Gibson SG Standard 1973 Cherry

No sales tax for customers outside California.

This 1973 Gibson SG represents a bit of a whiff for me.  It plays perfectly, but the neck has a radical twist.  I didn't look down the neck as I normally do because it played so well.  When I got it back to the shop my employee, Tim, caught my miss.  This is by design here at MVG - multiple layers of QC to make sure you get a guitar that is accurately described.  

I'll discuss neck twist below and why it isn't as big a deal as it seems, but first I'll discuss the rest of the guitar.  All the parts are original and it is in excellent cosmetic shape.  The color is strong - it's a sharp looking axe and it sounds just like it should.  There are no cracks or breaks as you'll often find on SGs. 

I started poking around the interwebs to see what remedy there might be for a twisted neck.  Most things I found mention dealing with the fretboard, frets, or even a fretboard removal and alteration of the neck itself. 

It appears that someone had some work done to deal with the twist.  The fretboard is compound radiused - 7.5' to 9.5".   The standard SG radius isn't so standard in this period, varying from 10 to 12". 

This is likely why the guitar plays as well as it does, and why you can bend two steps above the 12th fret without issues.

Here is a good discussion on neck twist:

"A twist in a neck doesn’t always cause a ‘practical-terms’ problem. In fact it’s entirely possible that twists may go completely unnoticed.

You see, even though the overall fingerboard isn’t ‘flat’ any more, it’s very possible that each individual string still has its own consistent plane. This might be hard to visualize so try picture a one string guitar. If the fingerboard either side of that string is higher or lower, the path from nut to bridge for just that string might be just fine.

Don’t believe me? Well, check out Torzal Guitars’ Natural Twist bass*.  Jerome Little of Torzal Guitars makes instruments with a purposely twisted neck. This twist can have ergonomic benefits for players, reducing hyeprflexion and helping prevent or relieve repetitive strain injuries. The twisted neck allows for a more natural position for a player’s hands.

And the instruments still work great because each string has its own straight-line plane between nut and bridge. Jerome’s standard twist is 35º of total rotation (20º one way at the nut and 15º the other way at the bridge).

Why have I spent so much time telling you that a twist might be just fine? Because, I know that many people drop the ‘warped neck’ thing into conversations all the time. And I know that, at some point, you (or someone with your guitar) will close one eye and sight along the neck from the headstock. Then there will be worry, and discussions about twists and warps and guitar apocalypses. But, if your guitar plays fine, your guitar is fine. Worry about these things when something’s wrong and don’t go looking for a problem."

Trust me - if you take a chance on this guitar you won't regret it.  It is a killer player and it sounds great.  I'll try to price it so it works out that way as well.

• Color: Cherry
• Weight: 7lbs 4ozs
  
• Body: Mahogany
• Neck: Mahogany
• Neck Profile: See picture
• Fretboard: Bound Rosewood
• Inlays: Mother of pearl blocks
• Frets: Original
• Fret count: 22
• Nut: Original
• Nut width: 1 9/16"
• Radius: 7.25" to 9.5"
• Scale: 24 3/4"
• Neck thickness at 1st fret: 0.80"
• Neck thickness at 12th fret: 0.97"
• Action 1st String at 12th Fret: 2/32"
• Action 6th String at 12th Fret: 5/64"
• Total length: 38 1/2"
• Lower bout: 13 1/4"
• Waist: 9 5/16"
• Upper bout: 11"
• Body depth/thickness outside edge: 1 5/16"
• String gauge: .010-.046"
• Hardware Color: Chrome
• Bridge Pickup/Brand: Gibson Tarback Humbucker
• Bridge Pickup Reading: 7.67k
• Pickup Original?: Yes
• Neck Pickup/Brand: Gibson Tarback Humbucker
• Neck Pickup Reading: 5.12k
• Pickup Original?: Yes
• Pickguard: Original
• Bridge: Original
• Tuners: Original
• Knobs: Original
• Switch: Original
• Pots/Codes: Original
• Case: HSC
• Notes:

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