NGD - early '80s SC-3

I stay off Craigslist. The few times I've gone on to check nearby cities, there hasn't been anything interesting. Anyway, a couple of weeks ago I got really bored and started checking different cities' listings at random. This is what I found in Terre Haute, Indiana:



The seller was a fellow G&LDPer. We closed the deal right away, but since the OHSC was no longer around I had a new hardshell shipped out for safe packing. The guitar arrived on Wednesday, and I fell in love from the moment I opened the case. It rained non-stop from Wednesday until this morning, so today was my first chance to get good pictures. Here are a few more shots:









I haven't checked the dates yet, but this guitar is either an '82 or an '83. I'm guessing '82 is more likely, since that when other registered examples with the white pickup covers were built. My first inclination was to think it would have looked better with black covers to match the control plate, but this look has really grown on me.

In terms of playability, it's 100% early SC. The body is small enough that I don't notice (or don't care about) the lack of contours, and the neck is Leo-era perfection. The pickups were up very close to the strings when it arrived. They sounded wonderful, but the highest notes on the B and high E strings seemed to lack volume and fret out. I raised the saddles very slightly, and lowered the pickups as far as they would go. That made a tremendous difference on the B and E strings, but the tone isn't quite as nice as it had been. I will continue to experiment until I have it dialed in.

Regarding the case - if you ever need a replacement hardshell for an early SC model, the SKB-66 universal case fits it like a glove. I was disappointed to see a "Made in China" sticker on the case after paying the same price that a US-built SKB was last year though, so next time I will look into G&G cases instead.

Ken

Nice score Ken! Congrats

- Jos

Great find Ken, that thing really looks clean and I love the blue and the DF. Are those the same pickups the s-500 uses? I have found some great scores on CL. I watch it every day.-- Darwin

Great find Ken, that thing really looks clean and I love the blue and the DF. Are those the same pickups the s-500 uses? I have found some great scores on CL. I watch it every day.-- Darwin

Darwin,

These are the same pickups that went into the Nighthawk in '83 and the Skyhawk after that. They may have ended up in the S-500 later on, but that's a model I don't know much about. In '82 the S-500 pickups had square ends. They looked like a narrow version of the large MFDs used in the SC-1 and SC-2. I can't find any pictures of my S-500, so I will take some later and post them.

Ken

very sweet !!

My first inclination was to think it would have looked better with black covers to match the control plate, but this look has really grown on me.

I see the appeal.
Doesn't look 30 years old at all..what a joy !


I see why you were waiting for a sunny day, that blue is sublime.
elwood

I see why you were waiting for a sunny day, that blue is sublime.
elwood

Thanks, but it isn't nearly this blue in person. Under normal indoor lighting, it's very close to Belair Green everywhere except for under the strings.

Ken

Nice buy, Ken. That looks VERY clean indeed. Do the smaller pickups sound much different to the larger ones?

Great find Ken, that thing really looks clean and I love the blue and the DF. Are those the same pickups the s-500 uses? I have found some great scores on CL. I watch it every day.-- Darwin

Darwin,

These are the same pickups that went into the Nighthawk in '83 and the Skyhawk after that. They may have ended up in the S-500 later on, but that's a model I don't know much about. In '82 the S-500 pickups had square ends. They looked like a narrow version of the large MFDs used in the SC-1 and SC-2. I can't find any pictures of my S-500, so I will take some later and post them.

Ken

Check out these posts:
List of pickups used in G&L guitars
S-500 single coil size pickups on early 80's model

Thanks Craig. Good info!-- Darwin

A real beauty, Ken! I like the old headstocks better than the new ones too.

Gorgeous colour. Excellent find.

Wow!

Amazing find Ken! If i were to get and early G&L that would be the one Great score.

Scott

Very sweet guitar!

Wow Ken! Sweet sc-3 I don't think I've ever seen one in that color combo

-Dave

Sad loss for the one who let it go but there is hope that every guitar eventually makes it to people who will love and appreciate their history.

Thanks for the comments, guys!

That looks VERY clean indeed. Do the smaller pickups sound much different to the larger ones?

This guitar sounds just like a Nighthawk or Skyhawk. I don't have any experience to compare it with current G&L models, but I'd guess comparing this to an SC-2 would be about like comparing a current S-500 and ASAT Special.

I like the old headstocks better than the new ones too.

I agree that this shape worked really well on the SC series. The bass version on the early L-1Ks and L-2Ks (aka the "paddle headstock) looks a little clumsy IMO, but these proportions are just right.

Wow Ken! Sweet sc-3 I don't think I've ever seen one in that color combo

I thought the pickup covers were replacements when I saw the CL ad, but a check of the Registry showed that several SC-3s had these.

Sad loss for the one who let it go but there is hope that every guitar eventually makes it to people who will love and appreciate their history.

All the ones I'm taking care of now will move on eventually. It is nice when a guitar has a history of owners who really take care of it. This one has been taken care of. I can tell it spent some time on a stand years ago (there are some reaction marks on the end of the body) and had a few honest dings that also look pretty old, but it's escaped the mistreatment and hacking that so many of these '82-'83 student models have been through.

Ken