Pawn Shop Possibility - Gibson LP

[GuitarsCanada]

I stopped in to see one of my freak pawn shop buddies in Michigan a few weeks back. He's got a 2002 Gibson LP in there, fairly new condition. Natural finish though, which is not really exciting. Neck pick-up original and the bridge is a Duncan. No other mods that I can see. He wants 1K US for it. If I can get him down to about $700 I figure thats a good deal. Unfortunate that it's the natural finish though.

[Accept2]

Natural? Its not a Faded Series is it?............

[GuitarsCanada]

Natural? Its not a Faded Series is it?............

Negative Sir, it's that natural wood. I don't think they sold many of them. They called it the Smartwood Series. Discontinued in 2002/2003 I think.

http://www.guitarscanada.com/images/LPsmartwood.jpg

[Mahogany Martin]

Negative Sir, it's that natural wood. I don't think they sold many of them. They called it the Smartwood Series. Discontinued in 2002/2003 I think.

http://www.guitarscanada.com/images/LPsmartwood.jpg


Don't quote me on this but I'm pretty sure that they brought it back. I was on the Gibson site a while ago and I'm pretty sure that I saw it (I'll have to look again but I don't want to be on the net too long today). I like that guitar actually. About 1500 cdn, not a bad deal IMO. On some of them, some of the grain is a little darker and I think that they look good.

[GuitarsCanada]

I might make a stab at it. I will let him sit on it for a bit.

[Imported_goods]

The Gibson smartwoods are fairly easy to spot: the truss rod cover has Smartwood engraved on it.
Gibson stopped making the Les Paul standard smartwoods in 2003 but introduced the LP Studio smartwood in 2004, which is again easy to spot because it has a green leaf on the truss rod cover. If the model is a LP studio smartwood, the cost really should be around 600$US for a used one in my opinion.

Both the discontinued model and the studio model are peculiar because while the bodies are mahogany, the tops are not maple as a "correct" Les Paul should, instead being made of exotic hardwoods. Also, the LP standard smartwood didn't have binding around the body, so they looked more like studio LPs than standards. The finishes are a very thin, matte UV-cured nitrocellulose finish.

I personnally own a 2004 Les Paul studio smartwood, and love it to death - fantastic bang for the buck, with a highly-figured exotic top and the sound is ALL Les Paul.

700$ would be a great price for a smartwood standard!

p.s. Gibson also made the Les Paul Raw Power, which had a natural-finish maple cap...

[davetcan]

If it's one of these naturals from 1993 snap it up.

http://www3.sympatico.ca/d.thorburn/lpstdfull.jpg

Very few made. They were called "The Natural". NOT the raw power series that came out later.
I was told by the Gibson rep. that there were about 20 of them sold in Canada but I've yet to see another one anywhere.

[Imported_goods]

:eek: :cool:

Awesome guitar!!!

If it's one of these naturals from 1993 snap it up.

http://www3.sympatico.ca/d.thorburn/lpstdfull.jpg

Very few made. They were called "The Natural". NOT the raw power series that came out later.
I was told by the Gibson rep. that there were about 20 of them sold in Canada but I've yet to see another one anywhere.

[JSD's Guitar Shack]

That is a wicked one Dave! :rockon:

[GuitarsCanada]

No chance it's that guitar. If it was, I would have given him his 1K and walked out with it. This one looked like a piece of plywood with strings on it compared to that picture. I can't remember if it was bound or not. I will have to go back in a have a look.

[Xanadu]

Negative Sir, it's that natural wood. I don't think they sold many of them. They called it the Smartwood Series. Discontinued in 2002/2003 I think.

http://www.guitarscanada.com/images/LPsmartwood.jpg
:(

eww. I can see why they discontinued it. But $700, not bad, even it looks like that.

[bucky]

:(

eww. I can see why they discontinued it. But $700, not bad, even it looks like that.

Yeah, I'm not a fan either.

[SCREEM]

I'd grab It for the Les Paul sound at that price, If I didn't have a Gibson. hell at that price you could mod the sucker and stain or paint it to your liking. :2guns:

[Xanadu]

It could be worse. It could be chrome hardware.

[Mahogany Martin]

Here's a scan of a screen print I did a few years back of the studio smartwood (with darker woodgrain).

