FINEST GUITARS

Gibson 1969 Les Paul Custom “Black Beauty’

Written by admin on March 4, 2010 – 11:59 am -

This weeks highlighted eBay auction sale of the week is a Gibson 1969 Les Paul "Black Beauty" The eBay seller "kvibe13"  did such a great job in his auction description that we are taking the unusual step of posting his auction description word for word.  In this case the seller provides information that all collectors of Gibson Les Paul guitars may find interesting.  This was the sellers description.

" Im offering this early 1969 LES PAUL CUSTOM “BLACK BEAUTY”, in ALL ORIGINAL NEAR MINT CONDITION. It was a one owner guitar before me, and has seen very limited use. It's amazingly clean, a jewel of a Les Paul in the best condition I've ever seen from a guitar of 68-69, the last year before Gibson was sold to CMI/Norlin. The previous owner had it in the closet from when his father bought it for him at age 14 forty years ago. Barely played, still shiny bright and new looking, you dream about finding a collectable vintage guitar like this. They are out there, good luck. Some things are priceless, and this is one of them. It is a centerpiece for any collection.
THE GUITAR HAS A ONE PIECE NECK AND ONE PIECE BODY WITH A LONG NECK TENON. Big value distinction from the later more common 3 pc neck ‘69s with the short transitional tenon. The pot dates are 1376850, or Dec 8-14,1968, which indicates a very early 1969 manufacture. It has the same one piece construction as a '68 (and a '59) including maple cap applied after routing. The only difference being the Gibson Logo with no dot on the “i”, and inside the electronics cavity it has one of the rounded curves squared off. The prevailing theory is that some '68s/ early 69's were built with leftover bodies from after the original LP shape discontinued 1960. Very believable from the sound of this one.
Then there are the ORIGINAL PRE T-TOP HUMBUCKERS. These are the second version of the PAFs, but with the pat # on the stickers instead of "pat applied for". The same in materials and construction, no "T" and one square and one round hole on the side of the bobbins. Pinkish purple wire visible within. They are virtually PAFs in every way except sticker. Its so incredibly rare that these pickups somehow made it into this guitar in 1969, again prevailing knowledge holds that the gold humbuckers were used on so few models that many hung around the factory after '62-'64 when they were made. The tone from them is simply outstanding, a classic Les Paul honk that is so recognizable from your favorite 70s bands. They capture every nuance of the pick attack in the special way PAFs do. And all the mounting hardware is original.
In the control cavity, CTS pots numbered 1376850, Sprague black beauty caps with untouched solder joints and wire.
There is NO checking, no scratches, belt rash, neck finish wear, fret wear, almost zero play wear on the top or back. The nitrocellulous finish retains all of its original gloss, looking like a mirror. ALL THE ORIGINAL PARTS AND HARDWARE ARE THERE, EVERY LAST SCREW. Gold Sealfast (waffleback) tuners are like new, smooth and tight, headstock tuner routing holes untouched. Gold witch hat knobs with the gold numbers unworn and fully legible, gold pat. # bridge with ALL the original plastic saddles and foundry mark, super lightweight gold tailpiece, original 5 ply pickguard. It remains absolutely the same as when it left Kalamazoo in 1969, having hibernated for 40 years in the original marigold lined case (also in excellent condition) with the fully intact owners manual. THE EBONY FRETBOARD, BINDING, AND INLAYS ARE ALL PERFECT. The binding has aged dramatically to a deep yellow-ivory. The frets are in amazing condition, never crowned or filed. Fully working truss rod. Sighting down the neck, it is absolutely laser strait on both sides. THE ACTION IS AS LOW AS IVE EVER SEEN ON ANY GUITAR with no buzzes or dead spots up and down. It seems to get louder going further up on the neck, like magic. Its a true testament to the skills of the artisans at Gibson during that time just before the sale of the company. THE WEIGHT IS UNDER 9 LBS, a nice lighter weight as these tend to run 10+ LBs.
To be absurdly critical, the tailpiece has some wear to the gold finish. The gold hardware on the bridge has some mild oxidation, about 85% gold remaining. On the back, a little slight shirt button scuffing and a couple of tiny dents, not very noticable except on an angle in bright light, and some edge finish flaking, from age not playwear. On top, two miniscule indented dings, one on the upper treble bout, one pencil tip sized on the lower bass bout, two small dings on the headstock, treble PU ring is warped slightly, all in the pics, see if you can see them. Otherwise it's mint. The pickguard has some abrasion, but after all that's why it's there. Gold pickup covers are off and in the case, it really does sound better without them. It has a “2” under the serial # but at this uber-vintage level it really doesn’t matter.
THERE ARE NO CRACKS, BREAKS, REPAIRS, MODS, REFINISH OR OVERSPRAY. Everything works perfectly, there are no issues.
You could pay more for a modern day Gibson, like the Page reissue, or a burst replica. Theres also another mint '69 LPC up on ebay for around this price, but it’s a 3 piece neck, not nearly as valuable. This one is museum quality, its a frozen moment in time and a true work of art. As a pure investment and a hedge against inflation you cant do better than this, and you will have a huge amount of fun playing this while it appreciates. Just holding this guitar in your hands is priceless, you cannot believe the feeling of joy, only burst owners could possibly know similar gratification."

