My 70's El Degas LP

[mikedem]

Bought it used at Steve's in 1983 and played the hell out of it till about '92 and didn't pick up a guitar again until 9 months ago. After a complete setup this thing plays the best it ever has and really annoys the guys I jam with who all own real Strats , Gretsch's and Gibsons

edit - When I bought it it had a huge scratch through the El Degas logo on the head and well being 15 at the time I thought it would look cooler if I just scratch it all off I have thought of getting a logo printed off and paint it back on...





I also have another oddball rare one here. It's a 1973 Dorado Dobro. Dorado was a line sold by Gretsch back in the '70's. The person I got it off of actually still had the colour catalogue from 1973 and gave it to me.

[Barry]

Thanks for the pics and story.
It's funny how many of us keep re-discovering, many years later, just how bloody good these guitars are, even after abusing them unmercifully sometimes!

Just how badly is the the head stock damaged from the "scratching"? Can't really see anything in the pic. It would be swell if you could restore the logo but it might turn out to be more work than you think to do it properly. If there are deep scratches you may be looking at some refinishing work to make it look right.

BTW, is that the original bridge PUP or is it just missing a cover or something?

The "Dobro" is a bit off topic, but a very interesting piece nonetheless.

Cheers!

[charles]

I'm a sucker for white LP Customs...

[Dale]

I have what seems to be the same model..
but mine has gold tuners...
and both p/us are gold covered...
also, my fingerboard looks darker, but could
just be the lighting, or piece of wood used...

if it helps you date it, mine was purchased in 1976...
so it could be a 75 or 76...

does yours have the cool neck plate...(with the little dippity doo on the bottom side) and a made in japan sticker instead of ingraving?

cheers,
Dale

[cneale]

I'm jelous too... very nice lp. Original pickups?

The lead pickup looks updated to me. It looks like a humbucker but I don't see any phase switches. Is the lead pickup wired for dual coil mode only?

That colour looks GREAT on lp's for such a tame colour.

I'm no expert so i could be way off about the pickup, but even if it has been upgraded to a humbucker those pickups rock in lps. this would take away from the"authenticity" value (probably not a concideration when it was done),but if it plays like you say thats what matters. If it was mine I don't think the value would matter,because getting rid of it wouldn't be an option. :


yes, very nice lp!

[Dale]

definately same as mine,
but mine has all the stock stuff,

its a 1975... made by ibanez from what i can tell..
I have talked to a fella that bought this exact model new in 75..

see mine in another thread on here that says new degas custom with pics..
or something like that..

mine is a super sweep player too..

is yours ebony finger board too?

[mikedem]

Hey guys, sorry for the late replies, I forgot I even posted here and saw my guitar and well damn memory

The bridge pickup is a Dimarzio I put in in the late 80's. Very nice sound out of it. The neck pup is original and has seen better days sound wise. The tuners are GOTOH's and heaven knows why I put black ones in 20ish years ago.

I am looking into bringing it back to near stock look very soon. I have been looking at guitarfetish.com for a set of gold humbuckers and a set of LP style tuners. Does anyone know if this guitar would have had all gold tuners or the gold and pearl tuners? I can't remember.

I recently thought of selling it but after playing some $900+ Epiphones and some really nice Godin's. I soon realized that my LP was every bit as good if not better than those. One of the younger guys at the store where my kids take piano lessons tried it and couldn't believe how well it played.

Has anyone looked into refretting their El Degas? Some of mine are getting really low butI don't know if it's worth it and how expensive it would be.

[charles]

Likely had all-gold tuners originally. See my (I think it's stock) white El Degas LP Custom copy here:
http://www.eldegas.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=30#p30

As for a refret, the cost may vary wildly depending who you talk to - you might want to do a search over at Harmony-Central - many threads in the past have asked about an average price to expect for a LP refret.

I'm very glad your guitar stands up against more expensive modern offerings - rock that bad boy!

[mikedem]

Wow , what a collection. I have 4 guitars in total and I would fear for my life if I brought another into the house

Do you play all of those ? I really want mine to look stock but obviously want it to sound good too. The 1 dimarzio really woke up that guitar and the neck pickup is sounding pretty flat now but it is the original as far as I know.

[charles]

I play them all, when I get the time! My time seems to be at a premium lately, and since I play drums, bass, guitar, and slightly dabble in keys, I'm split 4 ways even when I enter the music room. My wife has comes to terms with the guitars... I think. I don't ask her about them anymore.

The stock pups in my white LP Custom are really nice - mellow and warm after 30 yrs.
I actually prefer the Kent Armstrong pups in the Black LP Custom more, though. That, and the black one feels a bit lighter. I am a bit hazy on the details now but I think I got the white one second - I just could not resist getting them both since they are the set neck versions and the white one was right here in Calgary and felt SO good in my hands at the music shop. They do tread the same territory, however.

The White one is going to carve out its own niche once I put some EMGs in it. I know, I know... but I am serious. That guitar will be getting EMGs, and donating its wonderful gold covered pups to my 335 copy (stock Dimarzio Super Distortions in that one was not a good choice in my opinion).

[mikedem]

resurrecting an old thread again.....

GAS has hit me again and I am looking at a new guitar and I think I am going to part ways with my beloved El-Degas above.

What would one expect to get for this guitar. I don't want to give it away but what is a fair price these days?

[charles]

Depends on the motivation of the seller & buyer; but my general opinion on the value of El Degas LP copies is :
Bolt on - between $50 and $250 depending on condition & pickups
Set neck - $400 and up, depending on condition & pickups

Take that for what it's worth. About $0.02

[elDave]

UPDATED : Here's a couple of recent eBay sales

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT sold $255 US (10 bids)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT sold $295 US (1 bid)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT sold $266 US (11 bids)

How eBay reflects on the real world is subject for debate, but it will give you a ball park idea what will sell and for how much. $250-300 US seems the going rate, shipping extra.

here's an interesting non El Degas auction

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... K:MEWAX:IT Did not sell @ 275 UK pounds ($458 US)

Dave