Can anyone identify this Les Paul???

[dgassie]

Finally got my Epiphone Les Paul and just love it. Serial number is DW02110310. Please correct me if I'm wrong but I think that indicates it was made at the DeaWon factory in China, in November of 2002. I think that was about a month after that plant opened.

The question is this... I ordered and paid for a Standard but I think I got a Plus. Not that I really care since like I said, I love this thing. Here's a few links so you can see pictures and I'd love to post one of these in the members gallery.

public.fotki.com/dgassie/epitele_before_and_after/epitele__before_and/lp22.html

public.fotki.com/dgassie/epitele_before_and_after/epitele__before_and/lp11.html


It came with Grover tunners and the only thing I've changed are the PuPs. I put in Semour Duncans '59s. I really like the way the neck sound but think I would prefer something a little hotter in the bridge. All suggestions are welcome and if any of the experts out there can give me more information on this guitar, I'd appreciate it.

Dan

[Smooth]

Welcome to the boards, dgassie. Very sweet looking LP STD you have there. You are quite correct on the date and place your guitar was made. That is considered a LP Plus in Vintage Sunburst. As for pups, i have always liked Gibsons 500T in the bridge location, nice and crunchy.

[dgassie]

Hey, thanks for the reply. If it's a Plus, I guess I got a pretty good deal down here in Mexico. I ended up paying $5300 Pesos, which at the current exchange rate is about $460 Dollars.

I'm very happy with the build and general quality of this guitar. Everyone said it wouldn't stay in tune, but it does and I hear the pup switch will self destruct soon! I might as well get a new one and I'm thinking of puting a brass nut on it also.

At first I was reluctant to buy an Epiphone and thought about saving up for a while and getting the Gibson. I had a hard time swallowing Gibsons price tag and after reading an Epiphone Les Paul review in Guitarist magazine, I took the plunge. Besides, I'm a 46 year old beginner so I think this Epiphone will do me fine. Some good friends on the Net gave me a lot of good advice.

I think it's a beautiful instrument. It seems to have a little fret buzz low on the neck, close to the neck pup and someone said that might be a sign of too much neck relief so I might tighten the truss rod a 1/4 turn. What do you think?

[Steelpriest]

Welcome aboard! Yes, it is a LP Standard Plus. "Plus" does mean it has a "flame top" though it is only a veneer for a nicer look. Speaking about pickups, those Seymour Duncans '59s you speak of are those the ones shwon in the photographs? Or does the guitar in the photographs still have it´s stock pickups? I would recommend a Seymour Duncan SH6 for the Bridge position, or if you´re looking for something real hot try a Gibson "Dirty Fingers". Almost all my LPs have an open coil humbucker in the bridge position and a chrome plated one in the neck position, it looks pretty nice... The string buzzing on higher frets (close to the neck pickup) is in most cases caused by frets of slightly uneven height. When the strings buzz in lower frets or in the midddle of the fretboard (around the 7th - 12th fret) it is often possible to do something about it by readjusting the trussrod. I suggest to set the action a little bit higher first and see what happens... if you don´t feel comfortable then with the action or the string do still buzz, take the guitar to the shop and let them have a look at it. Maybe this shop has a good tech and he can level those frets or give the guitar a complete set up. If you have no experience with trussrod adjustment, don´t try yourself. But in any case you bought a very nice guitar!

[Tony01902]

hey dgassie welcome to the club. that is a nice guitar. for pickups, i'm replacing mine with the classic gibson '57s.

[Tony01902]

dgassie is that an epi telecaster on your site?!!

[dgassie]

Those are the stock pickups in the pictures, although I've now installed the Seymour Duncan 59s, which look identical as they also have chrome covers.

A "setup" professional is not available to me so I've learned to do most of the work myself. I realize truss rods can be tricky, so I'll be careful.

I didn't do a very good job installing that bridge pup so I redid it and it sounds much better now. Still, I'll live with it a couple of weeks and then make up my mind. Thanks to all for the suggestions. So many choices... so little $$$ !

Yes... that is an Epi Telecaster. I bought this one for close to nothing but it was a total basket case. I got it so I could learn how to repair and modify. I put two DiMarzio Humbuckers from Hell in it, a Grover HB bridge, Grover tuners, concentric volume and tone controls and two mini switches to split the coils.

After sanding the sucker down and repair all the major damage, I modified the headstock shape and applied the black finish you saw in the pictures. Turns out though, the finish was way too delicate and the guitar turned into a ding magnet. I decided it wouldn't hold up to even normal use, so I started the entire project again!

Following my wifes advice (all the married guys will understand) I went with a metalic deep rose color. I covered it in polyester this time so it should hold up. I'm giving it a couple of weeks to air out before I begin the whole polish thing... again.

Thanks to all for the kind welcomes and advice.

Dan