Single cut Les Paul Jr - new pickguard!

For guitars of the straight waisted variety (or reverse offset).
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jvin248
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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by jvin248 » Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:22 am

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Since everyone chases light weight guitars lately ... look into an Epiphone Special LP Junior.

They make these with P90s too, or mod. This guitar is tons of fun, light, easy to play, coil split for Tele/P90 tones, huge tone with the 16kohm pickup in humbucking mode. I have about $40 in the guitar and mods. They often do best playing after a fret level job. This gets played a lot more than the Gibson I have.
Image

PRS SE Soapbar II gets the P90 tones. You can track one of these down and put a pickguard on it for a Junior, or find the more rare "One" version. I play this one quite a bit.
Image

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by Fiddy » Mon Dec 10, 2018 7:27 pm

mynameisjonas wrote:
Sun Dec 09, 2018 11:38 pm
They do come in sunburst, and I actually mentioned in the OP that they're at the top of my list :)


Unfortunately they don't seem to pop up very often :(

Ah okay, wasn't sure what you meant by "LQ"...

Check buyee.jp

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by BoringPostcards » Tue Dec 11, 2018 7:02 am

Godin makes a nice P90s single cut. Core CT P90.
Image
Det er mig der holder traeerne sammen.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by mynameisjonas » Tue Dec 11, 2018 8:03 am

tribi9 wrote:
Mon Dec 10, 2018 7:27 pm
mynameisjonas wrote:
Sun Dec 09, 2018 11:38 pm
They do come in sunburst, and I actually mentioned in the OP that they're at the top of my list :)


Unfortunately they don't seem to pop up very often :(

Ah okay, wasn't sure what you meant by "LQ"...

Check buyee.jp
Will do!

LQ is a MIJ series with laquer finishes, and Gibson shaped headstocks.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by stevejamsecono » Tue Dec 11, 2018 11:18 am

Man, I already have a Special and this is making me want a Gordon Smith now...
And you find out life isn't like that
It's so hard to understand
Why the world is your oyster but your future's a clam

Resident Yamaha Fanboy

COYS

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by Despot » Mon Dec 17, 2018 1:41 am

I thought I'd throw a curve ball in here.

I'm not a huge fan of a lot of 'inspired by' type guitars - they always make me think of how PRS were 'inspired by' Les Paul Jrs and then went on to create horrible over-egged things with ALL THE INLAYZ...

But one that's surprised me every time I've played one - Nik Huber Krautster guitars.

The styling is quite different, and I guess all it retains in terms of similarity is the single cut slab body and pickguard shape. The P90 in the neck is sort of hidden a little bit against the black pickguard, so it looks a lot like a single pickup guitar.

I've played 7 or 8 or them now - and I'm always struck by how light they are. A lot of them are spanish cedar, but even the mahogany ones are extremely light. Every single one I've played has sounded louder unplugged than most semi-hollow guitars - and I even managed to compare a Huber to a straight 1957 Junior ... and while the Junior was the guitar I'd have lusted after as a 'thing' ... if I was making a choice purely on my ears and the feel of the guitar, I'd have to go for the Huber. If I were to come into a bit of non-earmarked cash I would seriously consider picking one up second hand - of all the new/modern electric guitars around these days the Hubers are the only ones I've tried in a store that immediately jumped out at me as being seriously good guitars. In fact, 2 of them that I've tried are probably the (jointly) best sounding solid body set neck guitars that I've ever played - and in saying that I'm comparing them to '50s Juniors, '60s Juniors and Specials ... pretty much anything other than a '50s Les Paul Standard/Custom (as I've never had a chance to try any).

I don't like the narrow headstock, or the fact that they always seem to have heavily figured or striped maple necks (a shade too much PRS for me) ... and this always struck me as odd given that the model is devoid of neck binding or any sort of flashy wood on the top. But assessing them purely as a functional guitar ... they're really really great guitars.

