Gibson Custom Shop Les Paul Custom - USA 2014

Gibson introduced the Les Paul Custom in 1954 as the upscale model of the Les Paul range, with gold hardware, an ebony fingerboard, multi-ply binding and a split-diamond headstock inlay. It has been Gibson’s most dressed-up solid body ever since. This Custom Shop version is based on the mid-1950s original, with several modern appointments.

This one is from 2014, with serial number CS403424. The body has a hand-carved figured maple top on a mahogany body that has been weight relieved, which gives a lighter guitar with livelier acoustic resonance. The one-piece mahogany neck has a 24.75 inch scale and a traditional rounded profile. It’s topped with a 22-fret ebony fingerboard with figured acrylic block inlays and a 1 11/16 inch nut width. The black headstock carries the split-diamond inlay and the pearl Gibson logo.

It’s finished in Heritage Cherry Sunburst, which fades from deep red at the edges to amber through the centre of the top, with multi-ply white and black binding on both the top and the back. The pickups are a 490R in the neck position, which has the character of the original PAFs, and a 498T in the bridge, which swaps the Alnico II magnet for an Alnico V for a hotter sound with more mids and highs. The gold hardware includes a Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, a stopbar tailpiece and metal tulip tuners.

It was purchased new in Brisbane in 2015 and is very clean, with very little wear to speak of. The gold hardware has some light tarnishing. There is also a light mark on the back from a guitar stand that has affected the lacquer, and it’s hardly visible. It comes with its original Gibson Custom hardshell case, which has the pink plush interior of the Custom Shop cases.

Gold hardware, a figured top and an ebony board are what the Custom has always stood for, and this one still looks the part.

Specifications:

Weight: 4.26kg / 9.4 lbs

Action at 1st Fret: 0.5mm

Action at 12th Fret: 1.25mm

Neck Depth at 1st Fret: 21.83mm

Neck Depth at 12th Fret: 25.17mm

Nut Width: 43.21mm

Width at 12th Fret: 52.46mm

Model: Gibson Custom Shop Les Paul Custom

Year: 2014

Origin: USA

Serial Number: CS403424

Finish: Heritage Cherry Sunburst

Top: Hand-Carved Maple

Body: Mahogany, Weight Relieved

Neck: Mahogany, One-Piece

Scale Length: 24.75"

Fingerboard: Ebony, 22 Frets, Figured Acrylic Block Inlays

Headstock: Black Face with Split-Diamond Inlay and Pearl Gibson Logo

Pickups: 490R Neck, 498T Bridge

Controls: Two Volume, Two Tone, 3-Way Switch

Bridge: Nashville Tune-O-Matic with Stopbar Tailpiece

Pickguard: Black

Binding: Multi-Ply White and Black, Top and Back

Hardware: Gold

Tuners: Tulip

Case: Original Hardshell Case