Gordon Smith Classic T

[greyvents]

Hey folks,

Have been considering another tele or tele styled guitar and am considering a Gordon Smith Classic T.

Any thoughts about these tele styled guitars? does anyone have one or has anyone played one before?

Have heard a lot of good things about GS but have only heard / seen vids of their lester type guitars.

Thanks very much!

[tugartheman]

don't have on this side of the pond, but I've only heard good things about them from the guys on this site. Sorry us Yanks, won't be much help.

[irish_admiral]

Hi

I've played one before: very well-built guitar, and sounded nice. Not sure i'd buy new, but if you spot a used one in decent condition being sold, it should be a good buy.

[greyvents]

Thanks Joe.

Did its sound as one would expect of a tele styled guitar?

May I ask why you wouldn't consider buying a new one? Do you feel they are overpriced?

[irish_admiral]

Hi Mark,

The one I played was a single coil at the neck & tapped humbucker at the bridge. I'm guessing it was geared towards rock as the output was a bit rockier than you would get from a trad tele, but I expect that was in part due to the pickups. If you got a normal classic T model, I think it would definitely be Tele-like.

You can also ask GS to fit your own pickups if you get him to build.

The reason I wouldn't buy new is nothing to do with the fact that the guitars aren't good: i'd rate him above the mainstream makers, and just below the top spec boutique makers, but rather that the resale value is poor because GS isn't a 'big' name.

Consequently, they are fantastic value used.

However, if you want a good new guitar, then they're also a pretty good purchase. Just that I tend to look for value for money when I buy guitars, as i'm aware that I tend to sell them on sometimes. I've now sold on the first five guitars I ever owned along with three others.

[riffmonster]

Hi - not tried a GS, but hear good things about them.

I used to have a Highway 1 tele, great bang for buck. nice nitro finish and plenty of 'twang'

My friend has a lite ash tele (made in Korea) looks like a 52 - has SD pickups. Great guitar for the money. Really resonant (unplugged)

Both worth checking out IMO.

[irish_admiral]

By the way, I still own a GS 1.5, which has one of the best necks i've played on it.

It's short scale, but stays in tune really well.

[Andy H.]

Hi greyvents. Hven't played a GS Classic T, but I'm actually thinking about maybe doing just that. Basically I need a Tele, and have played plenty of GS' guitars which have all been A1. I've no reason to think their 'T' type would be any less good.

My own Graduate 60 is my main 'LP' style guitar, is somewhat more versatile than a real Gibson, sounds great and plays and resonates very nicely. The stability is such that I have never had to tweak the neck or action on mine. Though truth be told I did take up the action a bit as GS always do an ultra low set up from new. It is still what I'd describe as low though - much lower than my other guitars. GS build well from decent woods and their set ups are always A1.

A mates SG is not only the best SG type I've played but probably the most resonant electric solid body I've ever played with only a couple of other (very pricy) contenders to that crown. (One was a soapbar PRS, the other a genuine '56 LP Custom!) But being up there means that GS do know how to build a very good working guitar for a very good price. As I tend to buy guitars to keep I'd not hesitate at the new price - they are well worth it. But as Joe said s/h they are spectacularly good value. They don't keep their value, but that has nothing to do with their quality, only the s/h guitar market.

Yeah, give their 'T' a try. Be really interested to hear how you get on.


Andy.

[greyvents]

Thanks for the advice guys.

Joe, I've been in touch with GS regarding getting one with a humbucker at the neck and single coil at the bridge. Do you know if the one you tried was just wound differently? How did you find the stock neck by the way? Ive been told they are a D shape and similar to a Les Paul with a 50s neck.

Mark, thanks - hv considered a highway but am really after a tele with a humbucker on it and I dont think the highways have that option.

Andy, thanks for your insights. I'm like you in the sense that I don't normally sell my guitars but I'm a bit nervous about having one built as I won't know how it plays till its built! A leap of faith required I think!

[irish_admiral]

Mark

The one I tried was humbucker at the bridge, and single coil at the neck. To be honest, I can't remember what the neck sounded like, I just remember the bridge sounded decent. No idea about the wind, it was just one I was trying out at the local shop.

The neck on that one was a D shape also - handled nicely. The only thing I didn't like was that it was heavily glossed, which is just my preference. I'd go for a satin finish most of the time.

I'd not worry about not getting a quality guitar built by them. They do their work well and you'll get a very nice instrument out the other side of it.

If you're not wanting a maple fretboard, go for an ebony one. ECWeagles here had a graduate slimline built by GS with an ebony fretboard, and it played really nicely. I'm a fan of ebony fretboards in general. Like them.

You might want to consider it as GS often use poplar on their classic T body wood, which sounds fairly bright anyway, so you're not going to lose anything by having ebony.

As far as pickups go, i'd buy your own as GS normally use Kent Armstrong unless you provide something else. I can't rave highly enough about the Tonerider pickups at this point: about £26 for a single humbucker or Tele single coil, and they sound fantastic. It really is money well spent.

I'll add the proviso that i've also tried out various Bareknuckles, Bulldogs and Rio Grandes, and those Toneriders stand neck & neck at a fraction of the cost. Don't be shy about them. I'm shortly going to order my second set of them...

[Andy H.]

As far as pickups go, i'd buy your own as GS normally use Kent Armstrong unless you provide something else. I can't rave highly enough about the Tonerider pickups at this point: about £26 for a single humbucker or Tele single coil, and they sound fantastic. It really is money well spent.

I'll add the proviso that i've also tried out various Bareknuckles, Bulldogs and Rio Grandes, and those Toneriders stand neck & neck at a fraction of the cost. Don't be shy about them. I'm shortly going to order my second set of them...

AFAIK GS normally fit their own pickups, (wound by Sheila in the kitchen if I remember her name right), but they will indeed fit anything suitable you choose or supply, even giving a standard discount against the standard p/up price.

Sounds like they are using pretty much the neck shape I'm used to on my Graduate even on the 'T' type. I could very happily live with that on a Tele type too!

I'm right with Joe on their satin neck finish BTW. And with a few years use they polish up to a wonderfully smooth feeling and playing neck surface. Really great feeling when you realise you've got a guitar neck you've literally polished by your own hand through simply playing it...

This is nuts. Last thing I know I was looking at Fender / Squier Teles a few weeks back and ended up buying a Tele-esque P bass. Now I'm (also) starting to totally seriously think about a GS Tele. Nuts yeah, but it does make a lot of sense too...


Andy.

[Blainy]

By the way, I still own a GS 1.5, which has one of the best necks i've played on it.

It's short scale, but stays in tune really well.

Yep, and the tuners are really smooth. The neck's likely to be great as Lord Joe says.

Not that I've played a 'T'. My Gypsy (double cut) might qualify as lester-like, but it's quite different from mine: coil-tapped and weighing about half what my LP does. In humbucker mode it sounds huge despite its lightweight construction.

Play one - there are a few knocking about. Joe's right about 2nd hand value. Mine cost well less than half the new price. A couple of small dings.