I bought a cheap guitar, but it needed a few upgrades. The tuning machines, pickups, and bridge had to go. Then I realized the neck was hopelessly warped, so it went. Then I decided the body just didn't have the right sort of resonance, so I replaced that. But I still have the original knobs, and they rock
@@JRobsonGuitar that's what I call my Squier Strat. It's had new machine heads, frets, pickups, bridge saddles, tremolo block and wiring harness. And it might yet get a new body. But it's the same guitar!
Sounds like My SX telecaster from Rondomusic in USA. 500 pounds later I've got a good guitar! Should have bought the squier classic vibe Tele and saved 200 pounds.
That's a fantastic tone,love the way you are not snobby about brands and upgrades,yet you can get a tone that others can't achieve with the most expensive set ups. Great job John 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I know this is an older video, but I recently got the HB CST24T (left handed). I was pleased with it out of the box, but checked out Vanson tuners on your advice - I went for the locking ones and picked up a set. I replaced the nut with a bone nut, got a decent set of nut files, levelled and dressed the frets and it plays and sounds beautiful. The Tremelo arm is actually useable with some tweaks, the new nut/tuners combo, and a little lip balm in the nut slots! I moved the tuners over to a Fazeley LP copy which were 10 times better than the ones I took off and put in the bin, so win/win! I'm happy with the Roswell Alnico II's so all there is left to do is try those dot markers! Thanks John for a very useful video.
I liked how you described how a Les Paul felt for you. I to never felt right playing mine but I could not put a finger on it. Now I can. Thank you. Keep the wonderful videos coming I bid you fair winds and following seas
Good vid, I picked up one of these dirt cheap recently but straight away the tone was all wrong. A quick change of the cap on the tone pot to 22nf Greenies has made it sing. I recommend this mod to every owner
Great video John, iv used vanson locking tuners on one of guitars, and to be honest they are Great , work beautifully, and believe this or not, but i have just replaced an Neck stock pup in my Prs 24 custom with a vanson 59 humbucker, and being honest i think it sounds better and warmer, Cheers
Hi John. After watching some of your videos among those of many others, on the Harley Benton cst-24, I decided to buy one and I am very pleased with it. Now I watched this upgrade video and last night I ordered a set of Vanson 57. I just hope they sound better than the stock roswells, and get rid of that "nasty" top end. Same as you, I have always loved alnico II, specially de Gibson 57 classic which I have had in a few guitars. Speaking of the Wolf Tone... I have never had a guitar which didn't have it, high end and affordable guitars, it always there in some note. I took a PRS Custom 22 back to the store 6 months after the purchase because it was driving me crazy. It is more obvious in some guitars than others but it's always there. On my harley benton I find it on the G note, but only when pressing the g string on the 12th fret.. It's very discrete, and doesn't bother me at all.
Nice work, John. I live the chrome pick up covers to, it adds a nice, classic touch! Guitar sounds great, and, I love the James May reference!!! Looking forward to the next video!!
Hey Brother... I would like to compliment you on your videos. You give very honest straight forward reviews leaving out the tone snob pretentiousness and getting down to the "what's so" about the guitar. Also, your problem solving logic is remarkable... I have learned a great deal of detail and specific distinctions from your review that is greatly appreciated. Also, dude you Play Well. Great licks! Thanks for sharing your experience and expertise. GREATLY Appreciated.
Mods to date on mine, brass nut, brass trem block, amber tipped locking tuners (matches paint work and shipped from USA), chrome pick up rings (metal), brass saddles (no tuning issues), Jim dunlop locking tuners, alot has been done but this guitar is a keeper as it was a present off of my Ma and is one of my fave guitars
I swapped the pick-ups for Vansons as you suggested and I am really happy with the result. The guitar now sounds much more Peter Green (exactly as hoped) and less Sex Pistols. £30 well spent,
Phony Abalone lol. Thanks John, after watching you I bought my first Harley Benton CST24 and really like it. I can do my own mods and fret work so these are great. I enjoy your channel keep it up:)
Great video Sir. I love my two HB guitars and after a bit of work they play as great as my esp/ltd guitars... They played better than any of my Epiphone guitars I've owned out of the box
Awsome video man. I love budget guitars that become great guitars with a bit of love. I'm expecting the Harley Benton cst 24 kit in the mail tomorrow. I'm going to pay a lot of attention to the paint job and fretboard. Give it premium hardware. And I'll decide what to do with the electronics and pickups, after I see what kind of vibe the guitar has. You can make an incredible instrument, as long as it has good "bones". I'm excited to get started. You've got a really nice guitar there. Congratulations on your mod. 🤘
Yeah the weight of fhe new bridge does doind better, i replaced mine with a Musiclily wraparound bridge wifh saddles like a strat bridge :) highly recommended for setting up individual strings. I wont lie, the original Roswell pickups aren't bad to me, but i have some GuitarHeads active humbuckers and a battery door, and am thinking of putting them in my CST-24 kit too :) plus, the ebony-esque 24-fret fretboard on it is beautiful too :) proper black wood, i dont care if its fake ebony, it's gorgeous and still sounds nice :) x
Love iron gear turned a £99 epiphone single pickup Les Paul along with an orange drop into a proper rock machine cranked up and a bluesey smooth thing with just a little breakup and the tone knocked off
Hi John. Thanks for the great video. I too bought the CST-24T and find the roswell pickups muddy. Say the Vanson pickups on ebay but before I buy wanted to get your insight on replacing the wiring/pots. Did you add CTS pots and a new wiring harness as well? If so, what should I get. Much thanks, Jay
Those are the exact pickups I purchased for my Tanglewood LP clone, I couldn't be happier with them. They are not an exact copy of the 57 PAFs they are copying but pretty damn close, especially for the money.
Nice video! I've bought this guitar for my brother and was thinking about upgrading pickups. Can you still split these to single coils as with the original Wilkinsons? Thanks!
Maybe this is the key for dead spots on my Squier Bullet piece of wood thing. I will try a steel vibrato block plus locking tuners. This should change resonance behaviour significantly I hope...
John, as a matter of fact I allready got one! There is a German mate offering steel and brass replacement blocks fitting to nearly any str@t vibrato / body on the market in eBay. . The price is arround 25€ which I consider really fair. I have allready installed one of those (full size in this case!) blocks on one of my Harley Benton Str@ts and in combination with steel rolled saddles and I have to say it is a huge step forward in regards of tone and sustain. I can post a link here if this offer is of common interest.
