This vintage Gibson Les Paul Studio model was produced at the Gibson factory in Nashville Tennessee on Monday, October 7th 1985. The Guitar is solid with no repairs, no cracks, and no funny business. It has been very well cared for its entire life. The finish is quite rare, it is called "Vintage Sunburst" and the guitar is 100% original with the exception of the strap-locks...The guitar has been professionally set up and is ready to go, it needs nothing.
The body is the standard Les Paul profile shape featuring a Mahogany slab with carved Maple top. The top has some really cool figuring and grain contrast-see photos. The creme binding sets off the top beautifully. The backside is really clean and has excellent coloring. The rare Vintage Sunburst finish was only found on the nicer pieces of wood, and it is a really rare finish-most Studios were Red Wine, Blue, Black, White or the Cherry Red-style sunburst. The "vintage Sunburst" finish emulates a 1950's Les Paul, complete with beautiful grain under a soft antique looking sunburst that does not have any red. The letters VSB are ink stamped onto the body in the neck cavity-see photos. The Gibson employee "Betty" hand-signed the bridge cavity. The neck joint is an excellent fitment and the neck angle is superb.
The neck itself is straight and smooth. The truss rod turns smoothly. The backside of the neck has a really nice figuring in the mahogany-see photos. The neck profile is best described as a 1960's Slim-tapered C-shape and it feels really good. The neck is the very desirable 1 11/16" ( 1.68") width at the nut. The neck depth measures .790" deep at the 1st fret and .955" at the 12th fret. The tuners are the original vintage style Tulip-key Deluxe double row units that were also used on all of the reissue models, and it gives the headstock a real vintage vibe. The headstock and logo display very nicely-see photos. The Rosewood fingerboard has a really nice high-contrast grain and it is very clean. The original frets are in incredible condition. They have been professionally leveled, crowned and polished. They appear like-new condition with exceptional height-see photos. The action is set very low for a fast and easy playing experience. The string height measures .010" at the 1st fret and ONLY .045" at the 12th fret! It can be easily raised if you prefer a higher action. The guitar totally rips up and down the fingerboard. It plays like butter with the softest touch. There are zero dead spots.
The original pickups are the highly coveted Tim Shaw humbuckers. They have the correct stamps and the bridge position pickup has an additional ink stamp too. They have the white spacers with black/white wires. They have an excellent signal and perfect balance. The tone is really amazing. These pickups are well-known for their likeness to the original 1950's PAF tone: rich mids with smooth top-end frequencies and a clear, dynamic response. They have a very warm and articulate expression quality that makes them exceptional for Rhythm and Blues, also sound amazing for Rock and Roll-just like the Led Zeppelin live sound. The pickup covers were removed long ago for that classic rocker look and the pole pieces are nice and clean. The bridge pickup measures 7.46 ohms and the neck position measures 7.73 ohms. The wiring harness is very nice and the controls function smoothly and quietly. The original CTS potentiometers all date to 1985. The original metal output jack plate is in place. The original vintage-creme pickguard is very nice. The bridge is super-clean along with the stop-tail piece.
The guitar really roars through any quality tube amp. It is very comfortable and fun to play. It has an excellent balance and feels just right whether in your lap or on a strap. This guitar eats just about everything Gibson makes these days short of a $4500 Custom-Shop R-model....and even then it's close. It is an excellent value and a great investment for the future-as these guitars have appreciated very significantly in the last few years. The original "Chainsaw" hardcase is included for protection. It is in good condition, the rear latch nub is missing-but the hinge is still present.
