Any opinions on G&L guitars please!

ibaraki_gaijin · #1 08-09-2005, 11:38 AM

I may have the opportunity to aquire a G&L ASAT second hand.
Think its the "classic" model, with maple fretboard..

Anyone got/played one as i know virtually nothing about them beyond that
they are tele-style creations by leo fender after he left fender...

but i have always wanted a maple 'board guitar, something for a bit of variety
on the rare occasions i get bored of my FP... something i to mess around with different tunings on as that's a pain in the *** with the locking/floating trem guitars i usually play!

So if anyone has any feedback and ideas of prices i'd appreciate.. (a asking price is currently a negotiable Y100,000)

thanks

sniperfrommars1 · #2 08-09-2005, 12:14 PM

If you wanna try and old school shred guitar that can be had for little money try the g&L rampage, one pickup of course but still a great sounding instrument. Playibility wise i think they are a step up from fender, and rightly so since they were mostly composed of newer leo fender designs. :P In alot of areas most g&l;s are vastly superior to fenders whether it be in tone wood quality, or playability

red5 · #3 08-09-2005, 05:29 PM

As for prices I know that $450 US dollars for a used S-500 is overpaying by book value. Their resale is ****.

I own a S-500. I will list pros and cons

pros: neck is a nice modern strat shape, pickups are loud and quiet, and if you only pay $450 for it you can't beat it

cons: does not stay in tune very well, frets wear real bad real fast, trem return can be fine but sometimes can leave you a half step sharp, and the sperzel locking tuners break (although I think they switched to Schaller 10 years ago or so, mine was still in the Sperzel era!). And the screw that holds the whammy bar on always falls off and out of the case (replacements can be bought at the local hardware store though!!!!).

Distantshore · #4 08-09-2005, 07:35 PM

I don't know much about them today, but in high school I had a friend who traded his car for one...swears it was the best trade he made (or he did then) lol

ibaraki_gaijin · #5 08-09-2005, 10:28 PM

heh.. not got much good to say about the trem then... Red5 that sounds frustrating as hell!

still if the necks are good and i can get a good sound out of it i dont care.. i can leave all the whammy bar abuse for my JEM...

maybe i'm gonna have to try and get that price down then... prices in Japan, esp. second hand are a little strange from what i've seen. I got and awesome price on my JEM FP (second hand + Japanese + old - '91 = not fashionable so cheap) whereas anything american seems to be slightly more overpriced.. esp the Gibsons ive seen (but i guess they're overpriced everywhere).

thanks for the advice so far

**elcid** · #6 08-09-2005, 10:33 PM

I dont know what Y100,000 is in US $$, but G&Ls (luckily for used buyers) do not hold their value well, but I have owned 2 (ASAT Classic and Commanche)and they were great guitars, the craftsmanship, playability and sound were all excellent, I would easily buy an ASAT over a Tele anyday.

fettouhi · #7 08-10-2005, 05:14 AM

G&L do make really sweet guitars the Commanche is one of them but that trem

it looks plain wrong.

Regards

André

ibaraki_gaijin · #8 08-10-2005, 12:05 PM

I'm getting the impression that they're definitely worth a look...
however i have done a little more digging elsewhere and i reckon Y100,000
(like £500) is way more than what the asking price should be second hand
even if the guitar is perfect!

gonna have to go test my negotiating skills at the weekend... i dont think my japanese is good enough though.. still who knows they may take pity on me!

fettouhi · #9 08-10-2005, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ibaraki_gaijin

I'm getting the impression that they're definitely worth a look...
however i have done a little more digging elsewhere and i reckon Y100,000
(like £500) is way more than what the asking price should be second hand
even if the guitar is perfect!

gonna have to go test my negotiating skills at the weekend... i dont think my japanese is good enough though.. still who knows they may take pity on me!

Tell us how is goes

.

Regards

André

red5 · #10 08-10-2005, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ibaraki_gaijin

heh.. not got much good to say about the trem then... Red5 that sounds frustrating as hell!

I blocked my trem. I can push down on it, but not up, tighten the springs so they bring the trem to the block and wallah, the return is perfect.

I hated that guitar until I blocked the trem. Could not get it in tune and it drove me nuts. Now I like the way it sounds. It's pretty mean sounding for single coils too!

I used to have a block for the other side so I could put 13s on it (the springs are strong as I said and will hold 11s and maybe even 12s but not 13s).

It is like a Fender trem sort of. Not much motion, and when it works when it wants to it's a little better but when it does not work, look out!

darren wilson · #11 08-11-2005, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by red5

wallah

I've seen this a few times on various boards, and it always makes me chuckle.

The word is "Voila!"

It's French.

red5 · #12 08-11-2005, 10:08 PM

^^ I know, I am protesting the French and spelling it with fonix. Just like I am protesting English as I write words like "bible" as "byble" so it does not appear to be pronounced as "bib-el"

frankfalbo · #13 08-12-2005, 12:33 PM

I have to admit red5's experience is not like mine, or others I speak to. I was a G&L dealer and an authorized service center for years. I love them. I think they are worth every penny and are deserving of a resale price equal to or higher than any used comparable Fender. Blue books are worthless IMO these days. We live in a global market now, or at least nation by nation though the internet and ****. So fair market value in the US means nothing if Europeans are paying more/less, and vice versa. I have seen some bad G&L's out there, but far less per capita than bad Fenders. I think they are an anomaly, and that good G&L's are the norm.

Drew · #14 08-12-2005, 01:20 PM

at today's IDC rates:

Y100,000 = $913.62
Y100,000 = L503.38

Depending on condition, that might be a little high - it should be pretty minty, because as I recall that's not TOO far off a good new price.

That said, the handful of G&L's I've played destroy virtually everything I've played with "Fender" on the headstock. I love my strat, but if I was buying a stratocaster today, It'd say G&L on the headstock.

glockhead · #15 08-20-2005, 02:43 PM

I had a G&L, wish I still did. I had absolutly no problems with it. My friend Jake from Umphries Mcghee also plays G&L's with no probs. Better than most fenders IMO