Adjust the overall angle of the bridge using the grub screws in the mounting posts. This should allow you to get both E strings intonated correctly. After that, you should find that everything is pretty close to perfect. The only slight adjustment you may need to tweak is the B & G string saddle. Using a regular (non-strobe) tuner it's possible to get it reading spot on.
Funny how every lower budget brand is almost becoming how Peavy's guitars were super affordable and better than the top name brands entry level guitars. I bought my 1994 Peavy Reactor for $99 USD and it was every bit as good as my MIM Fender Strat (was stolen unfortunately). The Peavey Reactor isn't as nice as my 1986 G&L ASAT or my 2006 MIA 60th Anniversary Fender Strat, but it is still a great guitar and I love playing it. They sell now for $500 USD used of Reverb. Fender will never get another dollar of mine. It is a matter of diminishing returns, the only thing that is a positive about the top name brands is their resale value, nothing else. Harley Benton has some great guitars, I plan on buying a kit and putting the guitar together myself. I have on my list a SG style, Les Paul style, and Flying V to get, and those 3 guitars would cost less than buying 1 MIM Fender
Another great vid John - Thanks for the Vanson tuner recomendation, looking for some for the Affinity as I think Pete and I both seem to play the squiers more than our 'real ones'. Cap & Pots done, Cavity insulated, frets dressed, IronGear Texas Loco on the Neck, bored out strap screw hole sorted (3 toothpicks and some pva) ... As a question, any ideas for a 40.6mm nut ? The affinity has a wierd neck, and I'm struggling to find an upgrade fo that specific NUT - the 42mm doesn't line up string wise and have I may end up having to make a custom one.
@@JRobsonGuitar cheers dude, had the first play today after sorting the intonation, the irongear texas loco through a tube screamer nails srv .. v impressed.
Hey John, Where was yours made? Mine is made in China....and looks it!! Slight resemblence to yours but flame isn't as defined. Will be modding this one for certain.
I have a HB CST 24 with the vibrato tail. To PRS it up a bit, I used the bird inlay stickers available online, similar to the dots. All in all, they aren't identical to PRS birds but from 20 feet suffice. I had some peel back on a couple from over bending, but a little light elmers glue keeps the ends from curling back up. For the tuners, was any modification to the hole needed? Does Vanson have locking tuners also? I also bought a used PRS SE gig back to complete the faux PRS CST 24 look. Thomann is great for these types of guitars, as long as you're lucky enough to get a decent one shipped to the states.
Yeah, I've seen those bird stickers, but TBH I always preferred the more subtle PRS moon inlays (don't tend to see those much nowadays). To answer your questions, yes... The Vanson tuners do just drop straight in, and yes... They are available as locking tuners. I can heartily recommended the Vanson alnico 2 pickups too. I took the guitar to a jam night recently & plugged into the on stage Marshall, they absolutely sang... Loads of depth & dimension to the sound. A real old school LP tone.
IronGear pickups are ace. I've got one of their Smoke stacks in the bridge of my strattish. The neck pickup from that model is identical to D Allen's echoes bridge pickup, except for the pole spacing which makes zero difference. Anyone wanting to do a gilmour strat should check that pickup out before the buy a Duncan.
Thanks John. I've just bought the green one. Out of curiosity really. Great for the money I think. Got to replace the pickups tho. Kind of dark and muddy. My only other humbucker guitar is a LP with Classic 57s. Alnico II I believe. Very happy with those. One question - coil split on the H Bent. Does this affect my choices? 490 is a splittable 57 right? Does the split rule out some pickups? Is there a £150 Seymour Duncan set that is ideal? Askin the man who knows 🌴
A humbucker has 2 coils, each of which has 2 ends. These are the 4 wires you mention. A splittable humbucker allows you to isolate one coil (you need access to all 4 wires to do that). A humbucker where the 2 coils are wired together inside the body of the pickup & only gives you 2 wires coming out of it can't be split.
Hi John, You have a lot to answer for. I bought myself a Harley Benton CST24 hardtail after watching one of your videos. I am delighted with it regardless of the price. It is a really good guitar in every way with the possible exception of the Roswell pickups. They are fine but require a lot of messing to get a decent tone. They tend to be not mellow and are very metallic. I was pleased to see your upgrade video. I was impressed with your demonstration of the Vanson pickups so have ordered a pair. One question I have for you. Does the coil splitter still work with the Vanson pickups?Thanks for all your advice and very interesting videos.
Hello John, thank you for your reply....I assumed that it would be fine but I have never updated pickups before so I thought I would ask. I enjoy your videos and have learned a lot from you. Thanks again.
I always include tabs when it's a video on how to play something. But tabbing out a solo like that is a couple of hours work & I didn't think it was an integral part of what the video is about. Thanks for the compliments on my playing, by the way... If you'd like to hear more, I have a couple of albums out & you can find them on Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer, Amazon, Google Play & all other major platforms.
Hi John, I’m about to buy one of these - would you recommend the tremolo or non tremolo version ? Ive read some comments saying that the tremolo version is better as it makes the action lower. I have no intention of using the tremolo but would prefer the lower action that it apparently offers - However, I prefer the look of the non tremolo version bridge hardware. Your advice would be greatly received.
@@JRobsonGuitar Thank you. I’m £50 out on a used 2015 Gibson Les Paul Standard Heritage - asking price £1300, its immaculate. The seller won’t budge so I’m letting fate decide. I’m more than happy to undertake the same mods as you did on the Harley and still end up with a very nice guitar for one quarter of the price.
Very good I’ve a set of vanson humbuckers to try the tuners yep no brainer same as bridge 1st move for me is the bridge any pointers for buying these ? Thanks as always great reviews etc
Main tip for buying a bridge is MAKE SURE IT WILL FIT. Get a vernier caliper and ACCURATELY measure all the main dimensions of your current bridge (distance between the posts is a biggy) then buy something which fits. Wilkinson are OK, but I would have bought Gotoh if there had been one which fitted this guitar.
Hi John, Great video, learned so much very relevant info, is that Audacity you are recording through, if so a video in future on that would be useful. Cheers
You start off by putting brand new strings on... I always do that when intonating any guitar. Then use the grub screws on the mounting posts to set the two E strings. Then adjust the G&B saddle so that those strings are as close as you can get them. I don't think a strobe tuner would show the intonation as spot on, but using a regular "everyday" tuner like a Boss or Snark you'll be close enough to perfect
it's amazing how nice you could tell us down strong! All your a Harley Benton sound great. But of course a lot of that has to do with your hands you're an amazing player. You also seem to be a really nice guy. Anyway now I'm thinking about buying a Harley Benton LOL keep them coming bro
great vid, can't hardly find Harley Benton here in Southeast US, ordering one is big hassle, have to convert us dollar to euro, don't have credit card.
