Can You Make A FAKE Gibson As Good As The Real Deal? Ali Express CHIBSON! 

The real question is can Gibson match the build quality of a $200 Chibson

I spent $199 for a Gold Top about 4 years ago, did the standard fretwork and equipment swaps and its absolutely magical. Not even gonna lie. I don't give a fuck what anyone says.

Gibsons are not that even great to begin with, especially for the price. They can't even stay in tune. Slash used a fake Gibson when recording Appetite for Destruction and I bet it was better than the "real" one.

Couple years ago I bought two Chibson from different sellers and I gotta say after bit work they both came out way better than expected. One of them was hgh end with nitro and full flame top etc.

I swear all the guitar stores on AliExpress are the same store. They respond when you first contact them and then ghost you after you pay. Then it takes a month to ship even though they say yes it’s in stock. I ordered two from two different stores and didn’t get either one. Both were refunded after filing a complaint.

Dude, that's just a built in ring-modulator! Please do more of these videos. Really fun

I am a competent guitar tech, so in terms of the fret work, nut cut and set up that’s nothing but my time. The problem with the fakes that I see when people have brought them to me is the cheap parts, it’s going to cost to upgrade even to the point of “ok” and to get to premium the investment is just not worth it. The biggest problem which you won’t notice for a while is the wood itself. It’s not cured properly the wood is going to twist and shift and eventually the neck is going to be a roller coaster or question mark. The frets are garbage as well three or four crownings away from needing to be replaced. There are inexpensive guitars from good factories to be had for $700 bucks, good out of the box just a set up required and ready to go. If you really want to honor another player by playing their “signature” buy a completely usable guitar for $700 then pay someone to do finish work, don’t copy but pick a theme that matches and spend a few hundred on that.

But... If you are into amateur liuthering and fancy a challenge, you could have a lot of fun putting your hands on one and modding it just like you want it. And have the satisfaction of making it playable.

I’ve just got the Chibson Greeny off of Ebay. Arrived in 8 days to the UK which was a shock. It was fully playable straight from the box. It just needed some fret polishing. The frets themselves were smooth at the edges. I myself bought this for a project in order to practise wiring, and pickup replacements without doing it on a 5k guitar. So with this one I am going to replace the tailpiece, bridge, pickups and electronics. I am also going to fully relic it and remove the “Gibson” logo.

I appreciate pointing out all the tiny details that help us identify low-quality construction. I've been playing guitar over 20 years and have never looked into any of this, it's all very interesting and helpful.

The reality of Gibson is their $5000 les Paul’s play just like chibsons when they are finished building. The only thing different is Gibson has a extreme luthier’s section where they spend a lot of time setting up the guitar and frets, and they already put good pickups in them. That’s it, there are a few quality fails chibsons have however, like their routing job is sloppy and their hardware is ass, but no one is gonna see the inside and you should replace the hardware.

Fun watch! I did a similar experiment a decade or so ago ($350 black Les Paul custom) and the results were identical. Managed to sell it shortly after and my monetary losses were minimal 😂

A great way to get an amazing guitar (and learn a bit about how guitars go together) is to build your own parts-caster. I've made 2 really nice instruments using Warmoth parts. Start with a Tele style guitar though ;). TheTele I put together is my current favourite guitar and was assembled in an afternoon with very few tools. Probably equally good as my Tom Anderson Tele

I love and am thankful for honest individuals like you who take the time and money to help inform others about the trappings of going the super-cheap route. Also, it seems your tech's recommendation of just getting an Epiphone and not worrying about the hassle of getting a Chibson playable was an honest and helpful tip. Thank you so much. I think I'm going to get your book too.

I bought a Jimi Page number 2 cause I wanted a wall hanger and didn't want to spend 40 gs for a Gibby JP2. What I ended up with is a phenomenal playing instrument, thT only required a little amount of time and some new hardware, which I had on hand. Fret work was excellent fit and finish was as good as most Gibbs I seen these days. Nuff Said

I got curious a few months ago and bought a Jimmy Page LP Chibson, for £250. The flame maple itself looks good, but the colour and paint is a bit disappointing. There is no fret binding either. I asked them to leave "Gibson" off the headstock but they didn't, so I slashed out the "made in USA" and cut "in China" into the back of the headstock. As for the sound, it's surprisingly really, really good. I don't think they're wax potted, but I have no issues with microphonics. There are no screws in the humbuckers themselves, and the screws on the pickup covers are only decorative. The Grover tuners are decent on mine, too, but it probably varies from guitar to guitar. I had intended to swap all the electronics and pickups out, and replace them with Seymour Duncans, and better wiring but, to be honest, it sounds really good as it is. People are very surprised when I tell them it's a fake. I don't think there's anything wrong with buying one as long as it's not to be used to con people. The only issue I really have is the name "Gibson" on it. If they were made without that, they would be really popular budget guitars, rather than knock offs. It even came properly intonated. Mine came with a truss rod (that needed a slight adjustment) but apparently this can be an issue as some won't even have one.

