Heritage h150

justtt007

Anyone have any experience? I've been looking at an early noughties h150 ultra with the HRW pickups, beautiful looking guitar but priced pretty much the same as a Gibson LP standard from the same period, just wondering if the price is justified

DrBob

I’ve got a 25th Anniversary H535, it’s a lovely guitar and the equal of most 335’s I’ve played. That said, as a man that buys and sells guitars I would suggest that I would be hard pressed to get 335 money for it were I to sell it 

Rowby1

Heritage definitely more bang for buck than Gibson in my experience.

justtt007

Any ideas on prices? It's a h150 ultra with the HRW pickups not installed though it has Seymour Duncan antiquities in it at present, very flamed top in cherry sunburst Honduran one piece body and neck in its case with certificates etc it looks beautiful, it's from 2004

justtt007

Is it along the lines of tokai in comparison to Gibson?

danishbacon

In 2004 The Heritage was still under the direction of Marv Lamb and the other three/four founders from 1985. Marvin started working at Gibson in Kalamazoo in 1956 at age 16. His first job was drilling holes for bridge/stoptail on LPs. Many of the luthiers who stayed on when Gibson left Kalamazoo in 1985 for good worked well into their 60s/70s. So, if you care about who’s hands actually made your instrument, a pre 2010s The Heritage would have been hand built by the very same guys responsible for some of the most important electrics guitars. A post 2018 Heritage when the current owners went cut throat on the old guys is just another Cnc mass produced guitar with an important name on the headstock, not that this is a bad thing, but then you have a whole lot more comparable choice as the playing field is level. 

bananaman

Quite right. The Heritage made some amazing guitars.

Arktik83

I picked up a heritage H137 from Coda about a month ago and it's top drawer.  If I had gone in to thinking "Will this guitar be sold later on down the line" I definitely would not have bought it because Heritage guitars have a really crap resale value.  However, even though the term "forever guitar" feels a little bit cheesy it is a forever guitar.  It's a nice weight, finished really well and the pickups (which are Lollar P90's) sound fantastic. 

I've had a custom shop Les Paul Jr and it feels just as good as that.  I wouldn't have a qualm about buying another one personally.  I don't know anything about the current ownership but mine feels and plays fab.  To me, a guitar put through a CNC with good quality materials is better than a guitar that's finished by a skilled luthier using rubbish materials.  

I've not had a early 2000's les paul but early 2010's les pauls I have had have been pretty mediocre, even a custom shop R8 I once had, my current R8 blows that one out of the water.  

Edit: Just checked my serial number and it's a 2018 model.  Not sure if that puts it under the new or old ownership.

justtt007

danishbacon said:

In 2004 The Heritage was still under the direction of Marv Lamb and the other three/four founders from 1985. Marvin started working at Gibson in Kalamazoo in 1956 at age 16. His first job was drilling holes for bridge/stoptail on LPs. Many of the luthiers who stayed on when Gibson left Kalamazoo in 1985 for good worked well into their 60s/70s. So, if you care about who’s hands actually made your instrument, a pre 2010s The Heritage would have been hand built by the very same guys responsible for some of the most important electrics guitars. A post 2018 Heritage when the current owners went cut throat on the old guys is just another Cnc mass produced guitar with an important name on the headstock, not that this is a bad thing, but then you have a whole lot more comparable choice as the playing field is level. 

This is what appeals to me about them, Ive read up a little on them and the rewound schaller HRW seem to be very sought after also, think I'll go and give it a try this afternoon

Winny_Pooh

Try it in person I reckon, guitars vary alot & the semi hollow Heritage I tried once was no better than a Gibson

Boromedic

Whilst I'm sure they're lovely guitars, and the equivalent in some ways to a Gibson. That headstock is as ugly as sin so I could never own one. Plus it's just not a Gibson is it, and I'm a name whore. 

west

They are great ... i had a beauty of a 535 for over a decade  better than my old 335 , i  also had a h150 Lw  a chambered light weight lp  just under 7lbs it really was a super single cut but i realised there comes a time in a young man's life when he wakes one morning and says to himself 'i will never play the les paul again ...

Headstock never bothered me perfectly functional also i sold them both for more than i paid ... one caveat i changed the pickups to lollars ...

SunDevil

Stock H150 necks on the pre-takeover (by Jay Wolfe of Wolfe’s guitars and his property developer mate) were more Gibson slim than 50s - if that’s your thing then really no need to look elsewhere 

Body weights are also a bit more than an Historic - 10-11lbs

I ended up moving into Gibsons for the fatter neck / lighter body combo, but I still have an H530 (nee ES-330) with a bigger neck carve that’ll stand its ground with anything 

StefB

I’ve always thought of them as to Gibson what G&L is to Fender. 

Lovely guitars, quite similar to their more famous peers, but usually very weighty and difficult to sell on without suffering a loss unless you buy low. 

justtt007

Well I viewed it and now I own it couldn't leave it there.