Heritage H-170CM

USA Made in Kalamazoo circa 1998. This a a 22 fret, double cutaway Les Paul style guitar made by the guys who invented Les Paul styled guitars. Comes stock with Grover tuners, Sschaller pickups. Carved Maple top over a solid mahogany body. Mahogany neck with an Indian Rosewood fretboard. Dot Inlays. Tune-O-Matic bridge. For controls, we've got a 3-way pickup selector (mounted just below the bridge), 2 voloume pots and a master tone control. Cherry Sunburst finish with creme binding. It's a beautiful instrument.

I play a wide variety of music, mostly experimental these days and this does the job most of the time...stress the word most there. While I absolutely *love* this guitar - the look, the feel, the vibe - the sound doesn't do it for me all the time. Don't get me wrong, his thing can growl and bark like the meanest LP on the block, but it can be a bit muddy at times. Particularly through my '69 Fender Twin Reverb (I know, you're supposed to play Fender guitars through Fender amps...sue me). It just doesn't give me that clean sparkle I need sometimes certain chord passages. I'm not looking for this thing to jangle like a Rickenbacker, I just wish it would clean up a bit nicer sometimes when I back off the volume.

This could probably be somewhat remedied by switching to different pickups, but again, I'm rating this guitar as it comes from the factory, not how it could be after I fix all of it's problems.

The finish is spectacular and has aged well. The maple top is very nicely figured. It's not like an old PRS 10 top, but it's pretty flame it. If it were on a 2009 Gibson, it would be called a AAA or higher top.

10+ years, and it's still going strong. Here are some of the flaws that have developed over the years. A little pitting in some of the clear coat. The plastic binding cracked around the neck pickup. Some of the body binding is peeling away right along the inside of the "cutaways". This is happening on both cutaways in the exact same spot. The part that's peeling is about 1cm long and 2mmm of "peeling". This formed about 5 years ago and hasn't gotten any worse. Seems like a design flaw.

Aside from that, this thing is amazing. It's a tank. I'd take this thing to war with me without a backup and have no fear if it not working. The pots still turn as smoothly as they did the day I bought it.

Never needed em.

I'd take my Heritage over a "real" Les Paul every day of the week. And at less then half the price, I'd have enough left over to pick up a telecaster as well. That being said, I'm not crazy enough to give this a 10. A 1952 Broadcaster gets a 10. A '59 Les Paul gets a 10. This gets an 8.

My other current electrics are 1987 Heritage H-160, and a 2008 Fender American Deluxe Telecaster. I also get to play a Gibson 335 a lot, but I don't actually own one...I've been playing about 16 years, mostly at home these days.

I play the 170 through the following set up:

MXR Dynacomp -> Maxon OD808 -> Way Huge Swollen Pickle -> Electro Harmonix Small Stone -> EH Stereo Memory Man (ancient) -> EH Holy Grail+ -> Boss TR2 -> Blackheart Little Giant (driving 2 1x12 cabs).

I also play the 170 with various other effects through a '69 Fender Twin Reverb (silverface), a modded Epiphone Valve Jr, or a mid 90s Fender Blues Jr. I like the Blackheart the best with one tho. At least right now.

Made in 1985. Double cutaway, Les Paul-type. Mahogany body w/maple carved top (nice flame). Body about .5" thinner than a Les Paul. Nitro lacquer "vintage sunburst". Finish is very good. It's a little neck heavy (like an SG) because the strap button location is behind the neck joint. I moved it forward as much as possible, which helped significantly.
22-fret Mahogany neck w/rosewood board. No binding on neck and dot inlays. Neck radius and profile is same as '60 Les Paul ("Slim Taper"). I'd prefer a fatter neck as on a '50's Les Paul.
Two volume and one master tone control. Three way switch. No coil taps. I'd prefer a master volume and two tone controls.
Two Schaller humbuckers. Replaced mine with Gibson Classic '57s.
Has schaller roller bridge and tailpiece (not micro adjustable). Replaced stop tailpiece with Gibson (better sustain than Schaller).
Has Grover Rotomatic Tuners.
Came with OHSC. Made in USA. All for $395!

I play blues, so it's perfect. I was going for Peter Green Fleetwood Mac tone.
It's got a brighter and more defined mid/bass tone than a Les Paul. This is due to the thinner body and less wood in the body. This guitar has the best sustain of any I've played. It is very loud acoustically.
The Schaller pickups were a little veiled-sounding for me, so I switched to Gibsons. It has a very nice clean tone now.

I had to have the neck planed from the 17 fret up because the neck swelled. Had the frets dressed too. Other than this, it is perfect. The neck is very stable and rarely needs setup.

Well, it was 10 years old when I got it and it looked like new then. I've put a few dings in it. Overall, it's much better than the Epiphone and Fender finishes I've experienced.
I've had not mechanical problems. Everything is well made.
Watch those guitar stands with plastic pads - the lacquer will go soft and sticky. I have a couple of nice marks from that.

I'd get another one, but it would be the Les Paul single-cut model. I bought this because it was so cheap and it played so well. I could easily sell it for twice what I paid for it, so it was a good investment.
I've grown to not like the body shape and the neck profile as much as I did when I got it.