Ibanez GB10... 70s made same as newer made?

[Steve Z]

I have always dug the size of the Ibanez GB10 though a bit on the heavy side. The ones I have played have all been early 80s or older and had rather obvious binding decoloration and degragation. Any thoughts on the newer production, say 2010 and newer? Same binding issues? Still heavy? Same neck profiles, etc.?

Thanks.

[Cunamara]

Interesting question and I'll wait to hear from people who have newer ones to share their experiences. I have a 1981 GB10NT which has shown discoloration on the heel cap, in particular, and just a hint around parts of the F holes. I have seen photographs of other GB10s from the same period with much worse discoloration; I am not sure what accounts for the difference or even what the cause of the problem is; is it a chemical reaction between the binding plastic and the finish? The glue and the finish? UV light?

Even with the discoloration, it remains a great playing and sounding instrument.

[Crm114]

The pickguard decomposing inside the case is usually the culprit I have a ‘79 that I really love and I bought it from a music store in Nashville it had been owned by the guitar player for Dr. John. It had a decayed heal cap but nothing else and he had replaced that tortoise bound pickguard with a bound Ebony pickguard which I really like‘

last summer I found a 1981 GB 10 that was essentially new old stock and it was perfect and it had the slightly older body shape with a slightly more exaggerated cutaway like my 79 is
I also own a 2007 that I bought from a kid in the Netherlands and it’s was toured by George and donated at the North Sea Jazz Festival and comes with pro shot backstage pictures of the guitar and George Benson before and during him signing it and it looks and sounds great the wood is plainer than the older ones it seems that Ibanez used a much nicer laminate in the old days with a lot of figure - flame and birdseye

BigMike

[wintermoon]

Hey Big, I'm going to disagree w you here.
Usually binding rot is a result of a bad batch of celluloud binding in combination w a chemical reaction w the glue over time.
This is the case w many old Epiphones, D'angelico's, D'aquistos, Gretsches etc.
It typically affects larger areas of plastic first like heel caps, the thicker binding in cutaways etc. but will affect thinner bindings soon after.
But to your point, an offgassing pickguard will aggravate the condition, especially in adjacent areas.

[Zigracer]

I can’t speak to the older ones, but I owned a 2007 which I never should have parted with, as it was phenomenal. I regretted getting rid of that guitar and replaced it with a 2020, which is just as good.

[Gitfiddler]

I own a '79 and '96 GB10.

My '79 GB10 had out-gassing and deterioration of the heel cap and around the pickup selector switch, but the binding around the body had turned an attractive mellow yellow-ish hue. The previous owner must have replaced the pickguard and maybe the neck pickup. I had Gryphon repair the heel cap by fabricating a piece of maple in the affected area a few years ago. Otherwise it plays and sounds great.

If I were shopping for a GB10 I'd look for one that has been well taken care of and plays well...no matter the production year.

The neck profiles are very close in girth and taper, but the recent model's pickups are hotter. There is zero discoloration on the '96 binding to date.

This '79 GB10 is a keeper! In these photos you can see the darker areas as well as the repaired heel cap.

[Steve Z]

Great info... thanks. Good to hear that the neck profiles and body are really similar throughout the years and that the binding issue seems to be greatly reduced since 1996.

I don't recall the year of the guitar a buddy told me about, but think it is either 2010 or 2012... something like that, so it shouldn't have any binding issues yet still be the same goodness as the older well respected GB10s.

[jazzkritter]

Hi Steve!

You probably know this but just in case you can find nearly everything about the GB series here:

Ibanez Wiki | Fandom

Its a great resource for year
to year comparisons.

Good luck on your search… i (had to) sell my GB10 a while ago and regretted it.
jk

[Steve Z]

Hi Steve!

You probably know this but just in case you can find nearly everything about the GB series here:

Ibanez Wiki | Fandom

Its a great resource for year
to year comparisons.

Good luck on your search… i (had to) sell my GB10 a while ago and regretted it.
jk

Thanks for the link. I had not seen that site before. Lots of good info.

[gitman]

My first GB10 was a blonde one from 1979, bought new then. Stolen out of my car ..... then 2 others came and went over the years, a GB20 also (much too heavy and quite dead sounding) and since last fall I'm the very happy owner of a 2007 GB-15 - basically a GB10 but with only a single neck pickup and a slightly deeper body. It's still an over-built guitar, made for playing on loud(er) stages but man, it delivers on so many levels ! The neck is still one of my all-time favorites, the size of the body makes it very comfortable and while I would not use it for any solo or quiet duo sessions the tone it produces will cut through in a louder setting, feedback is not an issue and the sturdy construction makes it much less susceptible to temperature and humidity changes. A stable, toneful and fast playing guitar and no, there are no signs of any plastic-deterioration anywhere so I guess they got wise and found some binding/glue/lacquer that get along with each other.....

[jzucker]

the first year had 21 frets and not 22. The original guitars up through early 80s had more mellow alnico pickups. For 15 years or so, they are using dimarzio ceramic pickups. Much louder and brighter. The guitars themselves are pretty much the same except for that first year.

[Jimmy blue note]

Hoshino has marketed some of the most consistent and high quality guitars in the business. Since their first prototype, the GB10 has had the same specs. Pickups have changed, matter of taste whether it's for the better or for worse but I do know the quality of available plastic bindings have become better and so far it seems they've overcome deterioration, but time will tell.
They are heftily made and with that 15" it's snappy yet has a good even tone acoustically and is a strong electric instrument.
Personally, I have felt the new ones are just as excellent as the old ones. My taste was towards PAF pickups so I had Duncan custom shop wind me a mini floater with '59 specs.
Their tops are a spruce laminate. They take longer and more playing to break in but they do and IMHO they are instruments worthy of going the distance with. They start strong and they just get better.
Necks throughout their 4 decade run have been exactly the same and to my hands, a total delight to play on.

[Steve Z]

Hoshino has marketed some of the most consistent and high quality guitars in the business. Since their first prototype, the GB10 has had the same specs. Pickups have changed, matter of taste whether it's for the better or for worse but I do know the quality of available plastic bindings have become better and so far it seems they've overcome deterioration, but time will tell.
They are heftily made and with that 15" it's snappy yet has a good even tone acoustically and is a strong electric instrument.
Personally, I have felt the new ones are just as excellent as the old ones. My taste was towards PAF pickups so I had Duncan custom shop wind me a mini floater with '59 specs.
Their tops are a spruce laminate. They take longer and more playing to break in but they do and IMHO they are instruments worthy of going the distance with. They start strong and they just get better.
Necks throughout their 4 decade run have been exactly the same and to my hands, a total delight to play on.

Great info. Thank you.