Pics from previous owner:

Pics after restoration & setup:

Specs:
1-piece original Wizard neck (quartersawn maple), square heel joint
17mm 1st fret – 19mm 12th fret
430mm radius rosewood fretboard
43mm nut width
Jumbo frets
Light-weight basswood body
Edge tremolo with die-cast saddles

It’s unbelievable how well this 22+ year old guitar was maintained before I bought it off a Jemsite member in September 2008.  The price wasn’t very wallet-friendly but when you come across an original RG550RF in mint condition, you don’t negotiate :)  It was worth every penny however, considering the amazing condition of the body, neck, hardware, fretboard and frets.  Fret wear was minimal and there were no neck pocket cracks which is common with old RG’s.  The only part of the guitar that showed signs of wear was the neck plate and there were a few minor paint cracks on the body.  The color/finish has aged well and gives it a unique look, unlike the deep red RG20th reissues.

I’ve owned several Ibanez Prestige guitars before this ’87 RG550, and have since bought a J Custom, but the RG550 is still my main 6-string.  It’s unbelievable how the original wizard neck makes the Ibanez Prestige and Jackson Pro necks seem heavier than they really are.  And while you may think the slim wizard neck is prone to damage/warping in 22 years, it is super straight and will probably survive another 10 years.  The frets on the other hand have a few years life left in them before I’d have to consider a refret since this guitar wasn’t used much.

What I wasn’t sure about before buying this RG550 was the neck joint… I loved the AANJ of newer Ibanez RG’s and feared I may not like the original neck joint but I feel at home with both.  Neck joint may boil down to preferences because I know Paul Gilbert prefers the original neck joint for some reason.

The Edge bridge:  Hmm… I spoiled myself with low profile trems (specifically JT580LP & Edge Pro) but the original Edge on an RG simply feels ‘solid’.  That’s the only way I can describe it and it’s not due to the locking studs because I upgrade all RG’s with the locking stud mod.

Pickups: It was fitted with a set of colored DiMarzio Evolutions when I got it, but I swapped them out for a Tone Zone bridge and Air Norton neck, removing the mid single coil altogether.  Upgraded the OTAX VLX53 switch as well so I could get some cool coil-tapped and parallel positions with the dual humbuckers.  I’ve grown to love the parallel neck position (so transparent) for cleans and mildly overdriven tones.  While the Tone Zone has been my usual pickup of choice I did experiment with a D-Sonic since then and it definitely sounded great in the RG550.  Anyway my J Custom has a Tone Zone in the bridge so anytime I need to be in the Zone I pick her up.  It’s a good idea to have different pickups on your guitars too, especially for recording – having rhythm and solos recorded with different guitars and pickups make it so much easier to mix and each guitar will have a distinct character on your records.

Finally, the question that you may have if you’re reading this: is this old RG better than anything Ibanez makes today?  In short, YES!!  The long answer is it really depends on your taste and how you like your guitar set up.  The RG2550E I had was heavily customized and set up which made it play like a dream, action was set silly low at 1.7mm across the fretboard, and it was a brilliant guitar for the money but I sold it a month after getting this ’87 RG550.  The RG2550E was on par with other high end guitars I played but the RG550 has something magical about it which can’t be described.

Is the RG20th reissues as good or better than the original?  Their specs suggest there are improvements over the original RG550′s but I can’t vouch for that as I haven’t personally played a 20th.  As you already know, until you play a guitar you cannot tell whether there’s a connection or bond :)

Keep shredding, and if you see an 87/88 RG550 on Craigslist, eBay, Gumtree or your favorite forums, buy it immediately if you need a player and love Ibanez guitars – I think they’re the best guitars Ibanez built!!  Keep in mind this is coming from a J Custom owner.