Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Categories
- 231.8K All Categories
- 22 >> Start Here <<
- 12 New Members
- 8 FAQs
- 83.3K Gear
- 37.9K Guitar
- 3.2K Acoustics
- 1.3K Bass
- 14.1K Amps
- 16.7K FX
- 157 Digital & Modelling
- 730 Other Instruments
- 7.9K Making & Modding
- 406 Gear Reviews
- 100 Guitar Reviews
- 72 Amp Reviews
- 119 FX Reviews
- 84 Other Reviews
- 734 Made in the UK
- 932 Theory
- 1.8K Technique
- 2K Live
- 3K Studio & Recording
- 2.1K Making Music
- 202 Events
- 15 Guitar Show 2018
- 762 Plug My Stuff
- 100.6K Classifieds
- 39.2K Guitars £
- 2.6K Acoustics £
- 132 LH Guitars £
- 836 Basses £
- 10K Parts £
- 17.6K Amps £
- 32.8K FX £
- 2.6K Studio & Rec £
- 5.8K Misc £
- 443 Personnel
- 52.7K Chat
- 35.3K Off Topic
- 987 Tributes
- 6.3K Music
Become a Subscriber!
Subscribe to our Patreon, and get image uploads with no ads on the site!
UNPLANNED DOWNTIME: 12th Oct 23:45
NGD - slight return
I started off playing in my teens in the mid 80s, mainly on my older brother's guitars (Marlin Sidewinder > Tokai strat > Lag superstrat). In '89 I bought my first guitar - a Yamaha HSH superstrat with floyd rose.
This served me well for a few years of home 4-track recording and gigging in a metal / grunge influenced band, but as the metal influence wore off I got myself a MIJ 62RI strat which looked cooler to me at the time (although held its tuning less well under hot lights).
Then in around '96 I traded the yamaha in for a Gordon Smith G60 in Musical Exchanges in Birmingham.
Over the last couple of years I've had a range of saved ebay searches looking out for a similar model (I couldn't remember the exact model number). I've almost bought similar guitars, but didn't see anything quite the same. Then whilst I was on holiday this July, two of them appeared on ebay - one black and one white. Neither sold but were relisted. The white one looked just like my old one, and was in Birmingham.
The seller wouldn't let me take a look at it, or visit for collection, so I had to risk bidding on it without really knowing if it was completely knackered or not, but I got it for a fair price, and I suspect it might actually be the exact same guitar I traded in in '96. It's an RGZ 621
It has seen a bit more action since I last saw it, and I probably wouldn't have put tipex on the dings, but after a bit of a clean up, I'm really happy with it:
It plays really well - I'm guessing my hands still find it familiar having played it so much originally. Fretboard edges are a bit more 'rolled' now. Still holds its tuning well with trem use. It sounds much better clean than I remembered. Not sure if that's just because my old laney linebacker didn't make the best of its sparkle or if I've just forgotten.
The toggle switch brings in the bridge humbucker on full volume / tone - so useful and fun.
The tone knob is push / pull. I had remembered this as a coil tap, but it doesn't seem to be any more. I haven't worked out exactly what the switching combos are doing at the moment, and the wiring has certainly been tampered with - plenty of electrical tape on wires in the cavity. I think the middle switch position with the tone knob pulled out is probably now both humbuckers together, as it loses the single coil sparkle. Again, not sure if I'm misremembering how the wiring worked previously, but I'm really pleased with the tone - particularly the single coil high end.
Only issues I've found are that the fine tuning screw on the low e isn't quite straight / has some 'wobble'. I'm guessing the thread is worn on the actual bridge (you can just about see on this pic):
Also, the trem arm works loose pretty quick. It seems to have had the part which screws it into place in the trem permanently attached to the arm, which I think has been a mod for some reason.
So all in all I'm really pleased, and will probably be moving my G&L tribute Rampage into the classifieds as a result as I only really need one guitar for this type of thing. I'm even considering whether I would pick another up if cheap enough for spares.
Would love to hear if anybody knows where this guitar has been in between '96 and now!
This served me well for a few years of home 4-track recording and gigging in a metal / grunge influenced band, but as the metal influence wore off I got myself a MIJ 62RI strat which looked cooler to me at the time (although held its tuning less well under hot lights).
Then in around '96 I traded the yamaha in for a Gordon Smith G60 in Musical Exchanges in Birmingham.
Over the last couple of years I've had a range of saved ebay searches looking out for a similar model (I couldn't remember the exact model number). I've almost bought similar guitars, but didn't see anything quite the same. Then whilst I was on holiday this July, two of them appeared on ebay - one black and one white. Neither sold but were relisted. The white one looked just like my old one, and was in Birmingham.
The seller wouldn't let me take a look at it, or visit for collection, so I had to risk bidding on it without really knowing if it was completely knackered or not, but I got it for a fair price, and I suspect it might actually be the exact same guitar I traded in in '96. It's an RGZ 621
It has seen a bit more action since I last saw it, and I probably wouldn't have put tipex on the dings, but after a bit of a clean up, I'm really happy with it:
It plays really well - I'm guessing my hands still find it familiar having played it so much originally. Fretboard edges are a bit more 'rolled' now. Still holds its tuning well with trem use. It sounds much better clean than I remembered. Not sure if that's just because my old laney linebacker didn't make the best of its sparkle or if I've just forgotten.
The toggle switch brings in the bridge humbucker on full volume / tone - so useful and fun.
The tone knob is push / pull. I had remembered this as a coil tap, but it doesn't seem to be any more. I haven't worked out exactly what the switching combos are doing at the moment, and the wiring has certainly been tampered with - plenty of electrical tape on wires in the cavity. I think the middle switch position with the tone knob pulled out is probably now both humbuckers together, as it loses the single coil sparkle. Again, not sure if I'm misremembering how the wiring worked previously, but I'm really pleased with the tone - particularly the single coil high end.
Only issues I've found are that the fine tuning screw on the low e isn't quite straight / has some 'wobble'. I'm guessing the thread is worn on the actual bridge (you can just about see on this pic):
Also, the trem arm works loose pretty quick. It seems to have had the part which screws it into place in the trem permanently attached to the arm, which I think has been a mod for some reason.
So all in all I'm really pleased, and will probably be moving my G&L tribute Rampage into the classifieds as a result as I only really need one guitar for this type of thing. I'm even considering whether I would pick another up if cheap enough for spares.
Would love to hear if anybody knows where this guitar has been in between '96 and now!
0
LOL 0
Wow! 0
Wisdom · Share on Twitter
LOL 0 Wow! 0 Wisdom · Share on TwitterBase theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
Comments
Mr Horse, that guitar is quite simply. awesome.
I've always had a bit of a thing for white guitars
Ringleader of the Cambridge cartel, pedal champ and king of the dirt boxes (down to 21)
I think the combination of sentimental value plus it still being a well-playing good sounding guitar probably makes it the best £150 of GAS I can remember.