Lunch Report September 30, 2025 our last meal?

[sam]

Howdy campers!!

Well, it’s been a while since we’ve seen a lunch report so let’s have one while we can. I heard a rumor GbL was running through September, which would be today, but not confirmed. Who knows how long these lunch Reports will be possible and there are some new folks lately that I don’t know if they’ve had a chance to gather round a Lunch Report table.

LUNCH
Lunch today is breakfast at Starbucks, a large cup of green tea and a Bacon, Gouda & Egg Sandwich. Any possible true lunch I foresee a sandwich of some veggie variety, a bag of chips, a diet coke and something sweet at the hospital cafeteria. Something sweet could be anything from a bag of peanut M&M’s or a chocolate brownie. That begs a question, are you a dessert/sweets fan, or do you run from the sugary stuff? I have a sweet tooth the size of Montana!

G&L Topic – Leo’s G&L technology

Leo Fender brought many very cool technologies from his Fender and Musicman braintrust that I believe are essential in identifying G&L guitars. I am not going to start naming them all, let’s use this question to see what everyone considers your favorite Leo technology. Hard to call out a “best” so I will focus on favorite. Being an ASAT guy, I think the Saddle-lock bridge is the cat daddy. The sustain and sense of integrated bridge and body between bridge and wood is something the guitar world still doesn’t fully appreciate. He took the MusicMan idea and perfected it in my humble opinion. The ability to rest your palm and/or hand on the bridge versus the old ash tray has always been one of Leo’s designs that I love. A totally different and better approach than the Les Paul Tune-O-Matic Bridge and Stop Bar Tailpiece or TonePros design. I even have the TonePros on a couple ASAT’s but they don’t match the Saddle-Lock bridge. Z-coil pups are my very close second favorite.

What Leo technology or design comes to mind for you when thinking of G&L guitars?

Music Topic – Bands never ending farewell tour

There are a lot of bands out touring now that are on their umpteenth farewell tour. Bands in question include, The Who, U2, Kiss, Motley Crue, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ted Nugent, Foreigner, The Eagles… the list goes on. Some of these bands may have one remaining member. I recall seeing Three Dog Night in the late 80’s where the only original member was the drummer. I don’t think there are any original members of Skynyrd playing now. Saw The Who’s “first” farewell tour 1982 in Birmingham Alabama.

I understand playing because you love playing but there is a point where the voice and body don’t represent the band. There are exceptions, like Alice Cooper. Saw him this summer and the man sounds as good as he did 30 years ago and the show was top notch.

When do you think a band foregoes the big tour and just perform the one off reunion shows?

Non-Music Topic – “Reasons” to buy that new guitar

Those of us with families and expenses like college or the car that’s in the shop, what magic reasoning do you use to justify the new guitar purchase?

My recent ASAT Junior II Korina made me think of this question. The “I don’t have a guitar with P 90’s.” was used on this one.

Some previous reasons I’ve used were: It's a G&L, the pickups are totally different, it’s a different body style, it is a limited edition, it is a prototype, this is replacing the one I sold, maple body guitars are hard to find, I’ve never seen one of these for sale before, Jos’ G&L page says this sounds magical, or another I used was “never thought that low bid on ebay would win this guitar!” Got an ASAT Deluxe that way, but my wife has reminded me of that one every now and then.

What have you used and how was it received?

Looking to hear from many and hope this is not our last desserts.

[tomanche]

Lunch
It's breakfast time for me on the West Coast. My usual weekday meal of hot creamy rice cereal with curry powder, sunflower seed butter, flax seed meal, and 1/4 cup of the nut du jour. Hot black tea.
I like sweet stuff, but not that much, and try to limit it. Too much sugar makes me a bit wacky and spacey. And, my gluten intolerance makes much of that stuff out of bounds.
Leo's tech
Well, given my user name, the Z-coil pup gets a nod. I'll expand that to the general MFD design, which works so well in the large ASAT format, the Classic format, the lower power Skyhawk format...
Farewell tours
I don't see many of these. I appreciate the ones that keep a certain music alive by performing it live, when that's hard to do well; e.g., Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa.
NGD Reasons/Excuses
I once bought a maple-bodied '88 ASAT by accident, by using the wrong button on Reverb (it was the early days). I had to bashfully explain that to my then-spouse!
Now I only have to justify these to myself. My favorite that you listed is "Jos’ G&L page says this sounds magical"!