Sounds like a absolute nightmare to go through all that. I’d rather go for a Sire or Epiphone for that price. If you ever get the chance to play a Tokai or Greco, I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on that.

Hi Levi, first video of yours I've come across and nicely produced and good to see another British voice in the guitar world online :) You're 100% correct about NOT buying these knock offs, as cute as they might look hanging on the wall, they are a ton of work to make usable. I'm a big fan of the Vintage/JHS range of guitars and have picked up some lovely fully-legit "copies" of Strats/Les Pauls over the years, some that needed a bit of work (but not much) and some that were great straight out of the box. I also love Squiers and Epiphones (especially the old Korean ones) which I've picked up for anything between £80 for Squiers to £250 for a fantastic Epiphone Lemon Burst. Right now, if I had £500-£600 to spend, I'd go straight for one of the Yamaha Revstar range as they are knocking it out of the park with build quality, sound and style. In summary then, Chibsons are a lot of stress and potentially wasted money. I see people trying to sell them on Facebook - usually being 100% honest about being a copy - but they'd struggle to get £200 for one, and most hang around for ages unsold. The Chinese make some great guitars as does Indonesia. Forget what's on the headstock, especially if it's fake as fook - get a guitar that you can play out of the box from a reputable store in your own country and enjoy a grief free experience 👍

A Les Paul studio in a fair condition is about 750 quids. Maybe an Epiphone, Ltd or Sire Larry Carlton L7 would be a great alternative in this price range. Thanks for the demo and the warnings. I was curious but now I'm never getting a chibson ever.

I really enjoyed this entire video. I never knew how importing the fake stuff worked, and seeing the process in your video was fascinating. Thanks for doing this so the rest of us do not have to!

if you spend $600+ you should buy the Epiphone Custom Ebony it cost $700+ it was good as the Gibson custom

Great watch dude. I dont know if you remember my "Vintage" as in the brand Greeny LP knock off complete with out of phase PAF pickups, it was by far one of the best necks/guitars for me with beautiful lemon burst & the weight you'd expect but it still cant hold a candle next to the best guitar ive ever owned.... my genuine early 80s Gibson Explorer 2 (the guitar that got away, that makes me cry as i write this) ......So however good the LP was it wasnt a Gibson so i sold it to my brother. I wouldn't get a copy from Ali Express, my first wife bought a wedding dress from there and we'd divorced long before it turned up 😂

I have a bb king Lucille guitar..and a glarry case...😊 It's so cool..

I really enjoyed the guitar tech and how you added him explaining all the things wrong with it! Keep it up!🤘🏻

i had to try 3 of these : THEY SOUNDED GREAT .. better than epiphone. so let's assume you chose the very bad one 🙂

I don't understand why anyone buys fake Gibsons when you can simply buy an Epiphone. They are very reasonably priced and very well made. Wy take the chance on some crappy stuff from Ali Express?

The guitars look great online. It just doesn't make sense to spend that kind of money on a gamble. Really nice guitars can be had for the same amount without any of those issues, and they are legal.

I must’ve really lucked out then because I got the black and white bull’s-eye with active pick ups looks and plays great I also bought the EVH Franken Strat. I had an original $2000 one I had to sell the $200 one that I got off of Ali express plays and looks 100% better even has the reflectors and blue paint the only complaint is the whammy bar is ridiculously high, easy fix ordered one off of Amazon for $16 all in all both play great…. not to mention I got them within seven days seven days to be exact. I looked for the same thing you did a response of seller and also one that had a reasonable shipping time my 2 shiped with sf express

Just acquired a “Greeny” Chibson Les Paul this week. I got it as a project guitar to upgrade. It came in way better than I expected. It even has fret nibs. Playability is great. Only thing is the fretboard has NO SIDE DOTS 😂. No biggie tho. It’s a project. But it’ll be dope when it’s finished.

