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1983 Gibson Les Paul Custom

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SN#: 80523521

Scale length 24 3/4" Nut Width: 1 11/16" Neck depth, 1st/12th frets: .76/.94

Materials: Solid maple top and neck; one-piece mahogany body; solid ebony fingerboard; multi-ply cream binding.

Hardware: All gold hardware includes twin Gibson 'Tim Shaw' PAF pickups, Schaller 'flip crank' tuners, Tune-o-matic bridge, stop tailpiece, beveled 5-ply pickguard, switch ring, 'Custom' truss rod cover, black barrel volume and tone knobs, pickup switch and tip.

Notes: Introduced in 1954, the Les Paul Custom was Gibson's upmarket version of their popular original gold top model. Borrowing the ornate inlay patterns of the Super 400 and L-5, the Custom also featured a solid ebony fingerboard and multi-ply binding. It was also Gibson's first solid body with a Tune-o-matic bridge, and the only one fitted with the short-lived Alnico pickup. Nicknamed the 'Fretless Wonder' and 'Black Beauty', the Custom sported an elegant ebony finish, which matched smartly with Mr. Paul's tuxedo.

By 1957, the Custom was upgraded with three PAF humbuckers, which the model retained when the body was converted to the SG style design in 1961. By 1968, intense demand led Gibson to re-introduce the Custom in the classic 50's single cutaway body with two pickups.

The years that followed saw some inglorious changes to the model: multi-ply pancake bodies, volute necks, and lackluster pickups among them. By 1980 Gibson Chief Engineer Tim Shaw faithfully re-created the first accurately designed copies of the legendary late 50's PAF humbuckers. These pioneering pickups have become legendary among discriminating players, and are found only in top-end Gibson electrics built between 1980 and 1985.

A one-owner guitar, this Les Paul Custom from 1983 was Gibson's top-of-the-line solid body, and built in the last full year of production in the fabled Kalamazoo factory they had occupied since 1917. This veteran player retains its original blonde finish, the rarest standard color of the era, and shows neither refinish nor overspray. The solid mahogany body is topped with three piece birdseye maple cap, and the solid maple neck is free of the volute bump of earlier models.

The Tim Shaw pickups measure 7.12K at the neck and 7.35K at the bridge, with typical gig-worn gold covers, and feature the smooth, creamy tone these vintage humbuckers are renowned for. The premium gold hardware is all original, and the headstock is fitted with the rare Schaller 'flip crank; tuners, a short-lived innovation that greatly speeded string winding, with small levers that pull out from the tuner keys. The neck has smooth low action, with fine pro medium-jumbo fretwork over a gentle D profile neck, full 1 11/16" nut, and fresh high precision setup on the solid ebony fingerboard.

Well played and well loved, the guitar shows typical playwear of a long pro career, including scattered finish dents, buckle rash and thumbwear on the neck (the owner, a busy jazz player, clearly favored Ab, Bb and Eb.) A single non-structural crack in the side of the cutaway horn has been soundly resealed as well. The original wiring harness remains intact, with the replacement of a single 500K volume pot and green .022 tone cap. A final touch is the amazing molded thermoplastic hardshell case. With its prominent Gibson logo, and plush lined interior, this so-called 'chainsaw' case offers bomb-proof protection, and is undoubtedly one of the rarest and most distinctive guitar cases ever produced.

A true gig warrior, ready for its next turn in the spotlight. One only: call now.

Setup: Trussrod tension and neck relief adjusted; bridge height adjusted; bridge compensation set; bridge wheels and tuners lubricated; fingerboard and bridge oiled; body and neck cleaned and hand polished.

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