The Gretsch Pages: Discussions: Modern Gretsch Guitars: Hey guys!

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Hey guys!

- Rated: 12 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 2:30 p.m. Chonny:

Its certainly been a while since Ive posted. Tried to add a couple of pics in the "Post your guitars" thread but I failed! Oh well.

A lot has been going on on the Gretsch guitar front. Ive bought a some and sold some, its like a disease hah!

Im excited to have Joel finish my amp so I can crank that thing. Joel can handmake blackface Princeton heads that sound dead on. They are truly amazing, Im a high gain type of guy and I decided to just go with one of these heads and order up some Robert Keeley pedals (made practically in my own back yard).

Keeleys Blues Driver and TS-9 Plus are amazing. I also have the Boss DS-1 ultra and it and the TS-9 together sound like an overdriven JCM 800 so I can get heavy sounds if I want. His Fuzz Heads are the best all around pedal Ive ever played for just one pedal its so versatile and of course his Java boost gives you that classic treble boost sound. Gretsches just sound so good with this pedal Im extremely happy with these pedals. The java and the blues driver makes Gretsches extremely happy.

My favorite Gretsch right now is a Black Chet Atkins Nashville. Its got a mixture of gold and chrome hardware. I wish I could post pics of it. Its got mojo to spare. Most people dont like black 6120s but the way that we did the hardware scheme looks so amazing.

I finally sold my pointy guitar! Just kidding, the day I sold my Bernie Rico Jr I felt like crying. I sold it for way too little but thats life. I needed to pay for furniture and stuff for my new apartment. I have grown out of my metal phase finally heh.

Apparently Gretsch is PLEKing guitars now and if you havent experienced a pleked fingerboard they are just perfect. The black Billy Bos that Shanghai got in are PLEKed. They are also putting trestle bracing randomly in some new guitars and not in some others. My guess is they are just moving out old stock before they start doing this to every guitar.

Once Gretsch PLEKs everything and adds trestle to everything hollow in their lineup. I will be tempted to move quite a few guitars and snag up some of these perfected Gretsches. Not that I am unhappy in the slightest with my non PLEK non trestle 6120. But there is a difference that even I can tell. But my black 6120 is just too damn cool to sell, features or not, hah.

Im actually selling an Annie that Joel did for me. It had lacquer and trestle bracing. I wish my 6120 had those features. But my black 6120 with mixed colored hardware is just too damn cool to get rid of, it could be made out of plywood and balsa and Id still play the hell out of it. Id love to show it to you guys but I am currently not remembering how I posted pics in the past.

I click on the camera icon, browse for my pic, click OK and when I submit the post there are no pictures. Oh well.

Take care GDP. Now that the site is working well Im sure Ill be around to take place in some discussions.
- Rated: 17 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 3:05 p.m. Adam:

Hey Chonny, the image uploader is down for now. You've got to host them on a separate site and put up links, then the image will display.

I've heard the rumors and speculation of Gretsch PLEKing their guitars, starting from Joel, but was unaware we had any proof. Maybe I just missed that part of the thread, I'd like to know if there was ever a definite answer to that.

Can't wait to see that Black 6120, the only thing I didn't ever like was the all gold hardware on black.
- Rated: 205 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 3:08 p.m. Proteus:

Great update, Chonny, good to see you!

As far as the marketing manager at Gretsch is aware, there's no PLEKking, either in Japan or at FMIC...

And as far as he knows, they're also not switching over completely to trestle bracing. More models will come with the new ML bracing.

But they'd be fools to go all-trestle. It would ruin many of the guitars for my purposes, since I'm not a high gain kinda guy!
- Rated: 24 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 5:22 p.m. TomfromPA:

Agree with Proteus completely. Trestle Bracing in EVERY Gretsch would be a mistake. That wouldn't any room for Sound Post guitars and their acoustic richness.

But the more I play my Jaguar Tan Jaguar Tan 125th Anniversary the more in love I am with its new ML Bracing system. Unless I miss my guess you'll see more Terada guitars with that construction.

A Powertron equiped, ML Braced Country Club would be a sonic delight. I'll take mine in Bamboo Yellow/Copper Mist.
- Rated: 53 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 6:16 p.m. Bear:

I agree TomfromPA, I love the sound post guitars the best. There is a woodiness that comes through even when amplified that is not matched by any other design. I mean any Gretsch is a great sounding guitar, but the sound post is #1 with me.
- Rated: 12 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 6:36 p.m. Chonny:

Ah I see where you guys are coming from. It would be cool to have a choice. Of course any long time modern Gretsch fan knows you get what you get.

The Billy Bo's are definitely PLEKed. Who knows where though. Remains an "interesting" mystery. Could Fender have perfected neck and fingerboard issues the old fasioned way? Who knows. I have two LP Custom Shops. One is an 04 and one is an 08. The 08 came with a hangtag that said PLEK on it. I know that the 04 wasnt PLEKed, granted it plays well the 08 is noticeably better. Its the same type of deal on the black Billy Bos. Joel told me if theyre all gonna be like this he might sell his first run white one and pick up one of the new ones just because of the difference in playability. Thats something I never thought I would hear him say.

It would be interesting to figure out whats up with the black Billy Bos.

Another mystery is why a non reissue came though Joels store and it had trestle. It was either a regular Annie or a regular 6120. Made me draw a bunch of conclusions hehe., probably incorrect ones. I doubt they did it on accident though. So.. hmm... weird.

In other news I have bought a RIC 330 in jetglow, cant wait till it gets here.

Good to see you all. Thanks for the picture info as well.
- Rated: 83 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 9:33 p.m. Mark Synchro:

FWIW, for the last couple of years trestle bracing has occasionally shown up on guitars that don't call for it in the specs. I don't know if it's a case of production mistakes or ???? but it seems to happen with no rhyme or reason. My Country Club is built to specs that have never appeared in any Gretsch catalog either but I don't think that it's an indicator of any future changes in the lineup. With Gretsch the specs have always been sort of flexible.
- Rated: 205 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 9:40 p.m. Proteus:

Many Gretschs get ... wait for it ... FLEXed.
- Rated: 16 ↑
Sep 2, 2008 10:56 p.m. Gretschadelphia:

Oh sweet mysteries of life...are they Plek'd or not? Bottom line for me is, I'm ordering a new Duo Jet w/ Dyna's tommorow and I expect good fret work by whatever means.

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