Penco Les Paul Copy

I love this guitar. It is GREAT! The neck is thick but i likeit. Nice finish (laminated i think. Two volume and two tone knobs.. just like a real LP. Don;t know all that's on it but i know it isnt stock.

sound is grea. Use a Fender Frontman 25R amplifier. Got good rich sound.

good when I received it though it was 35 years old so i dont know how they set ut up, but its good.

good, solid unbreakable almost. defenatley can depend on it.

Company went out of business in 1978 but was made in the sme facotry as some ibanez guitars and hoshinas.

I have been playing about a year. I have a fender strat too. definately would buy it again. I like the thick neck. i am used to the "close to fret strings" a lot closer than the strat.

I picked up the Penco Les Paul copy from ebay..for about 100 bucks..I was excited when it arrived ...but disapointed when i brought it to practice. The guitar WAs all original...The pickups sounded ok at low volumes..but sucked at high volumes really blew goats..I almost made it through a whole soung with it..But got sooo aggrivated with it i put it in the case and strapped on my gibson reissue 57 gold top...But later the following week, brought it to a friend of mine Guitar builder and tech Dave Moniz..I told him what i wanted from it . And off he went He set the neck, put new p/u's in it- tone zone in neck position and paf pro in bridge. gibson les paul tuners. Now i have a hard time putting the guitar down!!!!!!!!!!! WOW i tell ya it blows my other real gibson les pauls away ..I don't know what it is about the guitar but its crazy to think that we can spend all this money on brand name guitars and come to find out a Penco blows them away...If you find a penco les paul BUY IT ! Don't be stupid..The days of "oh thats not a real les paul!" are gone..People are playing les paul copies! And using them onstage And having fun. Want pictures of my guitar ??????email me at stratdreams57@yahoo.com Kevin

I am a hired hand around the massacusetts area.currently in a few bands now Creed tribute band, fifties rock band and, country band
For amps i use a 74 fender super twin ..a - b switched into a gibson redbear into an old two 12" green back celestion cab. Effects? Vox wah..digitech whammy ..Not for the whammy though can't stand the pedal really but there is only one kool sound that i use on it that is the shallow setting. for clean sounds.

the guitar overall was alright for a beginner . i guess?? But having it set up to my liking made a world of a diference.

Live playing now that its set up ? 55 gigs still going strong.
and have used it at a gig with no back up..lol

Company no longer in service.. Unless you wanna talk to Ibanez?

Been playing for about35 years now
I bought it on a bet i had with some friends in a band i was in ..saying stuff like i bet you 20 bucks that i could find a gibson copy and fix it to sing and stand up to the best of them! And guess what? I DID!

1972/74, Japan/Limerick PA (Yes Limerick!) 22 fret standard Paul stuff. 9 piece maple body w/3 ply Maple/Mahogany/maple gold archtop, with binding,floating 1/4" from body. Penco/Ibanez humbuckers that the neck is the perfect Paul p/u. The bridge p/u?... well it doesn't hum. Standard tune-a-matic bridge and stop tailpiece. 3 Piece bolt on mahogany neck with Rosewood fretboard and trapazoid "brother" of pearl inlays. Oh, and a nice brass nut.

The finest sounding Paul that Gibson never made! It plays rock, jazz, blues, and even funk. Blended, the two hums are fine. I feel the bridge p/u is a little thin sounding by itself, but removing the chrome cover helped a bit. (I am replacing it with a Kramer Quad.) As I said before, the neck is the ultimate p/u. Think early Robert Fripp, and you have the sound of the neck p/u. Whatever a Paul can do, my Penco can do. Period.

This was somewhat of a basket case, so it's hard to say. The top is fine. A nice, sparkly goldtop, that may be cheesey to some. The back and sides....need help. Chunks of finish are flaking off, but hey, it is over 30 years old. Brand new, it must have been breath taking!

