Help identify les paul finish (or re-finish?)

[jack.healy]

Hello!

Please can you help identify or provide details about the finish on my (new to me) Les paul standard from 2004? The main point of contention is that the neck cavity seems to indicate a honey burst finish, but it is a matte satin blonde finish. Has the guitar been refinished? if so someone did an incredible job! the neck is satin also (which makes it lovely and fast).

SN#02634396
Hardware- chrome Binding and plastic hardware - peach
The top is flame
Neck pu cavity- HB bridge pu cavity- LP5+

the finish is incredibly similar to the guitar center exclusive 'blonde beauty', and also some custom shop models from the same period. everything about it indicates to me that it was made this way (i.e. no indications of a refinish around the pickup cavities and rear control cavities) but apparently it is meant to be honey burst.

btw I LOVE this guitar, it's so resonant, feels so smooth and sounds enormous. I'm just trying to understand its history a bit better. I bought it used from someone who also bought it second hand and didn't get on with it, so can't get any more info from there. Also it has its official hard case, but not the certificate.

photo gallery here - https://goo.gl/photo...PrTbuoPBD83DNAA

if anyone can provide some insight i would be exceptionally grateful. thank you,

Jack

 

[ctkarslake]

First off, I'd call Gibson with the serial and see what their records say. Secondly, at first sight it looks to be one of the 2nd generations of a Raw Power Les Paul, the first generation being built in 2000-01. The 2nd gen. were built 2004-05 and were given EMG pickups stock. This guitar does not appear to have those pickups. Also, Raw Power LPs were given plain maple tops, something this guitar definitely does not have.
As far as the pickup cavity hand writing, HB can also mean Heritage Burst, which is a darker version of Cherry Sunburst. The "LP5+" to you looks to me to be "LPST", which is shorthand for Les Paul Standard.
Definitely a mystery here, but call Gibson first.
A refin does not look likely since no other colors can be seen when you pulled the pickups. Have you taken off the control cavity to see if there are any other colors in there?
BTW, the natural blonde top, orangey back and neck, not to mention the satin finish are exactly what the Raw Power guitar's got at the factory.

 

[starscream]

The "LP5+" to you looks to me to be "LPST", which is shorthand for Les Paul Standard.

LP5+ and LP6+ are actually legit and common ways to denote an LP Standard Plus top with either 50's or 60's neck. When I look at the writing, it's a 5 to me because it has two distinct lines. Nobody writes the letter 's' out of two lines.

 

[Donal]

As ctkarslake stated, first stop should be to get Gibson to say what finish it "should" have.

http://www.gibson.com/Gibson/Talk-2-Us.aspx

But I would guess that it is a (very well done and nice) refinish.

 

[jack.healy]

thanks so much for your comments. ill get in touch with gibson and send them the photos. I'm away from home at the moment but will pull the control cavity when I get back to check for finish irregularities. I'll report back, I'm leaning more towards a refinish as well, but if this is the case bravo to whoever did it.

 

[jack.healy]

Also I notice the link to the image gallery (which has more photos) isn't working. Hopefully this one will (if you're interested)

https://goo.gl/photos/sRPrTbuoPBD83DNAA

 

[The Birdman]

Given how "honeyburst" has varied over the years, I wouldn't bet against it being Honeyburst.

 

[endial]

Dude, WOW!

-BTW, that area under the strings, in the maple figuring, that looks kinda "confused"? That's called "Bee's Wing" figuring.
Cool, huh?

 

[jack.healy]

thank you very much for all your inputs and comments. Bees wing, that is cool! ive had a response from Gibson -

The serial number refers in our database also to a Les Paul standard in honey burst, with nickel hardware, from 2004, with 50s neck and nickel hardware, made at the USA division in Nashville.
Please find attached the specifications. It looks indeed more like a Latte crème finish. It could be that a mistake was made at the factory with entering the finish color in the computer database. We cannot check here if a guitar was refinished aftermarket though.

So it should be honeyburst, all other specs are the same as they should be other than the finish (they sent me a spec sheet as well which all matches up, even down to the case colour and interior). i guess one of 2 things have happened - very nicely done refinish, or accidentally given a raw power finish at the factory. ive aded a couple of new pictures to this post which shows the control cavity in more detail, it is a glossier finish on the sides of the cavity, does this suggest a refinish?

i think im going to take it to a luthier to get it checked out and to make sure if it has been refinished it is complete and does not require any additional coats.

also (sorry to keep asking questions and being a pain), one final thing that is bugging me is the serial number on the back of the headstock (see image attached to this post). it is not deeply stamped, in fact it looks branded on rather than stamped and is quite smooth, is this normal for a guitar of this age and model?

thanks so much!
Jack

 

[stratoblaster]

Looks to my untrained eye like a Standard Faded that had the top stripped. I thought the Standard Fadeds started in 05 but maybe they started in late 04 as 05 models. Whatever it is, my gut tells me it shares DNA with the Standard Faded. It looks like it has the same minimal finish. From your gallery of pics, the pickups look like Burstbuckers with covers which would not have been normal for a Standard Faded. They would be uncovered Burstbuckers. Pretty cool guitar!

 

[Donal]

i think im going to take it to a luthier to get it checked out and to make sure if it has been refinished it is complete and does not require any additional coats.

Jack

I would say start enjoying it. I don`t see why it would require any additional costs. As long as you like it which I assume you do otherwise you would not have got it, it is complete (even if it "different").

 

[Cjsinla]

Judging by the color of the top, or lack of, and the color inside the control cavity, I would guess that this guitar has been refinished. Having a completely clear top is pretty unusual.