SS500 (SG Special) owners?

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Emiel

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Anyone got experience with an early '80s SS500, the SG Special model with P90s? How's the neck on these things and are they finished in nitro lacquer? I am looking for a quality SG with P90s and used to own a Gibson SG Classic but the neck on that one was just too big...
 
I have a Gibson Classic too and yeah, the necks are beasts. Had a nice Tokai USGP90 Special that had a much less chunky neck.
 
marcusnieman said:
I have a Gibson Classic too and yeah, the necks are beasts. Had a nice Tokai USGP90 Special that had a much less chunky neck.

Cheers. Yes, if it just had a different neck on it! I tried the new Gibson '60s Tribute but it felt much more like a cheap Epiphone. The Tokai seems nice but I definitely want a nice lacquer finish...
 
I had a 1979 SS500. Sandwich construction. I think it had a poly finish.

It was in rough shape and I had too many guitars so it got sold.







One with P90s would be cool I think.
 
Yours is a SS600 I think? See this catalogue. Does that mean the SS500 has a poly finish as well? That would rule it out for me...

a8008c.jpg
 
Not a 600. Dot in lay etc. But mine is a 1979 so the models may have changed in 1980- ?

 
Emiel said:
Anyone got experience with an early '80s SS500, the SG Special model with P90s? How's the neck on these things and are they finished in nitro lacquer? I am looking for a quality SG with P90s and used to own a Gibson SG Classic but the neck on that one was just too big...


Yeah I've got a 1980 super real SS500. Nearly positive it's poly. Surprisingly one of the nicest poly finishes I've ever held. Very thin.

Growls like crazy. Love it.

the neck is pretty nice. It's not the super wide SG type neck but it is a bit wider and thinner than a "normal" Les Paul type neck.
 
soundcreation said:
Yeah I've got a 1980 super real SS500. Nearly positive it's poly. Surprisingly one of the nicest poly finishes I've ever held. Very thin.

Growls like crazy. Love it.

the neck is pretty nice. It's not the super wide SG type neck but it is a bit wider and thinner than a "normal" Les Paul type neck.

Cheers! Sounds like the neck is up to my liking. If you know of any other one for sale, please let me know. Would you like to share any pictures of the guitar with us?
 
hi
who need 2 pickups :lol: :lol:
and you could try and give me a offer :D
all the best
otto
 
Thanks but I really want the two pickup model (a la Pete Townshend).

Did Navigator/Bacchus or any other brand made a high quality, nitro lacquer, double P90/cherry model?
 
hi
the greco ss500 model was not expencive ,,,, but they are rare :lol:
you dont see them for sale very offen
all the best
otto
 
Yeah here it is...

DSC03959.jpg


They come up every so often on yahoo japan auctions. Mostly the mint collection....obviously cause they were made for many more years.....but even the super reals come up now and again.

And with the SS500 I don't think it really matters with "super real" vs mint collection because the "hot licks" pickups were always made by fujigen anyway. Basically you get fret end nibs on the Super Real and the bell truss rod cover.

I prefer nitro finishes too but honestly this greco poly is so good I barely notice a difference.
 
marcusnieman said:
Bacchus does/did:

http://bacchusdo.com/product/bsgspcr.htm

That looks perfect! Are they easy to find (and if neccesary, shipped to Europe)>

soundcreation said:
Yeah here it is...

DSC03959.jpg


They come up every so often on yahoo japan auctions. Mostly the mint collection....obviously cause they were made for many more years.....but even the super reals come up now and again.

And with the SS500 I don't think it really matters with "super real" vs mint collection because the "hot licks" pickups were always made by fujigen anyway. Basically you get fret end nibs on the Super Real and the bell truss rod cover.

I prefer nitro finishes too but honestly this greco poly is so good I barely notice a difference.

Cool! I haven't found any for sale recently in Europe, they seem very rare. Would be buying one in Japan be the only option you think, and any idea how much it would cost including shipping and taxes?
 
I haven't really been following them for a while. But it seems to me you'll see them average out at about 1 or 2 every 3 to 6 months. It really depends though. There are stretches where there aren't any and then you'll see like 4 of them in a few weeks.

I can't help you with shipping and taxes....that totally depends on your country. But in terms of cost from Japan......I paid just under 50 000 yen for mine but that was about 6 or 7 years ago.

The on and off tracking I do on them over the years tells me they haven't changed that much. Super Real's might be up around 60 now and Mint collection around 50 or so....depending on condition of course.

Shipping costs from Japan depend on how you buy it. If you go through a third party purchaser like Rinkya it will be a bit more than if you find one direct from a store.

Thankfully they are really light guitars. Shipping costs will probably be somewhere around 150 US??? People can correct me if I'm wrong on that.

I think mine ended up being closer to 100 US for the shipping.
 
marcusnieman said:
Bacchus does/did:

http://bacchusdo.com/product/bsgspcr.htm

That looks perfect! Are they easy to find (and if neccesary, shipped to Europe)>


They pop up every now and then. Here's a previous ebay listing that went for a ridiculously affordable price:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bacchus-SG-BSG-SP-Special-P90-Lacquer-Super-Clean-made-in-Japan-922-/131256161939


And one that was sold here on the forum:

http://www.tokaiforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=19301&sid=b1aa4c69d3f19972c967cfc45e2dc29e
 
Thanks again! I have to say, the Greco looks most interesting as I have a fetish for old Japanese guitars (currently owning two old Tokais). I haven't read any review/first hand experience with the Bacchus, so I think I will start looking for a Greco SS500 after all!
 
My first Greco ever was a lefty SS500 from 1979. It's a humbucker guitar, sandwich body, thick and wide neck, just awesome.
 

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