This 1958 Gibson Les Paul Standard Sunburst Serial number 8 5438 was made in the Kalamazoo, MI factory in 1958. It has not been broken or cracked. It is a very fine example of a big necked ’58, light weight, faded top Burst in good condition. This instrument was obviously owned by someone who played it professionally being that it is set up and dialed for excellent playability and sound. The guitar has had minor work done including a professional refret with ’59 spec fret-wire. In this process the fretboard was slightly leveled, and the original nut remains with lacquer buildup on both sides. The frets show little if any wear. The tuners show single line, single ring Klusons, with newer tips. There is evidence of Grover tuners having been installed at one time. There is tight, even weather checking over the top, back and sides. Though this would qualify as a “plain top”, there is some slight, visible birds-eye figuring on the maple top. While there is evidence of the original red burst color under the pickguard and pickup rings, the top has faded to a desirable, amber color. It has a few finish touchups: A small hand-wear spot on the top that has been touched up and buffed out. The area around the logo on the face of the headstock was apparently oversprayed and/or buffed out. An indentation/ nick (not crack) on the heel has been oversprayed and filled in, and there is also apparent overspray on the back of the neck. There is an odd half-inch diameter rout in the neck pickup cavity that appears to be factory. Again, there is no evidence of cracks or wood repairs. There is an area of finish wear in the upper middle of the back (buckle rash) about three inches by two inches. There is also wear to the finish on the back upper edge through the lacquer down to the wood. All hardware and plastics appear original and are in good condition. The bridge pickup ring shows one crack at the pickup height screw. Bridge pickup reads 7.98K Ohms and the neck reads 7.49K Ohms. There are newer, reissue “Bumble Bee” capacitors and lead insulation. The jack plate appears to be a reissue. The pots date to the 34th week of 1957. The guitar is accompanied by an era-correct four latch, brown Lifton case in good overall condition.
In conclusion: I really like the feel of this guitar, especially the neck. The light-weight factor giving it a very balanced feel and punchy, resonant tone. I particularly like the fret job. It is especially effortless and accurate to play. It has desirable strong output PAF’s (for a ’58) making the balance between the pickups very good.
$249,000.00
Shipping to United States ONLY
