18 thoughts on “eBay Les Paul Guitar Kit Review Part 2”

1. hahahaha oh I’ve had that before with them people.they are so shamelessly shady it’s actually sickening.I’ve bought stuff before off a,dare I say white appearing store,only to have it show up from china and be emailed dribble excuses as to why this maple neck is rosewood and a 16″ radius with massive jumbo frets.
   good information to have though! keep it up I like they articulate way you told them to go get %*#3! too.

2. I’m actually kind of blown away by the fact that the second kit was even more so fatally flawed (twist in the neck and the neck pocket off line with the body center) than the first kit they sent… Even knowing that a review was being published.

   I don’t know maybe the first neck on the second body would work with some major shimming and cutting on the tenon but it would still be a crap guitar…

   I forgot to mention (wouldn’t mean much to most readers) but the first kit weighed in at 11 lbs 4 oz and the second kit came in at an even 12 lbs.

   At any rate I’m thinking my job is done… I don’t think I really want to start up the conversation with them again.

3. I think you provided some very informative information. However, I didn’t find the quality all that surprising for Chinese craftsmanship.

   Overall I feel you got what you paid for. If you were expecting a turn key project, you’re not going to get it for $70. Things like having to fit the neck is a give me. How much fitting? It’s a crap shoot. Anytime you see a veneer top, it’s hiding lower quality multi piece body/tops underneath. Even if the veneer had been better fitted it still doesn’t come close to a solid top. Most Chinese set necks are 3 pieces so no surprise there. I’m also finding punky wood to be common in Chinese builds.

   I think the seller tried their best to resolve your issues but your expectations were too high. In your defense, I don’t find this slanderous but very good information for anyone thinking about buying Chinese kits or complete guitars.

4. I knew going into this review that we weren’t going to be looking at a fine example of luthierie… And yeah $70 bucks (and shipping) isn’t a kings ransom by far.

   However…

   I probably didn’t emphasize this enough or state it clearly enough In both articles and it was just about the last points I made.

   The first kit’s neck was “hollow” and the mahogany under the fret board was spongee enough to flex in your hand… Actually you could stick your finger through the side all the way back to the 12th fret.

   And the neck on the second kit is “twisted”… Basically bowed to the bass side by a good half inch.

   Just these faults are more than enough to condemn these kits to the band saw.

5. Sometimes it’s hard to determine the author’s point of reference. After a little further reading I see you’re not a stranger to Chinese workmanship.

   The quality of the body I would say is about correct for the price. I would say the neck is on par up until the point of it being made with a bunch of punky wood and twisted. I would expect a couple isolated spots but nothing major. Sounds like if they can offer a usable neck the kit might be work looking at.

   There are some Chinese vendors offering a good value but unfortunately there are a lot that aren’t.

6. Yeah, if the second kit had a usable neck I’d of said “fair enough”…

   Honestly I’m not out looking to condemn all the Chinese manufactures… The LP-S Kits available from Bulldog are pretty nice for the price and I’m sure they are of Asian origin.

   The LP- Solid top from Jay at Bulldogbodies.com I reviewed here turned out to be a really (I mean REALLY) nice instrument (granted it cost 4 times more than this eBay kit).

7. @ PT Ray: Um…let’s see…you’re defending the quality of this kit based on it’s price, your point being I assume that since the price for the kit is so low it’s basically implicit that a lot of work will be required to make it into a playable guitar. There’s a point being missed here. Based on the information being given here it appears that regardless of the amount of labor invested the basic material of the kit is junk, therefore the kit is worth precisely nothing since it can’t be used to make a playable guitar. Therefore I would say that TVI overpaid for the kit by 100% minus the value as firewood.

8. Bill,

   A lot of the details pointed out would fall under cosmetic and not necessarily has to do with playability. The poor cut veneer and matched wood, gaps in the binding, excess glue, multi piece body, top and neck and so forth. These issues can be addressed in the finishing process. I’m saying this type of workmanship should not be a surprise when dealing with a bottom dollar Chinese kit.

   If the neck is useless, then yes the kit has no value as it won’t serve it’s intended purpose. There’s no defending that.

9. Really… If I had a neck here that wasn’t either hollow or bent sideways I’d have myself a 21lb, Dark back, Kermit the Frog Green Top Les Paul in a few weeks (time permitting)…

   … Maybe I’ll make a clock or something out of them someday.

10. hey lemme know when you start reviewing tele kits hahaha

11. I think the restaurant sign means “No, we haven’t seen your cat, please quit asking.”

    The guitar kit isn’t good at all. It is really cheaper to buy a Fender Squier Strat, or Peavey at a pawn shop. Then strip it down, then re-finish & customize to taste. That’s what we did.

    Jack

12. Hey Jack,

    Yes… I’m sure you are correct about what the sign says. And yes… It would be a heck of a lot cheaper to refinish a cheap Strat…

    Heck… it would be cheaper to buy a new American Standard Stratocaster than to build a Les Paul from a kit…

13. Pingback: Chinese Les Paul | eBay Guitars Part 3 | Not Right In The Head

14. Thanks for posting this review and saving me from spending $100 on firewood. Given that $100 buys in China what $1000 would here (outside Shanghai and Beijing), they should be able to produce something better than that for the price.

15. There are actually fairly well made kits from the PRC but these really just aren’t it.

16. Hey all,

    It’s now been a year since the last reply on this blog, but can we say anything has changed in cheap quality builds from China?

    I would like to add one point to this post, and that is this: From the start the guitar was advertized as “High Quality Unfinished electric guitar body with neck” – so even if he paid $5 American for it he would be well within his rights to slam the poor workmanship….

    Sometimes we forget what eBay is meant to be (and what it started out as) which is a place to sell things at any price….hence bidding…

    This guitar at bid could have sold for $500 (lol) and then I bet some of the replies in this post would be vastly different.

    Anyway – from researching builds that I want to do it seems apparent if you want to spend $120 – $200 on a build you may get less than you hoped for… The bulldog builds certainly seem to be quality and possibly worth the money if you already had the paint/lacquer and hardware.

17. Thats what you get for being a cheapskate,nuff said.
    C’mon…seriously,did you expect to get “high quality”for peanuts…duh??
    Even Gibson makes crappy USD2000 les pauls.
    Wake up and smell the feces,stop blackmailing the vendor.

18. Well with a name like “Yes to Capitol Punishment” you were bound to miss the more esoteric humor and other reasons this happened at all… I wasn’t so much reviewing the firewood as I was…

    Meh…

    Phuck it…

    You won’t get it no matter how simply its put.

    (Yes to Capital punishment (IP: 202.140.108.87 , m202-140-108-87.smartone.com.hk)

    Yeah for China.

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