Epiphone SG Custom Ebony

Always loved the Custom format and its great to see an SG from Epiphone with this classy look.
Love the new "Kalamazoo" headstock, it adds to the looks with its clean bound "open book" cut. The addition of TUSQ's Nubone nut is a great improvement to tuning stability and the guitar stays in tune with the vintage Kluson style tuners.
The neck is true with bound ebony fretboard and fret work has been done very good, no high frets or sharp edges. Profile is on the fat side of '60s slim taper.
Setup from out of the box was great no need to adjust intonation or neck bow, just had to lower the action as it was set too high.
Pickups are ok for the price I guess, I don't mind them as I plan to replace them. Great improvement is the use of CTS pots, thing is they used long shaft so the knobs sit quite high on them and that leaves a 0,4-0,6cm gap between the knobs skirt and body.
Wiring is the usual Epiphone with quick connectors for the pickups.
The Epiphone TOM bridge is something I would like to see upgraded since its saddles are retained with a springy piece of wire which over time it oxidizes and falls apart.
Over all finish of the guitar is great with some minor imperfections around the neck binding. Total weight is 3kg so its pretty light.
In summary it's a great guitar for the money, Epiphone had some great improvements for 2020 and with some minor hardware upgrades it can become a killer axe.

This is my 7th Epiphone, the 1st from Thomann, unfortunately the fret work was very poor and will need a full levelling. Also, the "gold" PU covers have reacted with the protective see through stickers adhesive, meaning I had to polish the covers to the point of them becoming chrome coloured. Fortunately, I am able to do the levelling myself, having the correct tools for the procedure, as Thomann's compensation of $50AUD (30.68EUR or $33.57USD) would in no way cover a pro fix. I accepted their offer as I couldn't be bothered with the argument, nor the hassle of shipping back to Germany.
As previously stated, I have 6 other Epiphones (Australian bought) and only one had an issue, a Special with a dodgy selector switch.
Everything else is as expected at this price point.
Counterpoint: The Harley Benton DC600 that arrived with it was just about perfect in every aspect, at less than a third of the cost. 🤔

Guitar arrived very fast..Day before it was supose to..outside package had a hole size of a hand but guitar was undamaged🤪 guitar is very light compared with my other guitars..somewhere like ibanez sabre maybe little heavier..no neck dive which was very important cause i dont want to drill new holes.(did it but no need really).frets are ok..just a little polishing and fret end finish to a pro level..and new bone nut..but thats just my thing that i always do..headstock is perfect..inlays are great.even strings are ok..guitar came without a scratch.finish is nice.pot caps are little high but nothing serious..it feels great out of a box..maybe i will change bridge pickup for invader but thats of no importance for this review😃..update on new grover 130e tuners that are crappy for the money and i cant rate them on this site..im having a little trouble with tuning stability.maybe mahogany neck is the issue like it was on viper 1000 dlx sg..to thin or what..i wanted a more stable guitar for giging and compared with my old ibanez saber thats not it..bridge is crappy and when doing intonation it is not as it should be..easy peasy..like the threads are loose..dont want to be negative it is a good guitar overall beautifull and sounds well with invader for metal but i dont want to tune it after 3 songs..yes and i changed pot positions so bridge volume,tone are on top position..im used to be that way.