Heritage H-140 Gold Top P90's

Firstly I ought to say that I've separated my review of this one from other H-140 models in the range as this one has P90 style Single coil pickups as opposed to humbuckers so it's a completely different animal to a "normal" H-140.

Next, for anyone who doesn't already know... Heritage guitars were established in 1985 in the old Gibson Kalamazoo plant by former Gibson employees after Gibson uprooted and left. The main difference here being that These are hand built guitars whilst Gibson have tended towards mass production. As such, these are more comprable to Gibson custom shop guitars but at a much lower price. Of course, whether it really matters if the guitar body was cut out by a bloke on a band saw or a computer controlled machine is up for debate. one thing's for sure though, Hand built guitars cost a lot more money to produce. Mine's a 1989 model making it very nearly 20 yrs old.

This category though is all about features and as this is built pretty much on the standard Les Paul design then you know what your getting.

For a full specification try the Heritage guitars web site.
Things to note are. Very slim Mahogany body, disconcertingy so at a first glance, when I first opened the case it looked more like a cheapie Korean guitar !!! Having said that, delve a bit deeper and the quality starts to show. Nice Grover tuners, One piece mahogany neck, quirky but well made (German)roller bridge and tail piece. Good quality pots (one of which also acts as a push pull switch, more on that later), braided wiring and a nice solid 3 way selector switch. Rosewood fret board and medium frets. Two piece mahogany body with maple cap. Pickups are Korean made but "designed" by Kent Armstrong, model No: S905(R). Best I could find on them... http://wdmusic.com/kent_armstrong_p90_guitar_pickups_29744_prd1.htm
or...
http://www.guitarparts.com/guitarparts/index.html

So... I don't want to mark this guitar down on features as it has pretty much what you'd expect for an LP and if you want an Lp that emulates a guitar from the 50's then I don't suppose you'd be expecting active electrics, seven strings, etc. For that reason I'll give it a 9 as it doesn't disappoint but isn't exactly techno crazy.

As I've already mentioned this guitar has P90, single coil pickups, not "sopapbar" sized but full humbucker size so they could easily be swapped if you wanted too. Nice touch this but to be honest it probably just makes the routing easier to do at the factory.
The P90's are a single coil pickup so you'd expect a sound more like a Strat than a Les Paul. the reality is somewhere in between. I really like the sound of this guitar but I also have a Strat and a Les Paul. If I could only have one guitar, for the sound alone, it would have to be the Strat. Not that there's anything wrong with the Heritage, it has a very unique sound and I like it.
Because of the slim body I wasn't expecting much sustain but have been pleasantly surprised, not quite a full LP but not bad at all.
So, as an addition to my arsenal, this guitar has a very pleasing and unique sound that I don't think I'd like to be without. As such I'll rate it as a 10

This is quite an interesting category and a real mixed bag of an answer. On first impressions, on opening the case, this guitar looks cheap. The thin body (already mentioned) and the cheap plastic pick guard and knobs all detract from what turns out to be a very well made instrument.
Bear in mind this thing is pretty much hand made and by guys who really ought to know what they're doing. The neck is sublime, slim and very fast. Reminds me of an old SG I used to own. Frets are finished beautifully and it has a nice low action without any problems up the neck. The gold top finish is very good too as is the binding. I ought to say my guitar is twenty years old now so I can't judge the original setup. despite the age, the hardware and electrics are still flawless.
So, as an instrument this guitar is magnificent, a real joy to play. My only complaints are cosmetic and though it pains me to do so, I'll knock a point off for that. Having said that, all guitars are made to a price and I'd much rather the money was spent on the neck and frets than the pick guard.
One minor query. The push pull switch on my volume control doesn't do anything so I'm not sure why it's there.

Well It's 20 years old and despite a few dings etc as you might expect, everything's holding up just fine. Grover tuners are still rock solid, frets are slightly worn but not past it. Nothing's falling off or looking likely to in the near future. Hardware is still gleaming. No complaints whatsoever so it's got to be a 10

No idea really. I believe the company is in the middle of re structuring but I'm no expert. There's a pretty good web forum though.

I've been playing for far too many years now and I really ought to give up and do something more respectable instead... Nah...
I bought this guitar because I wanted something hand made and I didn't want to pay Gibson custom shop prices. I'm very please with it and the build quality is very good. For the same price you can get fancy inlays flamed maple tops (probably a transfer though) from a Korean guitar. The difference is in the feel of the thing. Somehow the heritage feels like a quality instrument whereas most Korean guitars I've tried just feel "plasticky" if you know what I mean. Gibsons are over priced, some vintage Jap stuff is very good but I do like this guitar. Great value.
If it were stolen then I'd certainly try and get another heritage guitar, possibly a higher end model, with a thicker body, but that's just personal preference.
Of all my guitars, Gibson LP, Strat, Yam SG, Patrick Eggle, Greco. This one has a unique sound so I'd definitely keep it.
If I were to change anything it would be an extra inch in the thickness. (Come to think of it my missus is always asking me for that too. Oh well... Nothing's perfect.