I got a Gibson and bought a Chibson from DHGATE, so i have owned them both for over 4 years now and I prefer the Chibson for my heavy sound, Gibson sounds nicer playing clean. The Chibson was 270 quid with the delivery, so this depends on luck i guess...I am shocked that China can make such nice instruments.

I was looking into a custom build from the Gibson Custom Shop. I'm a big fan of ES140s and wondered about getting a new one built. The ES Les Pauls are already almost there, so asked about doing one of those with the 22.75" scale like the 140. Get the quote.... $20-25k. NOPE. So as an experiment I ordered a chibson and asked about short scale. "Tony" said he could do it. I didnt have high hopes, but lo and behold he nailed it. I did swap hardware and frets. Did the hardware and electronics myself, and a trusted luthier did the fretjob. All in I was just under $800. Its one of my main road guitars.

I’ve been subbed to your channel a couple of years I rang the bell and this is the first notification I got through ? Is it just me I don’t know but am glad now I’ve got a lot of catching up to do .great post 👌👍

Great video thanks for putting it out. What if someone wants maybe a black Chibson LP (no awful graphics etc) changed the pickups yourself to quality used items and set it up yourself ? This way there is little dead money and in the future possibly sold obviously as a fake item for what was paid for it originally? Win win??

Yeah they usualy are unplayable if one demands a bit more. "Playable" that is an very tutchy subject as one can play them fresh out of the box, well something. Gibsons are well made thru and thru as Chibsons only what one can see and not always even that. There is a mess inside the neck with an cheap kind of trussrod so that the guitar will never stay put it will shift over and over again where dead notes comes and goes. Inside an affordable guitar there is often an nightmare as one works with them all kind of wierd stuff poops out the most unspected one was an ortopedic footplaster. Today again i was adjusting an problematic neck, its truss and all the sudden one bit of some plastic crap pooped out and finaly i was able in fine tuning that relife. I doubt that one will encounter problems as such with an Gibson.

You bring up a good point Levi about factories and sellers. There's a lot of sellers, which all use the same or similar pictures. However there's only a couple of factories in China which all of the sellers use. Basically you order a guitar, the seller goes to the factories and enquires which one will make it for the least amount. So there's no guarantee what you're paying for is the guitar you'll actually get. But looking at the star ratings, feedback percentage and actual feedback from customers is the only way to partially guarantee what you're buying is what you'll get. The other thing to do is contact the seller before you purchase. As you found out, some don't respond even after payment. But if they don't respond before payment it's a big red flag. The second guitar I bought, I went back and forth for 2 weeks to make sure it was as I wanted it. The seller was engaging and that guitar turned out pretty well. So I ordered a third from the seller and ended up being garbage and unplayable (they shaved the lower side of the neck to fit the neck pocked making the fretboard uneven LOL). I thought I could just change the neck but that wasn't the case. I managed to get some money back but was still out of pocket. Also, always ask whether the guitar is in stock and can be shipped right away. If it can, then the guitar you're viewing is probably the guitar you're getting. But remember, if you ask for anything extra or changed, they generally have to make a whole new guitar and can take weeks to make. And if something goes wrong, you may have to extend the shipping time with the seller. But if the seller's engaging, then it's generally not a problem. Most sellers allow you to add some custom options to your order. Its a good idea to remove the branding (i.e. Gibson, Fender etc). But you can also add your own serial numbers - by adding a serial number that would never correspond to what the manufacturer would use (like - 000001) you can keep it looking legit and shouldn't be confused with a trademark guitar (and helps with Border Security) As for the quality of the parts used and the setup, well that's entirely out the door. As you found, most just hammer the frets in and call it good. Fretwork and nut work is one thing you'll need to address and if you can't do it yourself, then thats an extra cost. Prepare to do the work. Pickups are generally ordinary too, but can sometimes surprise you. I still would count on changing them. These days there's so many better options than taking a risk buying Chibsons (or fender knockoffs), providing you're not a brand snob and can deal with different headstock shapes and names. At least with these there's warranty and many provide free returns if it's not up to par (unlike Ali-express). I wouldn't necessarily say don't do it, but know what you're getting into and what can go wrong if you do decide to go that path. Without doubt, every single one I've bought needed work but I expected that. And at least a couple were totally unplayable and unrecoverable. I also have a few that exceeded my expectations and are perfectly playable after the work.

