Gibson Nonreverese reissuie a reality

[Bionic-Joe]

If I bought one of those...I'd have a rosewood or Ebony fretboard installed. With Gibson horrible quality control, you may need a fret job or fret file right from the git go.

[Dave W]

....
What has bugged me on the fretboard material of Gibson basses in the last decade is that the boards shrink more than they used too, almost all my new basses get spiky after a while. No idea whether that is more specific to ebony or to rosewood and whether baked maple will shrink more or less.

It's not specific to either wood. It's not happening with other guitar manufacturers anywhere near as often as you hear it happening with Gibson. Whether it's the quality of the wood they're buying or some problem with the way they handle it or age it is anyone's guess.

[drbassman]

It's not specific to either wood. It's not happening with other guitar manufacturers anywhere near as often as you hear it happening with Gibson. Whether it's the quality of the wood they're buying or some problem with the way they handle it or age it is anyone's guess.

I've noticed that the fret ends can stick out more during the really cold dry winters we have here in Upstate NY.  With -45% humidity and forced air heating, our homes and businesses are very dry and shrink happens!  Typically, things calm down as soon as spring hits and the frets are fine with minimal dressing of the edges.  We even have to worry about our acoustic guitars cracking, etc. during our winters!  What a pain!

[gearHed289]

My only experience with "spiky" fret ends has been on my Fenderbird's Korean Mighty Mite all maple neck. Every winter... I bought a nice fret file from StewMac last year, and of course we ended up with a mild winter and no shrinkage. Not complaining, but I had hoped to file them down the next time they started sticking out.

[Denis]

It's not specific to either wood. It's not happening with other guitar manufacturers anywhere near as often as you hear it happening with Gibson.

People also tend to bitch about certain things while giving other things a pass, even if they issues are the same.
Back in the early '90s an industrial designer friend of mine attended an auto show and met an engineer who worked in the plant where the Eagle Talon, Plymouth Laser and Mitsubishi Eclipse were built. The engineer said dealers received a fraction of the complaints about the Mistubishi Eclipse than they received received about the Eagle and Plymouth despite the fact they were made by the same people on the same assembly line.

Another example would be my former boss. She complained endlessly about her VW Golf she bought new. She finally got rid of it and bought an Accord. The Accord went to the shop at least 4 or 5 times for a window which refused to roll up or roll down. She NEVER complained about that.

[eb2]

When I used to sell the stuff, new Ibanez guitars had spikey fret edges.  Their fret dressing was ok, especially when compared to the lower end stuff.  You could tell they had been seated and filed, but for whatever reason the wood and frets would just not be in synch by the time they got hauled out of the cartons and put on hangers or stands.  I always figured they were using fresher wood and then throwing them on boats for a few weeks - heat,cold, and humidity going apesh!t on them for a couple of weeks.  Then truck and warehouse. Then us.  Not the best recipe.

[Dave W]

People also tend to bitch about certain things while giving other things a pass, even if they issues are the same.
Back in the early '90s an industrial designer friend of mine attended an auto show and met an engineer who worked in the plant where the Eagle Talon, Plymouth Laser and Mitsubishi Eclipse were built. The engineer said dealers received a fraction of the complaints about the Mistubishi Eclipse than they received received about the Eagle and Plymouth despite the fact they were made by the same people on the same assembly line.

Another example would be my former boss. She complained endlessly about her VW Golf she bought new. She finally got rid of it and bought an Accord. The Accord went to the shop at least 4 or 5 times for a window which refused to roll up or roll down. She NEVER complained about that.

This is a possibility with Gibson. You may hear about it more because Gibsons are more expensive and buyers expect more. OTOH Uwe has had enough experience with this happening that there may be something wrong somewhere in the process.

I've noticed that the fret ends can stick out more during the really cold dry winters we have here in Upstate NY.  With -45% humidity and forced air heating, our homes and businesses are very dry and shrink happens!  Typically, things calm down as soon as spring hits and the frets are fine with minimal dressing of the edges.  We even have to worry about our acoustic guitars cracking, etc. during our winters!  What a pain!

Winters here are just as cold and dry. It can and does happen, though not always. OTOH from what I've read, and from what Uwe is saying, there may be a problem that's not just related to low humidity.

[Lightyear]

This is a possibility with Gibson. You may hear about it more because Gibsons are more expensive and buyers expect more. OTOH Uwe has had enough experience with this happening that there may be something wrong somewhere in the process.

Winters here are just as cold and dry. It can and does happen, though not always. OTOH from what I've read, and from what Uwe is saying, there may be a problem that's not just related to low humidity.

Well, start with very young trees that were forced to grow as fast as possible in a plantation like setting as compared to a tree that grew in the rain forest for decades in a truly natural environment.  The latter will not have tight growth rings and the former will have wider rings from forced growth.  Also, smaller logs do not lend themselves to being quatersawn so you're forced to flat sawn stock that moves more. 

[Dave W]

Well, start with very young trees that were forced to grow as fast as possible in a plantation like setting as compared to a tree that grew in the rain forest for decades in a truly natural environment.  The latter will not have tight growth rings and the former will have wider rings from forced growth.  Also, smaller logs do not lend themselves to being quatersawn so you're forced to flat sawn stock that moves more. 

Makes sense, if that's what they're doing.

[uwe]

If truth be told, it has happened on my Rics (the S models without the binding) too. Germany just seems to be a drier climate than most US states. And of course my Gibsons in the office are in an air-conditioned environment all the time. And as it is an old building with less than state of the art modern air conditioning, the humidity is less than great. Once a bass is ten or more years old it does stop however.

[Freuds_Cat]

"Baked maple" reminds me of potato chips.

Makes me think of old radios. Bakalite.

I guess if you "bake" it then it will be perceived as different to what Fender use maybe? 

[dadagoboi]

...Once a bass is ten or more years old it does stop however.

That reinforces the point about improperly dried wood.  The modern process is much speeded up compared to when lumber didn't go from tree to kiln so quickly.  This allowed an initial stabilizing period of air drying, especially imported logs that had been cut a long time before they got to the kiln.

Knowing Gibson they're probably using Half Baked Maple.

[uwe]

Half-baked assed maple?

[patman]

I too have noticed that 10 years seems to be the magic amount of time for a neck to stabilize and start behaving.

[Denis]

I too have noticed that 10 years seems to be the magic amount of time for a neck to stabilize and start behaving.

A good reason to buy vintage instruments: anything that is going to happen to them has already happened.