This vintage Gibson guitar sold for $18,500 on February 26,2010.  There are many great Gibson guitars for sale every week on eBay auctions.

Tags: gibson les paul, vintage gibson, vintage guitar
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Vintage Gibson Les Paul Gold Top Guitar

Written by admin on August 18, 2009 – 5:05 pm -

This weeks vintage guitar sale we are highlighting is a Gibson Gold Top Les Paul 1954 to 1957 P.A.F. conversion.  The 1954 manufactured guitar was converted in 1957 with original P.A.F.'s and the wiring harness is week 45 of 1956.  This vintage Les Paul sold on eBay for $12750 on August 12, 2009.  With the recent passing of Les Paul one of the unique music innovators of our time, items such as this vintage guitar will continue to increase in value.  eBay continues to be one of the largest settings for vintage guitar auctions in the world.

Tags: gibson les paul, vintage guitar
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Gibson Les Paul TV Model Junior Sale of The Week Highlight

Written by admin on July 21, 2009 – 6:49 pm -

This weeks highlighted sale of the week on eBay is a 1957 Gibson Les Paul TV Model Junior.  This vintage guitar was totally original with no cracks, chips, touch up, or repairs.  This auction closed July 15, 2009 with a final sale price of $12,000.  This sale is typical of the vintage guitars which are being sold on eBay every week.  These auctions are home for hundreds of vintage guitar sales each week, and vintage Gibson guitars are some of the most popular items as the previous highlighted sales attest.  Check out the selection and come back often.

Tags: Add new tag, gibson les paul, vintage
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1955 Les Paul Vintage Gibson Black Beauty Highlight Sale of the Week

Written by admin on May 20, 2009 – 3:24 pm -

This weeks highlight sale on eBay vintage guitar auctions is a 1955 original Les Paul Gibson Black beauty.  The owner reported minor wearing of the finish and every thing original except for one tuning key.  There was no lack of interest in this valuable guitar which sold after 22 bids for $17,877.77 on May 10, 2009.  Gibson guitars are big sellers on eBay auctions and many are for sale every week.

Tags: Add new tag, gibson les paul
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1956 Gibson Les Paul TV Junior Highlight Sale of The Week

Written by admin on March 1, 2009 – 4:55 pm -

This weeks vintage guitar highlight sale of the week is a near mint 1956 Gibson Les Paul TV Junior.  The TV Junior model being the same as the Les Paul Junior except for the limed mahogany color which supposedly was better for the black and white television presentation in the 1950's. There was high interest in this auction with 33 bidders on the sale which closed at $14,099.99 on February 23, 2009

Tags: gibson les paul
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1960 Gibson Les Paul Vintage Guitar Highlighted Sale of The Week

Written by admin on January 7, 2009 – 9:58 pm -

Gibson electric guitars continue to come to the fore in auctions of vintage guitars.  This week a Gibson Les Paul guitar is the sale we are highlighting.  This vintage 1960 Les Paul Special was 100% original and serial number 0 86xx. The guitar sold for $10,500 on December 28, 2008 in a "Buy It Now" eBay auction, and was sold with the original Alligator case.  Looking forward there are other vintage Gibson electric guitars coming up for auction.  You can search for other Gibson guitars for sale here. Vintage Guitars

Tags: Add new tag, gibson les paul, vintage guitar
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