"It's like they (the Chinese craftsmen) are making these with their eyes closed." Hmmm, hahahahaha.

It is 1000 times better to buy another brand than getting a chibson. I haven't seen any chibson which looks like an original Gibson. The mother pearl absence on chibsons and the logos sizes on the headstock always speak louder... I don't understand why people think that can look like a Gibson There's nothing worst than trying to be something you're not... There are other brands better than Gibson today ... Why would you like to be related to a brand that gives nothing and wants a lot of money for your purchase? Look for other brands instead of getting a chibson

You’re clean picking at 13:20 😂😂😂 “The frets were terrrrrrible”

i have had a couple of chibsons and the basic quality of the timber and finish is good and you spend say around $300 on new electric and a set up and you have a guitar equal to most gibsons for a third of the price

I bought one in 2023. The quality was poor on all components and had pretty bad visual imperfections in the finish. The nut was cut too low and the 12th fret was installed crooked then over filed so it played like total trash. However, I replaced the nut, pulled and replaced the frets and replaced everything else with real brand components. Now the guitar plays like a dream but it ended up costing about the same as a Gibson once you buy replacement parts, tools to do the jobs right, shipping on everything, time invested learning how to fix the problems, etc. Would I do it again? I dunno it was hell but I do now have all the tools and a new skill. 😂

Maybe because I'm a new viewer, but I've been enjoying the variety of videos you've been uploading, as opposed to just the transcription videos.

Its very possible to fix but would take alot of sanding

Why not spend that money on a pre 2000's Yamaha/Greco/Tokai etc.? Build quality rivals that of Gibbys for around /slightly higher price of Chibbys.

*You should do a transcription video of your "before" solo just for chuckles.* 😄👍

i have 4 chibsons and with some work i am quite happy with them. i also have gibsons and epiphones. find the right builder. be prepared to change electronics and do some fret filing. change the nut. do a nice setup and you have a good playing guitar. that said yours has arrived in worse condition than any of the ones i bought

if a a fake gibson is Ch-ibson and a fake Fender is Ch-ender ,what is a fake Charvelle or Chapman or Chiquita?

Fret work. New pickups. Long as tpu get decent pots and wiring and tuners. Really can get good pickups sometimes. Honestly gibson custom shops have no wax potted pick ups. So food for thought. Def fret work tho

Well if you are ordering a fake gibson les paul from someone who is manufacturing them, for them to go through customs fine just ask them not to put the gibson logo on the headstock

I purchased a off brand guitar and all I can say it was amazing when I got it totally amazing

I spotted right off that the black custom should be an ebony fret board not rosewood or laurel.

I used to be a major cork-sniffer about gear: ONLY USA Gibsons and Fenders and all others are inferior. In recent years, however, I've found that the Chinese, Indonesians, and other foreign countries who make import "low end" guitars can make a LOT of instrument for not much money. More recently, I've been buying cheap Chinese necks online and just doing all the fret and finishing work myself with fantastic results. You can build an instrument that punches way above its weight class in terms of features and quality for under 500 bucks using Chinese parts and a little elbow grease.

If i dont have the logo on it will it be fine to go through customs?

The more I look into it, I've realized. It's just not going to be worth me buying a budget 6. I love my Ibanez 8, absolutely smitten to be precise. It's not a prestige either or their other pricey models. It's just a good quality guitar without flaws that got through QC. I'm determined that when I finally bite the bullet on a 6 string, it will be factory premiere everything, or I'll just buy eye candy with a good body and everything can get gutted and rebuilt by professional. Thanks, Levi. 🤜 I really appreciate the detailed look at alternative avenues of purchasing. Have a great weekend brother.

The Gibson on the headstock is the problem, I wasn't expecting that. Nowhere in the ads for Les Pauls I've seen on Aliexpress does it say 'Gibson', but they don't show the headstock in the ads. I love Aliexpress, I've bought something most fortnights for about 5 years, and I spent $500 on a saxophone that was a great buy a couple of years ago, so I've been eyeing those Les Pauls off for a while now! I can't afford to have it destroyed though!

A Graphtech nut is a easy and cheap solution.

