Skyhawk...... Did I make the right decision

[Noid24]

Hi, I have had a tribute Comanche for awhile. I have never bonded with it and most of that fault lies with me not taking the time to get a feel for the different tones. But I have always liked G&L and wanted a USA made guitar. I went through all the research of the Legacy, S500 or one of the earlier guitars like the skyhawk. There was a guy that had a late 90s early 2000s Legacy in mint condition. It looked practically brand new. He also had a 1986? (according to the registry) skyhawk in decent shape but has definitely been played. Like a lot. I liked both for different reasons and finally ended up getting the skyhawk. It was a little lighter and I liked the smaller body. Both had different tones. Not better or worse. Just different. The guy I bought it from was very nice and I got a decent to good price on it.
I always doubt myself when I buy something I have researched for a long time. I have some questions about the skyhawk that maybe someone with much more knowledge can help me with.
The maple fretboard was a much darker yellow than the legacy. Also on the nut is some yellow coloring, almost like the neck has been restained and they went over. I dont think that is what happened just saying that is what it looks like.
Also, the low E string is much louder on the bridge pickup than any other string. Like noticeably louder. I know these pickups have adjustable poles. Do those control volume? I rolled off the bass a little on the guitar, but it is just the one string.
The frets are really low and do have some wear on them. The low frets are one of the things I liked about the guitar, but I am worried about how much life is left on them. I don't know too much about frets and fret ware. I am 58 and they will probably outlast me I guess. I know people will say who cares just play the guitar. That is exactly what I am going to do, but I would like to know what your opinions are.
I have played around with some different amp models on my Helix and got some good sounds through a princeton amp.
Not a huge fan of the tortoise shell pick guard. I am thinking about replacing that with a black or white pickguard. It looks somewhat easy thing to do. Is it?
Thanks in advance for the feedback. I am going to try to figure out how to get some pictures posted.

[y2kc]

Noid,

1. Early skyhawk's and the reissues are badass guitars. Fear not, you made a good purchase.
2.58 years old is young.
3.posting pictures here is a pain.
4. enjoy that guitar.

[Noid24]

Yes it turns out that I am too dumb to post pictures. I got them up on imgur but cant get them here.

Thanks for the reassurance.

[Craig]

Yes it turns out that I am too dumb to post pictures. I got them up on imgur but cant get them here.

Thanks for the reassurance.

See this post: Tutorial: Posting photos.

Hope this helps.

[Craig]

I found your photos in your GbL Registered User's Album which you added a link to your Imgur Album.

Here are the photos (resized via using the BBcode "timage="):







Now that we can see your Skyhawk I notice some modifications which were done to it:

The original pickguard was replaced with a Tortiseshell pickguard and the original metal control plate was removed.
The original Skyhawk MFD single coil pickups were replaced with some type of aftermarket pickups and probably have Alnico magnets.

Here is a picture of a stock Skyhawk for reference:


Here is a close up of an 1986 Skyhawk showing pickups, pickguard and control plate:


Hope this helps.

[Noid24]

Wow! Thanks for the info and posting the pics!

Not really happy with what you came up with though!!!!

I wonder if I should contact the seller and see if they would be willing to do something about that. He had a newer legacy. Maybe I could just trade him for that.

The funny thing about it is the next day, I saw a 2006 S500 on facebook marketplace that looked really nice. I checked it out and ended up buying that too!
So now I have two G&L USA guitars. I am heading out now. I will post pictures and put it in the registry hopefully late night tonigh.

Thanks again Craig for posting those pictures. That is really awesome. I tried to figure it out but couldn't

[Noid24]

Well I ended up trading the skyhawk for a 90s legacy in pristine condition. I actually think I like the single coil pups better.

Anyway, that is my guitar story. I ended up with two G&L guitars!

[yowhatsshakin]

Very, very nice guitar that Skyhawk! I am sure you would have enjoyed that one. Personally, I would have kept the Skyhawk but to each his/her own.

- Jos

[john o]

tough to say, but one of the many things i really like about my '84 skyhawk are the original nighthawk/skyhawk p'ups

[Noid24]

That is what did it for me john o. If I am going to have a vintage guitar I want it to be original. That's just me. I am actually really liking the alnico pups in the legacy. I am not ruling out getting a skyhawk in the future. There are a couple on Reverb. I have to wait a little bit though. Or sell something that I already have.

[tomanche]

Here's my encouragement to buy a vintage Skyhawk with those wonderful pickups! Most of the listings on Reverb are too high. But: there's one in Canada in which the price in the U.S. benefits from the exchange rate. At a few dollars over 900, I say that's a good price nowadays (post pandemic, post inflation). Before 2020, I'd consider 800 to be a price at which to buy. It's black, has a sickle headstock, and looks to be in very good condition. That price has been tempting me.... Just my 0.02.

[bigjim711]

That is what did it for me john o. If I am going to have a vintage guitar I want it to be original. That's just me. I am actually really liking the alnico pups in the legacy. I am not ruling out getting a skyhawk in the future. There are a couple on Reverb. I have to wait a little bit though. Or sell something that I already have.

Legacy's are nice too. You can never have too many G&Ls.

For the non-stock though, sometimes you can pick them up cheaper and restore to original (configuration). Sometimes you have to be patient to find the parts for sale though.