SC-2 disappointed

[i8chillywilly]

I need therapy. I got a bonus from work and want to get a USA made G&L. I really like SC-2/fallout shape. I have few G&L dealers near me that actually have USA made ones. Tons of tributes. Found a store that has a SC-2 so....

I Drove 2 hours today to look at and possibly purchase the SC-2. I really liked the sound but was very disappointed in the fit and finish of the guitar. My tribute fallout is higher quality. I honestly can't believe it passed quality control given its appearance. The rosewood fret board looked like it had worm holes in it it so porous. There was glue around each fret. It was a sad example of workmanship. Lacked pride in workmanship for sure. I got so mad I left without trying any other guitars.

Please tell me this was abnormal!!! Maybe it was a fake. Idk maybe I had way to high expectations.

Oh well.

[Fumble fingers]

my SC 2 wasn't like that at all , mine has a nice rosewood with flawless fit and finish ...... was this a new guitar or used ?? ..... can you name the dealer ??

[i8chillywilly]

It was new. Not sure if that is far to name them. The owner wasn't available at the time. He was giving a lessons. I have never shopped there before and didn't have a bad purchasing experience. It was actually a very nice small store.

Thanks for reassuring me.

[trem]

I bought mine online and just made sure the dealer had a return policy in the event it didn't suit me. I went in knowing it would cost me $50 if I wanted to return it; you went in knowing it'd cost you time and gas. Sometimes things don't work out. Relax. If you want to get a better representation of quality, try out some other US G&L's at the shops you mentioned that carry US models in your area.

The only issues I had with my guitar were the frets weren't polished after the PLEKing process and the setup was kinda lol. The setup could be the dealer, as the relief in the neck was perfect, but the frets were wth for a 2300 list price guitar. Maybe polishing after a PLEK isn't part of their protocol, but it sure should be if it isn't. I also had to grease the fulcrum to get it to stay in tune with wide bar use, but I don't expect any manufacturer to fully stretch strings out in order to fully wang the bar to check its stability, unless it's like a $3K+ (street price) guitar. None of that matters much to me, as I can take care of that stuff myself and don't really mind doing it, but polishing frets on a spankin' new guitar is kind of funny.

The bottom line is, dollar for dollar, you'll get a better quality guitar with G&L than if you go with a Fender or Gibson.

[i8chillywilly]

Term

You are right. I chilled out. I think I just experienced why online has taken over from brick and mortar stores. I just had something pictured in my mind and my expectation wasn't met. I can roll with it. G&L is the way to go.

Thanks for the reassurances folks. Have a great weekend.

[trem]

I'm curious, though, are they supposed to polish frets after a PLEK and I got unlucky, or do they just PLEK and go?

[Craig]

I'm curious, though, are they supposed to polish frets after a PLEK and I got unlucky, or do they just PLEK and go?

If you search on "PLEK" you will find this post which answers your question: What is G&L's Plek machine used for?.

Hope this helps.

[trem]

I'm curious, though, are they supposed to polish frets after a PLEK and I got unlucky, or do they just PLEK and go?

If you search on "PLEK" you will find this post which answers your question: What is G&L's Plek machine used for?.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Craig, but I was a bit unclear in my question. A Plek'd guitar should be manually polished after the Plek process to make the frets smooth as silk, just as you would after a hand crown. An unpolished Plek leaves the frets feeling a tad gritty for a long time. I just wanted to know if G&L's standard procedure is to not polish after the Plek?

[Craig]

I'm curious, though, are they supposed to polish frets after a PLEK and I got unlucky, or do they just PLEK and go?

If you search on "PLEK" you will find this post which answers your question: What is G&L's Plek machine used for?.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Craig, but I was a bit unclear in my question. A Plek'd guitar should be manually polished after the Plek process to make the frets smooth as silk, just as you would after a hand crown. An unpolished Plek leaves the frets feeling a tad gritty for a long time. I just wanted to know if G&L's standard procedure is to not polish after the Plek?

I understood your question and the post I pointed you to, seemed to answered it clearly.

From that post:

After the PLEK Pro process, the G&L craftsman performs fret and nut finish work for a butter smooth feel and lusterous appearance.

So, yes, the standard procedure is to polish the frets after they have been PLEK'd.

Hope this helps

[trem]

I'm sorry, Craig, but that quote wasn't in the video or the link you provided. Sorry, but I'm not going to spend 15+ minutes doing a g&l plek search when I'm sure I can just trust your word on it in a post. Good to know that they do dress frets and mine was a one off. Thank you.

[Craig]

I'm sorry, Craig, but that quote wasn't in the video or the link you provided. Sorry, but I'm not going to spend 15+ minutes doing a g&l plek search when I'm sure I can just trust your word on it in a post. Good to know that they do dress frets and mine was a one off. Thank you.

Well, it is there, it's the link mentioned right below the video.

Also, check out G&L's Plek feature page.

I'm sorry that this was not clear.

[i8chillywilly]

Turing my froun upside down... So I found a used SC-2 listed on a big box store's web site. It is at a location not near me. I called the store and tried to get as much info as possoble about it. It does not have the original paper work or case. It is listed as "mint" though. They are supposed to send me some photo's. One of which should be the serial number. Is there anyway to find out out the build details with this information? I looked at G&L's website and I don't see anything other than the purchasing of the datat sheet.

Given these appear to be about $1k new i am not sure if the couple hundred $ savings is worth it sans the orgingal case if there is nothing unique about this specific guitar.

Decisions decisions.

[Fumble fingers]

for a couple hundred bucks you lose the 10 year warranty so think about that , or order a custom build SC2 from a reputable dealer ....... theres not a lot of options on the SC2 , locking tuners , quartersawn neck and neck tint , colors and binding , saddle lock bridge or Dual Fulcrum and choice of fretboard , that's about it ...... there are no neck options for width or radius ...... a picture would tell us alot

[i8chillywilly]

Great point. Ya, probably not worth it.

I'll see if I can get the photos up. S# is CLF54991

[trem]

Well, it is there, it's the link mentioned right below the video.

Also, check out G&L's Plek feature page.

I'm sorry that this was not clear.

I have poor eyesight Craig, so I missed that there is a link embedded in that text, my apologies. I can see that it's strongly encouraged to exhaust the search function first before asking a question on these boards, so I will do that moving forward if I have a question that I'm more than just a little interested in knowing the answer. Thank you.