LSL Instruments Bad Bone 2 Darth Satin Black 2019
LSL Bad Bone 2, all black, made in handmade in the USA 2019. LSL is the project of Lance S. and Lisa S. Lerman, a husband and wife team from California. Lisa has a background in specialised woodwork design, and Lance has done a bit of everything: he taught at Berklee, repaired guitars, made guitars, ran a high end wood wholesaler, set up woodwork factories in Asia... quite the resume. The Bad Bone 2 is their take on the '52 style Tele, but with a pair of humbuckers to get the walls shaking. This one was dubbed 'Darth', owing to it's all-black finish, simple single volume electronics and general villainous vibe. The original pickups were switched out by the first owner for a pair of Guitarmory Atlas humbuckers: proper modern-metal passive hotbois that measure around 15k ohms. They're hot and pretty assertive, but still clean up remarkably well , especially if you use the five way switch to get some split sounds. It's a particular type of tone, but it's very convincing, and I'd wager it would slot nicely into a lot of different genres owing to the natural fullness and warmth on tap. The finish has seen a few things: sticker marks, heaps of paly, knocks and bruises... it's got a past, but that makes it interesting and definitely suits the vibe of the guitar. It will only look better with another few hundred hours on the clock too, the nitro is very thin, and as such, it's like a pair of jeans: designed to fade and rub up to a worn look. At 3.2kg, this is super light, and it rings like a bell: the thin finish and woodwork are really working together there. Now let's talk about that neck. My oh my, what an outrageous piece of maple. It's a roasted highly flamed piece, carved to a slim C with a modern style 12" radius and tall frets. It feels a fair bit like a Suhr Modern to me, it's definitely in that genre and quality bracket. It has that 'gets out of the way' thing; the guitar is so responsive, so fast and easy in the hands, nothing is encumbering your ideas and it all just flows freely. This is a truly exceptional guitar, someone is going to be very pleased indeed.
Model: LSL Instruments Bad Bone 'Darth'
Made: USA, Santa Clarita CA, 2019
Serial: 4533
Finish: black, satin nitro
Body: alder
Neck: roasted flame maple inc board, 25.5" scale, 12" scale, slim C
Weight: 3.195kg
Mods: pickups repalced
Pickups: Guitarmory Atlas humbucker set (more info here)
Accessories: original G&G case, docs
Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has some dimples on the end and bottom edge and some light scuffs on the back. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, minor rub wear on the back only. The back has a sticker fade mark on the top horn, some small chips on the edges in the top horn, elbow area, back edge and bottom corner, a decent patch of rub wear in the middle of the body as well as along the belly carve and bottom edge, and widespread minor scuffs and dimples around the whole body. The sides have minor scuffs and dimples around the whole body, as well as some small chips and dents in the elbow area and near the jack. The front has a sticker mark and some pocks/dents near the bridge, scuffs around the knob and switch, rub wear and dimples in the elbow area and some play wear on the horns and guard.
Overall: good condition (7/10)
Playing condition notes: action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Wearing fresh 10/46 strings.
Fret life: 9/10, minor wear only