JCRG5 V V - Any Further info?

[Anil Sahal]

I've ordered myself a J Custom RG5VV which is due to arrive in the UK in September. *However, I'm having a devil of a job trying to get any detailed spec on this guitar! I know it's an ebony fingerboard on maple original Wizard neck (tree of life inlay) and a AAA flame maple top on mahogany body and the pick ups are Air Norton, Blue Velvet and Tone Zone. *What I'd like to know is if the neck is set or a bolt on, and any neck specs etc.

Also, what is the J Custom shop all about? *Why were they set up? Are J-customs 'hand-built' How does say a Jem WH7 (mass produced) compare in build to a J-Custom (not mass produced). Anything would be appreciated.

It may appear silly to pay £1600 (sterling) for a guitar I haven't even played, but everyone has said such great things about the JCRG5, I like the aesthetics and I love my 540 Radius. I've gone down the 'true' custom built guitar route before, with much heartache, disappontment ad financial loss, so I wouldn't do that again (full details on request!)

Anyway, some hard facts would be appreciated.

Warm Regards

Anil Sahal

[Rich]

I thought Machinehead had these in stock?

[jono]

I should be going in to MAchinehead on Saturday so I'll have nosy They claim to have one in I guess if Anil Sahal is in Manchester he'll be buying from "Sounds Great" though, that's the local big Ibanez place for him.

[Anil Sahal]

There are only 5 of these guitars entering the UK three at Machinehead and two at ?Roundhouse? (Boston, Licolnshire).

My deposit in on an RG5 at Machinehead. *It was supposed to arrive in July, then August and now they say September (typical!). This is why I can't get any info or even play one of these babies! *Anyway, *there are no more JCRG5 available or advertised since they've all been pre-sold!

Jono, if you do see one in Machinehead on Saturday, let me know what it's like and be CAREFUL with it-it might be mine! No saliva (or worse) stains please!

Another interesting point about Ibanez stockists. *Sounds Great is supposed to be a main dealer and yet they have a fraction of the number in Academy of Sound, Machester. *How does that work? *Who actually distributes Ibanez in the UK?

Anil

[jono]

Don't worry Anil, I promise not to drool over it if it's there, maple tops are great but they're not really my thing. I might give it a good seeing to through a big amp though

Jeff and Barry will make sure that it'll get to you in a tip top state though whatever anyone does to it

Last I heard Ibanez was distributed in the UK by

"Headstock"

Contact them on...

01384565422

or write to them at..
Headstock,
Newlyn Road,
Cradley Heath,
West Midlands,
B64 6BE

[jono]

Although I don't know if these are coming into the UK through Headstock or if Machinehead are importing them privately. However he does it, Jeff always manages to get the good stuff in the UK

[Anil Sahal]

Thanks for the reassurance, Jono-mate :sarcasm: *

When things went bad with my custom made guitar, I found it really hard to find a guitar I liked. *The 'rock' guitar isn't as varied as it once was and with all these Korean/USA/Japan versions it was a real mine field. *

Rightly or wrongly, I assumed that if I spent in the region of £1500 (sterling) I'd get get a guitar that played well and looked a little unique. *How wrong I was. *It was so hard to find the guitar that even partially fulfilled my criteria. *A Jem without the scratch-plate and monkey grip would've been very close and the JCRG5 is essentially that. (which STILL is exactly what I'd want-I'd prefer it without the single coil and thus a toggle pick up selector and in a nice vibrant blue colour-small points really).

Anyway, it looks good and I hope I'm happy-I think I'm just getting fussy in my old age!

Anil

[jono]

Don't worry Anil, if it's in already Jeff probably won't have it out in the shop as you've got money down on it. It'll be tucked away nice and safe for you.


If it is out in the shop it won't be somewhere where anyone can get at it. AND it'll be up high on the wall so when people drool, it'll miss your new guitar by miles

[Kevan]

J-Customs are the best of the best. *

The only way to get a nicer guitar from Ibanez is to become an endorsee and have the LACS build it for you.

Yes- they're all hand-made and hand-finished in the J-Custom shop at the Hoshino-Gakki factory, by the finest luthiers Ibanez has.

Your JC-RG5 is going to be close in specs to the JC-RG4. *
Click here for specs on the JC-RG4.

Updates to J-Custom.com coming soon! *I promise!

[mechanyx]

Hey Anil, I stopped reading the Vai list awhile ago because I don't have time. *What happened to your custom?

Later, Rich

richhorner.com - the work of a machine - shredgod.com

[Anil Sahal]

My cutom made guitar was a nightmare, from different and get myself a unique guitar exactly to my spec. *I scoured the music press and there were few luthiers who provided a COMPLETE custom service. *So I phoned Guitarist (UK) magazine to ask their advice and they recommended a certain luthier who supposedly was of some repute. *I approached him with my ideas (which were far from radical), looked at his other guitars, paid my 50% deposit and waited. *

