things to look for when buying an SG?

[hollowman]

Hi!

i guess this should be the place to ask this question.

currently i'm eyeing a second-hand Epiphone SG, cos of low budget. So i would like to know if the SG is prone to defects easily. What should i look out for when i buy it?

appreciate any help, because i'm really a newbie, scared the guitar may spoil easily.

Thanks

 

[TidesOfBlood]

i think a proper assessment should be done before buying anything, let alone a second hand SG.

Neck Relief

check if the neck is straight. hold the guitar up carefully, face up. put it against a reasonable source of light and check if the neck is straight. it should NOT be bowed, unless you are aware that the guitar is already bowed by the owner. doubt you'd want to buy a guitar as such anyways.

Frets

check to see if the frets are worn/dented. any fret in bad condition would seriously hamper your playing. also, refretting would be relatively costly.

Electronics

test the guitar through an amp and tweak every single knob, as well as the pickup switch selector. listen for any crackles, especially. and also if any knob(s) is/are not working properly or are stiff.

and since you are buying it second hand, good to ask the owner about the guitar too. good questions to ask would be:

• How old the guitar is
• If it has had any prior set up, and if so, for what string gauge
• If there have been any modifications done on the guitar
• Any wears, cracks (wood crack, paint crack etc), dings and other related cosmetic blemishes

these questions should be asked before you meet up or even decide to deal.

hope that helped.

 

[Rhizopus]

Hi!

i guess this should be the place to ask this question.

currently i'm eyeing a second-hand Epiphone SG, cos of low budget. So i would like to know if the SG is prone to defects easily. What should i look out for when i buy it?

appreciate any help, because i'm really a newbie, scared the guitar may spoil easily.

Thanks

first thing to check if buying an SG is, make sure you really like a neck heavy guitar that it tends to dive on the neck direction. I have a friend that couldn't live with it :-D

 

[hollowman]

ok thanks so much for the replies. more questions

are there any SGs with 24 frets?

is there a 'rule' that says the more frets the merrier?

 

[Suislide]

The Epiphone Prophecy SG has 24 frets~

Not sure of any other models that's a 24

 

[Plastic]

Uh..
Make sure there's 2 horns?

 

[trianglebiscuit]

check if it looks awesome, 60% of the time, its looks awesome everytime.

 

[TidesOfBlood]

if you're willing to look beyond Epiphone..

http://www.espguitars.com/guitars_viper.html

ESP/LTD's take on the SG.

 

[hollowman]

if you're willing to look beyond Epiphone..

http://www.espguitars.com/guitars_viper.html

ESP/LTD's take on the SG.

thank you so much, widened my number of choices. will these arrive in SG?

how does Davies work? do they bring in ESP/LTD guitars at the request of customers? maybe i never pay too much attention, but Davies lacks some of the Jap Artist Signature series guitars...

 

[m3tal_rid3r]

The Epiphone Prophecy SG has 24 frets~

Not sure of any other models that's a 24

tonny iommi's sg model has 24frets too.

 

[TidesOfBlood]

from what i understand, Davis will NOT bring in ANY LTD. ESPs, you can try. but you have to remember that ESP do produce some models specifically for their Japanese market and clientele. there are differences between their export models and those meant for their home market.

check with Davis. while you're at it, enquire about their sister brands, namely Edwards and Grassroots.

 

[niteblade]

i used to own a epiphone sg. as long as you take care of your guitar, nothing bad should happen