I know other US UA-camrs get their hands on Harley Benton guitars (I first heard of them by watching Nick In The States). You can buy them using PayPal & all you need for that is a bank account. One of my US Skype students just ordered a bunch of them with some friends - they split the shipping costs which works out much cheaper than shipping the same no. of guitars individually.
Hi John. Only just found your site earlier today and have so far very much enjoyed your videos. Very interesting discussion on copy v. fake. Incidentally I have a Dillion DR500T which is an even more exact copy of the PRS Custom 24 - with bird inlays on the neck too! Same head-stock shape and same body with quilted maple top. The only noticeable difference being a rotary tone switch rather than a sliding 3-way. I have a question. On one of my guitars, at a certain fret on the neck, where I play the note, it has what I can only describe as a "springy" sound to it, more like a 'boing' rather than a 'twang' if you know what I mean. I put some graphite (well .. pencil lead) in the groove of the nut where that particular string runs, hoping that might cure it, but to no avail. I've also checked that the string is not momentarily touching any other fret as it vibrates. Any ideas as to what might be the cause?
Cheers mate. Sounds like it could be a fret not seated properly. Take close look at the side of the fret on the edge of the fretboard & see if it looks like it's not fully into it's slot. If this is the case, you can use a VERY fine nozzle on a tube of good quality super glue and "wick" some into the gap. Give it 24hrs (probably overkill but better safe than sorry) then you can do a little "spot levelling" with a fret crowning file. Check out the video I did a few months ago on basic guitar maintenance & setups which also may be useful to you on getting rid of fret buzz etc.
A couple of years ago I got an unexpected windfall of £1000. Immediately I decided to replace the PRS I'd had to sell back in '08. Granted, I would only be able to get an SE or S2, but it got me back on the PRS ladder. On a whim, I got this guitar out of curiosity, reasoning that if it was crap, I could sell it on & still (just about) be able to afford "the real thing". The fact that (as an ex PRS owner who knows what the real thing plays/sounds like) I still own this guitar, speaks volumes about how happy I am with it 😁
I played one of these recently (an HB CST-24 - albeit not plugged in) and it struck me as a beautiful, quality instrument - almost nothing about it being obviously 'budget'. @@JRobsonGuitar
Stormy Monday. I have a Harley Benton XT 22 I ordered in September of 2019 that was delivered to Georgia USA in 9 days and a Harley Benton HB 35 Plus I bought from a man in Atlanta that he bought from Thomman in December of 2019. The XT 22 didn't need any setup and was only a little out of tune. I did lower the bridge and adjust the height and tilt of the pickups on the HB 35 Plus. They both have Roswell pickups and sound great through my 80's model Peavy Classic 50 tube amp. The man I bought the HB 35 Plus from had bought a set of vintage tuners but I don't think I need them so when I stopped by my local guitar store my friend let me trade them toward a strap. You like to tinker with guitars and if I were you I would probably do the same as you but I only like playing. I don't even like changing strings but I stretch them on and don't trust anyone to get the slack out. Because I have less the $500.00 usd in both guitars I don't worry about temperature control as much as I did my 73 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe or the Fender American Strats so I have to tune them when the room temperature varies. Thanks again for your videos
Not trying to be a wet blanket here John but has the sustain on all the other notes also almost doubled after the new tail piece? If this was the case????
Not sure what your point is, but as I explained in the video, there was one string/fret location on the guitar where the note died away prematurely. Now it doesn't... Job done.
Do you have a wiring diagram for this or where I can get it (all googled out) I'm changing pickups and pots/coil switch out soon, and my sc10000fr and it looks like the same wiring layout I'm not electric savvy and want to do this right 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁🤘🤘🤟🤘
Wow, great suggestion! Never heard of it before, play electric unplugged but when I do plug in... never dimed. Will solder that in next time the iron gets hot.
John, I notice you didn't mention changing the volume and tone knobs (maybe you did in a different video). My CST24 came with Telecaster style chrome knobs which I changed to Amber SC Style speedknobs. The look is so much better.
mb13972 I’m really glad I came across John’s UTube channel gear honest revues, I’d never have tried this Harley Benton if it wasn’t for John. I’ve got some hi end guitars such as Fender Gibson and Martin and I like this Harley Benton just as much it’s a stonkingly good guitar even if it was a lot more expensive it would be a great guitar
Hi John, given the budget nature of your HB CST24 and that you've ownded an equivalent(????) real PRS ............ after the mods, what is the real life difference?? The basis of my question? - I have owned a Ltd Edition Les Paul (in the '70s) I own 2 old Music Man Silhouettes, a reissue Gibbo LP Deluxe and a Gibbo Custom Shop 339 which I had the neck shaved on to make it comfortable to me - blah blah etc etc. I played a mates Epiphone John Lennon a-like semi a month ago and (apart from a few minor bits and pieces, easily fixed for a couple of hundred quid) I would say it isn't far off any of my guitars ..... even the custom shop. I've always hankered after a Patrick Eggle Berlin/PRS but this looks like it might easily scratch that particular itch - so what are the "real life" playing differences. Stu.
I sold the PRS (Santana model, by the way) back in '08, so it's not like I've done a direct A/B comparison. But with a few mods & a decent set up, you've got something that's pretty close to my recollection of the "real thing". The biggest difference is the look of the maple top. With this veneer top, there just isn't the movement in the grain as light hits it that you get with a full depth maple cap. But that's just a cosmetic thing. As a functional musical instrument, it ticks pretty much all the boxes.
Wow, a big difference to mine. The Wilkinson I got was 118g which is around 4oz... Pretty much double yours. Glad you got sorted with the Gotoh though 👍
Have you ever tried Ironstone pickups? I've got them in my Tele. The bass pickup is ver 90ish. You get that 'Another Birk In The Wall' sole sound no problem. The humbuckers they do are good as well!
A shop where everything costs £1. Usually associated with products which are of substandard quality which looks like a more expensive version. Hence to refer to something as a "pound shop" item is a way of saying it's a cheap copy.
Not a fan of Alnico V humbuckers although do like Alnico IV best then Alnico II as a tip for cheap really really good Alnico II low output Paf style pickups Entwhistle HV58 are great blues pickups and cheap too not as cheap as the vansons mind but you can usually find them for around £50 or under for a set but they have that magic .
