Gibson Les Paul 1959 Gold - Golden Era Conversion - $1000 off !

Golden Era Conversions 1959-style Gibson Les Paul Heavy Antiquing

New Gibson Les Paul conversion.

 What is a Golden Era Conversion (GEC) Les Paul? It begins with a new and authentic Gibson Les Paul, hand selected for play-ability and tone. Using techniques developed in replicating multi-million dollar Stradivari violins, we antique the guitar in a manner consistent with years of playing.

 Approximately 80 man-hours are dedicated to each instrument beginning with a thinning of the varnish to replicate years of wear.

 Surface cracks are individually added across the top, sides, back, neck and headstock.

 The GEC process is critical to making the top and headstock look and feel realistic. What makes the GEC proprietary process unique is the cracks originate at the wood level where they would occur naturally, not from the top of the varnish which is what happens when amateurs try to "relic" their guitars, carving lines into the finish with a razor blade, an approach that not only looks and feels fake, but also subjects the varnish to future wear and dirt entrapment. GEC does not use the heat/cold method, which weakens the finish and can cause microscopic cracking in the the wood. Our proprietary finish is historically accurate in appearance.

 When you run your finger across the top of a GEC guitar, you won't feel cuts in the surface because the varnish is still on the top of the guitar. The “cracking” is at the sub-level, allowing the top varnish to sink into the crack.

 The neck is carefully sanded and slightly reshaped for better play-ability at the higher frets. It is finished in a handmade oil varnish that provides smooth up and down, non-stick performance. After drying, a thin layer of gunstock wax is applied for added smoothness and ease of playing.

 Hardware (tailpiece, bridge, tuners, strap locks, etc.) is aged through another proprietary process that adds the appearance of years of wear and use while maintaining its original performance characteristics. Our process does not weaken the metal.

 Electronics and/or wiring may be upgraded, depending on the tone of the guitar. We don't just change electronics or wiring for the sake of it, we do so only if needed to increase tone, sustain, and sound. If the existing wiring harness or pickups give the guitar a great tone, solder points are checked and re-solder if needed. Sometimes a single wire needs changed. Sometimes the entire harness is replaced. Military specification (MIL-SPEC), aerospace grade, 600V rated, irradiated cross-linked Ethylene TetraFluoroEthylene (ETFE) thin wall insulation, 22 AWG with 19 / 34 stranded tinned copper hookup wire is used. Conforms to Mil-Spec MIL-W-22759/16-22-(color). This wire is manufactured to the U.S. Department of Defense military specification (the world-wide standard) for the aerospace / defense industry. By law, it meets and exceeds rigorous manufacturing and testing requirements for wire used in high temperature, extreme environments. This ETFE insulation has better mechanical toughness than PTFE (Teflon). It is also very quiet. Only Cynel and Kester solders with minimum 60% tin / 40% lead content are used.

  This guitar features IronGear Blues Machine and Blues Engine pickups, providing classic PAF tone. You get a sound that is smooth, clean, full bodied and is perfect for clean runs, full chords and crunchy/overdriven rhythm and lead. For a classic sounding, vintage output pickup, the note definition is excellent.

  Once the guitar has been antiqued, it is placed in a vibration chamber for 16-24 hours at which time various vibrational frequencies are run through the instrument. Post-vibration, all parts are checked for stability. Any loosened parts are retightened and the process is repeated.

 The result is a guitar that plays like a golden era classic with the performance that today's musicians demand.

 Each GEC Les Paul comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.

 GEC recommends Jescar Premium Guitar Polish for upkeep and care of your instrument. Yearly or twice-yearly re-waxing of the neck with a high quality wax such as Birchwood Casey Gun Stock wax is recommended to keep the feel of the neck finish in good condition.

About this guitar

GEC Antique Level:   Heavy

Model: Gibson Les Paul Special

Body: Mahogany body with grain textured maple top

Neck: Mahogany with a '50s profile and a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard

GEC Year of Completion: 2017

Pickups: Irongear Blues Engine (uncovered) and Blues Machine (covered)

Tuners: Gibson

Strings: Gibson Vintage Reissue 10-46 strings

Weight in pounds: 9.6

Case: Hard case available for $100 additional.

COA: Included 

 We ship on Mondays to try to avoid having guitars sit in a truck or warehouse over the weekend.