Diamond in the rough project guitars

lysander

What are some cheap guitars with good woods and finishes that just need a bit of fret / nut /setup work and some pickup or minor hardware upgrades to turn into excellent instruments ?

I would put G&L tribute guitars somewhat in that bracket for instance, although I once had one that had a messed up fretboard that was beyond simple help ( it had been cut too thick near the neck pocket and there was only so much fret leveling could do to get a decent action ).

guitars4you

I suppose it is what you classify as cheap - But the PRS SE range are excellent with a god chassis that can easily benefit from better pick-ups and maybe a tweak on the set up - Ditto many Mex Fenders

as an overview you could apply your thoughts to most guitars that sell new around £300 to £800

The quality of budget/mid priced guitars has never been so good with so many to choose from

lysander

Cool thx, yes I was thinking mostly around the £300 mark, so my G&L example is a bit over the mark, they were a bit cheaper when the £ was stronger.

guitars4you

lysander said:

Cool thx, yes I was thinking mostly around the £300 mark, so my G&L example is a bit over the mark, they were a bit cheaper when the £ was stronger.

everything was cheaper when the £ was stronger

I would rather buy a good used guitar for £300 and customise it as against a new guitar for £300

less depreciation and you should be buying a better guitar for you money

lysander

Well yes obviously regarding the £ Agreed about buying used.

lysander

So having done a bit of digging it seems there are a few brands that do really cheap imports (less than £200) that would be perfect for this.
At the very least in the UK there is Encore, Gear4music's own brand, Harley Benton from Thomann, J&D and probably a few more.
Quite a few telecaster that can be had for £100 or less in particular, makes sense as guitars don't get much simpler.

underdog

Harley Benton's are pretty decent guitars, some of the cheapest ones are basswood (not ripe for a refinish) but still good guitars, the LP alike ones got rave reviews in the HB challenge a few years back I seem to remember.

stimpsonslostson

underdog said:

Harley Benton's are pretty decent guitars, some of the cheapest ones are basswood (not ripe for a refinish) but still good guitars, the LP alike ones got rave reviews in the HB challenge a few years back I seem to remember.

My (heavily modded) Harley Benton te52 has become excellent & has seen off several much more expensive guitars. I must acknowledge that this is due mainly to the excellent harness and pickup from OilCity that I installed once it became clear that it was a great guitar being let down by the electronics. 

From what I understand Chapman guitars are (or were) built with the intention of providing a good solid base to do your own mods. 

blobb

Lower number Ibanez Studios are worth looking out for, ST50 upwards. Pretty good stock but there's one local to me that's been on commission sale for a while now at £199, but he would take £175 and I guess now £150 may be accepted. For the money it's excellent.  1979 MIJ.

Rabs

I once bought a Squire strat that played really well...  Cost 30 quid at a car boot sale 

Seriously...