The current listing for the Harley Benton CST24 at Thomann says it's provided with a DLX (Deluxe?) "GTB" Wrap Around Bridge. It physically looks identical to the Wilkinson GTB Wrap Around bridge, but I'll bet that the one that comes with the CST24 isn't a true "Wilkinson" GTB bridge. Since they don't claim it to be a "Wilkinson" product, but describe it only as a "DLX GTB wrap around bridge," the one provided by Thomann is probaby a knock off of the real Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge...cheaper, lighter, etc...Kind of lousy of Thomann to imply by that it's a Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge, especially since it looks identical to the real Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge.
Yeah I think I assumed that, because the trem version of this guitar has a Wilkinson bridge, this guitar also had a Wilkinson wraparound bridge. Thing is... You can buy the Wilkinson bridge for under £20 retail price (probably significantly less wholesale) so it wouldn't add much to the overall cost of the guitar to do it "properly" with the genuine part.
@@JRobsonGuitar I've been kind of salivating over one of the Harley Benton CST24T guitars for a while because they seem pretty decent, especially for the money, even if I would have to upgrade it a bit. But, I worry that the Harley Benton tremelo version might have an inferior tremelo that would need replacing. What do you think of the Wilkinson Tremelo? Do you think the Wilkinson Tremelo that supposedly comes on the Harley Benton CST24T would stack up to what PRS is using on their Custom 24s? Hopefully Thomann wouldn't pirate a Wilkinson tremelo and try passing it off as the geniune article.
@@Captain-ku2rm I don't think Thomann would sell a counterfeit product... They may be a little naughty by implying the fixed bridge is by Wilkinson, but the CST24T explicitly states a Wilkinson trem. Also I reviewed the trem version a while ago & it is a genuine Wilkinson bridge. With a cut price guitar, you are unlikely to have as good a set up as a real PRS, so you may need to spend a little time (and a bit of cash) tweaking it to get the same performance out of the trem. Get some Vanson locking tuners (available on eBay for around £25) and make sure the nut slots are well lubricated then you'll get pretty reliable performance from the trem. These are great guitars... In round figures, I reckon 90% as good as a genuine PRS for 10% of the cost.
Sorry it went early , so i looked for other options, I got a goto fully adjustable wrap around it dropped strait in under£60 from axrus it’s weighed more than both the others put together sustain is amazing
@@waynetykocki3964 I almost bought that Gotoh, but wasn't sure if I'd need to remove the original inserts that the posts screw into in the body - wasn't confident that the threads on the new posts would match up with the existing inserts. I can't understand how your Wilkinson was so light... Compared to the stock bridge, it's a lot heavier (as you probably saw when I weighed them both).
John Robson Guitarist the Wilkinson wasn’t althat much heavier but the Goto was really heavy very solid good quality went straight into the studs already In the HB the locking tuners were also a great improvement but I’m happy sticking with the Roswell pups
I bought a cheap guitar, but it needed a few upgrades. The tuning machines, pickups, and bridge had to go. Then I realized the neck was hopelessly warped, so it went. Then I decided the body just didn't have the right sort of resonance, so I replaced that. But I still have the original knobs, and they rock
Trigger's brush 😁
@@JRobsonGuitar that's what I call my Squier Strat. It's had new machine heads, frets, pickups, bridge saddles, tremolo block and wiring harness. And it might yet get a new body. But it's the same guitar!
Sounds like My SX telecaster from Rondomusic in USA. 500 pounds later I've got a good guitar! Should have bought the squier classic vibe Tele and saved 200 pounds.
Why not just by a more expensive guitar?
That's funny!
That's a fantastic tone,love the way you are not snobby about brands and upgrades,yet you can get a tone that others can't achieve with the most expensive set ups. Great job John 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
I know this is an older video, but I recently got the HB CST24T (left handed). I was pleased with it out of the box, but checked out Vanson tuners on your advice - I went for the locking ones and picked up a set. I replaced the nut with a bone nut, got a decent set of nut files, levelled and dressed the frets and it plays and sounds beautiful. The Tremelo arm is actually useable with some tweaks, the new nut/tuners combo, and a little lip balm in the nut slots! I moved the tuners over to a Fazeley LP copy which were 10 times better than the ones I took off and put in the bin, so win/win!
I'm happy with the Roswell Alnico II's so all there is left to do is try those dot markers!
Thanks John for a very useful video.
Great explanation John on a wolf tone pickups sound great.
I liked how you described how a Les Paul felt for you. I to never felt right playing mine but I could not put a finger on it. Now I can. Thank you.
Keep the wonderful videos coming
I bid you fair winds and following seas
Fanx John. Got Vanson alnico 2s, and later got Vanson fake Grovers in black. Looks, feels and sounds great. Totally stable. £200+£50 parts. Lovely 🎯
Good vid, I picked up one of these dirt cheap recently but straight away the tone was all wrong. A quick change of the cap on the tone pot to 22nf Greenies has made it sing. I recommend this mod to every owner
Excellent explanation and Fixes for the "Wolf Tone"
So that's it. "Wolf Tones". All these years I thought it was me. Thanks John. Working on it as we speak. So to speak.
I always thought the Wolf Tones was an Irish folk group : -)
@@bohma7519 Nar, it's a bum note.( I should know)
Great video John, iv used vanson locking tuners on one of guitars, and to be honest they are Great , work beautifully, and believe this or not, but i have just replaced an Neck stock pup in my Prs 24 custom with a vanson 59 humbucker, and being honest i think it sounds better and warmer, Cheers
Excellent John thanks for posting
I don't believe it, it's like you aren't even being honest :)
Those pickups sound pretty good! Pretty interesting bit on the Wolf Tone as well. I think I have that on my main guitar.
Hi John. After watching some of your videos among those of many others, on the Harley Benton cst-24, I decided to buy one and I am very pleased with it. Now I watched this upgrade video and last night I ordered a set of Vanson 57. I just hope they sound better than the stock roswells, and get rid of that "nasty" top end. Same as you, I have always loved alnico II, specially de Gibson 57 classic which I have had in a few guitars.
Speaking of the Wolf Tone... I have never had a guitar which didn't have it, high end and affordable guitars, it always there in some note. I took a PRS Custom 22 back to the store 6 months after the purchase because it was driving me crazy. It is more obvious in some guitars than others but it's always there. On my harley benton I find it on the G note, but only when pressing the g string on the 12th fret.. It's very discrete, and doesn't bother me at all.
