yo sam! :)
I think dave and mark nailed it already with their posts on the first page (I haven't read past the first page yet).
There are pros and cons for going custom- main cons being you're not 100% sure how it'll turn out, plus actually figuring out a spec (and then not changing your mind!) is difficult. Also the wait. But the advantage is that you get exactly what you want, and often for quite a bit less than off-the-shelf models. You definitely don't want to order a custom build without doing a lot of research yourself first, hit the internet to find out what different types of neck profiles etc. the guitars your local shop has in stock have, then hit all your local shops to try everything they have.
I've tried a couple of off-the-shelf models which were, as objectively as possible, as nice as my legra- a tyler superstrat, and a nik huber. But they were quite a bit more expensive (almost twice as much, in the case of the huber, and not much less in the case of the tyler, and it's worth pointing out that my legra would have been a lot cheaper had it been a bolt-on superstrat like the tyler). And weren't exactly set out the way I'd want them etc. Regarding Vigiers, I've really liked the ones I've tried, but there's too much on them that I'd change (main one being the nut width, which is virtually impossible to change), and they're not cheap enough to make that worthwhile. I also don't think they're just as nice as things like tylers, though they are extremely nice.
Personally, I make the decision based on cost and how much I'd change. If there's an off-the-shelf model which is exactly what I want (bar a pickup swap), and it's a bit cheaper than a custom would be, I'd probably go with it because I wouldn't have to wait for several months. I have a couple of patrick eggles and a JJ, all of which I got for £500 or less (each- not altogether :lol: ), and personally I like them as much as the PRSes I've tried, if not more (with a pickup swap, anyway). However, I haven't tried the really high-end PRSes like Dave has (but then they're even more again, and the PRSes I have tried have been up to about £3k).
of course, it's very, very hard to compare like with like because my Legra is a metal/shred-orientated V, while all these other guitars I've tried have been more classic guitars (bar the vigiers).
EDIT: regarding value, UK-made stuff is generally a lot cheaper than US-made stuff. European-made stuff is normally a bit cheaper than US-made stuff, too. And Japanese stuff can be good value, though the mid-range japanese stuff is generally the best bang-for-buck.
Having an early Patrick Eggle Berlin, I would say to have a go on one of them too........ and then you could still afford to go on holiday :lol:
yeah, eggles are great. the older ones, especially, before they became tiggles. I have a tiggle and it's great (I also have an older one), but the QC isn't meant to be so good. That would be a very good call, actually, you can get an old s/h Eggle starting around the £300 for a basic new york style one, and you can get the lower-end (lower-end for eggle!) berlins starting at around £400-£450. But again odds are that means buying off E-bay, which is a bit riskier than walking into a shop.
