How do you feel about copy guitars like the Kris Derrig LP Slash played on Appetite For Destruction?

[MichaelPerkins]

When I was a young teenager, I always dreamed of building my own guitar(s). I did not have some inborn creative streak that made me want to design my own... I literally just knew I'd never be able to afford real Les Pauls, Strats, Teles, and all the amazing guitars I would dream about owning some day. By the time I got old enough to actually afford the tools and materials to build my own guitar, I'd grown out of the copy-cat mindset, and thought... "If I'm going to go through all the trouble to create my own guitar(s) from scratch, I'm not going to copy some existing design!" I guess I thought it's mega-lame to just build a Telecaster, or a Strat... even if you change the headstock shape, or do something to "make it my own", I always just kind of thought of it as a cheesy thing to do.

That being said... I never looked down on other people who do build "replica" guitars. In fact... 100% of my luthier friends who build, all build Jazzmaster, Tele, and Strat clones. They don't go so far as to put Fender decals on the headstock and really try to build copy cats. But... they def. don't hit the drawing board, and create a unique body shape, etc. And I've never thought they were "cheesy" or "cheating." I've always really admired their craftsmanship. I guess I intuitively just knew (know) that every man is different, and has different goals and motivations. Some are drawn to the handwork and craftsmanship of building guitars, but have zero interest whatsoever in "breaking new ground". I'm sure a lot, if not most, think the old timers (Leo, Orville, etc.) build the masterpieces, and why reinvent the wheel or try to improve on things that don't need improvement.

Whatever your views on this idea... I am interested to hear what you guys think about actually doing what I dreamed of doing as a teenager... building a true copy, down to the logo, inlays, screen-printed model names, and embossed serial number on the headstock? I was recently watching a Documentary on rock guitar, and I found out something that made my jaw drop wide open!!! The man who has become synonymous with the Les Paul, more so than any other guitar player before or sense... even more so than Les Paul himself... Slash... did not play a Gibson Les Paul on Guns n' Roses debut album Appetite For Destruction. It was, instead, a boutique copy of a Les Paul made by a man named Kris Derrig. I have since read a lot about Kris Derrig and his Les Paul copies... and he made a lot of them. He did exactly what I described. He didn't just build "knock offs," he built to-the-letter replicas.

From what I can tell, he never did it with some kind of cheeky idea of selling Gibson knocks offs without telling anyone he made them. From what I can find, he was super straight up about it, and was honest about how he was doing it, because he loved the Les Paul, etc etc. People bought them, because Gibson, themselves, had gone way down hilll in the 1980s, and people, at the time, would RATHER buy a hand made knock-off than the real deal. To this day, people are paying >$10,000 for a real Kris Derrig Les Paul, (I'm sure the Appetite For Destruction story helped that number along).

But what do you guys think? Would you ever build a flat out carbon copy of your dream guitar, decals, logos, and all?

 

[alnico357]

I play the guitar I like. I WILL NOT sound like the guy on the record. I will sound like me trying to sound like the guy on the record. I have no interest in guitars as you describe. I will try to do my best learning licks I like. The guitar is inconsequential. The most I have ever paid for a guitar is $999. It does not sound any better than the guitar I paid $187 for.

OP, do what makes you happy!

The answer to your question, no.

 

[LostTheTone]

It's a weird question, honestly.

Some people play guitars that are not just custom but hyper-customised. Some people play off the racks with a sticker.

I think it's cool to make replicas, but I also think that I'd prefer to spend a big chunk of cash on MY guitar, not someone else's.

 

[northernguitar]

Nope. Seems weird, for me. Plus, I couldn’t afford one. If I could, I’d be getting the guitar of my dreams, which only exists in my head.

 

[ElJay370]

Sure. Why not? I think creating a detailed copy of an already existing instrument is an artistic challenge in and of itself. Plus, you get all the advantages of top shelf materials and components without having to pay for sales, marketing, and everything else that’s rolled into whatever logo is on the headstock of the original. I bet that was the idea behind Derrig’s replicas. New Gibsons were largely sub par at the time, and original ‘59 sunburst Les Pauls were prohibitively expensive.

It’s all just wood, magnets, and wire anyway. This otherworldly mystique that guitarists like to attach to things I find very amusing. I could hand build a painstakingly accurate replica of a 1952 Telecaster, put it up next to its Custom Shop equivalent, and half the people here would go “Harumph! It’s a Partscaster....I’ll give ya 200 bucks for it.”

You’re literally paying 3000 dollars for a decal.