Love the binding on the neck, have to get a Harley Benton one day, my guitar tutor has one and it's awesome.
Nice work, John.
I live the chrome pick up covers to, it adds a nice, classic touch!
Guitar sounds great, and, I love the James May reference!!!
Looking forward to the next video!!
Sounds great. Would have been nice to hear before and after with the pickups
Thanks for this video. Did you also change the knobs? It looks like you have custom knobs too!
Hey Brother... I would like to compliment you on your videos. You give very honest straight forward reviews leaving out the tone snob pretentiousness and getting down to the "what's so" about the guitar. Also, your problem solving logic is remarkable... I have learned a great deal of detail and specific distinctions from your review that is greatly appreciated. Also, dude you Play Well. Great licks! Thanks for sharing your experience and expertise. GREATLY Appreciated.
Thanks mate 😀👍
Mods to date on mine, brass nut, brass trem block, amber tipped locking tuners (matches paint work and shipped from USA), chrome pick up rings (metal), brass saddles (no tuning issues), Jim dunlop locking tuners, alot has been done but this guitar is a keeper as it was a present off of my Ma and is one of my fave guitars
Every details are part of your sound👍
Like you, I'm an Alnico II guy since I went into that rabbit hole a few years ago.
I swapped the pick-ups for Vansons as you suggested and I am really happy with the result. The guitar now sounds much more Peter Green (exactly as hoped) and less Sex Pistols. £30 well spent,
Yeah I love the sound of alnico 2 humbuckers 😊
Phony Abalone lol. Thanks John, after watching you I bought my first Harley Benton CST24 and really like it. I can do my own mods and fret work so these are great. I enjoy your channel keep it up:)
Oooooooh that neck pickup is so sweet. She just sings now
Great video Sir. I love my two HB guitars and after a bit of work they play as great as my esp/ltd guitars... They played better than any of my Epiphone guitars I've owned out of the box
some science going on here boyi, sounds like the natural frequency with that wolf tone.
Awsome video man. I love budget guitars that become great guitars with a bit of love. I'm expecting the Harley Benton cst 24 kit in the mail tomorrow. I'm going to pay a lot of attention to the paint job and fretboard. Give it premium hardware. And I'll decide what to do with the electronics and pickups, after I see what kind of vibe the guitar has. You can make an incredible instrument, as long as it has good "bones". I'm excited to get started. You've got a really nice guitar there. Congratulations on your mod. 🤘
Yeah the weight of fhe new bridge does doind better, i replaced mine with a Musiclily wraparound bridge wifh saddles like a strat bridge :) highly recommended for setting up individual strings. I wont lie, the original Roswell pickups aren't bad to me, but i have some GuitarHeads active humbuckers and a battery door, and am thinking of putting them in my CST-24 kit too :) plus, the ebony-esque 24-fret fretboard on it is beautiful too :) proper black wood, i dont care if its fake ebony, it's gorgeous and still sounds nice :) x
Turned out nice again,great work as ever John!
Love iron gear turned a £99 epiphone single pickup Les Paul along with an orange drop into a proper rock machine cranked up and a bluesey smooth thing with just a little breakup and the tone knocked off
Good solid information. Want to change my HB bridge now. Your channel is underrated !
Hi John. Thanks for the great video. I too bought the CST-24T and find the roswell pickups muddy. Say the Vanson pickups on ebay but before I buy wanted to get your insight on replacing the wiring/pots. Did you add CTS pots and a new wiring harness as well? If so, what should I get. Much thanks, Jay
I just stayed with the stock pots/switches... they work fine & if it ain't broke, don't fix it :)
Thanks John for your really helpful video - just what I'm going to be doing! Cheers mate 😀
Kudos on the video editing John, the graphics are sound. Interesting info too.
Those are the exact pickups I purchased for my Tanglewood LP clone, I couldn't be happier with them. They are not an exact copy of the 57 PAFs they are copying but pretty damn close, especially for the money.
Nice video! I've bought this guitar for my brother and was thinking about upgrading pickups. Can you still split these to single coils as with the original Wilkinsons? Thanks!
Yes, any 4 wire humbucker can be as split 😁
Thanks for the advices,i must check this too!😉
I bend strings all over the fretboard, so would I wear off the sticker dots? Thanks for your professionalism and candor
I've had one come off so far, but there's plenty of spares in the set 😄
@@JRobsonGuitar Thanks John. Have a great evening
Wolf tone. That's interesting, John. Thanks.
Maybe this is the key for dead spots on my Squier Bullet piece of wood thing.
I will try a steel vibrato block plus locking tuners. This should change resonance behaviour significantly I hope...
I think Jake E. Lee used the wolf tone on Bark at The Moon.
@@carstenfunk6075 You may struggle to find a steel vibrato block that will fit in the thinner body of the Squier Bullet.
John, as a matter of fact I allready got one!
There is a German mate offering steel and brass replacement blocks fitting to nearly any str@t vibrato / body on the market in eBay. .
The price is arround 25€ which I consider really fair. I have allready installed one of those (full size in this case!) blocks on one of my Harley Benton Str@ts and in combination with steel rolled saddles and I have to say it is a huge step forward in regards of tone and sustain.
I can post a link here if this offer is of common interest.
@@carstenfunk6075 Excellent, mate. I have a bullet strat which could do with one, so yeah... The link would be great!
John you are brilliant
Nice work John, the Vanson hardware and other mods have spruced up the guitar nicely lad!
How did you fix the intonation? Nice upgrades - will do the same on mine
Adjust the overall angle of the bridge using the grub screws in the mounting posts. This should allow you to get both E strings intonated correctly. After that, you should find that everything is pretty close to perfect. The only slight adjustment you may need to tweak is the B & G string saddle. Using a regular (non-strobe) tuner it's possible to get it reading spot on.
Great vids John, keep ‘em coming!
Funny how every lower budget brand is almost becoming how Peavy's guitars were super affordable and better than the top name brands entry level guitars. I bought my 1994 Peavy Reactor for $99 USD and it was every bit as good as my MIM Fender Strat (was stolen unfortunately). The Peavey Reactor isn't as nice as my 1986 G&L ASAT or my 2006 MIA 60th Anniversary Fender Strat, but it is still a great guitar and I love playing it. They sell now for $500 USD used of Reverb. Fender will never get another dollar of mine. It is a matter of diminishing returns, the only thing that is a positive about the top name brands is their resale value, nothing else. Harley Benton has some great guitars, I plan on buying a kit and putting the guitar together myself. I have on my list a SG style, Les Paul style, and Flying V to get, and those 3 guitars would cost less than buying 1 MIM Fender
Hello. Did you also replace the nut? If so, can you advise to which one used and if it required much modification. Thank you sir.
