to relic or not to relic

[Eyesenish]

hey guys new here just bought 2 G-400 customs in 3 days lol one is a 2007 from china the other is a 2005 forw korea although the korean made of better quality is damaged it has multiple dings and a big one on headstock so i was thinking maybe do a relic wit it but i havent seen alot of sg relics

 

[ScottMarlowe]

Epi Les Paul Custom SGs are a thing of beauty.

Not sure on relicing. Problem is that poly wears totally different from nitro, tending to have chunks knocked out over time, but not a lot of wear from putting your arm on it etc. Nitro wears like you've been slowly sanding your guitar with 1200 grit paper, poly tends to wear like you've been whacking it with blunt objects. So if I was gonna relic it I'd probably try to make it look like nitro wear, and take a belt sander to it. My guess is that such a relic job would remain stable without a lot of change over time.

Let me guess, the one with thicker headstock binding is the Korean one?

 

[Robus]

The answer is always....don't do it!

 

[Eyesenish]

the korean is the one with the knobs place in a square pattern instead of diamond not much difference with biding although the paint line is way more straight on the korean than chinese

 

[Eyesenish]

heres closeup picsnof the big ding on the headstock it looks like its the laquer thats cracked all the way in

 

[DrBGood]

IF I was to do something like that, I wouldn't go at it with a belt sander, best way to go too far and ruin it. I'd get the harware off the body and wet sand the usual wear spots. Back of neck, elbow wear, light pick stokes above the pickups. A few chips on the bottom, maybe some buckle worming in the back. Then age the hardware. Wet sand pu covers in a linear pattern between strings, by doing it upside down it shoudn't affect the bobbins.

But I'm with Robus on this, don't do it.

 

[Eyesenish]

ok yeah i guess you guys are right if i touch it ill prob end up fukin it up like half the people that do relics do,but one thing il do though id the korean im completly tearing up and upgrading bridge,tailpeice,pus,tuners,nut,new strings good cleaning and i think ill put nickle hardware instead of gold and the tuners ill probly put grover vintage deluxemsince i already have a new set laying aroud

 

[ScottMarlowe]

The outer layer of binding on the Korean is MUCH thicker than the Chinese made one. Just hold them next to each other and look. And yes, the knobs are in the wrong place, but not as bad as many Korean made SGs. It's not uncommon to see Korean SGs with the knobs in a square pattern that's parallel to the ground etc.

Did either these customs come with 14:1 or 18:1 grovers? The TV Pelham Blue one did, and they're great. Might change the kidney beans for metal tulips on mine some day tho. Just feel better.

About the belt sander comment. You're gonna go through a LOT of poly to get to wood. A LOT. A belt sander with something like 1800 grit is gonna go through it slow and smoothly. I'm not against doing it by hand, but you're gonna get quite a workout doing it.

But I concur with most other folks. Don't do it. And if you're gonna do it, pick up a $99 Epi from GC or something and practice on that first.

 

[Metal89]

They are both gorgeous!

 

[Eyesenish]

about the tuners im not sure but guessing theyre both 14:1as for relicing i wont but like i said on my last post im gonna mod that korean one,i wont touch the chinese one since its like new ,when the guy sold it to me all the plastics were still on the guards and rear covers, and yes you were right the korean one has thicker of binding on it

 

[lineboat]

Poly is almost impossible to do a fake relic. It's thick, tough, and not suppose to wear like that. Nitro is normally thin, wears easily, and simple to replicate wear on.

I recently picked up an Epi LP that someone attempted a relic on. Looks like it had been dropped out of an airplane onto a gravel pile. I sanded on it a little, smoothed some of he rough chunks out, and may or may not smooth it on out and paint it. it's actually a really good sounding and playing guitar.
Point is, someone made a big mistake and was disgusted with it. I picked it up for nothing. Don't make that mistake.

If you do wanna try to relic something, practice on a piece of wood first. Without any poly involved. Then fix yourself up a nice "vintage" looking guitar.

 

[83 Blazer]

If they were mine I'd just take the strings off, clean off the dust, put some new strings on and play on. But I like the gold hardware on customs and the way it ages.

I dulled the poly finish on a guitar with sandpaper once and it looked ok from a distance. Improved the playability of the neck no end to the point where I give it a light sand every once and a while.
But I recently polished the top back up and it looks pretty good now.

I guess I'm saying lots of relicing doesn't look that great unless the guitar was going to end up that way with lots of playing. Poly just chips and lifts like has happened on that headstock. I'd keep it close to what it is.
But good luck whatever you choose. You have two really sweet looking guitars there.

 

[Gahr]

Any guitar will relic itself. Just give it 30 years of playing time. As far as I'm concerned, a guitar has to earn it's own scratches and dings by proving it is worth playing.

 

[Biddlin]

hey guys new here just bought 2 G-400 customs in 3 days lol one is a 2007 from china the other is a 2005 forw korea although the korean made of better quality is damaged it has multiple dings and a big one on headstock so i was thinking maybe do a relic wit it but i havent seen alot of sg relics

As a tech for 40 years, I don't believe you can fake natural play wear, such as the Korean's headstock now displays. Just play out and jam in the barn with it and in a few years you'll have a perfect relic. Meanwhile, the ocd you can polish and baby the Chinese model,(which, in owner surveys, is rated slightly higher for playability and sound than the Korean builds) keeping her for studio and parlor use. A perfect solution! Congratulations.
;>)/

 

[Eyesenish]

i actually need to send the chinese one to a tech though, it needs a good setup but damn is she perty

 

[dub-setter]

hi...

i have one of these as well (a chinese one)
and would recommend the following for upgrade:

-light sand the neck for better playability ( not so sticky)
-some lemon oil for the fretboard
-a new nut (tusq or bone)
-whole set up of bridge/tailpiece
(eventually exchange to another brand,though mine work well)
-new switchcraft jack and toggle switch
-pick up upgrade as your likes (di marzio, p 90 etc..)

those are sweet guitars and with a little work "decent rockers"

i like the grover tuners , just changed the buttons to nickel tulip ones

 

[DrBGood]

They must be well balanced (no neck dive) with the added pickup weight in the body. Had a chance to get one last year, feather weight. Never thought of going P90 on her. When I get back home, I'll go see if it's still in the store, look at it more closely and make a ridicoulous offer. They were asking $350. In the past 10 years, I never paid that much for a guitar.

How are the necks on these, regular SG thin ?

 

[dub-setter]

yap...
unilke other g 400 ´s with the grovers, these are relatively balanced
as u mentioned the third pick up..

mine feels still light with 7 lbs overall weight

the neck i would say is more like a baseball bat,
not as thin as the specials or sgjs...
may depending on year/plant

 

[Vinlander]

These are nice SGs, I love the fact they have bound neck...
Regarding relicing, to answer the question, I never was a fan of that except for its original purpose which was to bring a new part to the same looking age as the rest of an existing guitar.

 

[Eyesenish]

hey dub-setter nice Sg there mate i was acually thinking of adding a p94 as well but wondering if its a good idea because bridge and middle wil be 57+ and 57s (removing them from my gibson lp since i bought bareknuckles) so im wondering if the p94 would be too high of output?