Gibson '76 Explorer re-issue

[dangerous_dave]

Has anyone got one of these, or tried them out?

They look great for the money, however, I have to wait till June to try one out... and you know how things are...



So, let rip.



Thanks.

[straycat]

They are cool to look at but play like a Kelly.Feel a little off center for me.Very narrow neck but thick like a ball bat.Ive had several real 76's but didn't keep them long, great trading fodder tho'.

[necrotechno]

I've got two of them — a black one and a natural finish one with gold hardware. The black one I got just because it was hanging in GC for so long. Got it for $800. The natural one I got because it was the only one in that finish that I'd seen where the three pieces of wood that make up the body were fairly well matched to each other. I think I paid $1100 for it.

I replaced all the electronics in both with CTS pots and color coordinated selector switches. GFS sells the only all-black switch I know of; WD the only all-gold. The black one got a dye job on its Rosewood fingerboard. All knobs replaced, of course. Planet Waves tuning keys (as always) and Planet Waves strap buttons (Gibson's buttons are the worst). Shielding paint. New pickguards. Shileding foil on the pickguards. That's about it, I think.

Pickups are the infamous Gibson Hot Ceramic Set, the 496R/500T. Love 'em or hate 'em. Me, I love 'em. I put gold covers and re-potted the ones on the natural.

The black one is an '07, which means it came with the current case which has the white fur interior. Dunno why they chose to do that. I plan to get it dyed eventually.

[Johno]

Did it change the sound any? I too like the sound of 500T but, I like the look of a pickup cover.

[necrotechno]

I make sure to use only the Gibson covers whenever possible. Not only because of the better fit, but also because they're made of less ferrous material than most el cheapo aftermarket covers. Which is supposed to make them sonically transparent or some shit. I'm a sucker for jargon.

Anyway, I think it does cut some of the high frequencies, but not in a bad way. Mellows out the 500T, which can get a bit sharp sometimes. I disconnect the tone controls in most of my guitars, so that gets some treble frequencies back. I have both Explorers set up the same way — Hot Ceramics, one 500K CTS audio taper volume pot, 3-way, no tone control — the only difference being the gold covers on the natural (and my re-potting the pickups). The one without the covers is slightly more prone to squeal.

[Johno]

Cool, thanks for the info. I've got a 76 Explorer re-issue that I love just the way it is. It was my dream guitar when I was a kid. I never had the money to get one back then plus I hated that baseball bat neck. Some 30 years later I don't have a problem with the neck anymore so I got a natual one. I thought, at first, why is it a re-issue because of the pickup and the knobs are not the same as a true 76. But, in 1976 I would have pulled those covers right off and put speed knobs (we use to call them ice cubes back in the day) so I have my dream guitar now. I do have a Les Paul with 500T that I think needs covers on.

[dangerous_dave]

Thanks for the helpful words.

[lhrocker]

They are cool to look at but play like a Kelly.Feel a little off center for me.Very narrow neck but thick like a ball bat.Ive had several real 76's but didn't keep them long, great trading fodder tho'.

I have 2 explorers, a 76RI and a standard Xplorer, and both of them play and sound great. The RI neck isn't really that bad compare to Jacksons. I do find that they hang beautifully as compared to Kellys. When I had the Kelly, the guitar would tilt forward and neck down. The explorers are always in place. I used the same nylon straps for both - for the money, it's a great guitar and a Gibby as well.

[Rupe]

I used to have one in the late 90's. I loved everything about it except that I couldn't keep it in tune during a gig. I'm sure an overhaul like mentioned above would do the trick.

[StukaJU87]

Gibson Explorer is one of my all time favorites. Balances sooo much beeter than a KE2. I know, I had a few of each and still have one of each. Well, my curent Kelly is a neck thru pro. I like both, but the Gibson gets the nod. I also find the neck quite comfortable. I would not call it a baseball bat by any means. Now the JCF-01....THAT is a baseball bat.

[necrotechno]

I pulled these out and played them for a while tonight. Took a pic:



They're both right around 9 pounds, among the heavier guitars I own. I had forgoten I took the cover off the neck pickup on the natural. The replacement mounting rings aren't slanted and I was having problems with the cover touching the strings. I also forgot I had cannibalized the Planet Waves tuners off the black one — those are Jackson keys on there.

I still need to change the nut on the black one to graphite. I replaced the nut on an SG many years ago with the pre-slotted one Carvin sells, and it dropped right in with no mods. The natural one, I want to get a Gibson TP-6 and a Floyd locking nut.

[satch0922]

my 1991. Love it ...it is one big piece of wood!

[SEEGERMANY]

My custom shop Explorer. Loudest guitar I own.

[dg]

Are these things playable as is, or do you really have to do everything necro mentioned? Serious question, because they look cool & I've thought about buying one, but not if I've got to change out the hardware, electronics, and the nut to make it play like a quality piece. I almost double-checked the thread title to make sure this was really a USA Gibson & not an Epi being discussed.

[necrotechno]

No, it's fine as-is. I'm just a mod-aholic.

Edit: Except for the strap buttons. Like I said, Gibson uses the absolute worst, smallest, least trustworthy strap buttons in existence. Planet Waves makes some nice ones, and GC stocks 'em.