 

[RobRiggs]

I have to say that I’m as gear obsessed as the next guitar player, but I think sometimes we guitar enthusiasts are more concerned with gear than a recording/performing artist. I think Slash thinks about the music much more than the authenticity of the gear he uses to make it.

 

[warthog]

I play a Telecaster Replica/Copy with the logo. I got it because it was a great deal and the guitar is built just as good and plays better than most American Teles I've played... I've owned 7 real Teles. I bought it knowing it was a fake and I paid a low price for it. 300 euros. I will probably never sell the guitar, but if I did, I would state that it's not real.

I admit that I like having Fender on it and when people ask, I say it's not real.

In the end, it's a guitar that sounds and plays damn good.
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[Ronzo]

Not my choice. But I have no problem with others doing so.

 

[jayroc1]

It's probably better than the Gibson's made in the 80s lol. If someone can make a copy that's equal or better than the original then go for it. Obviously Slash got a lot of inspiration using it

 

[shupe13]

The funny thing is that copy and the guy who played it probably saved Gibson.

 

[Peegoo]

Another example is the Zappa "Baby Snakes" SG: not made by Gibson.

How I look at it: if you have a Suhr or Anderson or Glarry "S-type" guitar, it's a copy of a Fender Stratocaster--whether or not it has a Fender label on the headstock.

Use what you like and anyone that has a problem with it can go pound sand.

 

[stnmtthw]

If I was to go to the trouble of building a Les Paul or 335 style guitar, I wouldn't want Gibson to get the credit for my work. I would make sure everyone knows that was me.

That being said, I don't think I have the creativity to design my own like Leo Fender or Ted McCarty did. I understand the impulse to build your own, but replicating an existing guitar and putting a company's name on it that didn't have anything to do with it seems dishonest.

 

[Richie Cunningham]

For every guitar like that, there are people who are fooled, who aren’t in on the joke. I’m interested in owning only guitars that are exactly what they appear to be.

 

[Jupiter]

I don’t want a cosplay guitar. I’m not even interested in licensed signature models. I’ve used tele, reverend and 335 body shapes as starting points in my own builds, but you’d never mistake em for the “real thing”.

If you put a Fender logo on your partscaster, I will judge you, but I don’t poop on anybody’s NGD threads anymore; I guess that’s progress? Lol

 

[stxrus]

I lusted after Duane’s LP with his name engraved in fret wire on the back. I finally saw it at the RR HoF. Suddenly I realized as much as I lusted over that guitar it was just another Les Paul. Yes, it was played by one of my idols and I would have given anything to just play it for 30 minutes but in reality it was just another Les Paul

If someone wants to own a copy, or make a copy, of an iconic instrument it’s cool with me. I won’t hold judgment but it’s not for me

 

[thunderbyrd]

to a certain point, i could care less. the point at which i care is when somebody tries to sell me one without telling me it's a fake.

 

[MrGibbly]

When I was a young teenager, I always dreamed of building my own guitar(s). I did not have some inborn creative streak that made me want to design my own... I literally just knew I'd never be able to afford real Les Pauls, Strats, Teles, and all the amazing guitars I would dream about owning some day. By the time I got old enough to actually afford the tools and materials to build my own guitar, I'd grown out of the copy-cat mindset, and thought... "If I'm going to go through all the trouble to create my own guitar(s) from scratch, I'm not going to copy some existing design!" I guess I thought it's mega-lame to just build a Telecaster, or a Strat... even if you change the headstock shape, or do something to "make it my own", I always just kind of thought of it as a cheesy thing to do.

That being said... I never looked down on other people who do build "replica" guitars. In fact... 100% of my luthier friends who build, all build Jazzmaster, Tele, and Strat clones. They don't go so far as to put Fender decals on the headstock and really try to build copy cats. But... they def. don't hit the drawing board, and create a unique body shape, etc. And I've never thought they were "cheesy" or "cheating." I've always really admired their craftsmanship. I guess I intuitively just knew (know) that every man is different, and has different goals and motivations. Some are drawn to the handwork and craftsmanship of building guitars, but have zero interest whatsoever in "breaking new ground". I'm sure a lot, if not most, think the old timers (Leo, Orville, etc.) build the masterpieces, and why reinvent the wheel or try to improve on things that don't need improvement.