No, the nut is the stock one 👍
thanks John nice job , just what i needed to help on my hb upgrade quest :)
Can you tell me which pound shop has got Harley Benton in stock & I'll grab one!
Excellent video John, great mods. and great playing.
I notice that the Vanson VN-03 tuners are now shown as being 15:1 ratio?
Another great vid John - Thanks for the Vanson tuner recomendation, looking for some for the Affinity as I think Pete and I both seem to play the squiers more than our 'real ones'.
Cap & Pots done, Cavity insulated, frets dressed, IronGear Texas Loco on the Neck, bored out strap screw hole sorted (3 toothpicks and some pva) ...
As a question, any ideas for a 40.6mm nut ? The affinity has a wierd neck, and I'm struggling to find an upgrade fo that specific NUT - the 42mm doesn't line up string wise and have I may end up having to make a custom one.
Just buy a blank & cut it to size, mate. Simplest way I reckon.
@@JRobsonGuitar cheers dude, had the first play today after sorting the intonation, the irongear texas loco through a tube screamer nails srv .. v impressed.
Hey John, Where was yours made? Mine is made in China....and looks it!! Slight resemblence to yours but flame isn't as defined. Will be modding this one for certain.
Not sure, to be honest. If ever it had a sticker saying where it was made, it came off ages ago 😄
I have a HB CST 24 with the vibrato tail. To PRS it up a bit, I used the bird inlay stickers available online, similar to the dots. All in all, they aren't identical to PRS birds but from 20 feet suffice. I had some peel back on a couple from over bending, but a little light elmers glue keeps the ends from curling back up. For the tuners, was any modification to the hole needed? Does Vanson have locking tuners also? I also bought a used PRS SE gig back to complete the faux PRS CST 24 look. Thomann is great for these types of guitars, as long as you're lucky enough to get a decent one shipped to the states.
Yeah, I've seen those bird stickers, but TBH I always preferred the more subtle PRS moon inlays (don't tend to see those much nowadays). To answer your questions, yes... The Vanson tuners do just drop straight in, and yes... They are available as locking tuners. I can heartily recommended the Vanson alnico 2 pickups too. I took the guitar to a jam night recently & plugged into the on stage Marshall, they absolutely sang... Loads of depth & dimension to the sound. A real old school LP tone.
Hi John, I love the knobs of your guitar! Where did you get them?
Can't remember, but it was probably this place: www.axesrus.co.uk/
Great video sir, I’ve got two Harley’s on the way and this has given me inspiration!
IronGear pickups are ace. I've got one of their Smoke stacks in the bridge of my strattish. The neck pickup from that model is identical to D Allen's echoes bridge pickup, except for the pole spacing which makes zero difference. Anyone wanting to do a gilmour strat should check that pickup out before the buy a Duncan.
A very interesting video. Thanks John.
Thanks John. I've just bought the green one. Out of curiosity really. Great for the money I think. Got to replace the pickups tho. Kind of dark and muddy. My only other humbucker guitar is a LP with Classic 57s. Alnico II I believe. Very happy with those. One question - coil split on the H Bent. Does this affect my choices? 490 is a splittable 57 right? Does the split rule out some pickups? Is there a £150 Seymour Duncan set that is ideal? Askin the man who knows 🌴
I recommend the Vanson pickups I used. Cheap & great vintage sound. If you're looking at SD pups avoid 59s if you need to keep the single coil option.
@@JRobsonGuitar What denotes a splittable humbucker then John? I've heard '4 wire' mentioned...
A humbucker has 2 coils, each of which has 2 ends. These are the 4 wires you mention. A splittable humbucker allows you to isolate one coil (you need access to all 4 wires to do that). A humbucker where the 2 coils are wired together inside the body of the pickup & only gives you 2 wires coming out of it can't be split.
@@JRobsonGuitar Thanks for the advice John. You have a new subscriber 👍🏻
Hi John, You have a lot to answer for. I bought myself a Harley Benton CST24 hardtail after watching one of your videos. I am delighted with it regardless of the price. It is a really good guitar in every way with the possible exception of the Roswell pickups. They are fine but require a lot of messing to get a decent tone. They tend to be not mellow and are very metallic. I was pleased to see your upgrade video. I was impressed with your demonstration of the Vanson pickups so have ordered a pair. One question I have for you. Does the coil splitter still work with the Vanson pickups?Thanks for all your advice and very interesting videos.
Yes mate, it does work just the same. Cheers for watching 👍
Hello John, thank you for your reply....I assumed that it would be fine but I have never updated pickups before so I thought I would ask. I enjoy your videos and have learned a lot from you. Thanks again.
another great vid, only complaint the music was to short. do you ever do tablature for your music?.
I always include tabs when it's a video on how to play something. But tabbing out a solo like that is a couple of hours work & I didn't think it was an integral part of what the video is about. Thanks for the compliments on my playing, by the way... If you'd like to hear more, I have a couple of albums out & you can find them on Apple Music, Spotify, Deezer, Amazon, Google Play & all other major platforms.
Hi John,
I’m about to buy one of these - would you recommend the tremolo or non tremolo version ?
Ive read some comments saying that the tremolo version is better as it makes the action lower.
I have no intention of using the tremolo but would prefer the lower action that it apparently offers - However, I prefer the look of the non tremolo version bridge hardware.
Your advice would be greatly received.
Mine is the hardtail bridge & the action is REALLY low, so you should be OK. Cheers mate 👍
@@JRobsonGuitar Thank you.
I’m £50 out on a used 2015 Gibson Les Paul Standard Heritage - asking price £1300, its immaculate.
The seller won’t budge so I’m letting fate decide.
I’m more than happy to undertake the same mods as you did on the Harley and still end up with a very nice guitar for one quarter of the price.
Great video, and as usual, fantastic guitar playing!!!
Very good I’ve a set of vanson humbuckers to try the tuners yep no brainer same as bridge 1st move for me is the bridge any pointers for buying these ?
Thanks as always great reviews etc
Main tip for buying a bridge is MAKE SURE IT WILL FIT. Get a vernier caliper and ACCURATELY measure all the main dimensions of your current bridge (distance between the posts is a biggy) then buy something which fits. Wilkinson are OK, but I would have bought Gotoh if there had been one which fitted this guitar.
