Trade Tang Gibsun Les Paul Supreme - order review
Price paid - $360 to Trade Tang, but an additional $30.43 was levied by customs I had to pay at pickup. Total Cost: $391
I decided to see what the fuss was about and ordered an obviously counterfeit Gibson Les Paul Supreme w/ hardcase from Dave @ TradeTang. I could never afford or justify the real thing but I love the looks, ebony fretboard, inlays, etc. Which of us hasn't looked at such an instrument and not desired it?? So I know it's a fake and I know I'm not going to get anywhere near the quality of a real Gibson but I was hoping to get what would be considered a high end Epiphone LP clone but take Epiphone out of the equation and save some $$$ at the same time.
Ordering - I was nervous about ordering from China using a credit card. Trade Tang avoids this by allowing buyers to use PayPal. This way they have no access to your actual credit card information. I felt safe paying this way and being able to file a complaint on PP or contest the charge on the card just in case. There was a problem with being redirected to Trade Tang's website after I paid with PayPal. I was a bit worried about it until I saw they had confirmed my payment after just a couple of hours. Overall the ordering process was ok.
Confirmations/Shipping - I received multiple emails indicating changes in status to my order. I paid on August 4th and got the shipping notice the same day. However just because I got a tracking number didn't mean it had actually been picked up by the shipper. It did not show up in the EMS's tracking system until the 7th. It arrived in customs Aug 12th, and first attempted delivery was Aug. 16th. So 12 days from payment to my door. Not fast but it is coming from 1/2 way around the world so I was OK with the time and that I got decent tracking updates via the EMS web site and USPS website.
Now - on to the guitar :)
Packaging
Packaging was intact and decent. It's basically a styrofoam box taped together. It survived the trip quite well and was thick enough to provide plenty of protection.
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack1.jpg
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack2.jpg
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack3.jpg
Here's the case out of the packing - covered in a bag. Had some Gibson stuff on the case.
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack4.jpg
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack5.jpg
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack6.jpg
Case open - some packing on the guitar:
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/pack7.jpg
Here's some pics of the body - there is some noticable flaws in the flame on the back, they look like scuffs. Some of the artifacts in the pic are from the flash
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/body1.jpg
http://www.daverancour.com/tt/body2.jpg
Fibsons aren't even as good as an Epiphone
My brother just bought one of those infamous Tradetang "Gibson" Les Paul Supremes with the rootbeer finish and brought it over for me to look over. Now I've owned several Gibsons and currently have a Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro and an Epiphone LP Ultra II so I can speak on both counts as far as comparing them (plus I've been playing for about 35 years and mod guitars all the time). The Tradetang Les Paul doesn't even come close to the quality of a Gibson Les Paul. Here's what I observed right after setting up my brother's Tradetang special:
- Tuners - very stiff or loose depending on the tuner, inconsistent and obviously don't have quality gears in them. In addition they loosen and don't keep the strings in tune very well. You will have to replace them if you want them if you want your guitar to stay in tune.
- Trussrod appears to be non-adjustable. When I opened up the cover there was not what I would call a typical trussrod with a nut on the end. The cavity where the trussrod was packed with what appeared to be sawdust.
- Nut - very poor quality plastic nut that was seated incorrectly when it was glued in and doesn't appear to be placed or filed correctly.
- Finish - obviously polyurethane and there were blemishes on the neck near the nut where the finish flaked off and finish defects on the body of the guitar as well.
- Hardware in general - inferior even to Epiphone standards, in particular the saddle bridge.
- Pickups - not on par with the Gibson or Epiphone in quality, however, not too bad. Not quite as much chime or bell tones as you get on a real Gibson but not as bad as I thought they would be. The neck pickup is pretty weak, even weaker than a Classic 57.
- Case - not even close to the quality of a real Gibson case which is usually contoured. Looked very cheap up next to the real one though they did get the lettering / logo to look like the real deal.
- The body is chambered but appeared to feel lighter than other chambered Gibson Les Pauls I'ved picked up before. I'd guess the bulk of the guitar s probably made of cheap basswood.
My personal opinion: Don't waste your money. The real Gibson Les Paul smokes them by a mile and they are not even up to the quality of an Epiphone IMO. You will spend about $300 on the guitar alone, plus another $80 or so on the case, then pay about $125 for shipping to the U.S. My advice save your pennies and buy the real deal. No comparison.