[jtkung]

How many different Les Paul models can Gibson really make?   It's crazy. The 2015 models with the default robo-tuners was a disaster. The Les Paul chicken scratch signature on the headstock was incredibly ugly too.  I am not sure what these guys are smoking in Memphis.  They wised up in 2016, but the models are still incredibly overpriced for what they are.  If it wasn't for the consistent vintage-market craze for such things, these guys would have closed up shop long ago.  It's no wonder so many people have gone to look at alternative makers or even incredibly low-priced Chibsons from China.

The idea is to take a chance and buy a low-priced Chibson from China and upgrade specific items. You can order ones that don't have any Gibson logo on them, so they aren't counterfeit. You would then upgrade the pickups, electronics, bridge and tuners. Though usually the PUs and electronics are the main items. In the video below, the owner replaced the bridge which requires a metric version rather than an imperial one. His guitar tech ripped him off and retrofitted the guitar to use the imperial version (needed to ream holes, resize, etc.) when he could have just gotten a replacement bridge from Gotoh (higher quality than Gibson) that is metric and sells for about $25.  Anyways, you get the idea. Pay about an extra $100 for better hardware and the the whole guitar is about $300. Way cheaper and comparable in many respects to any Gibson or Epiphone. 

[jtkung]

Here's the followup video to the Slash Chibson upgrade:

[jtkung]

Great video for anybody wanting to buy a Chibson -- what to expect, a checklist,  common issues, and upgrade suggestions. 

[jtkung]

Another example of a great Chibson. Don't believe all the crap you hear about these Chibsons being crappy. Many of them are excellent -- and costing less than 10X the price -- even after upgrading the hardware and pickups.

[jtkung]

Another Chibson video! Search Youtube and you will find that many people have luck with these. Of course there are some bad ones, but don't believe all the people bashing these. 

[jtkung]

Some more amazing videos of these Chibsons. Great guitars even without upgrades. These are for the working man!

The Chibsons are better than the real thing!

[jtkung]

More proof these guitars are awesome!

[jtkung]

To upgrade a Chibson Les Paul using reasonable but not overly expensive items, I suggest

• Replace the tuners if they are unstable. Most of the time they are good enough, however
  
• Unless the pots are scratchy or simply don't work, you don't really need to replace these or the capacitors unless you want higher reliability when gigging. 
  
• Replace the pickups
  
• Replace the bridge. The tailpiece can remain.
  

For the pickups and bridge, these are great choices:
GFS professional Series Alnico II Humbucker Nickel Case
Neck Pickup
http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-professi..._4156.html
$34.95

Bridge Pickup
http://www.guitarfetish.com/GFS-professi..._4154.html
$34.95

Gotoh from StewMac
http://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Part...hings.html
$24.20

[jtkung]

I recently saw a Gibson Les Paul historic relic that was going for $11K new. This is simply nuts.  I bet all the corksniffers who would buy an $11K Gibson Les Paul that has been intentionally beat up:

1. Have too much money and don't know what to do with it
   
2. Can't play worth a sh*t
   
3. Would fail a double-blind test comparing this with a $250 Chibson
   

Marketing works on people -- especially stupid ones regardless of their net worth.  

[jtkung]

The reason why a Chibson can represent great value is that the major cost of a guitar is the labor, then the continual markup as it goes through the retail chain from manufacturer to distributor to retailer, etc.  Since the labor in China is low, this allows the guitar to be a low price if bought directly from the manufacturer. See this article.

This is also why you won't see great pickups or hardware on these, since they are already marked up from the manufacturer and would double the price of the guitar right from the start, and then double again each time it goes through the chain.  So it isn't worth it.

So if you can get a Chibson directly from the manufacturer that is in reasonable playing condition, you can:

1. Do setup and fret dressing and nut adjustments yourself
   
2. Replace the pickups
   
3. Replace the hardware
   

If you are lucky, #1 won't be needed. #2 is probably a requirement, while #3 can be optional. Then you can get a very nice guitar for little money.