Well, I went back to the music store to make a deal on a 57 Les Paul Custom VOS, but ended up getting an early 70s Les Paul Custom at more than half the cost of the 57 Les Paul VOS. She has some battle scars, and pretty sure has some stories to tell, but she plays and sound great. She is a hefty 11.5 pounder!! Her serial number starts with 922xxx. Sales person told me that she is an early 70s, but don't know exactly what year. Any Ideas?



By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14


By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-14

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam

The Bacon/Day book seems to date your instrument to 1968.

Are the pickups original?

The knobs are replacements (the correct type would be the black "witch hats" with gold inserts).

Nice score, if a bit on the heavy side.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Don't know if the pickups are stock. What would I look for? I'll take pics of the pickups. Are the pots, caps...etc look stock? So, its a late 60s LP custom? So mine is a pre Norlin?

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam

The pickups may or may not have the "PATENT APPLIED FOR" sticker on the bottom. From what I can tell the wiring looks to be original. What has me confused though is the volute on the back of the headstock -- I had the impression that it was added to LP necks in the mid-70's. The Bacon/Day book is not the most detailed reference......you might check with some other sources as well.

HTH

Arjay

(addendum)

My curiosity was piqued so I started rooting around and came across this site......

http://www.latesixtieslespauls.com/default.asp

Apparently the neck volute is correct for 1969 models. You might check your control cavity and compare what you find to the info on this site -- it's hard to tell from the pics which type of rout you have.

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Nice!

They may not be original but those knobs look good on that guitar.

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Tune Low, Play Hard & Floor it!

You can check it here http://www.guitardaterproject.org/

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Current Gear: Ron Kirn Barnbuster Tele,
Marshall: 1971 SuperLead 100>1997 1960-TV, bunch of pedals
and a 1987 Porsche 911 Carrera coupe named Veronica

i had a 74 l.p. custom. the only thing 1 see different are the knobs. i remember it as being heavy- sold mine after i injured my shoulder because i couldn't take the weight. nice axe fo sure

I love the looks of those "tuxedo" Les Pauls!

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

Here are some pickup pics. Does it look like the covers has been removed? The bridge pickup looks a little odd, specially around the P.A.F sticker.

Bridge:

By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-15

Neck:

By bluesguitar65 at 2010-09-15

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam

The covers do in fact look like they've been removed at some point. In fact, they may be replacements......all of the gold-plating looks pretty "fresh" for a forty year-old instrument.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

You think it may not even be genuine PAF pickups? Now, I'm thinking second thoughts if I should keep it.

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam

No, I think the pickups are original.

It's common for some Gibson owners to remove the pickup covers because it allegedly improves the tone. I'm surmising that's probably what may have occurred with this guitar at some point.

OTOH, it's also possible that the original gold hardware was removed and either replaced or re-plated to restore the gold which wears rather quickly. Gibson puts their gold over nickel, which does not adhere all that well. Fender puts their gold over chrome which is a skosh more impervious to routine handling and playing.

HTH

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

That is great to hear. I paid $2500 for this guitar. I did pay too much? No case, just the guitar.

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam

The price seems reasonable. You should be able to find a case for $100 or so. It won't be an original Lifton but the current Gibson issues are adequate for the task of providing protection (I hate the double-looped carrying handles though).

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

You got a really good deal for yourself,although I hate to plug another Forum there are guys on a forum that I believe is called My Les Paul who could tell you everything you want to know in a second.A buddy of mine who's a Les Paul fanatic spends a lot of time on it and finds it very informative.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.