I have 2 Chibsons. A LP that is about 14 years old, and a DG 335 that’s about 12 years old. It has nothing to do with not being able to afford a real Gibson, I just haven’t really ever liked Gibson compared to stat style guitars. Aside from looking really good, they’re heavy and uncomfortable. All my other guitars aren’t fake. They’re the real deal. I could afford a $5000 les Paul, but I never liked them enough to justify paying that much for a guitar just because it’s trendy. The LP Chibson I bought was from a guy locally, and it’s just as good as a Gibson as far as I’m Concerned. Aside from Not having a nitro finish you can’t really tell the difference. I upgraded everything on it except the stop tail piece. Correct 50’s wiring with the right type of wire, paper in oil caps, ect. It was done right. It’s never been my favorite guitar, but no one has ever questioned it for it’s looks or sound. The dg-335 was impossible to get new in the pellam blue color, and the used market prices skyrocketed almost immediately. Again, I could afford a real one easily new, but I wasn’t about to pay 10-15k for a guitar on the used market. Especially one I’ve never played or even held in person. So I got a Chibson one from a site that doesn’t even exist anymore. All they sold was that guitar and you basically had the choice to how it was made. So I got the nitro finish, and the thin bridge posts that were drilled into the guitar like a real one. Didn’t even have the electronics put in it because I knew I’d change them. At the time the aliexpress ones had binding in the diamond holes and the fret markers were to small. This site was doing them right. So for $450 I figured, what the hell? When it came It looked perfect, especially the finish. The color was the exact Pelham Blue. It even has the orange sticker in the diamond hole that was correct. I got all the right hardware and electronics again and real Grover tuners. That guitar was the biggest pain in the ass to wire I’ve ever done. I bitched and cussed a lot and almost threw it at the wall, but I finally got it done. So I had 2 Fake Gibson, woohoo. About 5 years ago guitar center had a really good sale on a Les Paul standard so i bought it, and I took it back 3 days later because I liked the Chibson better. It sounded better and played better, even the flame and burst blend was better. And one day the volume Pot on the dg335 started shorting out. I wired it, so it was my fault. I didn’t have the patience to figure out what the problem was so I took it to one of the last independent music stores in my area that was supposed to have a great tech. He’s worked there for 40 years, and it completely fooled him. He thought it was real, saying never to get rid of it because it will probably be like the 59 Les Pauls are price wise in the future. I laughed and told Him it wasn’t real. The look on his face was priceless. He though I was joking, and when I assured him it was fake He looked it over for a few minutes and his amazement changed to being pissed off. He said he’d have never repaired it if he had known. It was just a lose solder joint on the switch, so it wasn’t like he restored a counterfeit guitar. He lectured me about the moral aspects of it and all that. I told him I had no intentions of selling it, but he didn’t care. He was still pissed. He said he would have stamped it as a fake if he had known. It was to late by then, I already had the guitar in my hands and in the case, but we didn’t part on good terms. I’m probably black listed there now. I haven’t been back since so I don’t really know. I think he was more upset with himself for not knowing it was fake. He’s probably never seen a real one before so he had nothing to compare it too. But they can’t be that much different than An ES-335. Either way he treated me like I was trying to rip them off when it was just a simple repair. So long Story short, Yes, you can get a Chibson that is comparable to a Gibson if you go through the right seller. All guitars are CNC now unless it comes from A boutique builder. It’s not like the old days when they were truly hand made and each one was different depending on who the person was that built it. Theoretically guitars should be cheaper now because of the CNC manufacturing. That’s why you can get a lesser known brand that can rival the big names. Half the price is probably in the name, and not the quality. There’s a video on RU-vid of a guy in a band that I can’t remember the name of, be he had a private stock prs that the neck broke off on stage. He made a video of him shredding on a $100 Amazon guitar and amp package and he could play it just as good as a private stock prs. He didn’t say it was just a good as the prs, but the point was you don’t need an expensive guitar to be a good player. I call It headstock syndrome, which I admit to having. Fender and Gibson headstocks just look right for some reason. Even Suhr guitars that are supposed to be good guitars, maybe even better than fender just don’t look right because of the headstock. Oh, and the site I got the dg335 from even included the coa book with the picture in it and fake Dave Grohl signed paperwork. I don’t know if that’s still a thing or not. I never plan on selling it, but for some reason I did I’d make it very clear it’s a replica. I don’t think they’re bad guitars for the money or a project. It’s the people that rip off people that don’t know any better that give the guitars a bad reputation.

