3000 Fake Gibsons Seized at US Border

[dubbmann]

from today's NY Times. Biggest irony is that they may play better than current Gibsons =:-(

........................
U.S. Border Agents Seize 3,000 Fake Gibson Guitars They would have been worth nearly $18 million if they were genuine, making it the largest counterfeit instrument seizure in history, officials said.

By Adeel Hassan
Nov. 27, 2024, 6:27 p.m. ET

At a glance, the Gibson guitars look like some of the most coveted six-stringed instruments in the world, including signature models played by Dave Grohl that sell for up to $10,000 and some that looked as if they had been autographed by Slash.

A closer look by any guitar connoisseur, though, would reveal something was slightly off.

Federal officials aren’t saying how they knew the difference, but the 3,000 electric guitars that arrived in ocean containers from Asia at the Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport were counterfeit.

Their total retail price, had they been genuine, would have been $18 million, they said. The haul is the largest seizure of counterfeit musical instruments on record, officials said in announcing the bust on Tuesday.

“These fraudulent guitars may look and feel legitimate for unsuspecting consumers buying them from third-party online sources, street markets, unauthorized retailers, and person-to-person transactions,” said Cheryl M. Davies, the director of field operations for Customs and Border Protection in Los Angeles.

The biggest tip-off, though, might have been that authentic Gibson guitars are made only in Nashville and Bozeman, Mont.

“This is really emotional and personal for us,” Beth Heidt, chief marketing officer at Gibson, said at a news conference in Los Angeles on Tuesday. She said that generations of American families “have dedicated their entire lives to hand-crafting Gibson instruments.”

The company was founded in 1894 and its headquarters are in Nashville. Gibson’s best-selling guitars cost about $2,000, but that can quickly rise to five figures for signature models created with popular guitarists. Vintage guitars have been sold for the low six figures.

That makes Gibson guitars an especially attractive target for counterfeiters, who can easily undersell the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, and still make a hefty profit off unsuspecting consumers.

While authorized sellers like Guitar Center would never carry those, the fake guitars were destined for third-party online resellers, officials said.

There is a much better chance of a consumer getting hoodwinked if they can’t see the instrument directly, or hold and play it.

“We can pick it up immediately and tell,” Ms. Heidt said of a phony Gibson, adding that they were more flimsy and lightweight.

She said that a fake guitar would carry a Gibson logo that might look askew, bleed, or be in the wrong place.

“They don’t have correct inlays,” she said. “There are finish issues. The way the neck is fit into the guitar is inaccurate. So there’s quite a few ways that you can actually look at the guitar and tell that it’s not accurate. It’s from the parts, the specs, the look, the feel, top to bottom.”

Customs officers worked with special agents from Homeland Security Investigations and investigators from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to make the bust, but they did not say how long they had been working on the case, when the counterfeit guitars were seized, who made them or where they came from. They said it remained an active investigation.

It is a violation of intellectual property law to import, distribute or sell unauthorized products in the United States. It is a felony punishable by a $250,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison.

[garrettendi]

I've been tempted to get a "Greeny" Chibson replica, but besides the fact I cannot be assured what I get will be of good quality, there is the very real risk it will be confiscated at Customs and I will have neither money nor guitar!

If I decide to get an LP, I'll go to Harley Benton. Gibson's unfair practices have bought me to the decision to never buy another Gibson or Epiphone. Shame, because the Epiphone Les Pauls are decent.

[amanise]

Wow! That's a whole lotta fakery!

[OneWorld]

It's only rock and roll.

BTW - is the text of your post 'copied' from the NY Times?

[SecretSam]

“There are finish issues. The way the neck is fit into the guitar is inaccurate"

So the counterfeiters got something right

[Telemaxis]

“There are finish issues. The way the neck is fit into the guitar is inaccurate"

So the counterfeiters got something right

[Dynamic Mike]

In Vegas I saw 'genuine certificatated' Fenders signed by Stevie Ray Vaughan for sale that weren't manufactured until 3 years after he'd died.

[OneWorld]

“There are finish issues. The way the neck is fit into the guitar is inaccurate"

So the counterfeiters got something right

Just happens they've been found in time for Black Friday, though now all the importer's stock has been snatched, 3000+ that's something to fret about

[Philbo King]

I have a friend who bought a 'Chibson' Les Paul. It was cosmetically perfect and played like a dream. IIRC, it cost 809 USD. They are getting better and better...

[Sam Spoons]

With so many good guitars out there in all price ranges there is no need to buy a Chibson Les Paul. Just buy an Ibanez or a 'Harley Benton' or 'Vintage' or an Epiphone Les Paul. At the cheap end you usually get more than you pay for* and there is no risk of buying a fake.

* #1 son has a HB LP which is fantastic for the money, would I swap it for my Gibson? No but it cost him close to ⅓ of what I paid, trade, for my Gibson** in 1978.

** i.e. about 3% of the Gibsons current value...

[tea for two]

+ for Harley Benton. I had a Harley Benton Cherry kinda Jazz styles was rather decent.
Harley Benton have Strat Tele LP PRS copies approx 70-150 squid.

[garrettendi]

I had a Harley Benton Fusion-II with a roasted maple neck/fretboard and locking tuners. I think it was their attempt at the Guthrie Govan Suhr/Charvel guitars and was a dream to play. I only sold it as we needed the money.

[OneWorld]

I have a friend who bought a 'Chibson' Les Paul. It was cosmetically perfect and played like a dream. IIRC, it cost 809 USD. They are getting better and better...

Maybe that's why they are making such a big deal about this. The story appears all over the media, the story is getting more exposure than "Elvis ate my hamster" or "Invasion of the 50 Foot Women"

Strange the story should get so much coverage

[DGL.]

I had a Harley Benton Fusion-II with a roasted maple neck/fretboard and locking tuners. I think it was their attempt at the Guthrie Govan Suhr/Charvel guitars and was a dream to play. I only sold it as we needed the money.

I understand the Thomann/HB guitars have now got enough of a following in the US that Thomann sell a selection of them on Reverb from a US warehouse.

[ronmac]

Although the POTUS has shown amazing resiliency in gaming the US political and court systems, will Gibson be able to take him down? LOL

https://www.billboard.com/pro/donald-tr ... er-gibson/

[OneWorld]

"Trump’s exact involvement in the guitar line, listed for sale at the website GetTrumpGuitars.com, is unclear. The website notes simply that the guitars are the only ones “officially endorsed by President Donald J. Trump.”"

Why buy a fake when you can buy a Trump, luthier of great re-known

And by sheer coincidence a load of fake Gibsons rock up in a border patrol warehouse......a case of "Hey Mom, They're Playing my Tune" these fakes turn up just at the right time. Wonder if the found any WMDs in there too - Woodwinds of Mass Distraction.

[OneWorld]

Begs the question, where are the Trump guitars made?

The cease and desist order, if/when invoked could enhance the Trump guitar's 'rarity' value? Trump could let the story run, price goes up the C&D order is invoked, Trump is omni-potent, he rules over the courts, nice little earner

[ManFromGlass]

If they burn the fake ones I hope someone records it!
How often would one get the chance to record 3000 guitars burning?

[Drew Stephenson]

Yeah, it's normally banjos or accordions.

[Watchmaker]

An estimated $6k per guitar when the most popular Gibsons go for $2k...Surely that says something unflattering about people who buy over-priced "signature" model guitars.

Although, if Trump really did endorse a guitar - rather than that also being counterfeit - I would value that more highly than any endorsement from a famous musician. What could possibly miss the point of artistic endeavor more than trying to be someone else?