In the interests of full disclosure, a 1976 SG was my first good electric guitar, and my *only* one from 1982 until 2002. I modded the pickups and wiring a bit, and with the aid of famed repairman Mario Martello mounted a late 1950s Bigsby later in '82.
Further adjustments to the vibrato were done by a mutual friend named John Cippolina.
I only sold it in 2011 as age made it difficult to play 1st position chords due to the extremely skinny 1970s neck.
FWIW, it went to a dad and his 15 year old son as a "first good" electric guitar. I kept the Bigsby and the penny that Chip put under the spring for later use.
Last edited by Lex Luthier; 08-23-2022 at 03:47 PM.
"If I ever needed to hunt in a tuxedo, then this would be the rifle I'd take." - okie john
"Not being able to govern events, I govern myself." - Michel De Montaigne
Was in Tucson for a work thing this morning and spent a bit of time at the GC before heading out of town for home. This Gibson checks all of my boxes for an SG, perfect setup, has an upgraded bridge pickup, and comes with a hardcase. Sounded fantastic through a Fender Twin Reverb.
I have a Gibson SG “faded” model if she’s interested. Had a Gibson ‘57 Classic humbucker installed in the neck position and a Gibson Angus Young signature humbucker installed in the bridge.
The faded Gibsons are a huge value! Price wise they overlapped with the high end Epiphones. My LP was a 2007-ish faded studio model. I loved that thing and I think when I upgrade from my Dean, I’ll be getting another one and making a few mods to combine the things I liked about my LP and my Explorer, also add coil tapping and/or series-parallel switching.
I’ll third the faded Gibsons as an amazing value.
I’ll throw out the Boss Katana 50 as a really good starting combo amp. It’s got enough power to fill a decent room, but can toned down to 5W for practice. I mostly use mine with headphones when practicing, though. I think I bought it used for $75 with some discounts from guitar center.
You shouldn’t have a hard time getting a used Faded SG and a Katana 50 for under $1000. You may even have enough left over for a pedal or two. I’d start with a Soul Food.
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Blessings to you for supporting your daughter so thoroughly. Let us know what you ultimately decide.
I am not your attorney. I am not giving legal advice. Any and all opinions expressed are personal and my own and are not those of any employer-past, present or future.
I totally support musical training and talent. However, with teenagers - sigh. Bought my kid the guitar - two year later, sold it to a guy at walk for his kid. He sold it in another two years. Bought her a fancy electronic keyboard. She 'lends' it to friend 'into' music. Never to be seen again.
I took one saxophone lesson as a kid. The teacher was an instructor Nazi - screamed at us during the first lesson. Luckily the sax was rented. Still wish I had followed up on some instrument.
Funny, my cousin was a good looking guy. Learned the guitar. We all went to a teenage camp out. At the evening fire, he brings out the guitar. The young girls circle round him and sigh. He starts to sing. He has the voice of a zombie frog from the tombs of dead. The girls recoil. No romance from him. Should have stayed with an instrumental.
Ha! Almost embarrassed to admit it but I found a Dean V for $50 that she connected with (I’ll drop a pic when I get back from a trip). She’s decided to NOT give my Strat back to me; between the two she has the humbucker and Strat coil sounds covered and we’ll spend the extra money on lessons and starting a car fund for next year. Ended up getting a Fender LT50 for an amp.
She’s playing venues through the School of Rock as she made their House band. Here, she’s channeling her inner angst a la Kurt Cobain in Heart Shaped Box.
I live for my kids but it’s starting to approach the line where I have to say no as the school wants me to pay $6K so she can tour with the house band. Hard to know where it begins to get unwise.