What arrived on my doorstep was a little odd. *There were numerous little flaws like blue paint leakage on the headstock (inadequate masking) pencil marks on the fretboard (pressed too hard),scratches in the finish. *I was surprised but didn't really know what to expect-human hands aren't perfect, afterall. *The major thing that worried me was the guitar was incorrectly intonated. *So I took it to a luthier in Manchester (who I trust) for a set up. * Whan I went to pick it up he had BAD news fro me-either the frets were incorrectly placed or the bridge was placed too far back making it impossible to intonate! *I was distraught. *I brought it back to a luthier in Glasgow (and ex-barrister) who did a complete check on the thing and wrote a critical report on the guitar. *He finished with the statement that the guitar contravened the 1979 Sales of Goods Act. *I sent the guitar back to the maker who proceded to try and repair the damage. *He made it marginally better (still out of tune) but added a sanding burn to the neck and more chips and nicks *in the finish. *I was ready to slash my wrists by this point. *Another threatening letter from the Glasgow luthier and the maker reluctantly agreed to make me a brand new guitar with upgrades such as a solid rosewood neck and better pick ups. *I thought he wouldn't bodge this one up-he'd be so careful, wouldn't he? *

Six months later my new guitar arrived. *The bridge pick up was mis-aligned (F spacing for a Gibson bridge), The bridge recess was not cut straight in the body (two mm gap one side and 1mm the other), he'd put left handed machineheads on a right handed guitar and finally the neck had an 'S' shaped bend that couldn't be corrected with the truss rod! *It was a pile of junk! *I could believe his incompetance. *He clearly didn't know what he was doing and I phoned him and asked formy money back (Sales of Goods Act). *Well, he lost it and shout and swore down the phone at me. *I kept my cool and allowed him to rant and rave about ME being a pain in the arse. *I put the phone down, arranged the guitar to be analysed in a 'PLEK' machine and Chandler Guitars (a very respected repairer who fixes all the big names guitars when they're in the UK). *This report confirmed the guitar was pile of junk and I wrote to the maker and threatened him with court action! *

Now, events conspired in my favour. *He is launching a new range of guitars here in the UK and a new company and I said I'd let every news group know abut his pathetic luthier skills if he didn't give me my cash back. *Eventually he conceded and gave me a full refund without apology and ignoring the additional £400 it cost me getting all the reports etc done. *I took the money and ran! *

I've aged about 10 years since all this started but I'm so much the wiser and have learned a lot about consumer law etc. *One tip: always buy your gear with a credit card and NOT cash or cheques, as you have *much more security.

So this 'luthier' is launching a new company and new range of guitars. *i don't know how he's going to get away with it since he doesn't know what he's doing. *I think there are going to be a lot of very disappointed people buying his new guitars. *I won't say who he is for legal reasons. *Suffice to say he advertises in Guitarist (UK) and Jan Cyrka is his endorser! *By the way, editor of Guitarist UK is a persoanl friend of the guitar maker and even went out with his sister! *This is why I got a biased recommendation when I called them up!

So I decided to go for a big name (Ibanez) of whom I've had positive experiences and go for the JCRG5.

That's my custom guitar horro story. *One of the worst things about it all was that I couldn't bare to pick up my other guitars and practise for a whole year-it was too upsetting. *Without my guitars I am NOTHING. *I feel much better now and can't waith for the new guitar!

If you have any further question, please don't hesitate to ask.

Warm Regards

Anil

[jono]

I think I can guess Just who you mean Anil...
It sounds as if you had a real Job getting your money back of tHis gUy. Personally it's been a while sinCe I've had much faith in the magazine "Guitarist" as far as their opinion on gear goes. But I think ol' Neville Marten is in for some bad Karma if hE's going round recomending luthiers who can't do the job properly.

If I'm way out on my guess as to who did this botch job for you, for my sake let me know I'd hate to be getting myself into a libel action over this.

Onto the GOOD stuff



Here is a closeup of the neck joint on the JCRG5. It looks to me as if it's a bolt on from the way the woods are coloured around the neck joint as opposed to the JCRG4. But I'm sure you'll find out soon enough

I know Jeff won't let it out of the shop unless it plays great. And he won't mess you around at all if there is a fault with it. Machinehead might be more expensive than some other shops in the UK, but in my experience their customer service is the best in Europe. There ya go... the official Jono seal of approval :biggrin:

[mechanyx]

Wow, that sucks, man. *I'm sorry to hear about all your trouble. *I was recently screwed over on an amp deal here in town but it's just too frustrating to deal with the dispute (I have an ulcer) so I just went out and bought another power amp. *After I'm done moving I'm gonna have to see if I can get anything out of this shop. *I guess it's a good thing I decided against having a custom guitar made

Later, Rich

richhorner.com || shredgod.com

[Anil Sahal]

Jono, your powers of deduction border on the supernatural-you should be burnt at the stake as a witch!

I think the problem with buying a custom guitar is knowing exactly what one wants and if this is durable in the long term. *However, advice can be very confusing. *For example, I wanted an ebony fingerboard on maple neck (a la Jem 7WH) which was made for me. *However several luthiers have since told me that this is a bad combination known for shifting and warping! *Others say that as long as the wood is fully seasoned there should be no problems. *Others say make sure this type of neck is bound-it gets very confusing.

Anyway, as you all know I've opted for a guitar made by a reputable company ( most peoples opinion unless your name is Ed Roman) and I'm buying from a reputable shop. *I'm actually glad to be back in the Ibanez fold and wish I'd never looked elsewhere-but I've learned a hell of a lot on my sally!

Warm Regards
Anil

[anuj]

woah! *anil! *at jemsite! *woah!

good to know you're back w/ us ibanezlosers... and of course, i'm not gonna say i told you so, and i'm not gonna 'nyah' you for 'nyah'-ing me when i bought me 7vWH

so, good to see you here.

~A