This is part 2 of my effort to identify a vintage Gibson Les Paul Special Double Cutaway that appears as though it was issued in 1962, when Gibson did not officially sell that model. In part 1, I described the various distinguishing features of the model as it changed in the years 1959-1961, when it was “officially” sold, though in the latter part as an “SG Special”. This post assumes you are familiar with the information from part 1. I will add that, I think this part can be substantially improved. I will update it as I have more information. But for now, here goes:
This is where the fun really begins. I have seen three examples of guitars that match all of the “late 1959” Les Paul Special specs, including the silkscreened logo, but on which the serial numbers date to 1962. All three are 544XX, and two are within four digits of each other. So it would seem that either (1) these guitars are from 1959 with unusual serial numbers, (2) Gibson issued a 1959 model in 1962, or (3) it could have been a warranty replacement. From my discussions with various vintage guitar experts, any of these seems a possibility. Gibson was notoriously sloppy with numbering and record keeping. And it was not prone to waste. If it had leftover parts, it might very well have assembled and sold them a couple of years later. But option 3 makes a lot of sense to me.
For starters, there seem to be other examples of Gibson guitars of the era not fitting into a neat box. For example, this one dates by serial as a 1963, yet has the “early 1959” pickup configuration. Or this one, which dates by serial as 1961 (though listed for sale as a 1962) yet has the silkscreened logo and other features of a “late 1959.”
So what are we left with to solve the mystery? We haven’t yet discussed pot codes. One of the guitars, according to the owner, had pot codes dating to 1959. The second did not indicate the pot codes, and the owner, who had sold the guitar, did not recall any pot code information. The third, the one in my possession, has pot codes dating to 1959. Even if Gibson were using up old parts, it seems odd that it would have saved pots for several years. So this would seem to argue for a 1959 conclusion. (Update: And this one, which also has a 1962 serial, no silkscreened logo, and pots dating to 1959 according to the owner.)
But perhaps the final word is provided by a spec we haven’t discussed – the neck profile. One expert rightly told me that you could drive yourself crazy trying to make sense of all this, but that the neck profile would tell the tale. Conventional wisdom says that 50s necks were like baseball bats and 60s necks much thinner. While true in a general sense, by 1959, when our story really begins, the necks were already getting thinner. Offhand, though, I think he is probably correct. The neck on mine looks identical to photos I have seen of a 1962 SG Special. (Though I am not sure how accurately I can really say that from a photo.) I do plan to take a more detailed look at the neck profile and will update with what I find.
If you have something to add to this, please email me at [firstname].[lastname]@gmail.com
This table is a work in progress…
| Serial year |
Serial # | Pot code | PU/toggle location |
Silkscreened logo |
Link |
| 1961 | 22486 | N/A | Late-1959 | Yes | Link |
| 1962 | 544XX | 1959 | Late-1959 | Yes | Link |
| 1962 | 54481 | N/A | Late-1959 | Yes | Link |
| 1962 | 54485 | N/A | Late-1959 | Yes | |
| 1962 | 60648 | 1959 | Late-1959 | No | Link |
| 1963 | 69703 | N/A | Mid-1959 | No | Link |
Other resources:
- https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/25669-vintage-vault-1961-gibson-sg-special
- https://www.vintageguitar.com/3223/the-gibson-les-paul-special/
- http://www.guitargonauts.info/pick-51.html
- https://www.bromptons.co/reference/articles/details/gibson-part-4-from-les-paul-to-sg.html
- http://www.frettedamericana.com/product/1961-gibson-les-paulsg-special
- http://www.guitardaterproject.org/potcodereader.aspx
- https://www.lespaulforum.com/forum/showthread.php?202618-A-little-help-with-a-LP-Special-DC&p=2793878#post2793878