I bought one in a burst and stripped it to the wood. Replaced everything. Even the Gibson logo is going. Ebay shopping was the saver. Burstbucker 1&2 pups, bone nut. Grover vintage tuners. New Aluminum stop tail piece and roller bridge. Redid the frets ends and leveled a, crowned and polished the fret. oiled the bone dry fingerboard. All the pots and switch were replaced with the Original equivilent Bourne pots, braided wire and paper and oil tone caps. Many hours of work(I;M retired, so). It came out good. Isn't painted right but I'm not going there. For a bedroom guitar or maybe a loaner to the Grandkids Meh...850.00 bucks into it.

Man i just bought a iyv guitar it was awesome 7 peice neck through for 210 bucks swapped electronics no setup and its a straight killer. My opinion is very different.

Chinese Ace Frehely model is a excellent product. I've owned the 1997 Korean model for 25 years. Just as good if not better. The Korean model has Demarzio pickups, I don't know the brand of Humbucker the Chinese use, however their hot and articulate. Clean or distorted. The neck on the Chinese is styled like the American Ace model 1959. The Epiphone is a thinner neck.

I have a chibson with all custom internals. Sounds amazing

Sounds great and if it plays nice then I think it's a pretty good deal. Especially for someone wanting to learn how to set up guitars. I see these more as a decent kit guitar anyways 😁

what language is the tech speaking?

I went this route around 2014. Bought 2 Chibsons for less than $450 shipped. One was a Orange burst Page replica, One was a Liefson Axcess copy. Fret work was garbage. Electronics were un labeled cheapies and all the hardware was pot metal junk. Mini cheap pots, hide glue all over the bodies under the finish. But from 10 feet away they looked the part. No mater how much you spend though in upgrades they will never play like Gibson does. They are literally props imo.

VG video! Great content. I've played now for over 50 yrs, and have played (like you) everything out there. Outside of the headstock there really is not a significant difference in LP custom or production models. What I can say is if you are looking to save big money on a LP style guitar, take a STRONG look at the Cool Z LP (Dignity Model) used market. The Dignity mode guitar is based on the LP Custom specs and produced at the Fujigen factory in Japan. Remember this factory made Gibson's Epiphones back in the day. The Cool Z line is no longer made (now FGN) and a vg condition will run you (with ship from Japan) under $675 USD. The Strat models are as good as any Strat I've played also (this factory made the MIJ Fenders for over a decade). Give them a try, they are spot on alternatives to many overpriced USA models.

Thanks for your video I was considering doing just that like you did and upgrading everything..like you say cheaper to just buy actual Gibson at the end of the day.

I just saw a website saying 90% off Selling "gabzon" sgs and flying Vs oh and IBENEZ Jem's Not Ibanez all for under 25$ I wanna buy one but I don't trust it

Great Wall hanger

I bought a licensed Evh 5150 for $1700 and I hate it, does that mean I’m cool now?

I really don't care about the finish or other details but, my question... can it play decently?

This was a good watch, I've been hoovering the buy-buttons on aliexpress a few times but this really made me un-hoover. Think I'd be better off with a harley benton from thomann or similar.

Great video. The story on these guitars always seems the same. People buy them and have to do a bunch of fretwork, change all the electronics, pickups and often tuners and bridge. That is if they made it through customs and showed up undamaged in shipping to begin with. By this time, they have often spent enough to buy a real used Studio or Jr/Special or a very good new Epiphone. A few months back I was in a shop that carries a lot of used and they had a Studio on consignment that had the best top I've ever seen on a Studio and it was priced about $800. I can't imagine rolling the dice on a fake when I could get something like that guitar which not only looks better but is legal to sell and will likely hold its value. Just have to be patient and look around.

I had a Gibson copy that was better than the real thing, a 1960s Matsumoku , I played Les Paul standards in shops and they were very dissappointing after playing the Matsumoku copy for years

yeah people tend to forget that you might not even get the guitar at all...bc customs does their job properly for once..so did you get the bullseye version after all ?

I got a £200 chibson secondhand and stripped all the upgraded parts from previous owner. Emg81/85 solderless pots etc, locking tuners by sperzel and sold all the bits and almost had a free unloaded guitar. Upgraded with irongear parts and Wilkinson hardware and made it to a Jimmy page copy. Looked good and played amazing. Could I sell it? No I couldn’t. Absolute nightmare! Got removed from every sale sight for being a replica or fake. It was listed as a replica and I also scraped fake into the back of headstock. Ended up trading it for another guitar. Wouldn’t try and do it again

What about Aliexpress brands trying to make their own brand like nk guitars or Goc?

