MikeSlub
Administrator
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2001
- Messages
- 15,170
Great story and geetars from Steve (DoubleBoogie). Thanks Steve! :dude:
My first Historic was a ‘98 R9 Darkback darkburst. But by 2004, the Les Paul reissues had gotten a lot closer in terms of how well they matched the design and construction of the originals. At that time, forum member Mark Kane posted these pictures of a 2004 Custom Authentic finished R9 in Faded Tobacco that he had recently purchased.
I (along with many other forum members) went totally nuts over this particular guitar. I asked Mark to let me know if he ever wanted to sell it because I thought it was one of the best looking tops I had ever seen…..it just spoke to me with the wonderful curl and unique mineral figuring with the heart by the bridge volume knob. One forum member has referred to this guitar as the “heart burst”. Close up with the guitar in hand, the curl behind the tail piece is amazingly 3D and displays a stunning depth like you see in very deeply quilted figured maple. There is just a WHOLE lot going on with this piece of maple. I also asked him where he got it and he told me that it came from Music Machine out in Seattle. Mark explained that there were other Custom Authentic finished Faded Tobacco R9’s available at Music Machine.
By this time I had gotten GAS so bad that I just had to have one. I went on line and found this one which was also a Faded Tobacco Custom Authentic finished version and I pulled the trigger.
About a months or so I after I got mine, I got an email message from Mark stating that he was going to sell his to buy something else and he asked me if I wanted it. Even though I was happy with the one I had, I was still captivated by Mark’s so I talked my wife into letting me buy Mark’s with the thought being I would keep the best one of the two and re-sell the other. So I drove to Baton Rouge from Birmingham and met Mark to pick up the guitar and I took mine just to show Mark and compare the two. Somewhere around this time, I discovered something pretty interesting. The serial number for Mark’s was 9 41288 and the serial number for mine was 9 41289! What are the odds of winding up with back to back serial numbered R9’s?!?! I couldn’t decide which one to let go, and my wife told me that it was fate that I should just keep them both! She’s a keeper too! J I decided to name Mark’s guitar Victoria after my wife’s first name, and the other guitar became Jane after her middle name.
The guitar named Jane has amazing “peekaboo” flame that can go from essentially dramatic full flame to near “plain Jane” J depending upon the light alone. The pictures below were taken in the evening on a tri-pod when I tried to capture the flame under just a table lamp lighting the room. The overhead ceiling mounted lights were later turned on in the second picture and that was the only difference in the two photos except for a very slight change in the camera location and the amount of zoom. I was amazed at the difference.
I have posted numerous pictures of these guitars over the years and still have “the twins” as some have described them. They are both similar in weight and playability. The pots and caps and pickups have been upgraded in both and when I put a set of Wolfetone DrV set in Mark’s guitar, it took it to a completely different level! They were just made for that particular guitar! The other guitar has a set of one of the very last Timbucker’s that were ever wound and they sound awesome in that guitar as well. It’s hard to believe the “twins” are already twelve years old. They grow up so fast… LOL!
My first Historic was a ‘98 R9 Darkback darkburst. But by 2004, the Les Paul reissues had gotten a lot closer in terms of how well they matched the design and construction of the originals. At that time, forum member Mark Kane posted these pictures of a 2004 Custom Authentic finished R9 in Faded Tobacco that he had recently purchased.
I (along with many other forum members) went totally nuts over this particular guitar. I asked Mark to let me know if he ever wanted to sell it because I thought it was one of the best looking tops I had ever seen…..it just spoke to me with the wonderful curl and unique mineral figuring with the heart by the bridge volume knob. One forum member has referred to this guitar as the “heart burst”. Close up with the guitar in hand, the curl behind the tail piece is amazingly 3D and displays a stunning depth like you see in very deeply quilted figured maple. There is just a WHOLE lot going on with this piece of maple. I also asked him where he got it and he told me that it came from Music Machine out in Seattle. Mark explained that there were other Custom Authentic finished Faded Tobacco R9’s available at Music Machine.
By this time I had gotten GAS so bad that I just had to have one. I went on line and found this one which was also a Faded Tobacco Custom Authentic finished version and I pulled the trigger.
About a months or so I after I got mine, I got an email message from Mark stating that he was going to sell his to buy something else and he asked me if I wanted it. Even though I was happy with the one I had, I was still captivated by Mark’s so I talked my wife into letting me buy Mark’s with the thought being I would keep the best one of the two and re-sell the other. So I drove to Baton Rouge from Birmingham and met Mark to pick up the guitar and I took mine just to show Mark and compare the two. Somewhere around this time, I discovered something pretty interesting. The serial number for Mark’s was 9 41288 and the serial number for mine was 9 41289! What are the odds of winding up with back to back serial numbered R9’s?!?! I couldn’t decide which one to let go, and my wife told me that it was fate that I should just keep them both! She’s a keeper too! J I decided to name Mark’s guitar Victoria after my wife’s first name, and the other guitar became Jane after her middle name.
The guitar named Jane has amazing “peekaboo” flame that can go from essentially dramatic full flame to near “plain Jane” J depending upon the light alone. The pictures below were taken in the evening on a tri-pod when I tried to capture the flame under just a table lamp lighting the room. The overhead ceiling mounted lights were later turned on in the second picture and that was the only difference in the two photos except for a very slight change in the camera location and the amount of zoom. I was amazed at the difference.
I have posted numerous pictures of these guitars over the years and still have “the twins” as some have described them. They are both similar in weight and playability. The pots and caps and pickups have been upgraded in both and when I put a set of Wolfetone DrV set in Mark’s guitar, it took it to a completely different level! They were just made for that particular guitar! The other guitar has a set of one of the very last Timbucker’s that were ever wound and they sound awesome in that guitar as well. It’s hard to believe the “twins” are already twelve years old. They grow up so fast… LOL!
eace2
