les paul r8 r9 reissues

hello everyone. im new to the forum. i was just wondering, what makes the r8- r9 les pauls so expensive, when they are just remakes and replicas of the original les paul 58- 59,s. i have seen some r9 reissues that are beautiful, but i cant see paying that kind of price for them. can anyone give me some details on why they fetch that kind of price, when they arent the real thing. thanks everyone.

Henry J.

a vid says more than words

https://youtu.be/99goZptQFQM

Hamerfan said:

a vid says more than words

https://youtu.be/99goZptQFQM

Click to expand...

thanks for the video link. that answered alot of questions.

I love that video.

I am a new poster here too, but I've been reading the forums for a while now and find them very informative.

I'm hopefully going to buy my first reissue soon.

I've narrowed it down to either a 2016 R9 or a new 2017 R8. There is really good value on the R9's, almost the same price as the new R8's for 2017. I could not afford a new 2017 R9.

What do you guys think? I am fairly up to date with the different specs, so I'm more interested in what people who own 2016 R9s think.

I like the upgrades for 2017, such as the correct serial number, TH plastics etc, but some of the tops that are for sale in the UK are very plain.

Unfortunately there are no stockists in my county! So I will have to buy online from a Gibson dealer.

Welcome la

You will find that R8s are a lot cheaper to buy than R9 and R0

Also fatter necks on R8's

I think the best value is to grab any used R9 ---especially 2009 and later. They're very accurate spec wise. 2012's can be awesome values on the used market because of the two piece fingerboard issue (do a search.)

Basically, the reissues are amazing builds:Beautiful woods, finishes etc. If you know the market and are patient, you can find a killer used guitar at a reasonable price that will more or less hold its value for the duration.

Thanks for the reply's and advice.

I think I've settled on the 2016 R9...for now :hee

I bought my 2016 TH from wildwood mate and it's the best guitar I've ever seen, played or heard, im in australia so i bought it unseen but they are a great dealer if you can get one off em

Go to a Gibson shop that sells both Gibson Custom and Gibson USA and try for yourself and see what you think and how each individual instrument feels and see which one speaks to you that you like and go from there .

Mats A said:

Also fatter necks on R8's

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R4s, R6s, R7s, R8s and R9s are all using the same CNC carve this year. The differences over the past few years have been minimal but this year Gibson stated one carve. CCs and sigs excluded, everyone I've seen is between .88" and .92" at the 1st fret. Gibson was shooting for .90" at the 1st but the final hand sanding accounts for the variances. The same thing applies to the shoulders but R9s are supposed to be more C shaped. That again will still depend on who's shaping the neck.

My '15 BB7 is .89" at the 1st and my '14 Benchmark R9 is .88" at the first. The only difference feel wise is the BB has more of D shape with more shoulder. The R9 is definitely more C shaped.















I will say, as has been stated already, that the TH BB has a bit more going on for it then the R9. The THs bring a little something extra to the table. I can't exactly put my finger on it but overall it just seems to be the winner of the bunch by a nose. The '14 R9 in like is just a bit better than my '11 R9s and those '11s are just a good bit better than my '04 CR6. They are all a good notch above my '13 STD which is still a great guitar just not as great as the others.

That said they are all excellent guitars. I'm speaking that to last 1% of excellence when comparing the '14 R9 to the '15 TH.

If I had to give them point values for build quality and overall feel, leaving tone out of the equation, I'd rate mine as follows:

'15 BB7 TH 100

'14 Benchmark R9 99

'11 DCHP R9s 97

'11 GT Mini 'buckers 95

'04 CR6 93

'13 LP STD 89

They're still all grade A but over the years I can see and feel minute differences in the quality of the workmanship.

I wouldn't be at all disappointed if the CR6 were my only guitar. If I were hunting one now I'd look for anything from 2011 and up. Personally I'd skip '12 altogether. eace2