Levi what pedal were you using?

One of the best players i ever heard swore by agile guitars you can get them used cheaper than a epiphone and way way way better

Lol feb 20 I went on a binge and ordered 5. Now I’m really nervous. Only one was a try chibson in the sense it had “gibson” on the headstock. The others I had customized to say my and my daughters name. Hopefully they get here.

That's the biggest problem with the Chinese knock-offs ..unscruplist (sp) sellers will sell them as the real thing ..and that sucks ! You're honest review was very refreshing .

It Is pot luck. I bought a gold top for £156 delivered and the workmanship was flawless. I've upgraded some hardware for about £100 and it's really great. Going to gig It hard.

I've been hopping around S.E Asia teaching English for 11 years. Your guitar tech would have my students crying...

I fancy an Ali-Goldtop but fk Horder Force busting me!! Hitting Ebay I can get a Burney GT with a 15mm maple top and Mahogany everything else for sub 300 kingheads and it doesn't have slot headed tunomatic bridge (always loads cheap asf).. Has an open book headstock too and you can buy Gibson decals so overall a better bet.. I think... that said I need to check them out on youtube first.

I’ve ordered 3 guitars from AliExpress, first guitar arrived with neck snapped off, the other 2 weren’t damaged at all and the one I wanted most was perfect, pickups sucked

This is such a great video mate. I’ve been watching your transcription stuff for ages trying to learn little bits of wisdom from you here & there- this is a welcome change of pace, love your insight

I see what you're saying might want to put a set of Seymour Duncan pick ups in there the pick ups aren't that great but you done some good playing.

So what if you told the seller not to put on a name like Gibson or fender on the headstock? Would it still get confiscated? Probably not because no brand names being used.

tip for chibson buyers: get a revstar

If it’s illegal to make a guitar look like a Les Paul - at least shape wise, why are there so many non-Gibson Les Paul’s from other major guitar brands hanging in the same stores where authentic Les Paul’s hang? Did they pay to license the shape and general design?

Good video. As someone who besides nice guitars also has a great upgraded Chinese 10s (LP copy) and an Epiphone, the Epiphone QC is so good now there’s no reason to buy a copy.

Great video thanks for sharing.Does anyone think it’s worth getting one,buying great quality used parts and doing all upgrades yourself (assuming of course you CAN do it properly)?Any thoughts? 🎸🎸🎸

Many have known and discussed the quality of fakes, and yet they keep buying ?, The maker have a clear goal that is to make profit, but what is the buyer's goal ? So I was wondering who is the real fool ?,

The risk is half the fun! :D

last couple ive bought have been great out of the box, on par with the legit gibsons ive owned. Changing the pickups makes it beven better

US customs really are stickers also I have to work with customs all the time every day actually I work for ups store here in the states

The way I build them, just order a husk with pilot holes for the bridge and tail piece. Then you can use a real nash or abr bridge.I ordered stainless steel frets with nibs and the exact finishes I want. The cnc work is perfect and their paint is at least as good as Gibson. Under 300.00. Amazing! I have a couple that could almost fool Trogly! LOL!

Love this vid, thank you for making

The builder could have made guitars without faking the brand-name. They are just trying to con guitarplayers. The danger is a criminal customer can also buy them to con people by offering them for like 1000 dollar or more. This already happened. And if you do not have a big budget you can buy plenty of cheap guitars that are not faking the brand name. I know 2 people who stopped playing after a few months because it was to hard on a very cheap guitar, until they tried one of my decent guitars. And they did not have the knowledge to set it up better or a teacher to tell them it is the guitar that is just to hard to play for a beginner.

Gibson will probably be a Chinese company, in the not too distant future.

whats to stop them putting a fake unbranded veneer on ther headstock with the gibson one underneath would it then get through/ is it just the gibson logo thats why they stopped it ? or is it the whole les paul shape . How far do customs go to fins out its fake ? take for instance the buckethead les paul would they even know those arent even sold by gibson anymore and stop it or do they do a minimal check and just check the headstock ? either way this is a problem just buy an authentic guitar for 500 quid you would be much better off with a 500 quid fender epiphone shecter etc than one of these knock offs unless its just wanted for an art piece .

That strap button is basically on the top of the guitar..