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1957 les paul special ; swap for love rock or reborn

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john abraham

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I have a 1957 gibson les paul special that is playable but in need of restoration. It needs a new headstock veneer and has suffered a headstock break. The headstock has been put back the best possible and now will probably never break again.The guitar cosmetically is terrible but it still screams. It was bought years ago in North Carolina for the wiring harness to go into another fifties les paul. That was the only identifying characteristic of the guitar along with the fifties control cavity and the wood. After you have seen enough of them you can tell by how the wood looks. The only thing original about the guitar is the neck and body. The guitar has been shot clear and has a painted gold top. When it was found it had two seymour duncans held into the pickup cavities with finishing nails. It now has surround rings, repro fifties tulip tuners, lightweight wrap-around stop bar. The guitar has one patent number sticker t-top humbucker (late sixties) and one patent number (early seventies t-top humbucker. Sounds like a Michael Schenker guitar and has similar configuration to Jeff Becks guitar (Blow by Blow Les Paul). I have always wanted a early eighties love rock and i remember when they were $500 about 7 years ago. I see them now for over $1k. Fifties les paul specials in straight up form are $4-5K. This one would register at less than 50% of one completely original and that brings it down to about $1-1.2K. I would consider swapping it for a love rock or the reborn before it. The guitar doesn't have to be a pristine jewel all i ask is that it is very playable. I will look at the price i want for mine more realistically if someone out there will look at their love rock or reborn realistic. They don't make fifties guitars anymore and the same timber will NEVER be around again. This speal is geared toward someone that has a extra tokai to spare and they play other guitars also. Thanks, John.
 
I always wondered how they forged the wiring in 58-60 burst rip-offs

cheers
GB
 
They use the original stuff from them, theres people out there that need the original harness for their fifties paul and they pay crazy money just to get it to restore the guitar. As far as the copies of them i don't know what they all go through. All i know is that it's nuts. I got the stuff to make this operational and i don't care whats in it as long as it kicks and screams and it does! John.
 
These so called guitar dealers will sell their soul to screw someone on a guitar. Thats the reason Tokai's are over a thousand dollars now because they have jacked up the prices on REISSUE gibson's and vintage. "They" are the one's that don't even know how to hit a string and buy guitars all day long to just look at them. Unfortanetely i would have to pretty much give this thing away because these dealers are capitalizing on the newer stuff and they turn around now and act like they don't want anything vintage in trade because people are buying the newer stuff that looks old. Im not knocking the new stuff for some of it is great but theres something called resonance with the older one's and there is no substitute for it. Im not just going to give away my fifties paul but i will be reasonable with it and i would rather get it to a player that's going to play it . It's not collectible anymore because of all the issues with it but it is still a fifties paul that screams and i would rather have this than something that doesn't have a scratch on it. I wouldn't even want a real 59' boat paddle that didn't have some kind of playing to it because if the thing hasn't been played so much for sound. I also have the choice at any electronic configuration i want without worrying about what some greedy dealer thinks. As far as im concerned alot of them are going to die with what they have and i wouldn't even buy the stuff from their heirs. Its all principle, how is a guitar that was made in the fifties that cost $275.95 or whatever be worth $60,000 now. This is twisted thinking for a **** boat paddle. If someone wants to have a beaten fifties les paul special i will swap it for a Tokai paul. Like i said it doesn't have to be pristine but i want a 81' model love rock or before and i know theres a zillion of them out there. I the mean time i will play this and wait. I don't care if you bought the thing at a garage sale for six pence or thirty five dollars. Im on the hunt for one REASONABLE!
 
Blimey what started that off?

I agree with you on the $60k price tag, but you have to wonder who is buying at that sort of price?

Perhaps the answer lies in another question, how do sell a new G**son '59 'replica' for $3k?

Well if the real thing was say $10k then the answer would be that you couldn't.
However if the real thing costs $60k then suddenly that $3k guitar looks like a bit if a bargain!

So who has a vested interest in pushing up the price of 58-60 LP's?

GB
 

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