I should also say that some of the higher end Hubers are ... yeah ... really not my thing. You're 100% into PRS territory there with super over-the-top woods and inlay. But the Krautster is easily the best looking of the guitars he makes, despite being the most plain.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by sexy andy » Mon Dec 17, 2018 1:50 am


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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by mynameisjonas » Mon Dec 17, 2018 4:08 am

sexy andy wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 1:50 am
How about a kit?
https://precisionguitarkits.com/product ... customizer
I've actually been eyeing those a bit, and piecing things together to fit my own specs is usually my preference, but at the moment I'm not really set up to do the finishing. It'd have to wait until after the winter. And I'm not sure I could pull of a good enough sunburst on the first try.
Despot wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 1:41 am
But one that's surprised me every time I've played one - Nik Huber Krautster guitars.
Those do look really nice, but out of my budget (for now). And I think for this particular craving, only a no frills, single pickup guitar will do.




I've been really close to pulling the trigger on this Tokai LSJ-80:
Image
But something inside me urges me to hold off and see if one of those MIJ Epiphones pops up.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by s_mcsleazy » Mon Dec 17, 2018 9:34 am

i've seen the odd epiphone les paul single cuts come about and all i ever think is "needs a jazzmaster trem"
offset guitars resident bass player.
'Are you trying to seduce me Mrs Robinson? Or do you just want me to solder a couple of resistors into your Muff?'

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by Fiddy » Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:24 pm

s_mcsleazy wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 9:34 am
i've seen the odd epiphone les paul single cuts come about and all i ever think is "needs a jazzmaster trem"
A lot of guitars don't need one... Some even look cheesy as fuck with one.

The Telecaster doesn't need one and neither does this jr.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by s_mcsleazy » Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:26 pm

tribi9 wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:24 pm
s_mcsleazy wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 9:34 am
i've seen the odd epiphone les paul single cuts come about and all i ever think is "needs a jazzmaster trem"
A lot of guitars don't need one... Some even look cheesy as fuck with one.

The Telecaster doesn't need one and neither does this jr.
true but often i find myself using trem more than i dont.
offset guitars resident bass player.
'Are you trying to seduce me Mrs Robinson? Or do you just want me to solder a couple of resistors into your Muff?'

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by jvin248 » Mon Dec 17, 2018 5:17 pm

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Phil X and a Junior ... fun video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSUjR5PZdlA

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by mynameisjonas » Tue Dec 18, 2018 12:32 am

tribi9 wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 3:24 pm
s_mcsleazy wrote:
Mon Dec 17, 2018 9:34 am
i've seen the odd epiphone les paul single cuts come about and all i ever think is "needs a jazzmaster trem"
A lot of guitars don't need one... Some even look cheesy as fuck with one.

The Telecaster doesn't need one and neither does this jr.
Agreed. The whole point of a Jr is simplicity, and I think the wraparound bridge is a key part of its unique sound, AND its looks. My brain hurts even seeing a TOM on a Jr.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by Despot » Tue Dec 18, 2018 5:21 am

Agreed re: TOMs on Juniors. They're a huge part of how they sound acoustically (and that's got to translate to the amplified sound to some degree).

OP - just something to mention ... if you do get a Junior with a wrap around I would highly recommend swapping whatever it comes with out to a Faber wraparound tailpiece. They sell fully compensated bridges for intonation - but more than anything else I've found that these bridges work like Staytrems or Mastery bridges on offsets - you seem to get a lot more resonance out of the guitar when you use one and unlike Mastery bridges they're fairly low key and don't look too out of place. They're also not too crazy price wise - I think around 40 euro. They're well worth the money.

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Re: Single cut Les Paul Jr copies?

Post by bdf83 » Wed Dec 19, 2018 7:54 am

mynameisjonas wrote:
Tue Dec 04, 2018 7:18 am
I hadn't heard of Gordon Smith before, thanks for the tip!
Their factory is 20 miles from my house and they do open days, just drop in and have a look around. I'm really tempted to turn up with a packet of biscuits and spend the day geeking out

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