Quote Originally Posted by Sir Kenneth
Maton DOES make electric guitars actually. They are endorsed by The Distillers and Josh Homme from Queens Of The Stone Age.

Also do any of you actually OWN a Gibson guitar? Pardon me for saying this, but if you did, then you wouldn't recommend them so quickly I am afraid.
The custom models are still good, but try picking up a brand new standard Gibson Les Paul or SG. The neck in particular does not exactly leave you with the overall impression of an expensive quality guitar. The SG in particular feels like it is going to break between your fingers any second.
I actually think that the neck on the Epiphone models is far nicer than that on the Gibson. the sound of course is far from the same though.

I had bought myself a new Gibson SG, but eventually I sold it and got an ESP Viper instead.

Oh yeah, I think ESP deserves a mention on your list. They are favoured by a lot of metal guitarists, including prominent names such as James Hetfield, Kirk Hammet, and Dave Mustaine.
Actually, yes, I have used and owned a Gibson SG. IT was a custom designed SG Supreme (diff pickups, etc). The neck felt fine to me, but I've since sold it since I needed the money.

I'll add your post to the FAQ under gibson. The more opinions the better.