Orville Les Paul - Collectors nightmare, players dream?

[Freebird]

What the heck is this? Please tell me Orville did not use all these pieces of wood for body and headstock. Is this a FakeOrville?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Orville-Gibson-Les-Paul-Custom-MI-Japan-Pro-Upgrade-/160481804338?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item255d760032

 

[barburny]

I beleive the owner/seller is a member over at MLP

 

[scooticus]

A refin maybe? And what's up w/the back of the headstock?

 

[Koubayashi]

A refin maybe? And what's up w/the back of the headstock?

Its a stripped Custom.
Its not the first time I see that kind of seam on a stripped LP from Japan.
A product cost cutter!

Multi piece body and top is also rather common.
Multi piece tops where common on LP from the 50's too (solid colours of course).

 

[Anonymous]

Comes with a 12 piece non-bookmatched maple top...
Must have been a goldtop before !

 

[Washington Irving]

that's why I was always reluctant towards non-transparent coloured guitars...

 

[Freebird]

that's why I was always reluctant towards non-transparent coloured guitars...

Good advice it seems

 

[muccax]

hi
look at that head ,,,, it look like the head it is glued on ???????????????
if you look at the pictures of the head from behind
never seen a orville like that
all the best
otto

 

[Koubayashi]

hi
look at that head ,,,, it look like the head it is glued on ???????????????
if you look at the pictures of the head from behind
never seen a orville like that
all the best
otto

That is how cheaper guitars are built if they have an angled head.
If you look at for example Fernandes or Ibanez you can see that the neck is two piece with the seem around 3rd fret.

Budget budget budget! Of course easy on solid colour guitars cause then it is hidden. I have seen it on Orville, Orville by Gibson, Greco, Burny and plenty of Korean and Chinese axes. So far I have never seen a solid colour Japanese Tokai Stripped so I don't know about them. But the others used this little "trick" at least a couple of times.

 

[Joop]

Hi Freebird,

When a guitar is modified it is always difficult to say how it once would have been.

The only thing I can say is that I can vouch for the seller. I have bought an Orville from him about 3 years ago, it was perfect, better than he described (the guitar was absolutely mint!).

More recently I bought his ObG ES335, also a mint guitar.

I bought this outside ebay, made a Pds. 500 deposit to reserve the guitar (because I only wanted it a couple of months later) and then made the rest payment. All via banktransfer. No issues whatsoever. Nick is a guy that only picks up guitars that are worth while.. He will never sell fake or crap guitars. So, he is a seller you can definitely trust.

Hope this is of use to you or any other person interested in this guitar.

Cheers!

Joop

 

[soundcreation]

That's all fine and dandy but him thinking it's worth 900+ US is really kind of a joke. Refinish should lower the value not raise it...I don't care if it's oil. by Gibson models can be had at that price range.

If he gets it then more power too him, but who ever buys it is getting ripped off.

 

[Joop]

That's all fine and dandy but him thinking it's worth 900+ US is really kind of a joke. Refinish should lower the value not raise it...I don't care if it's oil. by Gibson models can be had at that price range.

If he gets it then more power too him, but who ever buys it is getting ripped off.

Sorry Soundcreation, but you probably haven't looked at prices levels lately... Please inform me of ANY ObG's without scractches and dings for $900+ and I will buy them all!! A person that buys this guitar certainly does not get ripped off especially not with the better harware on it.

Apart from the look that you like or not, bet you that this is a really nice playing and sounding guitar and is that not what it is all about??

 

[Mono]

In all likelihood this was a k-serial Orville that has had the sticker removed. Way overpriced for what it is, IMHO. Lazy MIJ fans may get a kick out of the oil finish but anyone even marginally informed will look elsewhere for a better deal.

 

[JVsearch]

That's all fine and dandy but him thinking it's worth 900+ US is really kind of a joke. Refinish should lower the value not raise it...I don't care if it's oil. by Gibson models can be had at that price range.

If he gets it then more power too him, but who ever buys it is getting ripped off.

Sorry Soundcreation, but you probably haven't looked at prices levels lately... Please inform me of ANY ObG's without scractches and dings for $900+ and I will buy them all!! A person that buys this guitar certainly does not get ripped off especially not with the better harware on it.

Apart from the look that you like or not, bet you that this is a really nice playing and sounding guitar and is that not what it is all about??

The point is that someone looking for an ObG is not getting a bargain by buying this guitar, because it must be one of the worst examples out there from a collectable point of view due to the re-finish and the multi piece body and top.

It's value as a an ObG LP really is unknown, and it should be a $1 auction, so the market can decide, IMO.

 

[Udonitron]

It sold on Yahoo about 1.5 months ago for a 1/3 of his asking price too lol

 

[soundcreation]

That's all fine and dandy but him thinking it's worth 900+ US is really kind of a joke. Refinish should lower the value not raise it...I don't care if it's oil. by Gibson models can be had at that price range.

If he gets it then more power too him, but who ever buys it is getting ripped off.

Sorry Soundcreation, but you probably haven't looked at prices levels lately... Please inform me of ANY ObG's without scractches and dings for $900+ and I will buy them all!! A person that buys this guitar certainly does not get ripped off especially not with the better harware on it.

Apart from the look that you like or not, bet you that this is a really nice playing and sounding guitar and is that not what it is all about??

