Here's what Gibson's website says about "Ordering your Custom guitar" and I quote:
"Want an all black Explorer with triple-ply binding and your name on the fingerboard? How about a metallic blue Les Paul with racing stripes, open coil humbuckers, and a pearl flag on the headstock? All of that and much, much more is available to you by custom ordering your guitar.
Just about anything you can dream up can be built by the master craftsmen in our Pro Shop; here's how to order the guitar of your dreams.
First, visit your local Authorized Gibson Custom dealer. Your dealer will work with you to nail down the exact details of your custom guitar and then relay that information to the Custom Shop. From there, Custom will write up a spec sheet and quote with ETA for the guitar and return that to the dealer. If everything is meets your approval, the dealer will sign off on the order and fax the spec sheet back to the Custom Shop and work will begin on your instrument. Finally, when the guitar has been completed, it will ship to your dealer where you can pick it up.
So what are you waiting for? That special, one-of-a-kind guitar you've always wanted is within your reach by placing your custom order today!"
Well that sounded easy. So off I went to the local Guitar Center (on the authorized list of course!) to order a custom left handed Chet Atkins Country Gentleman (below left). They seemed very interested and agreed to call me later in the week. After a number of follow-up calls they never got back to me. Then I called Jimmy at South Paw Guitars and asked him what he thought. He told me flat out that Gibson just won't do it. He couldn't tell me why. Then I thought maybe I was being too ambitious with the Country Gent. I saw the new ES137 Custom (sans the Bigsby and righty of course) at Rudy's in NYC and thought maybe Gibson would consider making the ES137 in a left handed version. I took the liberty of mocking one up in Adobe to depict exactly how I wanted it. While out in Colorado I met some nice guys at a Guitar shop called Guitars etc. They mentioned that they were in pretty well with Gibson and would gladly try to order me a guitar. I emailed them my ES137 Custom mock-up photo (center). They seemed very interested and agreed to get back to me. Months later.... nothing. How is it that Gibson just doesn't want my money?
!