Hi John, Great video, learned so much very relevant info, is that Audacity you are recording through, if so a video in future on that would be useful. Cheers
Yes mate... Audacity. Was thinking about doing a video on it, do stay tuned 😁
Hi John i am thinking of getting this guitar. I was wondering how do you intonate a wrap around bridge?
You start off by putting brand new strings on... I always do that when intonating any guitar. Then use the grub screws on the mounting posts to set the two E strings. Then adjust the G&B saddle so that those strings are as close as you can get them. I don't think a strobe tuner would show the intonation as spot on, but using a regular "everyday" tuner like a Boss or Snark you'll be close enough to perfect
it's amazing how nice you could tell us down strong! All your a Harley Benton sound great. But of course a lot of that has to do with your hands you're an amazing player. You also seem to be a really nice guy. Anyway now I'm thinking about buying a Harley Benton LOL keep them coming bro
great vid, can't hardly find Harley Benton here in Southeast US, ordering one is big hassle, have to convert us dollar to euro, don't have credit card.
I know other US UA-camrs get their hands on Harley Benton guitars (I first heard of them by watching Nick In The States). You can buy them using PayPal & all you need for that is a bank account. One of my US Skype students just ordered a bunch of them with some friends - they split the shipping costs which works out much cheaper than shipping the same no. of guitars individually.
Hi John. Only just found your site earlier today and have so far very much enjoyed your videos.
Very interesting discussion on copy v. fake. Incidentally I have a Dillion DR500T which is an even more exact copy of the PRS Custom 24 - with bird inlays on the neck too! Same head-stock shape and same body with quilted maple top. The only noticeable difference being a rotary tone switch rather than a sliding 3-way.
I have a question. On one of my guitars, at a certain fret on the neck, where I play the note, it has what I can only describe as a "springy" sound to it, more like a 'boing' rather than a 'twang' if you know what I mean. I put some graphite (well .. pencil lead) in the groove of the nut where that particular string runs, hoping that might cure it, but to no avail. I've also checked that the string is not momentarily touching any other fret as it vibrates. Any ideas as to what might be the cause?
Cheers mate. Sounds like it could be a fret not seated properly. Take close look at the side of the fret on the edge of the fretboard & see if it looks like it's not fully into it's slot. If this is the case, you can use a VERY fine nozzle on a tube of good quality super glue and "wick" some into the gap. Give it 24hrs (probably overkill but better safe than sorry) then you can do a little "spot levelling" with a fret crowning file. Check out the video I did a few months ago on basic guitar maintenance & setups which also may be useful to you on getting rid of fret buzz etc.
Vanson are amazing with guitar parts, aswell as blackdogmusic
would a TonePros system II work on this guitar too?
The pickups have a nice tone, almost has a Strat Quack intonation. Does the bridge add "feel" to the guitar?
Haven't seen HBs in any of the Poundshops near me. Need a trip to Middleborough, obviously... 😃
Hello, were the tuning pegs a drop in application ? Thank you in advance, love your channel 🎸
Yes, the tuners just drop straight in. They fit any guitar with 10mm holes & 45 degree screw holes, both of which are pretty standard.
Looks great, but I’d save and get a used PRS 😋. Cheers
A couple of years ago I got an unexpected windfall of £1000. Immediately I decided to replace the PRS I'd had to sell back in '08. Granted, I would only be able to get an SE or S2, but it got me back on the PRS ladder. On a whim, I got this guitar out of curiosity, reasoning that if it was crap, I could sell it on & still (just about) be able to afford "the real thing". The fact that (as an ex PRS owner who knows what the real thing plays/sounds like) I still own this guitar, speaks volumes about how happy I am with it 😁
I played one of these recently (an HB CST-24 - albeit not plugged in) and it struck me as a beautiful, quality instrument - almost nothing about it being obviously 'budget'.
@@JRobsonGuitar
Sounds and looks great my friend!
Stormy Monday. I have a Harley Benton XT 22 I ordered in September of 2019 that was delivered to Georgia USA in 9 days and a Harley Benton HB 35 Plus I bought from a man in Atlanta that he bought from Thomman in December of 2019. The XT 22 didn't need any setup and was only a little out of tune. I did lower the bridge and adjust the height and tilt of the pickups on the HB 35 Plus. They both have Roswell pickups and sound great through my 80's model Peavy Classic 50 tube amp. The man I bought the HB 35 Plus from had bought a set of vintage tuners but I don't think I need them so when I stopped by my local guitar store my friend let me trade them toward a strap. You like to tinker with guitars and if I were you I would probably do the same as you but I only like playing. I don't even like changing strings but I stretch them on and don't trust anyone to get the slack out. Because I have less the $500.00 usd in both guitars I don't worry about temperature control as much as I did my 73 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe or the Fender American Strats so I have to tune them when the room temperature varies. Thanks again for your videos
Not trying to be a wet blanket here John but has the sustain on all the other notes also almost doubled after the new tail piece? If this was the case????
Not sure what your point is, but as I explained in the video, there was one string/fret location on the guitar where the note died away prematurely. Now it doesn't... Job done.
What I mean is that compared to all the other notes it is still dying away prematurely.
@@bohma7519 No mate... Pretty consistent now.
Do you have a wiring diagram for this or where I can get it (all googled out) I'm changing pickups and pots/coil switch out soon, and my sc10000fr and it looks like the same wiring layout I'm not electric savvy and want to do this right 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁🤘🤘🤟🤘
I just took lots of photos of the original wiring & used those as my guide for getting everything in the right place with the new p/ups.
@@JRobsonGuitar will bite the bullet and start tomorrow 😁😁😁😁🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘
How are the dot stickers holding up??
Have you got listings for where you can get these upgrades?
Sounds great John, it's got a nice growl to it doesn't it?
Yeah, I love those Alnico 2 pickups 😄
@@JRobsonGuitar Yes, I wish Thomman would make it an option.
How's the guitars intonation with that bridge??
Perfect
Ha ! That ships already sailed away ☺
Hi John, you're missing the treble bleed mod!... 😉
Did it ages ago, mate 😁
Wow, great suggestion! Never heard of it before, play electric unplugged but when I do plug in... never dimed. Will solder that in next time the iron gets hot.
John, I notice you didn't mention changing the volume and tone knobs (maybe you did in a different video). My CST24 came with Telecaster style chrome knobs which I changed to Amber SC Style speedknobs. The look is so much better.