Fingers crossed for the future of the forum. Thanks to everyone for sharing experiences and knowledge. It's been fun.

[sam]

Hi tomanche,

Thanks for the reply. Love the Z-coils too! Perhaps the Studio VI with the selectable switches is the Mona Lisa of Z-coils. So many options to get lost in.

Fingers crossed on this end as well. Saw others discussing ways to collectively save data and find a way to resurrect, hope so.

Same feelings here on everyone's participation over the years, it has been a lot of fun.

[john o]

Wow, last couple days and weeks have been pretty intense, truly disappointed at what appears to be the demise of the quietly legendary G&L guitar co.
Thx for the LR, Sam, and for keeping up the momentum here when it lags.
Lunch was lukewarm pizza and some veggie soup.

Like the others who have spoken, I support the idea of preserving what we have at GbL/G&LDP as a legacy of Leo, and rich knowledge resource and database. I also commend Craig for his diligence and being the steward and moderator of the site for a quarter century, bravo!

Leo’s technical genius: I see a confluence of his brilliance when I play my Comanche, my #1 guitar for rock music over the past 10 years. Aside from the outstanding build quality, the DFV bridge-tail piece resonates, sustains and stays in tune, the z coil pups with their outstanding clarity, tones, lack of hum, and their robust output, the expander switch with additional options that are just right for certain songs, and the master PTB tone controls which allow for versatile options that bring out the best of the pups.

Farewell tours: I think they are probably over-rated, and at best they create anticipation of “the next final farewell tour”. That said, I thought when I saw dead and co at Citizens Bank Park in Philly back in 2023 on Father’s Day, that would be the last for me. However, I did get to see them at the “sphere” in Vegas this past April, which was truly amazing. After these two shows I did not need to go to the San Fran finale.

New used G&L gtr days have been a challenge to explain to my wife, have had to improvise a few times. Especially on the most recent one, an ASAT classic S that checked all the boxes and was amazingly low priced. I had just sold a couple guitars for a profit and highlighted this, she seemed reassured

Best regards to everyone on here, and I look forward to news of the next iteration of GbL.

[SUaPYG]

Thanks for the post Sam.
Lunch today will be close to non existent. Starting a low fiber diet 7 days in advance of a once every ten years colonoscopy. ( Really? Has it been ten years already?)
Leo's tech that I most appreciate is probably the z coil, though the saddle block bridge is a close second.
Farewell tours are only a consideration for me if most of the original band is intact. Very few meet that requirement. Passed on Foghat for just that reason.
The best and most used reason I give my sweet wife for acquiring another guitar is 'I want it'. Her reply so far as been 'You deserve it'. Don't know what I do to garner such a response but I gotta keep doing it!
I really enjoy the interaction and knowledge of this forum. I do hope it continues. After all, I don't think any of us are going to dispose of our G&Ls just because the brand may not be producing new instruments. Who knows, the guitars in our possession may actually increase in value.

[JagInTheBag]

Lunch - Lunch yesterday was eat on the go, a leftover baked lemon, honey, garlic boneless, skinless chicken breast followed by canned peaches and Greek yogurt, all washed down with a cup of coffee.

Leo’s Tech - The Saddle Lock Bridge is the best looking, most solidly performing bride I’ve ever seen on a guitar. The PTB system is a a close second in my estimation. I hope one or both of these find a way to live on.

Farewell Tours - The Who was infamous for this. I remember being a boy running around Ben Franklin looking for candy cigars (the most bubble gum for your $10) when their first “farewell” was announced.

NGD Reasons- Like teaming up here to make the LE-2, it’s the creative pursuit. I only really need one that can play most anything. Everything else is exploring the technical and artistic possibilities of the build. The last one I had on my mind was supposed to be a Custom Shop build, that never came to fruition.

[Pork Rind]

Ah, my lunch report... Forgive me if this exercise and the recent bad news gives me an excuse to be a little sentimental.

Lunch yesterday: Tuesday was one of those days that conspire to keep me from taking a break. My wife took pity and tossed a burger on the grill. Hit the spot even if I had to wolf it down while off camera in a conference call.

