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Up for sale is a VERY cool and increasingly hard to find 1999 Gibson Custom Shop Historic 40th Anniversary ’59 Les Paul Standard Reissue R9 Plain Top in original Sunburst finish complete with its original hardshell case and COA. Just given a pro set up with a set of 10-46 gauge strings, it plays effortlessly with a straight neck, low action and accurate intonation.

The 1999 40th Anniversary R9s are widely regarded by players and collectors alike as some of the finest Historic Reissues Gibson has ever produced and are considered part of the legendary “Good Wood” era of Gibson Custom Shop production. While most 1999 R9s are associated with heavily figured flame maple tops, this example features a beautiful understated plain top that many vintage Burst enthusiasts actually prefer for its more authentic late-50s aesthetic.

What makes these plain top 1999 R9s especially interesting is that Gibson never officially advertised a plain top option for the 40th Anniversary R9 run. Over the years there has been consistent collector chatter and registry discussion suggesting that perhaps only around 25 plain top examples were produced, though Gibson has never publicly confirmed an exact production total. Regardless of the exact number, these plain top ’99 R9s surface far less frequently than their heavily figured counterparts and have become highly sought after by serious Historic collectors.

This guitar is light, lively and extremely resonant acoustically with all of the qualities that have made the best late-90s Historic Les Pauls so revered. The neck carve is a substantial and comfortable late-50s profile measuring .920” at the 1st fret and 1.005” at the 12th fret. Weight is a very respectable 9lbs 1.2oz.

The guitar retains its original pair of Gibson ’57 Classic humbuckers which deliver all of the warmth, clarity, bloom, and harmonic complexity you would expect from a top-tier Historic Les Paul. The pickups were removed from the guitar at some point in its life so the solder joints are no longer untouched/original, however all electronics and parts appear to be original to the instrument. The original PAF stickers on the undersides of the pickups have fallen off over the years, though remnants of the stickers and their shadows/remains are still visible on the pickup baseplates. The neck pickup reads 7.75K and bridge 8.45K.

Condition is solid VG. The guitar shows honest cosmetic wear consistent with a well cared for 26 year old instrument including light swirling, scratches, dings, chips and surface wear throughout from handling and cleaning. There is some light worming on the back as well. The original frets remain in very nice shape overall and currently show only mild wear primarily on frets 1-7 mostly under the plain strings. See pics for condition and please excuse any reflections.

To the best of our knowledge, this instrument is original save for the strap locks that are currently installed but the original strap buttons are included in the case.

-Nut Width: 1.70”

-Neck Thickness: .920” at 1st fret / 1.005” at 12th fret

-Weight: 9lbs 1.2oz

This guitar will ship out fully insured and require a signature upon delivery.

—Northside Buy & Sell, LLC