I don't gig any more. I use the guitar with a Digitech RP-3, and ampwise a '70 Oliver G150R 35 watt tube, a 66 or so Estey T-22 9 watt tuber, and a Marlboro transi amp from the '70's. It records perfectly crystal clear. Whatever I want, It does without complaint. If I gigged, hell yea, I'd use it, but only a fool gigs without a backup guitar.

Penco died in 75 or so, and the parent company, Ibanez, really can't help.

I've been playing over twenty years, owned 3 different Pauls, and love this one MORE than a "real" Paul. This is without a doubt the 2nd greatest guitar I've ever owned. (My 1987 Aria pro prototype is the best.) I also own the afore mentioned Aria, a Roland 707, a Peavey T-15 with humbuckers, a BC Rico Wave, a '67 Telestar that sounds like a jazz hollow body, a '62 dan Electro Longhorn bass, and a 1980 Kramer DMZ 6000B Bass. If someone stole her, I kill 'em. no question about it, and the jury would find me innocent once they would play my "Night Comet Goldy". If you can find a Penco Paul, BUY IT!!!!!!

Made in early to mid seventies (best guess). It has a plywood body laminated with a nice "picture" of a tobacco finish, and a bolt-on rosewood mahogany neck. The neck and body are fully bound. Has standard controls like a Les Paul--pickup selector, and volume and tone for each. When we picked it up, the bridge was missing 3 saddles. Brought it to the guitar shop, and found that an Epiphone or Gibson replacement worked just fine. The machines were the only thing on the guitar that seemed of inferior quality so I replaced them with Grovers. The neck is kinda like a Les Paul, only real flat, and the inlays aren't crowns, just rectangular. (Zero snob appeal).

I play thru a Peavey Bandit 112 and a Peavey 4x12 cabinet and have gigged with the Penco. At "normal" levels, it sounds like however you need it to. It's real responsive to a creamy tone or can scream like anything! Only problem is at higher levels using overdrive, the pickups start feeding back and screaming immediately, so if you're gonna hit it, no hesitation can be tolerated prior to controlling the feedback. Outside of that, the controls are surprisingly quiet and linear. Even the pickup switch acts as it should.

Set-up when purchased was non-existent. Like stated above, the bridge was missing 3 saddles and it had like 2 strings on it. Upon replacement of the bridge, new .010's and the Grover machines, I set the height and intonation myself with no difficulty.(I'm not a pro, but it plays real good now.) It was also missing 2 of the 4 knobs. A friend of mine gave me a couple he had from whatever it was he used to have and they look and work fine. The bottom E string seems kinda close to the edge of the neck, but I've made no attempt to adjust it--just got used to it and it's not a problem. Seems like the guitar was made with decent basic quality and just was neglected over the years. Outside of a small nick on the body and a smaller one on the neck, it's in real good shape. (Especially for being stored in the corner of a thrift shop with no case.)

My Penco has withstood live playing, practices, regular use, and everything it should. I won't use anything without a back-up, as anything can happen to any instrument and I'd look kinda stupid standing there with just a strap. The strap nuts are screwed into the main body which is just made out of plywood, so I'm mindful of tightening them regularly--they haven't stripped yet. Even though the finish is not world-class, it seems real durable so far. I've been using this on and off for a couple of years now, and it seems to get shinier the more you sweat on it. Must be good for the wood "picture".

Penco is as far as I know no longer making guitars. Too bad.

Started playing like 30 years ago, but gave it up mostly when the kids showed up. Now they're older and I got back into it. I almost forgot how much fun this can be!! If this was stolen, I'd search the thrift marts and salvation armies and try to find another one. For a total investment of less than $150.00, including a brand new case I bought for it, it's unreal. Once you learn to control the feedback (or yourself) it plays and sounds great. I also own a like 1981 Fender Lead 1, also a great guitar, a 1985 Fender Strat (American) which is like heaven, and an older (1975 or so) Applause accoustic. Only thing I wish I had was more info on Penco. I understand that they're the parent company of Ibanez, but can't substantiate that either.