo

 

[C_Becker]

For wiring, take a look at the Seymour Duncan Website. They have wiring diagrams for every configuration you could ever imagine !

http://www.seymourduncan.com/wiring-diagrams

You just need to adjust for the different colours if you use pups other than SD

 

[jestremera]

I love the idea of taking on these types of projects. As stated earlier, the wiring is the tricky part; but there are tons of diagrams out there. I'm not sure about how much you'll save unless you get good deals on used parts but I'm all for doing this kind of thing. Go for it.

 

[appetite4gnr]

Does anyone know how sellers obtain the bodies and necks? Hopefully they are genuine.

One seller I found was

https://stratosphereparts.com/2016-...d-t-body-neck-project-guitar-parts-tea-burst/

I am assuming they are blemished products that gibson was not able to use.

 

[C Squared]

Does anyone know how sellers obtain the bodies and necks? Hopefully they are genuine.

One seller I found was

https://stratosphereparts.com/2016-...d-t-body-neck-project-guitar-parts-tea-burst/

I am assuming they are blemished products that gibson was not able to use.

They are not B stock. He gets them new and strips them down selling everything separately.

If you have a stock pile of hardware (as many folks here do) or if it's something that you would swap hardware and pickups on anyway, it's not a bad way to go. If you're going to build a standard, then you may as well buy a standard

 

[Jeremiah]

The guys over at the Stratosphere are awesome to deal with. I bought pickups from them but if I was in the market for a modern Les Paul I would buy without hesitation.

 

[ARandall]

Yep, building a guitar from parts is the most expensive way to do it......generally 30% more expensive than as a whole. For international buyers its perfact as in Aus we have a customs duty threshhold which if you're clever, you can reduce down to minimum or nothing at all.

The body is expensive due to the time taken to make it. The rest of the parts are easily constructed in production lines. For those who have never made a guitar, I guess the time taken for the wooden side of construction would be far be far beyond their comprehension.

And I'm thinking $2400 is more like it by the time you get everything shipped to you.

 

[Starman]

I built two this year from a husk from The Stratosphere. First off yes they are brand new guitars and they are flawless not a scratch or mark on them. But I must say if you expect any form of communication whatsoever from the owners or operators of The Stratosphere you will be mistaken. They will not ever answer an email or question or inquiry. You will buy the guitar blindly and get what you get. Want to return it? No problem but never a word is spoken. Just realize this. Also they don't come with a case or ever any of the case candy and they will not attempt to offer you the case candy. They sell off case candy in lots of 50 on eBay so your guitar manuals and photo and such are off in the netherworld.

One good thing is they do sell original cases, pretty cheap. So if you order a husk just add on a case and have it shipped in a case.

Ok so the way I went about this is knowing that I change nearly every part of a new LP anyway so why start with a complete guitar?

I feel the only way to do this economically is to buy "in the center" range of the husks. A traditional, classic, plain top, limited. They go for around $1100 - $1400 + shipping + case so you are in a nice traditional husk at $1600 + -.

If you have parts or shop wisely you can assemble for approx another $400-$500 using high quality parts that can give the guitar a very legit vintage or custom vibe, and without a doubt sound better than a factory LP if done right.

So for a traditional you are all in at $2100 + - which is where a new one is at. It's up to the individual as to te value of having a "custom" built LP vs a factory stock. I have both and I really adore both types so it's a toss up.

The biggest consideration to all of this is: do you have the ability to assemble and setup a guitar properly, and do you enjoy doing things like this? If you do then it is a great project and half the fun is sourcing the various parts for the best deal possible and in a grand scheme to fit the guitars personality you are creating.

My $.02

 

[Cjsinla]

Does anyone know how sellers obtain the bodies and necks? Hopefully they are genuine.

One seller I found was

https://stratosphereparts.com/2016-...d-t-body-neck-project-guitar-parts-tea-burst/

I am assuming they are blemished products that gibson was not able to use.

No, probably not "seconds". They seem to sell stuff bought used or on close out it seems to me. Keep in mind that the resale value on a project guitar will be less than a comparable used guitar that is stock. My advice would be to buy used, it would be very close to the price of that husk. Put your favorite pickups in it, less work. You can put it back to stock when you sell it.

 

[easton55]

Cool that people like to look into making their own unit, takes dedication to complete something like that.
The only thing that's kind of a downside to it, is it will never be an actual factory guitar, so hopefully no reason ever comes up to sell it. Already too many fakes and knockoffs flying around the world. Good luck with the build in any case!

 

[rjshare]

It's funny though, that sooooo many people say "I went to my local GC and played a new Gibson the other day and it was a dog/xxx was wrong/xxx didn't work." And yet you would shell out three quarters of the price of a new one just for the wood, blind, without trying it or having a guarantee.

Yeah, it might work out cheaper - say 10% or so, which on a $/£/E 2000+ guitar is going to be maybe 200 (which you can often get off anyway when buying new in a shop if you haggle a bit). So yeah - it might be a bit cheaper, but no, IMO, it's not really worth it.

Just for a laugh, try and work out how much a car would cost if you built it piece by piece in parts

 

[ehamady6]

The project would be a good learning experience. You never know, you might come across a wiring and hardware configuration that helps you achieve your dream tone. Go for it if you have the time, patience, and money.

 

[Hanover Fist]

I bought an SG 50's Tribute husk from Stratosphere parts. I also ordered most of the hardware from them, too. When the package arrived, all the hardware was missing. I had to file a Paypal dispute before they would send the hardware.

Starman is correct--they lack at communication.

 

[BrianB]

Just for a laugh, try and work out how much a car would cost if you built it piece by piece in parts

Why not? It's been an option for eons if you know what/where to look. I've always wanted a Camaro "body in white"....

http://www.chevrolet.com/performance/camaro-body-in-white.html

 

[KenG]

Buying stripped down guitars and building them up is like a box full or chocolates! You never know what you're gonna get.
Seriously you can't try the guitar before you buy, it may have beens tripped to try and make more money, it may have been stripped to hide the fact that it's a dog.
Why chance it? For that money you could buy a decent used Standard instead of a "used" body.

 

[bblooz]

Yeah, you could do it, but I just hate that these yahoos take a perfectly good guitar, and part it out! There is also the chance that maybe it wasn't so good to begin with (frets, truss rod, neck, intonation, etc.) You would never know until you have it all together and no guaranties, so risky IMHO. There are so many nice, complete, guitars out there for sale, why bother with such a project?