1958 Gibson Les Paul Special Electric Guitar

 

There's not much one needs to say about a Les Paul Special. They're the bomb! Tele-tyle slab body? Yep. TV finish? Yep. Two P90s? Yep. Understated looks? Yep. Classic '50s Gibson neck and feel? Yep!

This one was in for glorified setup work and a request to check-out the frets as it wasn't playing "right." That's because the first fret was replaced with something a lot taller than the others and there was a bit of a "hump" right where you expect it on an old Gibson -- right where the neck joins the body. That area is a fulcrum, so most guitars tend to develop something similar as they age.

At any rate, Jose replaced the non-original fret with some old, same-style Gibson wire from our fret bins and then gave it a level and dress of the frets. The next morning I set it up and adjusted a few things. It's now a proper player!

Note that this guitar had a ton of damage repaired at some point. The body split at the neck pocket and the neck split up to the center of the back of the neck as well from the same impact. It looks like a slice was taken out of the neck and then added back in around that point, too. Wild! Despite all that, it's held-up well and is going strong.