Excuse the clutter in the photo. One day I'll take photos of my guitars against a plain background, or reclining in a majestic, artistic, aesthetically pleasing manner against a motorbike, or something - but until then the ex-dining room (there's no room to actually dine) will have to do.
Went on holiday for a couple of weeks (France - Charante Maritime, Fontaine Chalandray - beautiful - Cognac is nearby, so I obviously had to invest in the local produce - nice) and left a trusted friend instructions (and money, unfortunately) to bid on this beaut. He came through, and I got text message updates as to progress - although it took some persuasion to make him give the guitar itself to me on my return!
It's a PGM400CA - apparently a limited run (1993 only - don't know how many were made, but I've read 200 somewhere). Cavity cover is signed by Paul G, with his usual doodle - I'll be replacing the cover so I don't damage the sig. whilst I'm playing. There's a couple of dings, but nothing serious. Plays nicely. It's heavier than the PGM301 I've got, but the body is alder rather than basswood. Nice, clear tones, even when overdriven - Tone Zone & Humbucker from Hell in the bridge & neck positions. Vibrato works ok (vintage style, so no divebombs) & it stays pretty much in tune if not abused.
I had left instructions for a bid on a PGM500CA at the same time (looks similar to the 400, but basswood, unpainted neck, no vibrato) - but my friend was beaten by £3.99. D'oh! I was on the phone while he was bidding - it's just as nerve wracking in the final moments of an E-Bay auction, even if you're not actually present. He got the final bid in, time-wise, but the winner had the (annoyingly, and obviously) higher bid. Hey ho - I wouldn't have bid on the 400 if I'd won the 500 at the price it went for, and the 400 is the rarer of the two (I think) &, construction-wise, a bit different to the 301. Serendipity (I learned that word from Dr Who about 30 years ago).
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