GuitArcher

Good, but we can do better. Quick recap of the stops we've made so far. Try to keep up: A Gibson Les Paul Studio (Sold for $900) + $900 turns into... A Dr. Z Maz 38 with a Leyland Sound 2x12 Cabinet, turns into... A Gibson Les Paul DC Faded, a Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue, and $300, turns into... Wait! The Fender DRRI and $300 get off the train! They didn't have tickets. Sneaky Bastards. So the LPDC becomes... A Gibson SG Standard (with original hard shell case) Everyone caught up?  Good, because while the Gibson SG Standard was a fantastic trade, the best was still to come. Choo choo! Next station! How could you hate a train?

The last time the Trade Train rolled into the station, we unloaded a Dr. Z Maz 38 head and a Leyland Sound 2x12 cabinet in exchange for a Gibson Les Paul DC Faded, a Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue, and $300. The train had left the station, and this passenger was pretty happy. Train is rollin'. Tickets! Happy for awhile of course.  The Gibson DC wasn't doing it for me - a cool guitar, but I felt no connection to it, and to be honest I don't love P90 pickups. Time for a new ad!  Remember the rules: Take nice pictures - more people will click your ad and read about your super awesome guitar Post as a trade - Unless you are hard up for cash, always post as a trade first.  You can always mention in the description that you'll consider a cash offer.   Don't oversell!  Provide a description, but be factual.  The pictures do the talking. Time went by and the typical offers popped up.  Some of my favorites included: An Epiphone LP 100 and $5...

There's no such thing as the perfect amp - it's all relative.  As circumstances change, your definition of perfect changes as well, and that dream rig of stereo 100 watt Marshall stacks becomes slightly impractical if you find yourself playing local watering holes. My Maz 38 fell into that category.  Despite it being the best amp I've ever owned, once the band stopped getting together, all that power was just silly.  Combined with a tight cash situation, it was time to post it up on Kijiji and see what I could find. I listed the head and the cab (a Leyland Sound 2x12 with Eminence Swamp Thangs) for $1800 - exactly what I had paid for it 12 months prior.  Since the amp was in the same condition as when I bought it, it seemed fair. After a few days, and a few offers, a problem clearly presented itself - The head would be easy to sell, the cabinet not so much.  Despite the fact that it was a supremely well made cabinet (seriously - if you know wher...

I sold that Les Paul Studio for the princely sum of $900, which is a bit higher than they were going for at the time. Never underestimate the value of using entirely unnecessary adjectives when writing Kijiji posts - words like "vibe" and "mojo" come to mind.  Aspiring rock stars, and especially aspiring "local Stevies", eat that language up.  The whole Crossroads mythos is the stupidest thing to even happen to the guitar if you ask me***. ***Sorry.  Second Stupidest. There was a purpose to selling the Les Paul though.  There is always a purpose, and it is almost always the same - something else on the horizon, destined to make all of your tone dreams come true. And when it isn't that, it's because you're broke.  Thankfully, selling the Les Paul was about the first thing. There is always a porpoise. The object of my affection? A Dr. Z Maz 38 Senior with a custom Leyland Sound 2x12 cab.  I had read about Dr. Z for a lo...

I've owned a handful of Gibsons over the years, but none of them seem to stick.  They're not bad guitars, but I always find myself gravitating back to Fender. So when the time comes to move something, the Fenders are dear, the Gibsons are expendable, and there is no shortage of teenagers who want to own their first real Gibson. This was the first one I owned - A 1996 Gibson Les Paul Studio in Wine Red. I bought it in Japan, from Ishibashi , when I was a guitar-less gaijin and itching to start playing again.  When you live in an apartment that is the size of a single car garage, having a hobby can be pretty important. For the low price of 63,000 yen it was mine.  Japan is amazing for used gear, as there seemed to be a stigma around buying something used.  There were ( are?) entire department store sized floors filled with used guitars, many of which are the kind you see selling for far too much, with tags like "lawsuit years". I really liked this Les Paul...