NGD - Vintage Gibson RD content!

[Chris O]

Started with this...

I've got a '77 RD Custom coming tomorrow! Pretty stoked. It'll be the first non-Reissue I've owned. Price was decent -- at least a lot lower than the ones out there for sale now that have been sitting at the same price for a long time. Sorry, but these are NOT $2000+ guitars.

Be sure to post a NGD!

Still loving my RD two years later!

https://ibb.co/jAXpjF

Anyway, she showed up the other day, and I got around to restringing and setting up today. FKNA! Love it! Thought it was messed up at first, but it was just the the Moog preamp was CRANKED, and it was a mushy mess. The battery was in its death throes as well which didn't help. All good now though! Brighter and snappier than my reissues, but you'll see why...

For a 40+ year old guitar, you'd never guess it. She looks pretty nice, and has definitely been taken care of. Fretless wonder too. The fretboard is in amazing condition - no wear at all. The body had some flame when you hit it with light at the right angles.

I know RD's are an acquired taste, but there's no other guitar I'd rather have. This one is #7 for me!

And a "non-proper" pic of the rest of the family...

 

[dooredge]

You have exquisite taste in guitars!

Congrats!

 

[Chris O]

You have exquisite taste in guitars!

Congrats!

Thanks, and likewise! Did you get your SilverBurst yet?

 

[boost]

That's a big ass chunk of maple! Have you played a Firebird before? I am curious how they compare feel wise. I love my Firebird.

 

[Starman22]

That guitar makes me happy. Damn that's nice.

 

[Chris O]

That's a big ass chunk of maple! Have you played a Firebird before? I am curious how they compare feel wise. I love my Firebird.

I had a Firebird for a minute. The RD is (surprise!) heavier, and better balanced. The guitar is not neck-heavy in the least, where my FB was borderline nosediving, even with that light, super-thin neck. The RD is more comfortable to play as well with the bevels in the body. Stays in tune better too. Not as twangy as the FB, but still has some snap to it.

Short answer - I'd buy the RDs all day given the choice. The FB/RD comparison pretty much begins and ends with the shape.

That guitar makes me happy. Damn that's nice.

Thanks! I love it!

 

[boost]

That's a big ass chunk of maple! Have you played a Firebird before? I am curious how they compare feel wise. I love my Firebird.

I had a Firebird for a minute. The RD is (surprise!) heavier, and better balanced. The guitar is not neck-heavy in the least, where my FB was borderline nosediving, even with that light, super-thin neck. The RD is more comfortable to play as well with the bevels in the body. Stays in tune better too. Not as twangy as the FB, but still has some snap to it.

Short answer - I'd buy the RDs all day given the choice. The FB/RD comparison pretty much begins and ends with the shape.


I was just curious if these 'sat' the same way as a FB. Most people that pick one up find it awkward at first due to how the guitar sits more to the left than say a LP. I find it comfortable. The neck thru design gives it a ton of sustain and with the Steinbergers I don't really experience any neck dive on mine.

For a different sound I have always eyeballed the Tikibird, but the RD may be an option also. Never had a chance to play one since you don't see them much. Since you have a few, what are the neck profiles like? Any difference from the vintage to the new? I've got skinny on my FB and baseball bat on my LP so I'm fine either way.

 

[Chris O]

I was just curious if these 'sat' the same way as a FB. Most people that pick one up find it awkward at first due to how the guitar sits more to the left than say a LP. I find it comfortable. The neck thru design gives it a ton of sustain and with the Steinbergers I don't really experience any neck dive on mine.

For a different sound I have always eyeballed the Tikibird, but the RD may be an option also. Never had a chance to play one since you don't see them much. Since you have a few, what are the neck profiles like? Any difference from the vintage to the new? I've got skinny on my FB and baseball bat on my LP so I'm fine either way.

They sit more like a LP than a FB, and I sling mine fairly low, but it's still very comfortable to play. It has a slight "forward tip" to it, so a little away from your body at the top.

As far as neck profiles, obviously the first thing is the 25.5" vs 24.75" scale length, but I don't really get bothered much by that. The vintage one has a much thinner 60's-style profile, but slightly more rounded than the FB. The reissues remind me of a 90's LP Studio, somewhere closer to a 50's profile.

 

[Chris O]

I'm finding the Moog stuff to be kinda useless, and takes away from how I think this guitar should be sounding. Thinking that I might convert it to a "standard" pickup setup...not sure though...a little concerned about the Vintage Gibson-Nuts that worry about original solder joints and stuff like that...

 

[Beyond Black]

Congrats and cool guitar!