So it seems like some clown, or a bunch of clowns, in China are attempting, rather badly at that, to manufacture counterfeit Gibson guitars to flood the market. Not to say that there is absolutely no domestic reproduction issues here in North America, but this story really got my attention! After researching this for a short while, I found out that this story is actually quite old.
NOTE: To tell you the truth, I just ran upstairs to make sure my vintage Gibson RD-Artist was really what I thought I got when I bought it from Steve’s Music in Toronto way back in 1979! It’s ok … it’s the real Macoy!!!
My father and I were on the phone, we talk around 3-4 times a week, the other night and he told me to hold on because he had cut out this article in the Brantford Expositor that he wanted to tell me about. While he left the phone to find it, I got on line and found the story. The story was called Be wary of fake Gibsons, police say.
The knockoffs are being sold for $1,200, while an authentic Gibson sells for about $2,500. People purchasing the knockoffs believe they are getting a good deal when in fact, the knockoffs are worth only about $200, he added.
Police have checked and learned that LA Music of Brantford, 139 Charing Cross St., is the only registered dealer for Gibson guitars in the Brantford area. Brantford Expositor
As the story goes, this man goes to some Chinese website, orders a fake Gibson Les Paul and sells it to a kid as the real deal. Thank God that his father is a guitarist and happened to own one when he was a young inspired musician just like his son is now. After bringing both the boy and his new dream guitar home, the boy’s father felt that something was wrong with this guitar, a gut feeling he had about it. So he went online to find telltale signs for knock off Gibson and sure enough they had been taken! Those bastards!
So has anyone out there had the misfortune of purchasing one of these genuine imitation Gibsons?!
Keep on Jammin’
It really sucks having been fooled by some lurking bastards especially when it cost a big deal of money. I almost got caught up in the same situation but Ibanez website rescued me. Moral lesson is do spend time googling to know where you can buy authentic guitars with great deals. Guitar reviews and original merchandise dealers provide engineering specs where in you can get a clue on what is authentic and what is not.
Truer words have never been spoken Chris! I honestly can’ agree with you more.
How come more people don’t do their homework? Is it that we’re just too lazy or naive? If I was to invest any amount of money in purchasing regardless of the cost, I Google the hell out of it. Why not, the worst thing that could happen would be that I learn something? Ahhhh!!!!
I am glad that I ran across your blog. It makes me sick to see some of the rip off products that are being offered to people on the Internet.
It is important to research the product so you know what to look for in the real deal. Plus you need to look for background information on the seller. Look for clues to how long they have been in business and what their reputation is online.
You should also watch out for new accounts with just a few positive feed backs on sales sites like eBay or Amazon. A lot of the scammers change their sales accounts quite frequently.
You should also make use of buyer protection and escrow services if you have any doubt that the product is authentic.
Ken Toulou
drumkitsreview.com
That is a real nice addition/comment for this post Ken. You make a lot of sense here. I as well hope that people will read this and take the extra couple of minutes that it takes to be sure that they are getting the real deal!
Nice site you have as well!
Keep on Jammin'(drumming) Ken