G&L Topic – Leo’s G&L technology - Short and sweet. I've never met an MFD pickup I didn't like. In fact, to echo the sadness here, the local music store is closing after a 52 year run. The owner has earned a retirement but there's no real interest in buying the business as he's the focal point. But,but but, he has an F-100 on the wall that's been there for a few years and maybe there's a deal to be had?

Music Topic – Bands never ending farewell tour - I don't mind when a band thinks they're done, and after a break the members realize there's a little gas left in the tank. Look at Leo as an example. Fella thought he was dying but then what he learned was that he needed modern medicine and a change of scenery. Can't blame him, can't blame the bands. I don't like the cynical idea of branding things as "farewell tours" though. Just get out there and do the thing. Stop when you can't or don't want to any more. Stop hyping it that way. I myself learned long ago to say dumb things like, "This is the last time I do this." Or "I'm never doing that." The universe has a way of making me eat my words.

Non-Music Topic – “Reasons” to buy that new guitar - I want it, and the financials don't put me in a bad spot or make me take some opportunity off the table for my wife. I used to play the game (and tbh I still do) where I'd say things like, "This guitar will allow me to do XYZ that I can't with the current lineup." Nah, that's all BS for me. Practicing more would do that. I just like guitars. Now, if I want one and can swing it, I get it. But on the flip side I'm also more honest about what I don't play any more. I've cleared out a few these past couple years that were good guitars but I don't miss them.

---

I haven't been too active here, especially under this user name. The record shows I registered in 2012 and made my first post in 2022. Pretty good run of lurking there. But the reality is that I used to participate a bit more around the late 90s and maybe even into 2001? Problem is/was that I had a username and email tied to a work account I lost access to in my first sudden layoff in early 2002. I suppose that Craig would be good enough to reset that account email for me if 1. I remembered my old email address and 2. if I remembered my old user name. But no, I got neither.

Anyway, I remember financially doing well for myself for the first time in the late 90s. I was adulting well, got married, bought a house. And in times like those, one thoughts naturally turn to... guitars. Aside from the ads I remember from my time in college obsessively reading guitar magazines, I don't know how G&L got on my radar. But somehow, through Usenet, some other forum, who knows, I landed here.

Anyone that's spent time on any enthusiast forum knows the pattern of some new thing suddenly being the cooool thing to talk about (and buy), and I arrived in time for Indoor Storm in NC to be the cool kids. I got connected with a guy there and next thing you know a transparent blue Legacy Special was on it's way to me. Man, I loved that guitar. Also, I sold it for way too little money, but isn't that something we all seem to do as well?

I also remember that someone showed up with news about a blowout sale of Trace Elliot Velocette amps out of dead stock as they were closing down. A cool looking AC-15ish amp that I recall I paid less than $200 for new! I suspect all of that last lot of amps got sold to members here as I never saw any discussion of them anywhere else. To continue a theme, I sold that for way too little money. Bought a Blues Jr and did all the BillM mods, maybe that I learned about here. Mostly what I learned was that in that old house, my guitar room had a main heating duct pass through so any noise I made got piped into every room in the house. 15 watts pushed hard can make quite a racket when played into the HVAC equivalent of a gramophone horn.

To close out the whole tour of memory lane, that Legacy Special was eventually replaced by a '95 sparkle purple Legacy that had been electrically butchered by a previous owner. Once fixed, it's become my take-it-to-the grave instrument. And it's not just me. My guitar tech, a guy that's toured with many of the jazz and rock greats, is famously grumpy about guitars he doesn't like. And he loves loves loves this guitar. I took it in for a little tune-up a couple of years ago and he spent a good 20-30 minutes showing me all his favorite tones he got out of it.

Also have a 2007 Bluesboy, and got a '22 Doheny V12 that I tried hard to love but didn't. It sounded great, but there was something wrong with the neck that just never worked for me or the two different techs that tried. Some guy didn't mind the high action required and it's his now.

Been thinking about a bass of late. I don't know much about them and have less that 30 minutes experience with one over the last 35+ years. A little curious and feel like now's the time.

[mutts]

Lunch today is a bowl of ceral and peanut butter toast. At home today and being lazy.

My favorite Leo tech is probably the wide, Asat(Special) MFDs. Biig fan of PTB and DFV too. Have to admit I've never tried the Saddlelock of Z Coils. Maybe I need to shop for a Z-Coil Asat?

