Gibson Les Paul weight versus H-150 weight

[NoNameBand]

I was just reading a story about Randy Bachman's '59 Les Paul....he says it weighs about 14 or 15 lbs

 

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Feat...y-bachman-0611/

 

In a recent story about signature Gibson artist Aaron Lewis, he mentions a few Les Pauls in his collection, a pair of '74 20th Anniversary Customs weighing in at 12lbs.

 

"It was Alpine White and it is now a very creamy banana color. I just really like those guitars. There is something about those 20th Anniversaries. If I’m not mistaken, that was what Randy Rhoads played, as well. They are just good, heavy… they’re like a boat anchor around your neck. They’re both 12 pounds and maybe a little more than that, and I think the black one is even a little bit heavier than the white one. "

 

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Feat...ron-lewis-0820/

[TalismanRich]

If you want some interesting reading about woods, check out this Tonequest report from April

 

Tonequest April 2010 Proof.

 

There's an interview with Tim Shaw where he talks about the woods used for the various LPs, vintage and reissues.

 

I don't take everything in the mag as gospel, but it is interesting reading. There are some pretty heavy hitters who are on the editorial board (Billy Gibbons, Greg Martin, Johnny Hiland, Joe Bonamassa, Albert Lee) as well as guys like Tom Anderson, Buzz Feiten, Dan Erlewine and Terry McInturf.

[GuitArtMan]

I was just reading a story about Randy Bachman's '59 Les Paul....he says it weighs about 14 or 15 lbs

 

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Feat...y-bachman-0611/

Me thinks he's exaggerating.

[GuitArtMan]

In a recent story about signature Gibson artist Aaron Lewis, he mentions a few Les Pauls in his collection, a pair of '74 20th Anniversary Customs weighing in at 12lbs.

 

"It was Alpine White and it is now a very creamy banana color. I just really like those guitars. There is something about those 20th Anniversaries. If I’m not mistaken, that was what Randy Rhoads played, as well. They are just good, heavy… they’re like a boat anchor around your neck. They’re both 12 pounds and maybe a little more than that, and I think the black one is even a little bit heavier than the white one. "

 

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/Feat...ron-lewis-0820/

Remember, the 70s weren't the good years for Gibson.

My 70s Custom (I bought it new in '74) was a boat anchor. I never weighed it, but I'm sure it was 10+ pounds easy. Don't miss wearing that beast one bit!

[Guest mgoetting]

If you want some interesting reading about woods, check out this Tonequest report from April

 

Tonequest April 2010 Proof.

 

There's an interview with Tim Shaw where he talks about the woods used for the various LPs, vintage and reissues.

 

I don't take everything in the mag as gospel, but it is interesting reading. There are some pretty heavy hitters who are on the editorial board (Billy Gibbons, Greg Martin, Johnny Hiland, Joe Bonamassa, Albert Lee) as well as guys like Tom Anderson, Buzz Feiten, Dan Erlewine and Terry McInturf.

 

I read the article. The maple cap stops tone stealing sound energy absorption into the body due to its hardness. The neck helps resonance by vibrating and therefore affecting string vibration.

 

If all of that it true, and it probably is, it would seem that a double cutaway, like the 170, would have even more neck resonance. I wonder if that's true. The LP double cutaways I've played didn't have a maple cap, so I can't comment. They're different beasts.

[Kuz]

Give me a 9lb 150, Three cool chords, and the truth!!!!

 

That's all you need!!!!

[golferwave]

Me thinks he's exaggerating.

 

 

Me too. In one of my Les Paul books, I THINK It's "The Beauty Of The Burst" It says that the heaviest one of the 58 - 60 bursts they've ever weighed is 9 1/2 lbs. and they have had access to, and pictures of hundreds of them. Some weighed in the high 8 lb range, so I think that's why most everyone believes that "around" 9 lbs is the ideal weight for tone.

[TalismanRich]

Give me a 9lb 150, Three cool chords, and the truth!!!!

 

That's all you need!!!!

 

If you had bothered to watch the Axis of Awesome video, you would know you need FOUR chords!

 

Give me F, D, G and I'd like to buy a vowel please ... A.

[golferwave]

FWIW, when I demo'd a 150 and a 137, the 137 sustained almost as well as the 150, and the 137 weighed 8.5 lbs, the 150 weighed between 9-10.2 lbs. The 150 I ended up buying weighs 10.4 lbs and its Honduran mahogany which is curious, because I've read that's supposed to be a lighter wood than other kinds of mahogany.

 

 

Most of the mahogany used in domestic guitar production is either Honduran or African. Generally Honduran is lighter than African,but the weight of mahogany is not so much where it's grown, but the type of soil it's grown in. The more minerals that a tree absorbs while growing the heavier the wood. Some will tell you about their lightweight African mahogany and I'm sure it's true. Resonance is what it's about and in that regard Honduran mahogany has it all over African mahogany, IMO.

[GuitArtMan]

Most of the mahogany used in domestic guitar production is either Honduran or African. Generally Honduran is lighter than African,but the weight of mahogany is not so much where it's grown, but the type of soil it's grown in. The more minerals that a tree absorbs while growing the heavier the wood. Some will tell you about their lightweight African mahogany and I'm sure it's true. Resonance is what it's about and in that regard Honduran mahogany has it all over African mahogany, IMO.

I agree with you, but then I have a Warmoth 1 piece mahognay strat body that weighs in at a svelt 3 lbs even (not chambered). The body rings like a bell when tapped, even more than my 1 piece swamp ash body (also 3 lbs). One of these days I'm gonna get off my ass and build that thing up.

[golferwave]

I agree with you, but then I have a Warmoth 1 piece mahognay strat body that weighs in at a svelt 3 lbs even (not chambered). The body rings like a bell when tapped, even more than my 1 piece swamp ash body (also 3 lbs). One of these days I'm gonna get off my ass and build that thing up.

 

 

You've told me about that one before in another thread. I've got to play it when you get it done! Sounds like a very special piece of wood!

[GuitArtMan]

You've told me about that one before in another thread. I've got to play it when you get it done! Sounds like a very special piece of wood!

Don't hold your breath - it's been in my closet for years! One of the days... err weeks... err months... err years!!!

[GuitArtMan]

An interesting thread over at TGP on the wight, nut width and neck thickness of early Les Pauls - info came from the book Beauty of the Burst.

 

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=766684

[Guest HRB853370]

I refuse to get on my bathroom scale with guitar strapped on me! My wife tells me that is a scary thought-a naked man standing on a digital bathoom scale with a Heritage H-150 strapped on me! I refuse!

[tulk1]

Give me a 9lb 150, Three cool chords, and the truth!!!!

 

That's all you need!!!!

Yeah, baby! --- can't go wrong with a Sara Evans reference!!

 

My Dad used to say, "all you need is C, F and G; and an occasional D". Guess he was covering the 3 chord philosophy and the 4 chord camp.

[NoNameBand]

I refuse to get on my bathroom scale with guitar strapped on me! My wife tells me that is a scary thought-a naked man standing on a digital bathoom scale with a Heritage H-150 strapped on me! I refuse!

 

For the sake of an objective weight assessment, maybe you should go with something light weight, like a pink boa instead of a strap. Lets get your wife's opinion on that one.