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Heritage Owners Club

THE PINNACLE OF HERITAGE HOLY GRAILS


brentrocks

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Before I start this story, want to thank David B. for giving me the opportunity to own this piece of Heritage Guitar history!

 

Yeah...that's where it started. Dave and I were chatting the other night and i jokingly said, "hey you should sell me the JP 140!  ha ha ha!"  He said, this is what i have into it...you can have it for that much if you want it.   I quickly agreed!

 

This guitar came from the personal collection of the late, Mr. JP Moats.  Founding member/owner of the Heritage Guitar company.

 

This is a 1986 Heritage H140 Custom.  This 140 was specked and commissioned by Mr. Moats for his personal collection.  Another cool part of this guitar is that all of the custom inlay work was done by the legendary, Ms. Maudie Moore!  The late, Ms. Moore did custom inlay work for Gibson, Martin and Heritage and I'm sure for others as well!  She was a legend in these parts!  JP and Maudie, I was told, were quite good friends.

 

So, as far as the guitar...a typical H140 would have a mahogany body with a single bound curly maple cap, bound mahogany neck with a rosewood fretboard and dots.  Un covered black bobbin Schaller pickups and Schaller bridge/tailpiece. Plastic pickguard and a rub-on logo.

 

There is nothing typical about this H140!  

 

*  AAAA quilt maple top

*  Multi bound body, front and back

*  Bound rosewood head veneer with custom inlays

*  Bound rosewood fretboard with star inlays

*  Multi bound rosewood pickguard

*  Bound rosewood truss rod cover

*  Star inlayed rosewood knobs (not currently on the guitar)

*  Signed Heritage label (even signed by Maudie Moore)

 

The neck is a medium C carve, typical for Heritage neck from this era.  Its only 8lbs, 2oz.  I did replace a couple pieces of hardware, just because of personal preference.  I swapped out the Schaller bridge and tailpiece for Nashville style.  The rosewood knobs I swapped for amber tophats. There was also a rosewood toggle tip and a black poker chip that i swapped out.   The pickups, which I'm sure are not original, are currently Gibson 57 classics.  

 

It sets up really good.  I wish the frets were a little taller.  It plays and sounds great though.  I plan on playing this one out...looks like somebody already did, by the looks of the back.  

 

I just love the fact that I have all the history of Heritage and Gibson, right in my back yard.  Guitars like this are a reminder of the legacy that lives on at 225 Parsons Street, downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan!

 

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I wish JP was still around. I always enjoyed our conversations. He was such a nice man and always treated me with kindness and respect. 

The Heritage Owners Club had a custom embroidered jacket made for JP as a retirement gift. Because I lived in the same town as he did, I personally delivered the jacket to him. We were out in his Shop talking and he reached up above his workbench and pulled down this really ornate piece of wood. It’s shaped like the continent of Africa with little sharp points. 

JP handed that piece of maple to me and said that he got that from one of the mills they sourced their maple from out west…and he said I want you to have this as a token of my appreciation. 

That piece of maple has hung in my guitar room ever since that day.

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JP's son Dave was a classmate of mine. He was a friend of mine back in the day. I had no idea his dad was a guitar builder. We were both big fans of Ed "Big Daddy" Roth. Sadly Dave passed away a few years ago. RIP JP and David.

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23 hours ago, kennyv4 said:

What a beautiful guitar that has been enjoyed by being played often.  I'm glad it's in the hands of another true Heritage follower, congratulations.

Thanks man!!

I couldn’t believe it when Dave said he would let it go!!!

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On 12/13/2022 at 10:10 AM, yoslate said:

Jaw dropping piece of Heritage history, but your statement above is my favorite part of the post.  "JPTFT"!

Since joining a band, my outlook on guitars has changed A LOT!!

Now I look at a potential purchase with the thoughts of….will that be comfortable to play on stage, what is that going to sound like with this or that song, etc…

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1 minute ago, brentrocks said:

Since joining a band, my outlook on guitars has changed A LOT!!

Now I look at a potential purchase with the thoughts of….will that be comfortable to play on stage, what is that going to sound like with this or that song, etc…

That's exactly what I've been doing.  Single coil/non-hum cancelling is out.  Nothing too heavy and nothing I need to worry about damaging/breaks/stolen

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On 12/15/2022 at 10:11 AM, MattJayTwerker said:

Nice Score!!!!7FE77930-D03C-480C-BD27-01D1187D7D93.thumb.jpeg.30815af591218eed68be4b737c5a8c6b.jpeg

Ha ha love the new screen name!

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Cool Brent, the buckle rash just gives it more Mojo. May you feel the spirit of JP each time you play it.  

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