I don't mind if bands keep touring but the need to label a tour "farewell" has grown old to the point it sometimes seems like a cheap ploy. If artisits like touring and fans want to see them I see no harm in it though.

My wife is pretty easy going about purchases but I have a hard time rationalizing it for myself; I don't really need more gear, the expenses, our house is small etc... I also tend to get stuck playing one guitar over and over. Recently I've just tried convincing myself the cost is not really that great nad you only live once. Might die tomorrow.
I imagine "G&L is closing" might be a pretty good reason to buy a guitar!

Wow, last couple days and weeks have been pretty intense, truly disappointed at what appears to be the demise of the quietly legendary G&L guitar co.
Thx for the LR, Sam, and for keeping up the momentum here when it lags...
Like the others who have spoken, I support the idea of preserving what we have at GbL/G&LDP as a legacy of Leo, and rich knowledge resource and database. I also commend Craig for his diligence and being the steward and moderator of the site for a quarter century, bravo!
...Best regards to everyone on here, and I look forward to news of the next iteration of GbL.

Well said.

[sam]

Thank you all for the replies. My intent was to promote some discussion about Leo and G&L in general while playing the Lunch Reporter role while we still can. Always thought the Lunch Report was a great way to have communication amongst friends, learn some new G&L history from the "really knowledgeable ones", and just promote G&L. Very sad to lose this spot and my favorite place to generate GAS!

john o - we followed the same course with Dead and Co. Saw them a few times and the last tour but just coudn't see going to San Fran.

SUaPYG - last time I saw Foghat they were in a Doobie Bro, Jeff Healy multi band show and unfortuantely they blew a power amp about 10 minutes in, bummer. Love me some Foghat.

JAG - I gotta find an LE-2. Veared away because it wasn't an ASAT but may have made the wrong choice.

Pork Rind - The sentimental side for sure with this LR. Sounds like am F-100 is waiting for you. Understand the Doheny V12, resistance. I have one that was slow to like due to neck size, but it grew on me. The action is great, and when I pulled her out last night it REALLY struck me I like this guitar. I thnk I would ideally want a #1 modern neck on it, but man the tonal options!

mutts - my wife and I have had similar converstaions on "the cost is not really that great and you only live once. Might die tomorrow." We are not that old but enjoy while you mentally and physically able! I like the "G&L is closing" might be a pretty good reason to buy a guitar!" idea. Too bad G&L didn't have a warehouse blowout sale of remaining guitars or parts.

Hopefully the G&L brand will remain somewhere somehow...

[JagInTheBag]

@sam the private message system doesn't appear to be working. Sent you an email. Contact me at your convenience.

[sam]

@jaginthebag got yer pm and replied

[JagInTheBag]

@jaginthebag got yer pm and replied

I'll let you know once I receive it.

[thecajunboy]

Well I was around when the GbLDP first kicked off, so I guess it's a good idea to drop in and say hello. I hope it doesn't end though. Way too many good memories.

[sam]

Hey Cajun Boy!

Good to see yer name pop up.

[JagInTheBag]

Never got the message from you @sam

[Tooslowhand]

Lunch - Was left over rice with broccoli and ground turkey... and beer (sigh...)

Leo's Tech - For me it's a toss up between the large format MFD pickups and the saddle lock bridge. I have enough trouble trying to play a guitar that vibratos don't get much use from me.

Farewell Tours - Rock on... Musicians play music and I don't see why anyone should stop just because someone else thinks they should. It's not like a job that you look forward to retiring from and moving somewhere better. If people don't want to listen to it anymore that's their choice. I saw The Who at Hollywood Bowl last time they came through with an orchestra and the band played great. Roger Daltrey was still in great voice. The Rolling Stones are my religion and I really don't remember a time when I couldn't listen to their music. I'm not looking forward to that time either. I thought hard about whether I wanted to see the band without Charlie Watts; but last time they were on tour I went and could hardly stop laughing and smiling for the ridiculousness of it all. Jagger can't run much anymore, but everyone can still play and sing. It isn't the same without Charlie, but I had a great time, and they seemed to as well. Now when a "band" tours with a name and one old roadie, that's a whole other story...

Reasons to buy a new guitar - While it makes me sad, I don't have any. My last one was an Andromeda Bluesboy. I have guitars that I don't play enough to justify getting anything else. I have not been successful trying to correct that behavior.

I really hope we can find a way to keep this forum going as well...