Members meandi Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 my buddy Mike bought this guitar used in the '70s, for like $300, & has never established what year it was built. So, I ran the numbers for him & according to several online sites, it's a '63, built in the kalamazoo plant. He said that he didn't think gibson built the custom model in '63. What say you, les paul experts? He's got a couple of ric 600 series...one 12 string & a 6 string that he plays occasionally, but other than that this is still his main ax. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members orbm1 Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 regardless the year, that is a BEAUTIFUL AXE! Wish I knew more about it... still a beauty! Full of MOJO Thanks for sharing! Omar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Help!I'maRock! Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 unpossible. Norlin headstock and volute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NinjaModder Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 It looks like a 70s one to me. I heard that in the 70s a BUNCH of serials were messed up on guitars since they were changing then. So it may just be a messed up serial that leads you to that year. I don't know if Gibson made customs in the 60s. Also check the side of the body. Do you see any cracks around the middle of it? They used pancaked bodies in the 70s and overtime they separate a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meandi Posted August 23, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I've been teching for him for about 8 yrs now, & there are no cracks or breaks on the body, other than some lacq checking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members o.versteer Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 There is no such thing as a '63 Les Paul. The guitar in the pictures is, as some other posters have said, a 70's era LP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meandi Posted August 23, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I'm aware of the messed up status of some of their serial numbers, so what I'm hearing on this doesn't really surprise me.I was trying to establish the age of my J-50 when I bought it, & there were so many different on line answers to my sn querie for it, I actually ended up calling gibson cust svc to get the most reliable answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meandi Posted August 23, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I just talked to gibson corporate & was told by a cs rep, that he could only verify that it was built between '70 & '75. That there's some tight records keeping for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Vibroluxman Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 are the pots original? The best way to date an early 70's guitar is by the pot codes from what I've heard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rog951 Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I just talked to gibson corporate & was told by a cs rep, that he could only verify that it was built between '70 & '75. That there's some tight records keeping for you. meandi, I got the same speil from Gibson regarding my ES-345. The s/n indicated an early '60s date of mfg, but it was obviously not from that era (volute, etc). They just bunged up the serialization process in the early '70s and re-used some '60s-style numbering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 As noted, Gibson reused serial numbers again and again for decades until they finally tied them to the date stamped in the mid' '70's (and then again in the late '70's). Your friend didn't research the serial good enough. The aforememtioned volute on the back of the headstock started in 1969 and ran through the '70's. Take the serial number and research it more. If it's early '70's you may not be able to narrow it to an exact year, but the pot date codes should help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metal0822 Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 the 4th and fifth numbers of the 7 digit number on the pots should give you the number of the year...of the pots though, but are accurate on my 78 fwiw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I just talked to gibson corporate & was told by a cs rep, that he could only verify that it was built between '70 & '75. That there's some tight records keeping for you. At the time serial numbers were for inventory and shipping purposes. What shipped 10 years before didn't matter; this was long before computer inventory, paperwork was routinely destroyed to make room for future business. EIA codes (date codes) on electrical parts (for guitars, for amps, for everything) were repeated every 10 years because the code only featured the last year of the date until late '60's or early '70's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meandi Posted August 23, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 The pots are quiet on the guitar, so I've never had occasion to pull & look at them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 The pots are quiet on the guitar, so I've never had occasion to pull & look at them. You shouldn't have to pull them to check. Though, on my '72, they are illegible these days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OldGuitarPlayer Posted August 23, 2011 Members Share Posted August 23, 2011 I saw a guy on that TV show Pawnstars bring in an LP Custom claiming it was from the mid 1950's and he wanted $30,000 for it. The owner Rick brought in his buddy the "expert" who dated it to the mid 1970's. Hell I am no expert and I could tell. Anyway...the Pawnstars guys offered him $1400 for it...he walked out with guitar in hand not selling it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members shadesofcraig Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 I saw a guy on that TV show Pawnstars bring in an LP Custom claiming it was from the mid 1950's and he wanted $30,000 for it. The owner Rick brought in his buddy the "expert" who dated it to the mid 1970's. Hell I am no expert and I could tell. Anyway...the Pawnstars guys offered him $1400 for it...he walked out with guitar in hand not selling it. I saw that one too... Always makes me laugh when someone thinks they got something worth a lot more then it actually is.. I think the guy paid more for it from the way he acted... But what a pinhead, "I bought this and the guy told me it was from 50s." Yeah and you believed him... hahaha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Deadbeat Son Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 I saw a guy on that TV show Pawnstars bring in an LP Custom claiming it was from the mid 1950's and he wanted $30,000 for it. The owner Rick brought in his buddy the "expert" who dated it to the mid 1970's. Hell I am no expert and I could tell. Anyway...the Pawnstars guys offered him $1400 for it...he walked out with guitar in hand not selling it. That guy was the guitar player for Toto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members chadd Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 I saw a guy on that TV show Pawnstars bring in an LP Custom claiming it was from the mid 1950's and he wanted $30,000 for it. The owner Rick brought in his buddy the "expert" who dated it to the mid 1970's. Hell I am no expert and I could tell. Anyway...the Pawnstars guys offered him $1400 for it...he walked out with guitar in hand not selling it. There are a couple websites that live to de-bunk that show and have found some evidence that the whole "sale" of the guitar was less than honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scottgd Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 Weak! My "expert" would have dated it as a 2009 Agile with a Gibson sticker on it, then I'd offer $210. Ya, well this one had a pancake body. To me that screams '70s Norlin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members *BLEEP* Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 unpossible. Norlin headstock and volute. Also, a 70s hardshell case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members onelife Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 This is what a 1963 Gibson Les Paul Custom looks like Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members *BLEEP* Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 There are a couple websites that live to de-bunk that show and have found some evidence that the whole "sale" of the guitar was less than honest. The guy from Toto (Steve Lukather?)... sounds like a theatrically scripted "sale" to entertain the ignorant masses -- except for y'allz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members aenemated Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 sounds like a theatrically scripted "sale" to entertain the ignorant masses pretty much everything on every "reality" show is scripted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Deadbeat Son Posted August 24, 2011 Members Share Posted August 24, 2011 The guy from Toto (Steve Lukather?)... sounds like a theatrically scripted "sale" to entertain the ignorant masses -- except for y'allz. Wasn't Luke. Maybe the band was Asia? I can't remember; I just know it was one of those really cheesey early '80s rock bands that all sounded the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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