[GuitarsCanada]

Here's a scan of a screen print I did a few years back of the studio smartwood (with darker woodgrain).

I don't think this one had that truss rod cover, and it was very light in color

[bucky]

Here's a scan of a screen print I did a few years back of the studio smartwood (with darker woodgrain).

Good thing they were so selective about which tops they used.

[Imported_goods]

Well, I guess it's not everybody's cup of tea, but I really like my LP studio smartwood...
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f170/imported_goods/Web107-0745_IMG.jpg
The top's quite a bit more figured than some of the other woods they used.

[bucky]

Well, I guess it's not everybody's cup of tea, but I really like my LP studio smartwood...
The top's quite a bit more figured than some of the other woods they used.

I guess it varies with the guitar. I really like the look of that one, but the one posted with the big brown stripe down the side was pretty awful looking.

[GuitarsCanada]

Well, I guess it's not everybody's cup of tea, but I really like my LP studio smartwood...
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f170/imported_goods/Web107-0745_IMG.jpg
The top's quite a bit more figured than some of the other woods they used.

Actually this one is very nice. The one that I seen in the pawn shop is very light in color.. almost colorless you might say. I am going to pop back in there this week and see if I can determine exactly what it is.

[Mahogany Martin]

I guess it varies with the guitar. I really like the look of that one, but the one posted with the big brown stripe down the side was pretty awful looking.

Pretty awful huh?? Don't you know not to offend the ofender :D :D

The quality of the scan may not do it justice but the original looked kinda nice. That "stripe" doesn't stick out that much, the whole top is pretty *grainy* (some of the lighter grain disappeared and some of the darker grain are emphasized with copying and scanning the pic).

This shows though that if you went and ordered a smartwood model from your local store or on-line, that you don't know what it's really going to look like.

And GuitarsCanada, I don't know if that's possible, but the one that you're thinking of picking up is pretty light. I wonder if you could replace the white pickup bindings (surroundings) with black ones. That may give the guitar a nice punch.

Martin

[GuitarsCanada]

[QUOTE=

And GuitarsCanada, I don't know if that's possible, but the one that you're thinking of picking up is pretty light. I wonder if you could replace the white pickup bindings (surroundings) with black ones. That may give the guitar a nice punch.

Martin[/QUOTE]

Yes, very light color it was, but now I have to go back and take a really good look at it and determine exacty what it is. Full report this week.

[Yerffej]

eeewww. to each his own I guess. you still have to play it, 19 in every 20 sound like ass

[GuitarsCanada]

I went back over there today and it's even more confusing now. The LP he has is bound neck and body. Truss rod cover is white lettering with Standard on it. The tuning and volume knobs are a studio type. This guitar also has the crown inlays and not dot. He pulled out an old advertising flyer from a major guitar store and showed me what he claims the guitar is. It's called a Gibson LP Raw. it "looks" like the guitar he has except that the ad says it has EMG pick-ups and this guitar has the original wiring with standard chrome Gibson PUPS. Checked the wiring its original and no power.

His guitar also had a pickguard on it at some point, has been removed. The guitar in the ad does not have a pickguard. gibson put out so many models it's insane.

[Accept2]

Is there any evidence that someone removed the finish?................

[Imported_goods]

Well, it sounds more like it's the Les Paul Raw Power than anything else, but the pickups are indeed supposeed to be EMGs.

Can't find much info on them on the 'net, except this...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Guitar/Electric?sku=517272

Perhaps the folks at Gibson could help? I got quite a few of my answers for technical questions from the forum on Gibson's website a few years back...

[GuitarsCanada]

Well, it sounds more like it's the Les Paul Raw Power than anything else, but the pickups are indeed supposeed to be EMGs.

Can't find much info on them on the 'net, except this...

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Guitar/Electric?sku=517272

Perhaps the folks at Gibson could help? I got quite a few of my answers for technical questions from the forum on Gibson's website a few years back...


Sure looks that way. The finish as original, no signs of anything there. The wiring is for sure the original factory soldering etc.... Gibson pots. But was never wired for active pick-ups that's for sure. And there was a pickguard on this one at some point, gone now. The raw power picture he had came with no pickguard. Bizarre.

[davetcan]

Sounds like the "Raw Power" to me too. They were out about 5 or 6 years ago I think, didn't last very long.