Oh... I swapped the knobs ages ago, mate. I just prefer the look of speed knobs on this style of guitar 😁
mb13972 I’m really glad I came across John’s UTube channel gear honest revues, I’d never have tried this Harley Benton if it wasn’t for John. I’ve got some hi end guitars such as Fender Gibson and Martin and I like this Harley Benton just as much it’s a stonkingly good guitar even if it was a lot more expensive it would be a great guitar
Hi John, given the budget nature of your HB CST24 and that you've ownded an equivalent(????) real PRS ............ after the mods, what is the real life difference?? The basis of my question? - I have owned a Ltd Edition Les Paul (in the '70s) I own 2 old Music Man Silhouettes, a reissue Gibbo LP Deluxe and a Gibbo Custom Shop 339 which I had the neck shaved on to make it comfortable to me - blah blah etc etc. I played a mates Epiphone John Lennon a-like semi a month ago and (apart from a few minor bits and pieces, easily fixed for a couple of hundred quid) I would say it isn't far off any of my guitars ..... even the custom shop. I've always hankered after a Patrick Eggle Berlin/PRS but this looks like it might easily scratch that particular itch - so what are the "real life" playing differences. Stu.
I sold the PRS (Santana model, by the way) back in '08, so it's not like I've done a direct A/B comparison. But with a few mods & a decent set up, you've got something that's pretty close to my recollection of the "real thing". The biggest difference is the look of the maple top. With this veneer top, there just isn't the movement in the grain as light hits it that you get with a full depth maple cap. But that's just a cosmetic thing. As a functional musical instrument, it ticks pretty much all the boxes.
@@JRobsonGuitar Thanks John, a gent as always .......... and I do hope you're well ;O)
The difference between Wilkinson and the HB bridge without studs etc is 1/2 oz stock bridge 1 1/2 Wilkinson 2oz
Wow, a big difference to mine. The Wilkinson I got was 118g which is around 4oz... Pretty much double yours. Glad you got sorted with the Gotoh though 👍
Sounded great John!
Ive always loved the Alnico 2 tones. Mellower but still plenty of growl when you dig in to them.
"I had to tidy up, so that means I can't find it." lol
Have you ever tried Ironstone pickups?
I've got them in my Tele.
The bass pickup is ver 90ish. You get that 'Another Birk In The Wall' sole sound no problem.
The humbuckers they do are good as well!
What's a pound shop?
A shop where everything costs £1. Usually associated with products which are of substandard quality which looks like a more expensive version. Hence to refer to something as a "pound shop" item is a way of saying it's a cheap copy.
@@JRobsonGuitar ahhh, got it, thanks.
(picks ups) - OOOOOoooooooo!!!!! dishy :)
Is the nut adequate?
Yes 😄
Harley Benton went from Wilkinson PU to Rosswell, because by inspektion they was NOT original, told by Lasse, head of HB
Not a fan of Alnico V humbuckers
although do like Alnico IV best then Alnico II
as a tip for cheap really really good Alnico II low output Paf style pickups Entwhistle HV58 are great blues pickups and cheap too
not as cheap as the vansons mind but you can usually find them for around £50 or under for a set but they have that magic .
I am a big fan of Entwhistle PUPs too. The HV58s are gorgeous to my ears.
4:36 HAHAHAHA
The current listing for the Harley Benton CST24 at Thomann says it's provided with a DLX (Deluxe?) "GTB" Wrap Around Bridge. It physically looks identical to the Wilkinson GTB Wrap Around bridge, but I'll bet that the one that comes with the CST24 isn't a true "Wilkinson" GTB bridge. Since they don't claim it to be a "Wilkinson" product, but describe it only as a "DLX GTB wrap around bridge," the one provided by Thomann is probaby a knock off of the real Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge...cheaper, lighter, etc...Kind of lousy of Thomann to imply by that it's a Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge, especially since it looks identical to the real Wilkinson GTB wrap around bridge.
Yeah I think I assumed that, because the trem version of this guitar has a Wilkinson bridge, this guitar also had a Wilkinson wraparound bridge. Thing is... You can buy the Wilkinson bridge for under £20 retail price (probably significantly less wholesale) so it wouldn't add much to the overall cost of the guitar to do it "properly" with the genuine part.
@@JRobsonGuitar I've been kind of salivating over one of the Harley Benton CST24T guitars for a while because they seem pretty decent, especially for the money, even if I would have to upgrade it a bit. But, I worry that the Harley Benton tremelo version might have an inferior tremelo that would need replacing. What do you think of the Wilkinson Tremelo? Do you think the Wilkinson Tremelo that supposedly comes on the Harley Benton CST24T would stack up to what PRS is using on their Custom 24s? Hopefully Thomann wouldn't pirate a Wilkinson tremelo and try passing it off as the geniune article.
@@Captain-ku2rm I don't think Thomann would sell a counterfeit product... They may be a little naughty by implying the fixed bridge is by Wilkinson, but the CST24T explicitly states a Wilkinson trem. Also I reviewed the trem version a while ago & it is a genuine Wilkinson bridge. With a cut price guitar, you are unlikely to have as good a set up as a real PRS, so you may need to spend a little time (and a bit of cash) tweaking it to get the same performance out of the trem. Get some Vanson locking tuners (available on eBay for around £25) and make sure the nut slots are well lubricated then you'll get pretty reliable performance from the trem. These are great guitars... In round figures, I reckon 90% as good as a genuine PRS for 10% of the cost.
Ps great tones
Those fret stickers are shite, i put the gem fret inlay stickers on my ibanez GIO and they started to peel instantly
I did try the Wilkinson
When it arrived I was surprised how light it was
Sorry it went early , so i looked for other options, I got a goto fully adjustable wrap around it dropped strait in under£60 from axrus it’s weighed more than both the others put together sustain is amazing
@@waynetykocki3964 I almost bought that Gotoh, but wasn't sure if I'd need to remove the original inserts that the posts screw into in the body - wasn't confident that the threads on the new posts would match up with the existing inserts.
I can't understand how your Wilkinson was so light... Compared to the stock bridge, it's a lot heavier (as you probably saw when I weighed them both).
John Robson Guitarist the Wilkinson wasn’t althat much heavier but the Goto was really heavy very solid good quality went straight into the studs already In the HB the locking tuners were also a great improvement but I’m happy sticking with the Roswell pups
@@waynetykocki3964 Out of curiosity, what was the weight of your Wilkinson bridge? Was it massively different to mine? (Roughly 120g)
John Robson Guitarist
I think mine are that with the studs
Phoney abalone :)