Gibson QC: My bass players other band

jeztone2

The bass player in my band has reunited with his old “Uni mates” band. During their rehearsal on Sunday, the jack socket just dropped out of his guitarists brand new 2017 Les Paul Standard. 

Now I have a 2017 Classic and when I bought mine. All the LP’s I tried that day seemed of a far tidier build. Apparently this guy bought it mail order from a box shifter. Second maybe?

rico

How did it happen? As in the jack worked itself loose or did the jack plate fall off?

It is probably overkill but when I get a new guitar (new to me, not necessarily brand new) I always get it to a tech for a setup/tighten up. 

jeztone2

Not sure, my bassist is typically vague. I think it became unseated. Probably just one of those things. 

Yeah you you right I always check stuff over when it’s new to me.

ICBM

Gibson often put two shakeproof washers on the jack where only one is needed, making the nut hang onto the last turn or so of the thread. If the thread is a little undersized or the nut works loose it then falls off... obviously when you put it back, remove one of the washers. (Keep it, they're useful.) It's also a good idea to put a little drop of superglue on the thread before you tighten the nut up - not much, just enough to lock it into place. If you have proper threadlock, even better...

jeztone2

Cheers for that fella, have passed it on. 

DLM

I'm disappointed: "Gibson QC" would make a great geeky name for a band. In the vein of "The Decca Audition".

Luminous

DLM said:

I'm disappointed: "Gibson QC" would make a great geeky name for a band. In the vein of "The Decca Audition".

or " Anne Frank's drumkit"

impmann

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

ICBM

impmann said:

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

No, but it does puzzle me why they deliberately put two washers on the jacks. It costs them money (even if only a few cents) and does the job wrong... most strange. Even without threadlock, the nut is much less likely to fall off when it's properly onto the thread, even if it does work loose.

Contrast that with a lot of boutique pedal builders who don't use them when they should!

WezV

ICBM said:

impmann said:

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

No, but it does puzzle me why they deliberately put two washers on the jacks. It costs them money (even if only a few cents) and does the job wrong... most strange. Even without threadlock, the nut is much less likely to fall off when it's properly onto the thread, even if it does work loose.

Contrast that with a lot of boutique pedal builders who don't use them when they should!

Oddly shows some attention to detail, even if for the wrong reason... It looks neater when the nut is flush with the jack.


i tend to leave mine protruding a bit, so if/when they eventually work loose it won’t all fall apart straight away.

ICBM

WezV said:

Oddly shows some attention to detail, even if for the wrong reason... It looks neater when the nut is flush with the jack.

i tend to leave mine protruding a bit, so if/when they eventually work loose it won’t all fall apart straight away.

Exactly. I always do it like that for that reason - and I actually don't think the flush nut looks 'right', because they're almost always not *quite* flush but actually set with the nut slightly proud of the thread.

In any case, who really looks? But I guarantee you will notice if the nut falls off .

jeztone2

impmann said:

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

Given that he’s paid the wrong side of £1500.00
i mean go buy a TAG Heur for £1500 or a Leica lens and watch something drop off within a week of ownership. We’ve all gotten use to mediocrity from the Gibson brand IMHO.

maltingsaudio

jeztone2 said:

impmann said:

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

Given that he’s paid the wrong side of £1500.00
i mean go buy a TAG Heur for £1500 or a Leica lens and watch something drop off within a week of ownership. We’ve all gotten use to mediocrity from the Gibson brand IMHO.

Buy a brand new car for over £30 grand and things still fall off within weeks!

DLM

Luminous said:

DLM said:

I'm disappointed: "Gibson QC" would make a great geeky name for a band. In the vein of "The Decca Audition".

or " Anne Frank's drumkit"

That's a song by my mate's band!

underdog

Just want to say Gibson QC would be a great band name.

impmann

maltingsaudio said:

jeztone2 said:

impmann said:

So a nut worked loose on a jack socket?

Hardly QC, really, imho. 

Given that he’s paid the wrong side of £1500.00
i mean go buy a TAG Heur for £1500 or a Leica lens and watch something drop off within a week of ownership. We’ve all gotten use to mediocrity from the Gibson brand IMHO.

Buy a brand new car for over £30 grand and things still fall off within weeks!

No, its just come loose! FFS - its not poor QC, its a nut that HAS WORKED LOOSE. Tbh, if he hadn't noticed that the socket was a bit wobbly, I'd be surprised. And in that case, he should have tightened it up - basic maintenance.

ICBM

impmann said:

No, its just come loose! FFS - its not poor QC, its a nut that HAS WORKED LOOSE. Tbh, if he hadn't noticed that the socket was a bit wobbly, I'd be surprised. And in that case, he should have tightened it up - basic maintenance.

With the way Gibson usually fit them there's very little margin between coming loose and falling off completely. You could say that if they fitted them properly with the nut on a bit further and some threadlock, they would never come loose at all.

But I agree it's not a QC problem, it's an assembly practice problem. I don't actually know of any guitar maker who uses threadlock either - some of the far-east factories use it for the *inside* nut, but which is also pointless because they don't fit shakeproof washers, and the outside nut comes loose anyway!

impmann

ICBM said:

impmann said:

No, its just come loose! FFS - its not poor QC, its a nut that HAS WORKED LOOSE. Tbh, if he hadn't noticed that the socket was a bit wobbly, I'd be surprised. And in that case, he should have tightened it up - basic maintenance.

With the way Gibson usually fit them there's very little margin between coming loose and falling off completely. You could say that if they fitted them properly with the nut on a bit further and some threadlock, they would never come loose at all.

But I agree it's not a QC problem, it's an assembly practice problem. I don't actually know of any guitar maker who uses threadlock either - some of the far-east factories use it for the *inside* nut, but which is also pointless because they don't fit shakeproof washers, and the outside nut comes loose anyway!

Agreed - if it was a "QC" problem (QC stands for Quality Control) it would have been loose/falling out on the line. It wasn't - its come loose and fallen off since he's bought it so its got nothing to do with QC or having a pop at Gibson's supposed lack of it (yet again).

DLM

underdog said:

Just want to say Gibson QC would be a great band name.

Oi! That's mah funnehship!

mbe

This thread is nuts.

randella

impmann said:

No, its just come loose! FFS - its not poor QC, its a nut that HAS WORKED LOOSE. Tbh, if he hadn't noticed that the socket was a bit wobbly, I'd be surprised. And in that case, he should have tightened it up - basic maintenance.

Not a dig at the OP's buddy's bandmate, but I've played any number of other people's guitars with loose this or that.  It's the kind of thing that makes me itchy, like I immediately need to start looking for the socket set.