Epiphone Wilshire Knobs

[rocket]

Does anyone know wher I can get control knobs like the ones used on some Epiphone Wilshire reissues:
http://images.epiphone.com.s3.amazon.../WC_Splash.jpg

[Jazz P Bass]

Have you tried contacting Gibson?
1-800-4GIBSON (1-800-444-2766)

[bob p]

^ Click on image.

I don't know if you're just looking for the knobs becuase you like those specific knobs, or if you're looking for the knobs because you want to restore a real Wilshire.

If you're interested in the later, I thought I'd offer that the hardware on the reissue in the photo isn't at all representative of my early 60s wilshire. I have a ~62 Wilshire, and it's outfitted with a lot of the parts that Gibson was trying to get rid of at the time. When Gibson came out with the PAF they had a boatload of P-90 to unload, and they went into the cheap Epis while the Gibsons got PAFs. Gibson was still putting P90 on the Wilshire in the early 60s.

My early Wilshire has P-90 instead of the mini humbuckers, 61-LP type gold-plate-insert top-hat knobs (aka metal-top-bonnet), and a no-wire tune-o-matic bridge. I've seen original wilshires that came with "speed" knobs too. The epis often used whatever parts Gibson was trying to get rid of.

The no-wire TOM bridge is particularly interesting. It was the previous Gibson LP design, but became replaced by the TOM bridge with the retaining wire. Gibson put the new wired TOM bridge on the new LPs, and threw the leftover no-wire bridge on cheap Epis to get rid of them. What's interesting is that the cheap/undesirable parts that Gibson was trying to shove off on the cheap Epis back in the day have become quite valued and desired by the vintage LP collectors. The result is that the prices on Wilshires has appreciated, not because they're particularly desirable guitars, but because their parts are so valuable that collectors buy them to part them out. It's interesting to me that Epi reissued them. Once you look past the collectable Gibson parts, the Wilshire isn't a very nice guitar. Not to be knocking it ... I do own one .. .but it's kind of a thin pancake guitar that doesn't sustain well.

Want something that looks original? check out the repro gibson LP knobs. Just in case that helps.

edit: after typing this, I decided to dig my old Wilshire out of a closet, where it's been for a really long time. Although I thought I remembered it having speed knobs, it actually came with the metal-cap top hat knobs that Gibson put on the 1960 LP.

[rocket]

Thanks for your answers.
I have a new (RI) one with Gibson style knobs and really like the trashy look of the others.
I have changed the bridge to a machined brass ABM-ABR1 (1/3rd of the price of the guitar) and I like the guitar quite a lot.
It weighs almost nothing and is quite handy compared to my Firebird.

I have contacted Epiphone US now (online form) because the European distribution (Gibson/Epi) have neither email nor webpage!