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So, I've been talking with Jay at Wolfe Guitars about a Heritage Millenium H-158.

What you ya'll think? Anybody own/played one?
With a translucent finish and hardcase he quoted me $1388. I'm thinking about trans green with gold hardware, a Bigsby, PGs, locking tuners, and MAYBE a custom vine inlay up the fretboard, if I decide to go all out... Or I might just get a standard one. When he quoted me on another model, all that added stuff I just mentioned (minus inlay and locking tuners, with no inlays) only added about $200. Not too shabby. Anyhow, give me some opinions!
Also, about the Bigsby, I remember reading somewhere that they tend to make the strings kinda mush. Is that true?
Thanks! Later

Ask Scott F. about the Bigsby on a Heritage - he used to have a 535 equiped with one. I know that they look cool, but it's not a very functional design. IIRC Scott said that the Schaller bridge with the roller saddles was key to helping it work.

Jay Wolfe was great to work with for my Heritage 535 with a TOM bridge.

I'd strongly recommend binding on the headstock and fingerboard - it looks so much better that way IMHO. Do that before any vine inlay.

Last, you must like the shape of the H-158, but the proportions just look wrong to me. Something about the upper bout looks too big and out of balance compared to the waist. YMMV, etc.

Chip

Yeah, the fretboard is bound already and I was gonna get the headstock bound, too. Jay said that the Bigsbys come with roller bridges. Yeah, that picture isn't the best, the other pics in different colors look killer. I'm not really a sunburst (or quot;sunsetburstquot;) fan, and it makes the guitar look wierd, but I have played an Epi Wildkat (same bodystyle) and really liked the shape. It's not an LP and it's not a 335, but I like it in other colors.
What did you think about the build quality on yours? I've heard they're pretty nice, but I've never seen one. Somebody chime in about the Bigsby. Thanks.

The build quality on my Heritage is great in terms of frets, neck, wood, finish, etc. Before you read the rest of this, please understand that I'm a perfectionist. Compared to anything else in it's price range, and much more expensive Gibsons, the Heritage is a great guitar and a great value IMHO.

My only legitimate complaint is that the bone nut was not cut as well as it could be. It seems to play OK, but the top isn't curved like it should be, it's not polished and one slot looks like someone missed the mark initially, then moved it a smidgeon. It looks lame, and will have to be replaced sometime soon.

Getting really picky, the tailpiece could be farther away from the bridge. I had to raise it pretty high off the body to get the strings clear of the back side of the bridge. Also, the pickup rings, especially the neck, are slanted too much so the front edge of the pickup is farther from the strings than the back edge. Adjusting the screw poles up a lot helped the tone considerably, but someday I'll get around to tweaking some pickup rings to fit better.

Chip

Cool, thanks a lot. I would expect a well cut nut on a handmade $1500 guitar, too. But, also, you're right, it's not a huge deal. Scott sightings, anyone?

Aaron

Here's the deal. I'm looking for a sharp main axe in the $1000-$1500 range. I'd like it to be nearly perfect for that much, I'm also just considering breaking down and getting an Epi LP Custom. Anyway, I'd like it to be LP style, but semi-hollow is a big plus. I'm a huge fan of small semi-hollows. Hah, fixing up an LP Custom is sounding better and better... My buddy has one and the fit is nearly perfect on everything. Not to mention, great tone from his.