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Post by antares on Mar 16, 2024 4:46:53 GMT -6
No way is this intended as a thread swerve, but I did make reference to the Epiphone double cut that inaugurated my DC obsession. Here's an image of the Epiphone guitar. I could not find anything in the text about it (on that page) so I cropped it. There's also an image of the front cover. This book was my bible back in the 1970s. Still is really, the information contained therein amounts to a labour of love. It's the same book that I referred to in the Peavey discussion. Great to see how it turned out with your project. I wish I possessed those finishing skills!
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Post by ehaataja on Mar 16, 2024 10:26:54 GMT -6
It is quite alright to thread swerve on this one. The main topic here for starters (my wiring problems) has been dealt with. Yeah I have never seen another guitar like that one. It looks similar to the double cut Les Paul's, with the second tone knob, and the saddle separate from the bridge. It looks to me like the pickups are a bit closer to the neck as well. I would be very interested if anyone finds anything out about that guitar.
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Post by ehaataja on Mar 16, 2024 16:23:23 GMT -6
This is the closest thing I've been able to find so far. This is from a 1979 catalog in Japan. The guitar is called an Epiphone Genesis. This is first I have ever heard or seen of this guitar. It looks similar to the picture you posted, but not identical. There's not enough knobs and the pickup selector is in a different spot. The body shape is the same I think. maybe. It's hard to tell.
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Post by ehaataja on Mar 16, 2024 16:37:59 GMT -6
Side by side comparison. Nope. Different shape. very slight, but different nonetheless.
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Post by antares on Mar 17, 2024 2:58:32 GMT -6
When you wrote "Genesis" it rang a bell here, but I think I'm confusing it with the Gordon-Smith "Gemini" (which was an astonishing instrument) so if there is something about the Epi in that book it must be on another page. The one I posted has bindings and has the floating pickguard. I did some sleuthing and came up with Epiphone "Spirit" which also struck a note in my head, close but still no cigar, so I'll have to dig that book out again which is not a trivial task! The body of the one you posted side by side kind of reminds me of the "Red Special". Interesting isn't it?
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Post by antares on Mar 17, 2024 3:29:39 GMT -6
At the end of this post is an image of my Gordon Smith "Gypsy 1", taken from an old thread on here about our herds of guitars. Look up the Gordon Smith "Graduate" and "Gemini" models too because they are crackers. The company was hived off some years ago now as a kind of pension provision for John Smith. Mr. Gordon disappeared off the scene very early on, but the name was retained. The guitars made by John Smith easily put Gibson to shame. You just need to feel my Gypsy 1 to understand- they played like silk. I wish I'd pushed the boat out for a Graduate or Gemini but what's done is done. They were all hand-made; for example you couldn't purchase a replacement pickguard because they were bespoke. These instruments were a fraction of the cost of Gibsons which just goes to illustrate how the big organisations shaft us. John Smith's wife (Linda?) hand wound the pickups in addition to running the office side of things, and they (the pickups) were very highly regarded as well. Dane helped me with the conversion of my Gypsy 1 from hummer to P90, but knowing what I do now, I really wish I'd known about John's pickups at the time. Never say never though ... John Smith was a visionary. He built a twelve stringer that had six pegs on the headstock and six like violin adjusters behind the tailpiece. It was a one-off and I saw it for sale on eBay some years ago. It was far better balanced then yer vanilla twelve-string. Then he developed a way to put truss rods into one-piece maple necks (no separate fret board and no skunk stripe). He kept that a secret but I have an idea how he achieved it. John Smith is a one-off in my view.
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Post by ehaataja on Mar 17, 2024 11:09:11 GMT -6
Wow. Side by side, that one almost looks more like it than the one I found. As far as body shape goes anyway. That is a bit of an irony though, but I'm sure this man drew some inspiration from Epi/Gibson designs.
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Post by antares on Mar 17, 2024 11:28:08 GMT -6
"I'm sure this man drew some inspiration from Epi/Gibson designs"
Indeed. You can't take that away from Gibson. The Gypsy 1 is more akin to an LPJ than a carved top Lester. The Graduate and Gemini models were much closer. When I bought my (003xx serial number) Gypsy 1, I was jonesing for what I later discovered was an LPJ. I should have read that book more closely, but in my defence, I never noticed any Juniors in guitar emporia over here in the 1970s. They were undoubtedly around but had escaped my radar. There's a much longer back story to the Gypsy 1 acquisition but I'll pass on that.
Gordon Smith introduced a budget version of the Junior inspired Gypsy series (the Gypsy 2 had two pups) which was called "GS-1". It had a thinner mahogany body which from memory only had an oiled finish. It retailed for about £180 which was around $250 at the time? Even then it was amazing to be able to buy a completely hand built guitar at that price point. They sold in large numbers to the emerging punk musicians (sic) as did the Sessionette 100 watt combo. Another revered product.
Where will I end with this fork!
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Post by antares on Mar 18, 2024 7:30:07 GMT -6
Here's a current model Gordon Smith Graduate. I can't speak to the quality from the current manufactory. I don't even know whether they are offshored like just about every other IP takeover these days, but I'm certain that they are not going to be all bling like Chibsons. I'll bet the serial numbers will be way above my three digits! Here's a 1982 from the original factory. And a here's budget GS-1.
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Post by ehaataja on Mar 18, 2024 12:58:09 GMT -6
The body shape on those 3 guitars is very close to your original black and white picture as well. I have a hard time believing that would just be coincidence. There could be some strong correlation. Or not. I don't know.
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Post by antares on Mar 19, 2024 2:48:45 GMT -6
You're absolutely correct. G-S did S-types and T-types too (I've already mentioned his one piece neck truss rods) and really well made guitars they were as well. It's not enough just to be a craftsman though, you have to be creative too and from memory there wasn't a great deal of evidence of that. John Smith understood that because he took what people wanted (what sells) and produced them to a very high quality at embarassingly lower prices. The Asians were up to the same tricks, but they had no shame. Gordon Smith's guitars did not ape the Gibson headstocks or flagrantly apply waterslide transfers (decals).
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Mar 22, 2024 7:10:13 GMT -6
Thanks for the photos and the knowledge. Very interesting!
Steve, I really like your double cut with the P-90, too.
Going to a guitar show this weekend…will keep and eye out for these.
John
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