Plain Maple Top

[Paul-less]

Yarg, I am sick of all this flamed maple and quilted maple and SUPER AWESOME DELUXE MEGA maple. I want to be able to select "maple" for my top, and have NO figuring. You know, how a Les Paul SHOULD come out....

 

[SpiderDeluxe]

seconded
third-ed
please do this

 

[SustainerPlayer]

... or ... just the option to cover that mega awesome whatever flame with a nice solid, metallic or candy color.

 

[Wyliee]

When you're ready to order, call or email sales to see what is in stock.  By far, most folks want the pretty stuff, but there might be something plainer available.

Alternately, you could look at hard maple.  It will definitely be heavier, but less fancy.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Alder, though not accepting dye, can look like plain Maple too.

 

[Paul-less]

When you're ready to order, call or email sales to see what is in stock.  By far, most folks want the pretty stuff, but there might be something plainer available.

Alternately, you could look at hard maple.  It will definitely be heavier, but less fancy.

Isn't it true that hard maple (eastern?) doesn't accept dye, it's brittle, and is harder on tools? I really enjoy the look of a plain maple top, simply because I find that you can say more with subtlety than with flamboyancy.

 

[swarfrat]

Or you could try a luck of the draw flame/quilt/birdseye maple top and bleach it. Same price.

 

[Wyliee]

When you're ready to order, call or email sales to see what is in stock.  By far, most folks want the pretty stuff, but there might be something plainer available.

Alternately, you could look at hard maple.  It will definitely be heavier, but less fancy.

Isn't it true that hard maple (eastern?) doesn't accept dye, it's brittle, and is harder on tools? I really enjoy the look of a plain maple top, simply because I find that you can say more with subtlety than with flamboyancy.

Correct.  Hard maple does not dye as well and is definitely harder.  (It's what we make necks out of....)

 

[tubby.twins]

I ordered a Gecko body with a plain maple top.  I had to ask for it, but it turned out beautifully.

Link:  http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=12209.0

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

IIRC, plain Maple if available is the same price as the lower grade fancy Maple.  2 ways to look at it I guess, the fancy Maple is cheap or the plain Maple is expensive.

 

[GearBoxTy]

Yea, I've always wanted a solid gloss black Les Paul and feel like having a plain Maple top on Mahogany isn't really an option with Warmoth.  I don't want to be forced to pick a trans finish or burst because of sweet figuring even though a tripped out Warmoth Les Paul would still be less expensive than a Gibson Les Paul Standard!

 

[JimBeed]

whats the point of a different top if the colours going to be solid in the end?  :doh:

 

[GearBoxTy]

whats the point of a different top if the colours going to be solid in the end?  :doh:

Well, theoretically, a figured maple would cost more than a plain maple so it seems like a shame to cover a higher-priced figured maple.  A few years back I saw a web article about what it takes Gibson to make a Les Paul and they used the non-figured or ugly maple for solid finishes.

 

[SustainerPlayer]

I was (only) thinking (yeah right!) with regard to the online builder. There you can't choose solid colors, candy and so on if you have chosen a maple top.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

If I remember correctly, there are many a Les Paul that don't have Maple tops when finished in a solid color.  That same model when finished in a transparent or burst will have a Maple top.  More proof the top wood is for the eyes and not the ears.

 

[GearBoxTy]

Gibson's Les Paul Studio guitars originally were all Mahogany so they would be less expensive.  Not sure if they are still that way, seems like there are maple top options on the LP Studio nowadays.  I just remember the Gibson ads from the mid-1980s when they were introduced.

I also thought the whole appeal of the Les Paul was the maple cap on the mahogany body.

 

[JaySwear]

Yep, the Studio has a maple top now. I was just at a local shop playing a used one a couple days ago. They still look so wrong without binding to me though...

 

[drewfx]

Yep, the Studio has a maple top now. I was just at a local shop playing a used one a couple days ago. They still look so wrong without binding to me though...

What's really wrong is the additional cost of getting one with binding...

 

[JaySwear]

Yep, the Studio has a maple top now. I was just at a local shop playing a used one a couple days ago. They still look so wrong without binding to me though...

What's really wrong is the additional cost of getting one with binding...

Very true! I'd rather sit there looking at my LP Studio thinking "You don't look right..." rather than looking at my LP Standard thinking "I'm really hungry..."

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Ever wonder why it's called a studio?  My guess would be because one hears recordings.  They just have to sound good, not look good.  Binding and Maple tops are for the eyes, not the ears.