Dolling up another Epi LP

[Wattage]

Lots of Epi's are diamonds in the rough. They're generally pretty well made and they usually respond well to some tlc, plus I love messing around with them.

I am a big Steve Jones/Pistols fan so I kind felt like this was speaking to me.

It was uhm.....a little banged up, setup really poorly, a few too many strap pin holes (and glue poured down the front and back trying to fix them lol) but it was still a worthwhile prospect and a good deal. ****2005 Saein factory****

1st off I cleaned the thing 3x before I did anything else to it, it was kind of filthy. Then I sanded off some of the glue and realized the plastick-y gloss finish looked pretty righteous as a nice clean satin finish. So I went and sanded the entire guitar down with 320, then to 600, and finally 800. It cleaned up really nicely and gave the imperfections a nice soft relic'd look. I repaired the bonus strap pin holes and some other minor damage and decided to keep going for it.

I ripped out the EMGs and the wiring then replaced the guts with Bourns 500k audio taper pots, NexGen SoZo .223 caps, a '59TB bridge pickup and an Epi Pro neck - after I removed the cover and a ton of wax. The stock MIC Grovers were shot so I replaced them Gotoh Grover replacements (excellent tuners!), got some proper witch hat knobs, new jack and plate, D'Add strap pins, did a little spot levelling, a fret polish, cleaned up the nut and got some real good replica decals to finish it off. Strung it up with 10-48's and it's a pretty nice Jonesy replica on the cheap.

 

[BenPerkins]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

That’s bad ass! Well done

 

[80's_Metal]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Love the babes!
I don't know who this Steve Jones guy is, but apparently he has good taste in guitars

 

[80's_Metal]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Sorry, I can't stand to look at white LPs. That color just doesn't work right on a LP imo.

When I was a kid, people used to splat bumper stickers all over their cars (and anything else they could touch) because they thought they were "customizing" them and they thought it looked cool. They eventually learned that they had to live with their mistake because they couldn't get them off. Now we are in a different more advanced esthetic age, and we're still making the same mistakes?

 

[Wattage]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

enjoy life Doc, it's too short

oh and taking waterslide decals off a poly finish is a pretty simple affair :27:

 

[Wattage]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Here's the original guitar before it became a Sex Pistol

Sylvain from the New York Dolls owned it first, their manager took it when he split on them, brought it back to England and gave it to Steve to use.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Sorry, I can't stand to look at white LPs. That color just doesn't work right on a LP imo.

While white is a color I think works better on other guitars than it does on LP's, I wouldn't go as far as to say I can't stand to look at them. Certainly it's much better than pink, chartreuse, mint green, or powder blue.

 

[RorySquier]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Here's the original guitar before it became a Sex Pistol

Sylvain from the New York Dolls owned it first, their manager took it when he split on them, brought it back to England and gave it to Steve to use.

View attachment 97926

I didn't know that Sylvain's Les Paul was given to Steve?! I think both are excellent guitarists. BTW...I have a collection of Sex Pistol vinyl albums that I bought in the mid-80's and a Sex Pistols 10th anniversary t-shirt I bought in '86. Your guitar turned out awesome...especially sanding down the body for a satin finish...a bold move. Now go play your geetar you lazy sod!:headbang:



;>)/

 

[Wattage]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

I saw the Pistols a couple of times when they reunited - first night at Roseland in NYC was insane!

I love the Dolls and the Pistols so it was a fun guitar to work on, I was going to flip it but I think I am going to do a few gigs as a Pistols tribute first lol

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

I love white tuxedo LPs. Nice work. Looks much improved.

Where did you get the matching stickers?

Did you change the bridge? Or the tailpiece? (Looks slightly mismatched, just wondering what the improvement was)

I last saw Steve Jones playing with Iggy Pop in the 90’s. That was a show.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

enjoy life Doc, it's too short

I totally agree. And I DO enjoy life. And I allow others to also enjoy it whatever way pleases them (even if it's owning a white LP). It was just my personal taste about white LPs. I actually love white SGs and Strats, however. I have a white '57 Strat that is my pride and joy, a white Tele, a white SG, and a white Wilshire. And love 'em all. It would be a waste of money for me to own a white LP though...it would stay in its case in a closet, out of the way and out of my mind.

oh and taking waterslide decals off a poly finish is a pretty simple affair :27:

I didn't realize they were waterslides. Yeah, taking off waterslides is pretty simple and quick to do...easy to correct that mistake.

 

[OLDERBUDWISER]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

I love white tuxedo LPs. Nice work. Looks much improved.

Where did you get the matching stickers?

Did you change the bridge? Or the tailpiece? (Looks slightly mismatched, just wondering what the improvement was)

I last saw Steve Jones playing with Iggy Pop in the 90’s. That was a show.

Tuxedo LPs look 100% classy to me

 

[Wattage]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

I love white tuxedo LPs. Nice work. Looks much improved.

Where did you get the matching stickers?

Did you change the bridge? Or the tailpiece? (Looks slightly mismatched, just wondering what the improvement was)

I last saw Steve Jones playing with Iggy Pop in the 90’s. That was a show.

Thanks

I got the decals from https://pinupsplus.com/

I shot them with a clear coat and trimmed them to match the wear from Steve's original before I applied them againt Doc's best judgement:18:

The tail and bridge are the stock pieces. I cleaned them up and flipped the bridge around to accomodate some wear. I may upgrade them but it isn't necessary in anyway.

I would've loved to see Jonesy with Iggy. I saw the Instinct tour but McCoy was playing with him, no complaints, Hanoi Rocks are Gods to me. Steve offered to replace Ron in the Stooges after he passed from what I've heard, I would have followed that tour around for a few shows for sure.

 

[Wattage]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Oh yeah I did a truss rod cover as well

 

[SAguitar]

Re: Dolling up another Epi LP

Job well done! Epiphones just beg for you to turn them into outrageous instruments.