LG King

And by the way Gibson did not have a ‘Custom Shop’ in 1981.

Sorry to hear…

To add to the original question... when did Gibson start drilling 'weight relief holes' in their Les Paul bodies, and are all Custom Shop and Historics 'non-weight-relieved'...?

Great and interesting look. I had a Alpine white with factory black plastic that I converted to all white plastic, and thought it looked great. i wouldn’t slight you for doing it, but when it comes to a ‘Black Beauty’…I have to confess…I am a traditionalist. It’s heritage goes back to the original in 1954. And I’d be proud to own and display her. PS Not my guitar, but similar. Mine had no Bigsby, and more ‘aged yellow’..

In 1995 I bought a Gibson 1985 Les Paul Custom in Alpine White, turning aged yellow, and thought it was ‘the one’ . I threw everything at it…SD Antiquity pickups, aluminum tailpiece, new pots and caps… and still it was a ‘tone-turd.’ i sold it and got my money out of it. But it goes to show…no matter what guitar, there is always that potential. I never buy ‘new guitars’… I want something broken in and with any luck, a lot of the bugs taken care of. And I never buy online. My guitars are very personal items. Would you buy your wife online…?

Who would fake an Epiphone? Thats like faking a ‘Timex’.

I have personally found that the most amount of 'vintage' collectors and experts hang out on The Les Paul Forum. There are some guys there that will blow your mind. And the wealth of 'vintage' knowledge will astound.

You are obviously not a 'player'...but a 'collector'. No problem there. All products (especially so-called vintage) are subject to scams. Now, if you were a 'player'...as in being on stage 3-4-5 nights a week either solo or in a band, and it didn't 'float-your-boat'...then just sell it and look for something else.

Larsongs "I'm still looking" I too grew up in the 50's-60's, in the SF Bay Area. Saw Bloomfield several times, but when I saw him with his '59, I too was hooked on that sound (and have been chasing it ever since). I had a set of PAF's in my '66 Byrdland, and I thought about putting them into my Les Paul at the time, but in my heart of hearts knew that was a bad idea to mess with an original guitar. About 2 years ago I go to see this 2013 Memphis ES-335 to maybe purchase. The guy didn't play, just had many guitars on display in his living room. Was getting old, and wanted to liquidate. I plugged it into my shitty little amp that I brought (he had no amps), and I almost dropped my guitar pick when I heard the tones. I asked him if he knew what they were, said he had no idea. Bought the guitar, took it home and pulled the pups...2013 Custom Bucker "S". Best damn pickups I have ever heard...! I think they just might take you there. For what it's worth...

My 2013 Gibson Memphis 335 has the standard 'maple' as well. However, before acquiring my Gibson, I had picked up an Epi 'Dot' for $250 just for kicks, and found that it had a 'Mahagony' center block. And although it is definitely sub-standard in comparison, it does produce some very nice tones. Just a little fuller and slightrly more meaty. If I was to ever order a Custom-shop ES-335, that just might be one of my requests.

Contact Gibson and say..."Hey, where's my sticker"...?!

Have you put your question(s) to Gibson? They are known to keep some records.

Thanks Amigo!

Just changing guitar picks can have a significant influence on your sound...

I have decided that after talking to my luthier (yesterday), that I am going to order a full pre-wired '59 ES335 kit from Gary at Tone Man Guitars. My Luthier confirmed that he could do it, so hopefully in the next couple of weeks.

I wrote Gibson (who'd a thunk) and recieved the following reply: "Thanks for contacting Gibson Brands! I'm happy to provide some clarity on this for you. This instrument would have shipped with 300k linear volume pots and 500k audio tone pots." Best regards, Andy Consumer Service Gibson Brands, Inc. 1-800-4GIBSON

Joking...

Thanks Steve...!

As stated above, I have a 2013 Gibson Memphis Standard issue, ES-335. I would like some information on the value of the 'pots' I have, as I am seriously considering upgrading to 500k...unless they were already 'standard' back in 2013...? It is a laborious task to undertake...through the 'F' hole, and not looking forward to performing this operation unless I in fact do have 300k 'pots'. What say ye...? Thanks guys/gals, and any in-between...

Just to add some additional perspective…I have had matched set of Gibson 1968 patent sticker pups since 1978,. In 2003 I purchased a 1966 Gibson Byrdland with PAF’s, and they sounded nothing alike. I also have a set of 2013 Customer Bucker ‘S’ pickups (more PAF than the real thing) and they too don’t sound like my patent stickers. I have only heard recordings of the new t-types, and they don’t sound like my patent stickers. However, I do like my patent stickers for their different and very pleasing tones. But the 2013 Custom Buckes ‘S’ pair RULE. For what it’s worth…

Hi all,In a few weeks I turn 74 and thought I would post my 1st video (ever).I'm playing a 2013 Gibson ES-335 with 2013 Custom Bucker "S" pickups... and being somewhat of a traditionalist, I'm using no peddles or accessories, just plugged straight into a 45 year-old Fender Deluxe Reverb.Honest thoughts and opinions welcome.Thanks,LG KingBangkok

Just as added info, I pulled the neck pup to get more specific details: Custom Bucker 'S' 860-31564-L 03/05/2013 Anybody else running with these, or know any further details...? Cheers

Picked up a 2013 ES-335 with these pups and they sound as good as my 1968 Gibson Humbucker pups (which are very good). Anybody have any info on these?