1952/59 Gibson Les Paul Sunburst Conversion
Description
Not all conversions are created equal. In fact of all guitar types and iterations, none has the range of a "Les Paul Conversion". It can be a beat up Junior with a new maple top and all repro parts-cost you maybe $15,000 and will probably look pretty good. It could be a 57 goldtop with all original parts and simply a refinished top for as much as $150,000. That's a ten fold range and the guitars will look pretty much the same but who knows which one is going to play better and sound better. But that really isn't the point of a conversion-at least not the only point. If you simply want a Les Paul that looks like a real burst, simply buy a used R9 for $3500. It should play great and sound real good too. A conversion is really something a little more mysterious. We all understand old wood-we don't all agree about it but the concept is easy. Old wood has had a chance to dry out and become more resonant (and lighter) and these things should affect the tone of the guitar. Old growth mahogany is different than the mahogany that is harvested today. That's kind of a long explanation so let's just accept that. Most folks who are looking at conversions want to get as close to a real burst as possible. That, if you can afford it, means old wood-all of it-not just the mahogany part of the body. That means 59 parts. Many use the original parts from the donor guitar and that is often enough (earlier no line tuners, recut pickguard, speed knobs). You still get the old wood. Next important puzzle piece are the electronics. PAFs or patent numbers or T-tops or modern PAF copies. All will potentially sound excellent but PAFs get you closer to the real thing and that is important to many buyers even though it adds as much as $15,000 to the price. 59 pots and harness parts probably won't make much difference in the tone but, again, it gets you closer to a real burst. Everything else can be repro if you're on a budget. Then there's the top. Plain top or figured top? One piece, two piece, three piece or even four piece. Original top or replacement? All these things affect the price. Some affect the playability and some affect the tone.
Bottom line...you want to get as close to a real burst as possible for a fair price. I think this guitar might be the one. It started its life as a very early 52 gold top. It had the unbound neck and the square control rout that only the earliest 52's had. It was stripped and good fortune smiled that day. This one has a near perfect center seam top with wonderful flame. That's rare from any gold top. All of the parts are from 59 (pickups, pots (39th week of 59), caps, switch, jack, tuners, knobs, back plates, bridge, tailpiece). The only non 59 parts are the pickup rings (good repros) and the pick guard (52 cut for humbuckers). The truss rod cover is probably from 52 as well. There is a piece of maple perfectly inserted under the bridge to compensate for a small rout done decades ago to make the original trapeze tailpiece work with the strings wrapped over rather than under. All fixed. Most high end conversions don't have this many 59 parts. They are crazy expensive. Most don't have an original center seam flame top-crazy rare. It plays beautifully. The neck is big but not too big (.88" and .98"). The nut is just under 1 11/16". It weighs 8 and a half pounds. The case is a 50's brown Lifton. PAFs are double black. Had this been a later 52 with the typical rout and factory bound fingerboard and no repair under the bridge (which is invisible with the bridge in place), this would be priced over $100,000. At $68,000, it is as close to a burst as you will find at any price.
Bottom line...you want to get as close to a real burst as possible for a fair price. I think this guitar might be the one. It started its life as a very early 52 gold top. It had the unbound neck and the square control rout that only the earliest 52's had. It was stripped and good fortune smiled that day. This one has a near perfect center seam top with wonderful flame. That's rare from any gold top. All of the parts are from 59 (pickups, pots (39th week of 59), caps, switch, jack, tuners, knobs, back plates, bridge, tailpiece). The only non 59 parts are the pickup rings (good repros) and the pick guard (52 cut for humbuckers). The truss rod cover is probably from 52 as well. There is a piece of maple perfectly inserted under the bridge to compensate for a small rout done decades ago to make the original trapeze tailpiece work with the strings wrapped over rather than under. All fixed. Most high end conversions don't have this many 59 parts. They are crazy expensive. Most don't have an original center seam flame top-crazy rare. It plays beautifully. The neck is big but not too big (.88" and .98"). The nut is just under 1 11/16". It weighs 8 and a half pounds. The case is a 50's brown Lifton. PAFs are double black. Had this been a later 52 with the typical rout and factory bound fingerboard and no repair under the bridge (which is invisible with the bridge in place), this would be priced over $100,000. At $68,000, it is as close to a burst as you will find at any price.