BrianRutolo Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 Hey Everyone, This is my first post on this forum. I appreciate any advice or opinions in advance. A few months ago I bought a Gibson Les Paul Special from someone on Craigslist. After owning it for several months and playing it almost every day I must admit that I absolutely love this guitar. It plays and sounds awesome. The problem is that I can't seem to find another one out there that looks quite like it. You'll see in the photos that it has a very worn-in (relic'd) look that the former owner (and original owner according to him) says was exactly how it looked when he bought it new from Guitar Center in 2003. Can someone tell me if this is actually the case. Did Gibson create a factory-worn line of these guitars? Or did this guy just get a little crazy with some sandpaper one night after a few too many? I know that they put out the matte finish line that simply didn't use the nitro gloss, but this is something very different from that as you can see by the worn in areas and the neck that looks like it's been played for 50 years. Any ideas??? And if you can ID it, do you happen to know what this guitar might be worth? I paid $650 for it. Hoping I didn't get taken for a ride, but in all honestly, I've paid quite a bit more for guitars that don't come close to the sound or play-ability of this girl. Second question is...what the heck is with the nut? I've never seen a staggered nut like this on any guitar before? I'm assuming this isn't from the factory. What is it? And can it be replaced with the original without ruining the wood on the first fret? And if it can, should I replace it??? Thanks so much everyone! Can't wait to see what you guys have to say! Cheers, Brian P.S. I'm adding all information that I have on the guitar: Serial Number: 00693564 Year Purchased: 2003 Location Purchased: Guitar Center in Plymouth Meeting, PA according to owner Guitar came only with a standard Gibson USA brown hard shell case with pink interior No other information on the guitar is available Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny 6 String Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 Hey Everyone, This is my first post on this forum. I appreciate any advice or opinions in advance. A few months ago I bought a Gibson Les Paul Special from someone on Craigslist. After owning it for several months and playing it almost every day I must admit that I absolutely love this guitar. It plays and sounds awesome. The problem is that I can't seem to find another one out there that looks quite like it. You'll see in the photos that it has a very worn-in (relic'd) look that the former owner (and original owner according to him) says was exactly how it looked when he bought it new from Guitar Center in 2003. Can someone tell me if this is actually the case. Did Gibson create a factory-worn line of these guitars? Or did this guy just get a little crazy with some sandpaper one night after a few too many? I know that they put out the matte finish line that simply didn't use the nitro gloss, but this is something very different from that as you can see by the worn in areas and the neck that looks like it's been played for 50 years. Any ideas??? And if you can ID it, do you happen to know what this guitar might be worth? I paid $650 for it. Hoping I didn't get taken for a ride, but in all honestly, I've paid quite a bit more for guitars that don't come close to the sound or play-ability of this girl. Second question is...what the heck is with the nut? I've never seen a staggered nut like this on any guitar before? I'm assuming this isn't from the factory. What is it? And can it be replaced with the original without ruining the wood on the first fret? And if it can, should I replace it??? Thanks so much everyone! Can't wait to see what you guys have to say! Cheers, Brian P.S. I'm adding all information that I have on the guitar: Serial Number: 00693564 Year Purchased: 2003 Location Purchased: Guitar Center in Plymouth Meeting, PA according to owner Guitar came only with a standard Gibson USA brown hard shell case with pink interior No other information on the guitar is available They did do a worn and faded series a while back which did wear rather quickly. The body looks like one of those to me. The neck definitely did not leave the factory like that, it had been sanded clean by a previous owner. The but looks like an earvanna (sp?) or other compensated nut brand, yes aftermarket. Should be no problem replacing with a normal type nut so long as it wasn't epoxied in place our something stupid lkike that. Hope that helps. Johnny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianRutolo Posted July 20, 2017 Author Share Posted July 20, 2017 They did do a worn and faded series a while back which did wear rather quickly. The body looks like one of those to me. The neck definitely did not leave the factory like that, it had been sanded clean by a previous owner. The but looks like an earvanna (sp?) or other compensated nut brand, yes aftermarket. Should be no problem replacing with a normal type nut so long as it wasn't epoxied in place our something stupid lkike that. Hope that helps. Johnny Hey Johnny, Thanks for the reply. I kinda figured the previous owner got a little crazy with the sandpaper. Fortunately it actually feels great to play so I'm not too concerned about the neck. I'm guessing the same can be said for the faded parts of the body. Probably just sanded down to look like it was played for decades. And I'll have to check into the earvanna thing. Never heard of it. Again, thanks so much for the info! Cheers, Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabs Posted July 22, 2017 Share Posted July 22, 2017 Hello and welcome. I have one of these in faded cherry from 2009.... I LOVE mine. Its one of the most fun guitars I have and the neck on them I think is perfect and you get nice upper fret access.. And those P90s... Man I love them... So yes to confirm above.. Ive never seen Gibson release a neck like that.. Taking it down to the wood is totally unnecessary.. all you have to do is rough it up a bit and take the shine off it.. And yeah that's a compensated nut. Easy to replace but if it works why bother? Anyway as you have said, if you love playing it and how it sounds who really cares . It is just a guitar ;) Enjoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianRutolo Posted July 26, 2017 Author Share Posted July 26, 2017 Hello and welcome. I have one of these in faded cherry from 2009.... I LOVE mine. Its one of the most fun guitars I have and the neck on them I think is perfect and you get nice upper fret access.. And those P90s... Man I love them... So yes to confirm above.. Ive never seen Gibson release a neck like that.. Taking it down to the wood is totally unnecessary.. all you have to do is rough it up a bit and take the shine off it.. And yeah that's a compensated nut. Easy to replace but if it works why bother? Anyway as you have said, if you love playing it and how it sounds who really cares . It is just a guitar ;) Enjoy Hey there, Thanks for the additional info/clarification. I couldn't agree more about how much fun it is to play. One of the easiest playing and most comfortable guitars I've ever owned. Wish the former owner wouldn't have sanded the neck quite so much but it honestly feels fantastic so I'm cool with it. And the P90s are just awesome. I go back and forth on replacing the nut. For now it's staying where it is. Well thanks again and have a great day! -Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.