1955 Les Paul Historic Prototype Electric Guitar

In the mid-50s a sunburst finish was not an available option on a Gibson Les Paul. There were only two color choices “ ebony and gold. So many guitar players started stripping the gold off the top of their early-mid-50s Gibson Les Paul guitars and have them refinished to emulate the desirable Sunburst Les Paul guitars.
This amazing Gibson Custom Shop prototype gives you the same fantastic 1955 Les Paul already "refinished" for you in gorgeous Sunrise Tea Burst. It also introduces a comfortable and resonant neck shape, the Soft Shoulder '55 Neck Profile. And of course, this "Refin" has all the great Gibson Les Paul tone and playability has also been faithfully recreated.

Design
The Gibson Custom Shop "Refinished" 1955 Les Paul precisely follows the body lines and dimensions of the original '55 Les Paul Standard, with a gently arched carved top and rounded lower bout, and combines the classic tonewood combination of mahogany back and carved maple top. The guitar body's back is cut from a single piece of solid, high-grade, lightweight clear mahogany, and capped with a two-piece top of figured maple that is carved into a period-correct "dish", or arch.

Tonal Characteristics
The Gibson "Refinished" 1955 Les Paul features the clarity, definition and treble bite generated from a maple top, and excellent depth and richness of a mahogany body. This is one of the most revered wood combinations of all time, and truly offers a "best of both worlds" design in the way that mahogany and maple tonally complement each other.

P-90 single-coil guitar pickup
The P-90 was the standard pickup on all Gibson models in the late 1940s and into the 1950s and because of its crisp, bright tone it has experienced resurgence in popularity with many of today's modern rockers. This classic Gibson pickup deliver sizzling, slightly gritty midrange roar. You'll find that the high output and biting treble of the '55 Les Paul guitar's P-90s have more nuanced harmonic coloring than the typical single-coil pickup.


Soft Shoulder '55 Neck Profile
The Soft Shoulder '55 neck profile makes the Gibson Custom Les Paul sit in your hand like no other guitar neck. Gibson's guitar team chose a '55 Les Paul that had a neck with a "magical feel" to serve as a model for the Soft Shoulder '55 neck. The depth is the same from the top of the fretboard to the back of the neck as the rounded '50s neck, yet has gently sloping sides that sit comfortably in your hand.

ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic Bridge and Stopbar Tailpiece
The ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge was the brainchild of famed Gibson president Ted McCarty in 1954, setting a standard for simplicity and functionality that has never been bettered. The ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic is slotted directly into the body of the Gibson Les Paul Custom guitar using a separate stud and thumbwheel, providing a firm seating for the strings and allowing players the ability to adjust and fine tune intonation and string height in a matter of minutes. And held in place with TonePros long steel anchors and long locking studs, the stopbar tailpiece yields a great union between the strings and body, which results in excellent vintage tone and sustain.

The Gibson Custom Shop "Refinished" 1955 Les Paul electric guitar features a flamed maple top finished in a gorgeous Sunrise Tea Burst finish, mahogany back and neck, P-90 single-coil pickups, Kluson vintage tuners, and an ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge. Includes hardshell guitar case.