NGD - SX Callisto Std+ VS

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Bullcat
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I tried to buy a singlecut from Thomann but they didn't like my PayPal so I turned to Rondo and Kurt knocked it out of the park with this beauty.

I've long desired the 2004 Gibson Custom Shop Slash VOS Plain Top Les Paul in dark tobacco so I knew this was for the one for me.

I was hesitant at first because I get wrist pain with thin necks but the Rondo specs tend to vary from advertised so I hoped for the best and it is nearly a clone of my favorite chunky neck on my Ibanez AS73 the same 1 11/16" nut width just a little more meat in the shoulders and just perfect.

The finish is black to yellow with no red and the binding has a nice yellow aged looked to it that matches my vintage Japanese strap and the case nicely.
The headstock and SX logo are not the Agile style shown on Rondo but the SX website style which I prefer. It weighs 7lbs 8oz but for some reason feels heftier than my heavier guitars, a nice substantial feeling that is a must for LP style guitars to me.

It was listed as rosewood but since the Cites stuff I figured it would be a substitute but the look of the grain and feel of it seems like rosewood to me but at any rate it's a good looking piece of wood that feels great. The neck is listed as maple but looking under the truss rod cover shows it's very redish mahogany looking so I'm so not so sure.

The cheaper dime pots work perfectly with smooth tapers, the frets are flawless unlike my Ibanez AS73 that needed a lot of work, tuners seem fine, the nut is really well cut, and I have a Epi ProBucker set and harness to put in but the stocks pups actually sound exactly like I expect a LP to sound in my head so I gonna hold off swapping them for a bit till I can get some better handwounds made. Gee I wonder if there are any good winders around these here parts?😉 Lol

I've tried to find anything wrong with it but it's the best playing guitar I've had. The only things I can half heartedly complain about is a small imperfection in the binding of the eighth fret liked it was nicked by a knife before finishing, the end of the truss rod cover is roughly cut and the burst is slightly off center If I remove the pickguard, but that is just nitpicking.

I've been told I tend to ramble on too much so I'm trying to stay on point here. I'll post some pics of the pickup routes when change the strings.
I am surprised and thrilled that it's as good as it is for the price it reminds me of the good old AL2000 days.
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Bullcat
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More pics.
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Gergo
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Congrats! Looks nice
My playing is always better after some good beer
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Bullcat
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Sorry for lack of good pics of full guitar I ran out of light yesterday.
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Flatline
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Looks great!
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Partscaster
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I really like my STD+ VS, too. Looks great. Plays Great. Truss rod cover comes with 2 layers of peel-off plastic like the pickguard. I couldnt see any flaw other than what I thought was unpeeled plastic layers.
My Callisto's feel every bit as solid as the AL's, or Gibson Tributes I have owned...just lighter, and IMO comparatively warmer full sounding with PAF style pups of choice.
I agree that the neck wood on STD+ is same as the body wood, mahogany. Rondo had the specs off, a bit. The neck tenon in the neck pup cavity really shows it, too.
Its great that you like yours. And they are out of stock now.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Bullcat
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@Partscaster Yeah it's just the top edge of the truss rod cover that is not beveled and is quite jagged but a little filling will sort it out nicely. It still amazes me what you can get for $200 bucks nowadays.
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uwmcscott
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That is a beauty, congrats. Takes me back down memory lane to the era of AL-2000's for under $200 and pages and pages of color options to choose from on Rondo! Nice to see that it's still possible for Kurt to provide a small slice of happiness amidst the current state of things guitar supply wise.
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SamIV
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Nice. Fingerboard looks like rosewood from here.
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toomanycats
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This post was a bit of bright sunshine in an otherwise cloudy day. Even the case is beautiful. Congrats and enjoy!
“There are only two means of refuge from the miseries of life: Music and Cats!” Albert Schweitzer
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Partscaster
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toomanycats wrote: ↑Tue Apr 13, 2021 6:04 pm This post was a bit of bright sunshine in an otherwise cloudy day. Even the case is beautiful. Congrats and enjoy!
I hope you are doing well, TMC. Clouds and all. And hope your still liking your Secret PreAmp.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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toomanycats
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Partscaster wrote: ↑Tue Apr 13, 2021 6:36 pm
toomanycats wrote: ↑Tue Apr 13, 2021 6:04 pm This post was a bit of bright sunshine in an otherwise cloudy day. Even the case is beautiful. Congrats and enjoy!
I hope you are doing well, TMC. Clouds and all. And hope your still liking your Secret PreAmp.
I knows this must sound like I'm shilling for the Chase Secret PreAmp, because it's exactly what you read in the advertising, but that thing stays on all the time. I haven't played a gig without it since the first time I heard what it does for my tone.

As far as the clouds, just first world problems. Got a show with the new band on Saturday night, the drummer and the bass player are going to be fill ins, and we may only have one practice with them before the gig. A little anxious about that, but then I get paid to play guitar and drink beer, so I've really got no right to complain about anything.
“There are only two means of refuge from the miseries of life: Music and Cats!” Albert Schweitzer
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Bullcat
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I got her ready to polish the frets and hydrate the fretboard so I pulled up the pups, the screws were really stiff to unscrew so being a maple top seemed promising, it is a long neck tenon and they glued it all the way without a gap, it sure looked like 2 different woods so it is a cap then I looked under the bridge and yep it definitely is! How they can make a proper mahogany and maple LP for $199 and make any profit is crazy.
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Bullcat
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Bonus picture of my Ibanez AS73
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Partscaster
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Mine has no spray in neck pup cavity and the tenon looks same as wood of body. So, I believe mahogany neck is the accurate description.
"The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils. The motions of his spirit are dull as night, and his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted."
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Frozensoda
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Very, very nice!
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SXLuvr
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That’s a beauty, Happy New SX Day!


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jtcnj
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very nice!
Thats a lot of guitar for $200.
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jhull54
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Man, that is super nice. HNGD. Those rule!
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