Whatever your views on this idea... I am interested to hear what you guys think about actually doing what I dreamed of doing as a teenager... building a true copy, down to the logo, inlays, screen-printed model names, and embossed serial number on the headstock? I was recently watching a Documentary on rock guitar, and I found out something that made my jaw drop wide open!!! The man who has become synonymous with the Les Paul, more so than any other guitar player before or sense... even more so than Les Paul himself... Slash... did not play a Gibson Les Paul on Guns n' Roses debut album Appetite For Destruction. It was, instead, a boutique copy of a Les Paul made by a man named Kris Derrig. I have since read a lot about Kris Derrig and his Les Paul copies... and he made a lot of them. He did exactly what I described. He didn't just build "knock offs," he built to-the-letter replicas.

From what I can tell, he never did it with some kind of cheeky idea of selling Gibson knocks offs without telling anyone he made them. From what I can find, he was super straight up about it, and was honest about how he was doing it, because he loved the Les Paul, etc etc. People bought them, because Gibson, themselves, had gone way down hilll in the 1980s, and people, at the time, would RATHER buy a hand made knock-off than the real deal. To this day, people are paying >$10,000 for a real Kris Derrig Les Paul, (I'm sure the Appetite For Destruction story helped that number along).

But what do you guys think? Would you ever build a flat out carbon copy of your dream guitar, decals, logos, and all?

I wouldn't. Even when I was a kid building aircraft, auto, or railroad models I would also do something that was "incorrect" but that I liked better. Like an A4 Skyhawk in livery that didn't even exist when it was in service. I recently built a Champ. The circuit isn't *exactly* a replica (incorporated some modern safety considerations, etc.) and I covered it in surf green tolex and a white grill cloth. When I did my "Strat" copy I took some liberties like a compound radius roasted maple neck and a tung oil finish. I don't know why, that's just how I am wired. I admire people with the patience and skill to very carefully craft a true replica.

 

[MichaelPerkins]

How I look at it: if you have a Suhr or Anderson or Glarry "S-type" guitar, it's a copy of a Fender Stratocaster--whether or not it has a Fender label on the headstock.

I think I am weird in one regard. I think it's completely cool to make a "perfect clone" of an existing guitar, for your own personal use. Or... hell... what do I care... I'm even fine with an individual selling their clone to someone as if it were legit. You'd have to be a real dong to do it, but I ain't the guitar Police. But for some reason, I really just hate it when an actual company like Suhr, PRS, or whoever else, releases their blatantly obvious "take" on an existing model. For example, PRS's "Silver Sky" is, in my opinion, just... embarrassing.

To avoid any steam from anyone, please do keep in mind that this is all just my goofy ass .00002 cents. OBVIOUSLY I don't know Jack about anything, or else you'd all know my name from the endless list of articles (that don't exist) written about me in guitar magazines.

If I was to go to the trouble of building a Les Paul or 335 style guitar, I wouldn't want Gibson to get the credit for my work. I would make sure everyone knows that was me.

Hear-Hear my man! I agree completely. I could see myself making a carbon copy of an existing guitar, just as a kind of, "to see if I could pull it off," kinda thing. But at the end of the day, I'd rather have my own "maker's mark" on it than a big company.

I don’t want a cosplay guitar. I’m not even interested in licensed signature models. I’ve used tele, reverend and 335 body shapes as starting points in my own builds, but you’d never mistake em for the “real thing”.

If you put a Fender logo on your partscaster, I will judge you, but I don’t poop on anybody’s NGD threads anymore; I guess that’s progress? Lol

I'm with you 100% Bud. I do the same thing. Learning how to really use Adobe Illustrator was a God send for my guitar designs. I have still never designed a guitar completely from thin air. I always take an existing guitar and either tweak the hell out of it, piece together my favorite bits from several models, or my favorite "trick" is to take a symmetrical or mostly symmetrical guitar shape, and skew it by 7-10% to make it an "offset body". If you ever want to see this technique in action, pull up a picture of a Gibson ES-335, and then put it right beside a picture of a Fender Starcaster. Clever folks.

 

[Peegoo]

I would never own a signature guitar.

I'm perfectly happy playing my old Gibson Les Paul.

 

[3-Chord-Genius]

From what I've read, Slash didn't go out looking for that Les Paul copy. He used a Charvel for most of "Appetite for Destruction" (you can definitely hear things on the album that could only have been done with a vibrato bar). Either their producer, engineer, or manager (I forget who) found that guitar and brought it to him in the studio, and he played a few remaining things with it for the album. I can't remember why he didn't want to finish the album with the Charvel.

I also believe that David Gilmour's black Stratocaster had a Charvel neck on it at one point, with a Fender decal.