Quote From A Supposed Gibson Machinist Who Worked There In '93

[lll]

Found this comment on Rick Beato's YouTube Channel. A vid called "Gibson Guitars - What's the Deal?"

I was the machinist Henry hired in early Nov 93 to program, setup, and run their Komo 4+4 CNC milling machine that arrived in late Nov 93. This machine made all the solid bodies Gibson offered from that point onwards. I can't remember the plant manager's name but I never answered to him anyway but he wasn't a luthier either and never understood my suggestions for improving the models Gibson offered. I used to work with an engineer named Matt who was a luthier and understood my concerns which we addressed privately. The blueprints we used were copies of the originals and for the most part we would recreate the same dimensions as the original blueprints. Gibson tried to make bodies that had balsa wood in a cavity under the maple tops. After a small run of these I objected against making anymore of these crappy designs. Then they tried to use Poplar wood and again I was against making these because I saw them crack overnight. They tried pocketing underneath along with lightning holes and it was making the guitars prone to warping or cracking. In my experience Gibson made some really great guitars and some really crappy ones. It all depended on the quality of the wood they used. The 1st 100th anniversary I built, hungover from partying with Johnny Neal the night before, was a Les Paul Special double cut on Saturday morning Jan 1st with Henry J, Matt, the plant manager, and myself. I was surprised they chose this model instead of a 57 Black Beauty or 59 Standard. It was made out of Poplar wood if I remember right because I remember thinking Henry was a cheap bastard for picking that wood over the mahogany. When it was completed 5 days later I got to sign it and it sat in a rotating display case through 94 at the employee entrance. I made bodies, fingerboards, necks, and cut inlay pockets for 100k plus guitars. Only a handful bear my signature, many have my initials either under the fingerboard on the neck or the neck pocket on the body. My original agreement was I would be allowed to build my own guitar my way out of materials of my choosing. I decided I wanted a Lucille made from 95% Birdseye Maple on the body and neck. Abalone inlays and binding with gold tuners and pickups and hardware. Upon finishing the guitar in an antique amber stain and several coats of clear, Henry said the guitar was too expensive for me to have. The guitar sat in my corner of the machining area for two months in its case wrapped in plastic. Then BB King showed up in early August and Henry gathered all the employees to the presentation of BB getting another Black Lucille. I brought the guitar I made and as BB was about to get up from the table to leave, I stepped forward from behind the crowd and told him the guitar I made was from the employees. When he opened it he had a huge smile on his face. What was Henry going to do? Tell BB King he couldn't have it? He played that guitar for two hours that night at Riverfront Park in Nashville and I attended that show as an ex-employee of Gibson. It was priceless when Henry told me I was fired and I said now you know what it's like to have something you wanted taken from you...I left August 94 after 9 months. My standards were higher than Gibsons and I've never regretted leaving.