1969 Gibson SG Electric Guitar

The owner of this guitar has had it since his teens -- his parents bought it for him used in the '70s. By then it'd had a couple refinish jobs on the body (and thankfully not on the neck) and it's remained in this browny-red, brushed-on-poly finish ever since. It's mostly hung-out in its case for a long time, though, and so a friend of the owner brought it in for him to get it "done-up" so it'd play right.

It didn't need much to get it going strong but it did need a new Vibrola whammy arm and -- guess what, folks? -- nickel or chrome-plated replacements are not to be found in the US of A this year. I had to order from Germany and so this poor guitar was relegated to repair-rack duty for nearly a month awaiting a new arm and Gotoh bridge (can we all agree that the original ABR-style bridges are useless? ...please agree... every time I encounter one I immediately want to replace it for all those rattling saddles).

That entire time it was waiting for bits, though, passers-by were peering at it behind the counter and wanting it. I find that old SGs elicit that reaction. If someone sees one in the shop -- and I mean anywhere in the shop -- it's like their bodies are drawn to it off an invisible thread. It's pretty funny to see over and over again.

After a fret level/dress, replacement parts, and a little setup adjustment, it was ready to go. I'm a fan of the taper on this neck -- it starts out thin/fast/modern at the nut and gets to about a "medium C" shape by the time it meets the body. One of my main complaints about a lot of modern SG and SG-style guitars is that the profile is consistently thin/fast throughout and that cramps my hand if I play too long. I like a little "pad" as I move up the neck, for sure.

Aside from the body finish and the bridge and whammy arm, it's otherwise all-original. The pickups on this thing sound sooooo good, too. They're that crisp/clean/bell-like Gibson humbucker sound. A lot of guitarists who pick on a bucker-equipped Gibson from this era are so confused when they try one out. They're expecting the dull, thuddy, fat, overly-warm modern bucker sound. These are almost like playing single coils. I love that.