What Orville isn't going to have the odd scratch or ding? If that is your criteria for "value" then it's a very strange one. So it's been re finished...big deal. Still doesn't change what it is. And pickup swaps never increase value of guitars unless it's something super rare like a set of Dry Z's.

I guarantee if this were a gibson you wouldn't be talking the same way.

Take a look on yahoo japan right now....there are two black custom by Gibson's that look in very nice shape, both for 60000. I bet they don't get any bids, and could be had no higher than 70000. Even with fees and shipping they come out under a 1000.

And regular orvilles like his are no more than 800 bucks shipped.

And this guy is acting like this is some "extreme value"....give me a break.

It may be a great player....it may be a dog....I have no clue. But I wouldn't be taking a chance at that price and with that body. For the kind of dough he wants I could get a used bacchus duke out of japan with a two piece maple top 1 or 2 piece mahogany back and an oil finish that I guarantee would blow that orville out of the water.

I'm glad you had a good experience with the seller, and your loyalty to him is admirable...but THAT guitar is a rip off....period.

 

[Joop]

That's all fine and dandy but him thinking it's worth 900+ US is really kind of a joke. Refinish should lower the value not raise it...I don't care if it's oil. by Gibson models can be had at that price range.

If he gets it then more power too him, but who ever buys it is getting ripped off.

Sorry Soundcreation, but you probably haven't looked at prices levels lately... Please inform me of ANY ObG's without scractches and dings for $900+ and I will buy them all!! A person that buys this guitar certainly does not get ripped off especially not with the better harware on it.

Apart from the look that you like or not, bet you that this is a really nice playing and sounding guitar and is that not what it is all about??

What Orville isn't going to have the odd scratch or ding? If that is your criteria for "value" then it's a very strange one. So it's been re finished...big deal. Still doesn't change what it is. And pickup swaps never increase value of guitars unless it's something super rare like a set of Dry Z's.

I guarantee if this were a gibson you wouldn't be talking the same way.

Take a look on yahoo japan right now....there are two black custom by Gibson's that look in very nice shape, both for 60000. I bet they don't get any bids, and could be had no higher than 70000. Even with fees and shipping they come out under a 1000.

And regular orvilles like his are no more than 800 bucks shipped.

And this guy is acting like this is some "extreme value"....give me a break.

It may be a great player....it may be a dog....I have no clue. But I wouldn't be taking a chance at that price and with that body. For the kind of dough he wants I could get a used bacchus duke out of japan with a two piece maple top 1 or 2 piece mahogany back and an oil finish that I guarantee would blow that orville out of the water.

I'm glad you had a good experience with the seller, and your loyalty to him is admirable...but THAT guitar is a rip off....period.

Well, if you are patient and search carefully you will come accross mint Orvilles and by Gibsons. I just got an '95 Fujigen made ObG ES335 in mint condition, so they are out there. Who wants a battered and broozed guitar? At least this sellers shows detailed pictures and offers a full description, and not throw away comments like " in good condition for its age"

Plus he says that it is a collector's night mare. So he offering a player's guitar rather than a highly collectable one (Regular Orvilles will never be highly collectable, yes, maybe in 50 years when most have disappeared off the market but for now....)

I find it strange that you say that changed hardware does not add value to the guitar. I have changed the tuners on all my Orville (and by Gibson ones) for Gibsons and many Orvilles you see have changed tuners so that certainly adds value. Nearly all people change the Orville PU's but perhaps it is better to choose your own replacements, but you're going to fork out money for replacement PU's, so you're going to spend more than your original purchase price.

Concerning selling prices, there is something that may needs a bit explaining for non European forum members.

Us Europeans, we have to pay high shipping cost for a guitar from Japan, and on top of that import duty and most of all, we have to pay VAT. That can add between 17 and 25% (depending on which country you live in) on the total value of the guitar plus shipping cost plus duty).

So, if your guitar costs let's say $600 plus $120 shipping, your total bill could easily run up to $888 which is 48% higher than the original price tag of the guitar.

The seller of course, had to pay these cost never mind the 10% that ebay plus paypal will take off the selling price in fees (talking about a rip off). And what about his profit? Is he expected to live of charity?

All in all, not sure if your rip off comment is really justified. It is a different guitar and i hope that some one buys it, just to read the feedback later on )

Have a great weekend!

 

[jacco]

I have to back up Joop here regarding price. I bought a MIJ a few months back for 66000 yen which ended up being 1090 euro (that's 1460 USD) in Holland.

 

[JVsearch]

I have to back up Joop here regarding price. I bought a MIJ a few months back for 66000 yen which ended up being 1090 euro (that's 1460 USD) in Holland.

Yeah, you guys are quite right about the pricing (YouamI must have got his sums wrong) but this guitar is not a good example of a LP. You would be better off paying $1500 for a good one, although it depends what you're buying it for: just a player to keep, or a collectable as well.

It's actually quite disappointing to see an ObG (supposedly the premium MIJ brand in some circles) with a body and top made of so many pieces. Sure, it may not affect the tone at all, we can't know that when buying off the internet, but the guitar is just not made like a top quality LP.

 

[JohnA]

It's actually quite disappointing to see an ObG (supposedly the premium MIJ brand in some circles) with a body and top made of so many pieces. Sure, it may not affect the tone at all, we can't know that when buying off the internet, but the guitar is just not made like a top quality LP.

Just checked the pics and was supprised to see that too, then I realised it's an Orville, not an OBG.

I know someone who had a real 57 goldtop refinished and the top was 5-piece