Hmmm ... a very high price, yes, but perhaps not quite as outrageous as some seem to think.
I bought a Hondo II Les Paul about 6/7 years ago, paid £180 for it. Now everyone knows that Hondos were the ultimate in crap guitars, except that some weren't. Pretty much every competent guitarist who's played this thing (i.e. not me) has liked it, and it sounds more like a Gibson that you might believe.
If I was to be persuaded to sell it today I certainly wouldn't take less than £250 for it, since it would cost at least that to get an adequate replacement (IMHO).
£250 is a lot less than £510, I know, but we're not talking orders of magnitude here.
Just sayin' ...
Oh yes, and this is my first ever post on a guitar forum!