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 Post subject: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 2:00 pm 
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Location: Hampshire, UK
Note from Admin: I have split this from Shashing's earlier Topic (here: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=316 ), to give it a wider audience!

Shashing wrote:
I also have a restoration project about to get started of a pretty rare vintage Gibson, if there's enough interest I'll post up pics of the process as it goes :)

Yes, please!!

That's exactly the sort of thing we need more of here, it'd be great if you can share the story of your restoration with us as it develops. :geek:

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 Post subject: Re: 1970 Silvertone 1445
PostPosted: Mon Jan 04, 2010 3:59 pm 
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Red Paul wrote:
Shashing wrote:
I also have a restoration project about to get started of a pretty rare vintage Gibson, if there's enough interest I'll post up pics of the process as it goes :)

Yes, please!!

That's exactly the sort of thing we need more of here, it'd be great if you can share the story of your restoration with us as it develops. :geek:

I'll second that - sounds like it could be interesting. What's the Gibson?

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 Post subject: Re: 1970 Silvertone 1445
PostPosted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 4:12 am 
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Right on, the parts are being shipped as we speak so it should be started soon. The guitar is a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special by the way, it's been stripped of it's finish and all the hardware is missing so it'll be a big restoration job of my dream guitar :mrgreen:

As for the controls on the silvertone, the knobs are V-V-V-T the control plate has an on/off for each pickup and the little black switch on it's own there is.. as best I can figure a boost switch, it works really well surprisingly. Yes, the tremolo is a pretty crude one lol but it holds tuning pretty decent with light vibrato for what it is. The saddles might need replacing if i wanted to make it play well again though, one is missing the screw and another was replaced completely by the previous owner with a piece of wood :lol: pretty clever but not the most stable.

Thanks for the greetings too :mrgreen: I'll be sure to post stuff and help whenever I can. I'm just getting my feet wet with the whole vintage guitar collecting thing but it's something I'm really passionate about. Some great collections on here too.


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 Post subject: Re: 1970 Silvertone 1445
PostPosted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 3:44 pm 
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Shashing wrote:
Right on, the parts are being shipped as we speak so it should be started soon. The guitar is a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special by the way, it's been stripped of it's finish and all the hardware is missing so it'll be a big restoration job of my dream guitar :mrgreen:

Sounds like a cool project. And an ambitious one for a beginner.

Starting with a refin isn't the best for most collectors, but I guess you'll be aiming for an 'as new' look rather than it looking like a 50 year old vintage guitar. Where did you find the body? Are you getting the genuine Gibson vintage hardware for the year, or...? :o

Good luck with it, and take your time. I'll be watching with interest. :mrgreen:

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 Post subject: Re: 1970 Silvertone 1445
PostPosted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 5:24 pm 
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Posts: 75
This one is definately gonna be a player alright as opposed to a 'sit in the case under the bed for the next 50 years' :mrgreen: that's what it seems to be thus far, so why change it right? Unfortunately I'm not made of money so I cant afford to spend hundreds of dollars on period correct parts, 100-200$ is a bit much for a single tuner, no? :? My plans for it are sort of a vintage/modern mix that I love, you'll see what I'm talking about once it gets started ;) but it will be vintage looking with a bit of a modern twist, should be fun.


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 Post subject: Re: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Fri Jan 08, 2010 8:46 pm 
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Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2010 4:58 pm
Posts: 75
Hey cool, thanks for putting this topic up for me :mrgreen: I guess I might as well post some pictures of the guitar as it stands now to give everyone something to look at. The guitar-squeemish might want to look away right now as this might cause some a little emotional pain :lol:

Here's the full shot
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Logo inlay fully intact. She's been redrilled a couple times for different tuners over the years, but everyone's got their scars right? ;)
Image

What's this, a Gibson without a broken headstock in it's entire 50 years? :o
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Close-up of the fretboard, the frets are in INCREDIBLE shape, perfectly straight, level, and smooth all the way down. Neither I or the seller can tell if they're original, if not than whoever did the refret deserves a giant pat on the back, leaving the binding nibs intact on these things is not an easy task.
Image

And last but not least the perfectly original, un-modified control cavity which seems to be pretty rare :mrgreen:
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And here are my two favorite ideas for the guitar. They're done on an sg but you get the idea.
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Image

Those are my top two at the moment, I was also thinking a nice honey burst or a Gibson styled sunburst from yellow to red.

Let me know what you all think, ideas, inspiration, how badly you want to castrate whoever stripped this thing ;) I'll update this at every step of progress.


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 Post subject: Re: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Sun Jan 10, 2010 10:43 pm 
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Wow. You've set yourself quite a task there!!

Looks like its in great shape for a 50 year old guitar and you're lucky it hasn't been re-routed. The frets look amazing. Did you see it before it was stripped, or did you acquire it in this condition? I can't wait to see how it turns out - be sure to let us know of progress. Will you do it all yourself (paint job?) or do you have pro help?

Good luck with the project.

Ziggy

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 Post subject: Re: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 3:53 am 
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Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2010 4:58 pm
Posts: 75
Thanks, and yep its a big one alright lol. I did buy it in this condition but it still has a little area of the original tv yellow paint on the back of the headstock I'm going to preserve. And I will be painting it by myself, this will be my 8th guitar refinish so it's starting to become habit ;)
I'll be using my airbrush setup in my paint room to do the burst, provided I use it for the final job but it probably won't be until around spring time when it warms up a bit for the clear to go on. I'm sure it could be done, I just don't want to rush it at this point with a guitar like this.
The neck will also be given a tung-oil finish as opposed to a painted neck. So not your average vintage Gibson in the end but I'm taking my dream guitar and building it back from the ground up to my exact preferences :mrgreen:


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 Post subject: Re: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 12:46 pm 
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Joined: Wed Mar 11, 2009 12:22 pm
Posts: 17
Good luck with your project and be kind to this old girl. :)

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 Post subject: Re: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Special Restoration Project
PostPosted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 8:54 pm 
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Joined: Sat Jan 02, 2010 4:58 pm
Posts: 75
Thank you, and she'll be treated very well here ;) also,

update!
So most of the parts arrived today.

Image
Image

And here's a mockup with the parts sitting on top.
Image

The tuner holes were drilled by the previous owner to 7mm.. :? no idea why, but they are now redrilled to the 9mm required. I'll tell ya right now, drilling into the head of this thing nearly gave me a heart attack at my young age, so I don't recommend any of you that might have heart conditions try this any time soon ;) All's well though, headstock is ready for paint but the body will have to wait until I figure out a way to pull those pesky studs out of the body. The threads are not in the greatest of shape at the moment so it's thinking cap time :idea:


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