NOGD: Epiphone Masterbilt AJ-500 RVS

[Lacking Talent]

It's a very happy New Old Guitar Guitar Day for/to me, as the search for a Rosewood Vintage Sunburst that sounds as good as my Natural Satin has finally reached its end.















May the awesome sounding Natural Satin find a loving home.

[leatherguy]

Sure would like to see a picture of it.....I know they are hard to come by.

[Lacking Talent]

Pix fixed!

[string1399]

Very nice! I hope you enjoy it!

[Lacking Talent]

Thanks! Its tone can turn from sonorous and robust to intimate and lovely on a dime, plus it looks like it just came off a wall hanger hook at the store, so, yeah, I'm pretty enthused.

[montydog]

I've never seen one of these! The Masterbilt range are remarkable guitars. Congratulations.

[Lacking Talent]

Thanks, I count myself very fortunate to have discovered another example of the exact same model that plays as well and sounds nigh on indistinguishable from the great one I've had for the last couple of years, but in a color scheme that I much prefer (for this style of guit). Am delighted by the prospect that someone else -- hopefully a fellow forum member -- will now be able to enjoy the AJ-500 RNS that I'm going to let go, and can only hope that new owner will be as pleased with that guitar as I found myself while it was in my care.

[leatherguy]

It's beautiful....enjoy!!

[Glennwillow]

Hi LT,

Nice guitar! Those Epi Masterbilt AJ guitars have been very good deals! Congratulations!

- Glenn

[roadbiker]

I have an AJ500RE and it is a nice guitar, especially for the money. Mine came with an unfortunate meeting with an oak floor last year, in a gigbag that didn't do anything to prevent the chip that came out of the top. I was so pissed! I have been looking for a good fitting case for mine. Did yours come with the guitar or did you get it separately? What kind of a case it is? I bought one a while ago from Sweetwater and the fit was horrible.

Mine had a satin finish which I recently buffed out to a nice gloss and it really looks great. It also made the repair a little less apparent.

Congrats on the new guitar.

Jim

[guitararmy]

Nice guitar! I'm also a Masterbilt fan and have an AJ-500RE as well.
That looks like the Epiphone semi-hardshell case that used to come with the guitars...

[Mike777]

Congratulations. The Masterbilt series are great guitars for the $$$.

[Jeremy]

Beautiful Epi! Congrats.

[Lacking Talent]

Originally Posted by montydog

I've never seen one of these! The Masterbilt range are remarkable guitars. Congratulations.

Yeah, I think the majority of the Vintage Sunburst examples were the Mahogany bodied model (absent the headstock binding), but I wanted a Rosewood (and I love all-over binding), so I guess I lucked out!

[Lacking Talent]

Originally Posted by roadbiker

I have an AJ500RE and it is a nice guitar, especially for the money. Mine came with an unfortunate meeting with an oak floor last year, in a gigbag that didn't do anything to prevent the chip that came out of the top. I was so pissed! I have been looking for a good fitting case for mine. Did yours come with the guitar or did you get it separately? What kind of a case it is? I bought one a while ago from Sweetwater and the fit was horrible.

Mine had a satin finish which I recently buffed out to a nice gloss and it really looks great. It also made the repair a little less apparent.

Congrats on the new guitar.

Jim

Thanks, Jim. The Epiphone-branded case that came with both this Vintage Sunburst that i just bought and also with the Natural Satin that I put up for sale in the forum Classifieds is made from a very dense foam that's reinforced with either a wood or plastic strip -- I'm not sure which -- along the neck section, and covered with a quite tough nylon fabric. While not traditional hard shell cases, they seem quite sturdy; here are a couple pix I ganked from Musician's Friend so you can see what they look like...


Hope that helps!