NGD: Gretsch G5420TG-59 - Vintage Orange - Hollowbody, Arch Top, Electric Guitar

[Glennwillow]

Hi SpruceTop,

I have looked at your Gretsch 5420TG-59 so many times on this thread! What a cool guitar!

I found a used Gretsch 5420TG-59 with a bunch of upgrades (TV Jones pickups, hard case, better quality Bixby) at a very fair price but on the east coast side of the country and I'm a little worried about it traveling across the country during this heat wave. I'm not sure what to do because I have wanted one of these for so long.

- Glenn

[Pine Cone]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Hi SpruceTop,

I have looked at your Gretsch 5420TG-59 so many times on this thread! What a cool guitar!

I found a used Gretsch 5420TG-59 with a bunch of upgrades (TV Jones pickups, hard case, better quality Bixby) at a very fair price but on the east coast side of the country and I'm a little worried about it traveling across the country during this heat wave. I'm not sure what to do because I have wanted one of these for so long.

- Glenn

I love my Gretsch G5622T! Modern guitar glues and finishes are pretty darn good. I worry more about extreme cold than heat, but a good packing job combined with a hard case will slow both temperature and humidity changes. Rapid temperature and humidity changes are what tend to damage guitars.

You know you want the guitar and the upgrades you mentioned all sound good.

I used to work in Poulsbo, WA, the current home of TV Jones pickups, not too far from you. Now I am in Idaho, hot and dry in the summers, cold in the winters. Lived in Redding, CA for a decade where it is above 100 degrees more than 30 days a year, with a maximum high of 117 degrees while I lived there. Never had a problem with guitars or banjos.

Give it the standard "wait at least 24 hours" before you open the box on your new to you Gretsch 5420TG-59 and you should be good.

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Hi SpruceTop,

I have looked at your Gretsch 5420TG-59 so many times on this thread! What a cool guitar!

I found a used Gretsch 5420TG-59 with a bunch of upgrades (TV Jones pickups, hard case, better quality Bixby) at a very fair price but on the east coast side of the country and I'm a little worried about it traveling across the country during this heat wave. I'm not sure what to do because I have wanted one of these for so long.

- Glenn

Hi Glenn,

I see Sweetwater has the Gretsch 5420TG-59 in stock. They pack the guitars very well for shipping so I wouldn't expect any problems upon arrival.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

...I found a used Gretsch 5420TG-59 with a bunch of upgrades (TV Jones pickups, hard case, better quality Bixby) at a very fair price but on the East Coast side of the country and I'm a little worried about it traveling across the country during this heat wave. I'm not sure what to do because I have wanted one of these for so long...

Go for it - IME the MIK E-matics are hardy beasts, so other than the usual acclimation process I wouldn't be terribly concerned...

That said, I'd be more concerned about the "very fair price" you mention: although the QC is not only uncannily consistent but head-shoulders-&-navel above their similarly-priced competition, there's always a dog or two in the mix: given my (and many of our fellow AGFers') overwhelmingly positive experience as well as the aforementioned increase in interest/prices, I'd be inclined to ask the seller exactly why he/she is getting rid of it, especially given the upgrades you mention...

I'd also make sure all the original parts are included, and all mods are readily reversible with no visible signs: while I strongly doubt it'll ever achieve similarly-rarefied status, there's a whole bunch of guys out there kicking themselves in the kiester for "upgrading" their '50s LP bursts with Grover Rotomatics - and making a Lexus-sized dent in the asking price in the process; while tone is a highly subjective matter - and there are many varieties of "That Great Gretsch Sound" - IME the original blacktop Filter'trons give up nothing in this department...

Hope you've got a nice mid-powered tube amp to keep it company...

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

...I see Sweetwater has the Gretsch 5420TG-59 in stock...

Just checked their website - still listed as backorder:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...vintage-orange

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

Just checked their website - still listed as backorder:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...vintage-orange

Hi Steve, I could have sworn I saw one in stock yesterday, maybe I imagined it? Anyway, I sure hope when the back-ordered ones come in that they won't be Made In China.

[Glennwillow]

Thank you all for your replies on my buying one of these 5420TG-59 models. The used one I was interested in is sold, and from what I can see, Sweetwater still has these on backorder. Sweetwater probably is my best bet. I appreciate the comments on the high summer temperatures! I will watch and wait and see what happens!

- Glenn

[Steve DeRosa]

Sorry you lost out on that one, Glenn, but as I said above I wouldn't put too much stock in Sweetwater - IMO if it returns at all it's coming back as a MIC version of the 5420 with gold hardware and a Speyside finish, so you might want to take advantage of one of these:

https://reverb.com/p/gretsch-g5420tg...ic-hollow-body

[SpruceTop]

Sweetwater now has the Gretsch G5420TG-59 Vintage Orange in stock along with three lesser-priced demos but whether new or demo, they're all now Made In China. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...vintage-orange

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

Sweetwater now has the Gretsch G5420TG-59 Vintage Orange in stock along with three lesser-priced demos but whether new or demo, they're all now Made In China. https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...vintage-orange

Told ya...

BTW Sweetwater never - ever - had "demos" (most of which in fact are either factory B-stock or returned defective pieces) of any E-Matic model when they were built in Korea - I'll just leave it at that and, as they say out in buffalo country, let the chips fall where they may...

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

Told ya...

BTW Sweetwater never - ever - had "demos" (most of which in fact were either factory B-stock or returned defective pieces) of any E-Matic model when they were built in Korea - I'll just leave it at that and, as they say out in buffalo country, let the chips fall where they may...

Steve, I'm so glad I got my MIK Gretsch G5420TG-59 when I did a little over two years ago!

[SpruceTop]

PSA: Right now, Sweetwater is selling the Chinese-made Gretsch G5420TG-59 - Vintage Orange for $100.00 off the regular price for $799.99 while supplies last.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

PSA: Right now, Sweetwater is selling the Chinese-made Gretsch G5420TG-59 - Vintage Orange for $100.00 off the regular price for $799.99 while supplies last.

One of the newer guys over on the Electric subforum just landed one - here's the link in case you want to weigh in with your comments:

https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=677741

[SpruceTop]

Have any players out there purchased a residual Made In Korea or the latest Made In China versions of the Sweetwater Exclusive Gretsch G5420TG-59 - Vintage Orange - Hollowbody, Arch Top, Electric Guitar? If so, how do you like your new ax? Thanks!

[4-string]

I have a March 2021 5420T, just made it before the move from Korea to China. I had plans for a pickup upgrade, and was looking at something from TV Jones.

Not that the BlackTop Filtertrons were bad in any way, they were just a bit dark and polite sounding to my ears. Never offensive though, and actually very sweet, I was just missing some of that jangly twang.

I adjusted as per the instructions in this thread - pickup height recommended by TV Jones, and pole Setzer´s pole piece diagram:

https://www.gretsch-talk.com/threads...t.89303/page-2

There are some similar on TV Jones website, with a more precise description to pole piece adjustment with actual turns:

https://tvjones.com/adjustments-and-schematics

I found this to be surprisingly effective, and that mid position twang I was looking for is much more present now. At the cost of more harsh highs and high mids, so it depends what you're after.

In my case I am not going to spend any money on pickup upgrades after all.