G&L guitars

AEngland77 · #1 January 8th, 2008

I am sure that some of you have heard of this brand. If you havent you should go check it out. I picked up a G&L ASAT classic (telecaster body) in the store the other day and played it on a VOX AD50VT. and I have to say that I fell in love with the thing.

Apparently ( no means to hurt anyone here ), Fender's latest releases are not up the the quality that Leo had in mind. G&L guitars still try to hold up his ideas. The quality was superb from what I could see on the guitar..

Anyone else have an opinion on these guitars? because i would love to hear them. I plan on replacing my dying Epi les paul with one of these in the near future.

Thanks
Aubrey England

eXperiment63 · #2 January 8th, 2008

It has nothing to do with quality my friend.

Leo sold Fender and then founded G&L and continued to make what he viewed as 'improvements' to his existing guitars. It has nothing to do with build quality. Same wood, same production quality... Just his idea on what perfection is.

Stratrat · #3 January 8th, 2008

G & L's are very popular guitars. I wouldn't hesitate for a second to pick up an ASAT if I came across it at the right price.

"G & L" stands for "George (Fullerton) & Leo (Fender). They co-founded the company in 1980 to carry on and improve Leo's designs (although it's hard to improve on the original Tele.) The company is now owned by BBE, but still turns out very nice guitars.

AEngland77 · #4 January 8th, 2008

Thanks for the info guys, the feedback is appreciated. The one at my local store seems to be the only one around and it is an ASAT classic for about $450.. It seems like one heck of a deal because i see them for $1000+ on the web and at other stores. Id buy it soon buy it has this strange finish to it. The whole thing is almost orange except the neck, head stock, and hardware. The finish and pick guard are a weird orange mixture/color- i think it was a 3 tone sunburst..Maybe i should keep looking around?

krissovo · #5 January 8th, 2008

Who cares about looks if it has great tone and feels good in your hands. If it has those two then you could always re-finish it or get a pro to refurb it the way you want.

krissovo · #6 January 8th, 2008

Its not this one is it? It is $1500

Stratrat · #7 January 8th, 2008

If the guitar is in overall good shape other than the finish, that's a killer price for it. I just did a quick search, and the ASAT Classics are pretty consistently in the US$1300 range.

You could pretty easily refinish it yourself if you really couldn't get used to the color. An ASAT is basically a Tele, and Tele's are very simple instruments. Remove the electronics and pickguard, unbolt the neck and you've got a bare body waiting to be sanded down and refinished. A lot of guys on the Tele Discussion Page have gotten great results using spray cans, so you don't need a fancy rig to do refinishing.

fly135 · #8 January 8th, 2008

I have a 1982 G&L S-500 strat. It's a nice player.

AEngland77 · #9 January 8th, 2008

Nah its not that one krissovo, i think its a ASAT tribute- the bridge pick up is the same as the neck pickup.. I dunno what the deal is with the price. I believe it said 650 list and sale for 450 and it sounds a little too good to be true- I just dont want to get another guitar that is going to be some cheap lemon like my epi was and still is...

*Actually I believe it was a classic- not a custom or tribute-.. with the same pickups as stated above. Sheesh ill have to go back and look at it- I sure dont know my G&L's/strat/tele design guitars >.<*

Stratrat · #10 January 8th, 2008

If it's a Tribute, that price is right about in line with what you'd pay for a new one from MF (they list it for US$489). Still a nice guitar, but not a smokin' deal like it would be if it's a Classic.

Either way it will be a decent guitar. IIRC, the Tributes are Made in Korea, but they still get pretty good reviews even among the persnickety folk on the Tele Discussion Page.