Following a previous thread about the fake Gibsons being manufactured in China I secretly went about searching for these Chinese suppliers on the Internet with the view of buying one for myself. I found on online trading portal called Tradetang and searched through the infinite listings of traders selling Fake Gibson Les Paul guitars of various kinds, colours, models, shapes (yes, they seem to be different from guitar to guitar) and styles.
I will not reveal the trader's name since I know that there are South Africans who have bought from him as well since I have read their positive reviews about other items, so I will just tell my story in short.
I saw pictures of this beautiful black Gibson Les Paul Custom going for 280USD (including case) and added this as a favourite. After communicating with the seller back and forth for a few days I was comfortable that I was dealing with an honorable dealer (not that I had honorable intentions when buying a fake in the first place) and he even sent me private pictures of the guitar.
So I jumped in and placed an order and paid with my Master Card - No problem. Shipping added another 80USD and the item was shipped with EMS. I tracked the item as it made its way to South Africa and was delighted when I found a thing in my post box 3 weeks later to tell me to come and pick up my guitar. Paid another R290.00 for VAT at Customs and rushed home with my guitar.
I cut away the excessive brown tape from the Styrofoam box and was really happy to see a brand new black Gibson case. I opened it and there it was - My black Gibson Les Paul Custom!
Lets move forward 10 minutes! On closer inspection I quickly realized that the guitar was just a p[iece of sh**. From the pictures on the website it looked awesome but on close inspection it is absolutely clear that the thing is just rubbish:
1) The neck is connected at a slight angle to the body with the result that the lower E-string falls off the neck.
2) The entire guitar feels extremely cheap, there are inferior manufacturing details thoughout, the body is pitted in some places and not filled properly, the edges of the body of the guitar are so sharp so as to hurt your arm when you rest it on an edge. The bridge & tailpiece is rubbish and their anchors only go halfway into the body with 3mm of thread still visible, the frets are so sharp so as to cut your fingers, no though was given to the binding and frets hang over this, the logo is incorrect, the diamond-shaped inlay on the headstock is at the wrong angle, the list goes on and on and on!
3) Everything plastic is more "plastic" than normal. The plastic parts of the guitar feels and looks like the plastic used in the manufacturing of kitchen appliances and kids toys and are soft and malleable, really weird to handle. I mean the back pickup cover can be pushed in about a centimeter.
4) Oh yes, did I mention that the guitar came with a broken neck. There is a serious crack just behind the heel of the neck and if you pull on it the crack opens up to reveal a gaping wound all the way through. Now here's the thing - the case is in perfect condition and without a scratch so this guitar was clearly packaged with full knowledge of the broken neck.
The dealer claims that the guitar was damaged during shipping and that it isn't his problem and that I should take it up with EMS - what crap!
So, I've been had! And you know what - Good! I deserve it! In a perverse way it almost makes me feel good! It got what I deserved! They say a fool and his money are easily parted and I have to hang my head in disgust and recognize that I am such a fool.
Here's some pics:
Just thought I'd warn you!
