Grog

This is what I found when I was thinking about buying my Firebird... http://www.steinberger.com/media/StnbrgrGrlsTnrInstruc.pdf

https://www.google.com/search?source=hp&ei=S_gEXeyZBoKIsQWt0KZw&q=instructions+for+changing+strings+with+steinberger+tuners&oq=instructions+for+changing+strings+with+steinberger+tuners&gs_l=psy-ab.3..33i299l3.2538.39083..40397...2.0..0.383.8221.6j49j1j3......0....1..gws-wiz.....6..35i39j0i131j0j0i10j0i22i30j33i22i29i30j33i10.Fs3Kirz6D04#kpvalbx=1

They do have a center block, but it is less substantial than an ES-335. Also, it is Mahogany VS Maple in the ES-335

Mahogany can vary in weight by quite a bit. I have read that it can be due to mineral content in the wood along with other variables.

The "DECADE" feature is very hard to hear under most conditions. Using the proper chord with a transformer as close as possible to the amp seems to work best. Dave Gould has explained it better on earlier posts in this thread.

Minnesota is good! A bit cold, but not seeing a lot of the terrible weather some of the rest of the country is seeing. We are talking about heading up to Duluth this month to stay at Fitger's Hotel. The craft beer craze is said to have started there, at least in this state. I'll post a gut shot of my LPR. Hopefully there will be one pot that has the code visible & free of solder...………

I have them on my 2015 ES Les Paul. I think they sound great!

The serial number puts it anywhere between 1970 & 1974. If it is a 1972, it would likely have the normal Tune-o-matic Bridge. They changed to the "Harmonica Bridge" in about 1973. You can take the control plate off & check the pot codes. Example: 1377233..... 137=CTS 72=year pot manufactured 33=week of year manufactured. The pot codes may not pin point the year exactly. in most cases with Gibson it's fairly close. The guitar cant be older than the pot code unless they were replaced. Photos would help date it also. I'll post a photo of my '73.

Here are a few gut shots, that I took for another member several years ago...….

The output jack on the bout (not the face) is a stereo jack for a balanced line out, low impedance. You need to use a stereo plug in that jack. Years ago, I was working on a friends Les Paul Signature trying to eliminate a similar hum. I ended up running a wire from the ground lug on the neck pickup to the ground on the output jack. For whatever reason, that did the trick...….

Around that time, Gibson was having trouble with their ES guitars cracking on the tops. They ended up improving the kiln drying process & solved the problem. The solution they used to fix the cracked guitar bodies was to fill the cracks in and spray them with a paint that wasn't translucent like Sparkling Burgundy. That isn't likely why it is stamped as a 2nd. These guitars, even though they were screwups sometimes go for more money than if they had a standard cherry or sunburst finish. I don't believe that Sparkling Burgundy was ever used on ES guitars again after the cracking problem was resolved.

Hey Dave, I just came back from the Songbirds Guitar Museum in Chattanooga TN. I noticed guitar that you had posted a while back was there. Tony Mottola's Low Impedance Crest was acquired by them and on display in their vault.

I bought this 1968 over 20 years ago. I'm not a big 12 string guy, it doesn't get played much but it was too good to pass up.

I've never seen one. According to Gruhn's Guide to Vintage Guitars, they were introduced in '65 & discontinued in '71. That makes a volute in the latter guitars a possibility.

Very nice! Congrats & enjoy!