Members Jeroen Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 What does that mean? Saw it on a Gibson Les Paul Artisan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members silverkw Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 it means it's a "factory second". didn't pass inspection as a regular guitar, due to minor problems. most likely still play and sound as good, but you def. need to ask the reason for the "second". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dougbeens Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 my guess is it was a "factory second"... or rather a guitar that didn't meet their usual standards. (now, now... let's save QC jokes for later!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richard Guy Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 Nothing to worry about. The 'second' designation, in most cases, is due to finish blems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rockstrongo Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 My silverburst is a second, and the only thing wrong is the tip on the backburst is slightly to the right instead of dead center. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Boinker Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 Originally posted by Richard Guy Nothing to worry about. The 'second' designation, in most cases, is due to finish blems. Yep, usually purely cosmetic imperfections that can be had cheap. But an Artisan? Say it ain't so, Joe! I've been horny for an Artisan for a long time, dig that inlay. But the last ones I saw used were too friggin' expensive and had some serious mileage on them. I've got an '86 Deluce Goldtop that has "sec" on the back of the headstock. It's perfect, except for a small dark spot about the size of a dime near the input jack. Plays and sounds fine. Paid $1000 for it about 15 years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeroen Posted May 20, 2005 Author Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 Well, I ended up buying the Artisan! (see other thread for pics: http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=934993) Can't see why it's a second, but since it's over 25 years old, the number of cosmetic imperfections has risen significantly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members headless Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 Originally posted by Jeroen Well, I ended up buying the Artisan! (see other thread for pics: http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=934993) Can't see why it's a second, but since it's over 25 years old, the number of cosmetic imperfections has risen significantly I wouldn't hesitate buying a Gibson second (I think they were mostly sold to Gibson employees). But I would buy it armed with the knowledge that it's resale value is compromised. I doubt that Gibson is still doing this-it tends to delute they're exclusivity. I know Fender (USA) no longer does this, if a problem can't be repaired or replaced to meet QC guidelines, the guitar goes into an industrial wood chipper. An Artisian second is a bit ironic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members d_dave_c Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 I know a guy who's a distributor for seconds from Epi, Ibanez, Squier, Jay Turser, etc. He doesn't get anything from Gibson becasue they don't release their Seconds anymore. Interestingly, this guy sells mostly to pawn shops and online retailers - one of the reasons I would always ask someone selling online if the item is a second. Some manufacturers just put a 2 on the back rather than the word second. Like most have said, usually it's a cosmetic blemish, but sometimes it's something more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mc5nrg Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 The general view is that most Gibson "seconds" were marked that way because of finish flaws,sometimes very hard to spot,and that the concept loses any meaning for a used instrument.Its possible sometimes when Gibson needed to move product that stamping a big ugly "second" on the back of the headstock allowed a bigger discount to dealers and a tax writeoff moving some slow-selling product out the door and bringing in some income. The "second" or "2" denoting finish flaws was the way the rep explained it when I was working MI retail.There was another category-the "BGN" marked guitar which had more serious flaws and pretty much should be avoided.While some claim they never went to dealers I know personally that some did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gearnut Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 I have a 1976 SG that's a second. I can't find anything wrong with it, and had it checked by a dealer I know and he couldn't find anything on it either. It's just about the best playing guitar I've ever had. So as long as you can play it first, or the place has a return policy, it's probably worth checking it out... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Johnny Park Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 Guitar Showcase has a ton of Ibanez seconds that are half the price of the rest of them, and almost all of them are only seconds because of some orange peeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Help!I'maRock! Posted May 20, 2005 Members Share Posted May 20, 2005 gibson can't get their "firsts" right, i sure wouldn't trust a second. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mc5nrg Posted May 21, 2005 Members Share Posted May 21, 2005 After Henry J and company bought Gibson they theoretically stopped the sale of factory seconds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rpcmrsz Posted February 11, 2016 Members Share Posted February 11, 2016 What does that mean? Saw it on a Gibson Les Paul Artisan. There is never a "second" on a American Gibson guitar ,maybe on a Chinese epiphone . Gibson would rather trash their blemished guitars then sell them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rpcmrsz Posted February 11, 2016 Members Share Posted February 11, 2016 I WAS IN Nashville when they were shredding all the guitars that were in the flood . I cried that day when a beautiful L5, $20000 dollar guitar was shredded. If you could have seen all them beautiful guitars that with a little bleach could have been fixed and played . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted February 11, 2016 Members Share Posted February 11, 2016 I think they used to sell seconds. This thread is over a decade old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members *BLEEP* Posted February 11, 2016 Members Share Posted February 11, 2016 There is never a "second" on a American Gibson guitar ' date='maybe on a Chinese epiphone ... [/quote'] I'm sure I wasn't hallucinating when I saw a few *real* US-made Gibsons in the past with the word "Second" stamped on the back of the headstock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted February 11, 2016 Moderators Share Posted February 11, 2016 Yup, common practise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted February 11, 2016 Moderators Share Posted February 11, 2016 After Henry J and company bought Gibson they theoretically stopped the sale of factory seconds. Indeed, "theoretically", but they also boxed clever. My R7 started out life on it's way to being an R9, but after carving the top there was a blemish in the figure, so it got to become an R7 and I got an 8lb 6oz R7. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chordite Posted February 11, 2016 Members Share Posted February 11, 2016 It means you will be less precious about it and your playing will be less tense because you are in that 'old jeans' comfort zone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members *BLEEP* Posted February 12, 2016 Members Share Posted February 12, 2016 I WAS IN Nashville when they were shredding all the guitars that were in the flood . I cried that day when a beautiful L5' date=' $20000 dollar guitar was shredded. If you could have seen all them beautiful guitars that with a little bleach could have been fixed and played .[/quote'] I believe the guitars you are talking about floated around in water inside the factory for more than a week. A finished or partially finished product like that will be irreversibly damaged from contact with water for that long. Maybe the scratchplates, knobs, and/or certain other plastic parts survived -- maybe. On a related note: Absolutely none of the beautiful-when-seen-in-person Gibson Anniversary Flood LP Studio guitars were ever touched by floodwater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tomm Williams Posted February 12, 2016 Members Share Posted February 12, 2016 I had a LP 25/50 I bought in 1982 that was marked a second. Other than the book-half top not being really well matched (it wasn't bad) I couldn't find anything wrong with it. The "second" marking was far uglier than any visible flaws. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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