Well after doing some research I guess the price on atleast Gibson is somewhat justified because they are hand built and can take 6 weeks to finish one guitar. The finish and binding seem to be fairly time consuming hence the reduced price of my faded. Ofcourse it also has the less expensive bridge pick up and less finish time with the light "faded" finish, regular unbound neck with dots and the head stock having only a screen printed Gibson logo, instead of inlay.
My faded is a fantastic guitar and after plinking around on other guitars I have decided that it has all the characteristics I dig. Light weight, great playability and versitility, super comfy and just feels right. So after alot of thought I decided to pull the trigger on a new standard in heritage cherry. To be honest it's mostly for asthetics but it will be nice to have a "beater" for lessons and dragging around and a nice one for home enjoyment.