PLEK'd guitars

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since the thread got sidetracked by the discrediting or dismissal of PLEK's advantages...in my experience, with almost half of my guitars being plek'd at the factory, they all have things in common:

-no feet buzz anywhere
-no dead/stifled bent notes
-low action

i can't say this about a single one of my non-PLEK'd guitars without having the action high.

I see it as a value added service with no drawbacks. the arguement about the PLEK operator not doing it right is ridiculous. ok I get it, you repair lots. your war stories are anecdotes that do not represent the vast majority. yet you have a sheepish following here.

it would be appreciated if this got back to building a list of PLEK'd guitars. jackson? charvel? bilt? nash?
 
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since the thread got sidetracked by the discrediting or dismissal of PLEK's advantages...in my experience, with almost half of my guitars being plek'd at the factory, they all have things in common:

-no feet buzz anywhere
-no dead/stifled bent notes
-low action

i can't say this about a single one of my non-PLEK'd guitars without having the action high.

I see it as a value added service with no drawbacks. the arguement about the PLEK operator not doing it right is ridiculous. ok I get it, you repair lots. your war stories are anecdotes that do not represent the vast majority. yet you have a sheepish following here.

it would be appreciated if this got back to building a list of PLEK'd guitars. jackson? charvel? bilt? nash?
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Okay,,, NOW who's biased? (and a little jealous)
 
Mincer said:
So, in the end, a skilled worker uses them to save a little time.
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Yep, that's about it.

It's like doing construction with hand tools vs power tools. An idiot will drill a hole poorly with a hand cranked drill bit . . . or drill a hole poorly with a handheld battery operated drill. A skilled craftsman can drill a perfect hole with either, but the battery operated drill will increase his productivity massively.

An idiot operating a Plek machine isn't going to to a significantly better setup than an idiot without one. A skilled person doing a hand setup can make a perfect playing guitar . . . but the same dude operating a Plek machine should be able to create that perfect playing guitar in way less time.
 
What do people charge for a PLEK these days? Are only manufacturers using them or are they making their way to busy luthiers? Aren't the machines pretty expensive?
 
esandes said:
I see it as a value added service with no drawbacks. the arguement about the PLEK operator not doing it right is ridiculous.
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Then you are indeed naive!

esandes said:
ok I get it, you repair lots. your war stories are anecdotes that do not represent the vast majority. yet you have a sheepish following here.
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I wouldn't say Goober has a "following" here. And if you are referring to me, all I can do is laugh. I'm actually one of his greatest critics. But it just so happens that in this case Goober is correct. And as much as I disagree with him a lot on this forum, when someone is right, they are right. I don't disagree with truth. And Goober needs respect for when he is right, and at least for speaking his mind when he isn't!
 
donaldr said:
Don't know other Gibson models but only the nut was plek'd on my 2014 Les Paul LPJ USA.
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That's silly. Are you sure about that?!
What a waste of time to set up a plek machine to do just a nut! It kinda defeats the purpose of the machine. That would be like hiring MJ just to solder a hot wire to the output jack.
 
GuitarStv said:
Yep, that's about it.

It's like doing construction with hand tools vs power tools. An idiot will drill a hole poorly with a hand cranked drill bit . . . or drill a hole poorly with a handheld battery operated drill. A skilled craftsman can drill a perfect hole with either, but the battery operated drill will increase his productivity massively.

An idiot operating a Plek machine isn't going to to a significantly better setup than an idiot without one. A skilled person doing a hand setup can make a perfect playing guitar . . . but the same dude operating a Plek machine should be able to create that perfect playing guitar in way less time.
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That it SOOO right on!!!! :beerchug:
 
GuitarDoc said:
That's silly. Are you sure about that?!
What a waste of time to set up a plek machine to do just a nut! It kinda defeats the purpose of the machine. That would be like hiring MJ just to solder a hot wire to the output jack.
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From (part of) product description:
The mahogany back is strategically weight relieved to improve comfort and enhance resonance. A neck made from hard-wearing maple is glued into the body, and carved to our popular rounded 50s profile that measures .818 at the 1st fret and .963 at the 12th. It is topped with a genuine rosewood fingerboard that carries 22 medium-jumbo frets and traditional trapezoid inlays. Theres no pickguard or fingerboard binding to clutter the straight-on, stripped-down look of the LPJ, while quality touches continue with a PLEK-cut nut made from black Corian to subtly echo the black speed knobs and black pickup rings and covers. The traditional back-angled headstock is silkscreened with a gold Gibson logo that stands out clear and proud.

No mention of full PLEK anywhere else in the full description.
 
As others have said, even a perfect plek job still requires a setup. Almost all acoustics with non-adjustable bridges come from the factory with the action too high. Why? Because if the costumer wants lower action they can file it down, but it's harder to raise the action. Plek doesn't mean your pickups will be set at the right height, or your instrument will be perfectly set up for your string guage, or even that the guitar won't settle after the adjustments.
 
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