Fibsons.com – the fake Gibson guitar blog.

Sometimes it feels like I should call this website fibs-zakkwyldecustom-ons.com due to the huge amount of fake Zakk Wylde Les Paul Custom guitars I get told of and see online. It’s got to be at no. 3 in my chart of things I think are being faked the most, (2 being the Les Paul Supreme and 1 being my wife’s interest as I ramble on about that vintage Les Paul Jr I just have to have).

Anyhoo, bear with me while I plough/plow through this once again.

The knobs should be speed dials, not top hats with silver inserts, I suspect the EMG’s are fake but anyway there should not be a pick up selector switch surround, (the plastic circle with Rhythm and Lead on it), the fretboard should be ebony, not what appears to be rosewood. Looking at the back we see the “Gibson” decal on the pots cavity cover, this may as well say, “This is a counterfeit Gibson guitar, bad luck, you’ve been had, don’t you feel a goose”. Why? Because a real Gibson guitar does not have that sticker on it, but most of the fakes do.

Looking at the front of the headstock; The Gibson logo is in the wrong font and at the wrong angle, the split diamond inlay looks like it was done in fourth grade shop, the tuners are fake and the truss rod cover is too close to the nut. Over on the back we see that it has a fake serial number and has Made In USA imprinted into it, (it should not), Zakk’s Silhouette isn’t quite right and the shape of the headstock is incorrect. The truss rod cover is also a giveaway as the fonts are wrong and the words on it are wrong.

Check out more Zakk Wylde fakes on Fibsons.com by visiting the Zakk Wylde category, (link at the top of the page at the bottom right of the banner).

Along with the Les Paul Supreme the other “non standard” model that seems to have the most copies is the Zakk Wylde range, (the very reason it has it’s own category on your favourite/favorite site devoted to fake gibson guitars.

There are plenty of the white n’ black Bullseye’s on here and now, thanks to Marjan we have a camo edition.

The usual imperfections do not apply here as the real model is slightly different from the white Customs, however the bridge is wrong and the headstock, inlay and Gibson logo are at incorrect angles. Interestingly enough the colour/color of the fretbord is correct, though I doubt it is the right species of wood.

More inconsistencies are shown on the back of the headstock, the silhouette is too high, it’s got made in U.S.A. stamped on it, (this is a Custom Shop model) and it has a one piece neck instead of the three piece.

What made me smile about this forgery is the fact that it has “Zakk’s signature” on the back, implying that the man himself had been privy to this guitar and put some ink to it, (before the tuners were put on, apparently), surely nothing greater could verify this guitars authenticity. Well anyone who can copy a signature can do that, although I suspect it is printed on from a scanned picture. From the photo it looks almost genuine, (as genuine as the “signed” photo of Prince my wife has proudly hung up on our staircase that is).

To prove my point would anyone care to bid on this jigsaw of Will & Grace that “Zakk” signed for me? No. thought not.

A shout out to Marjan for spotting this one on eBay. Thank you.