1953 Gibson Les Paul Standard Goldtop Vintage Guitar w/ Case

Up for sale, a 1953 Gibson Les Paul Standard, featuring an “All Gold” nitro lacquer refinish and complete with a vintage hardshell case. It’s not every day you find an early Les Paul Goldtop under a kitchen table in a haunted house in the Texas Hill Country, but on the off chance that one does, it’s a guitar worth restoring in all its glory. A largely original instrument in need of a proper finish and neck work, this Goldtop was a real passion project for us here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar, leveraging the work of numerous luthiers at the top of their game in the Pacific Northwest.

Work on this very early ‘53 Les Paul includes a neck reset (to the proper angle for ‘54-style wraptail), full refret with ‘58-spec medium jumbo fretwire and fretboard rebinding with correct “nibs,” replacement aged acrylic fretboard inlays and grain-matched Brazilian rosewood fretboard extension, and carbon fiber-reinforced headstock repair, with all neck work done by Portland Fret Works. The “All-Gold” nitro lacquer finish and sympathetic relic is courtesy of Riggio Custom Guitars. In addition to the full suite of stock electronics, additional original parts include the gold speed knobs, notably yellowed pickup covers, and Pat. Pend Kluson Deluxe single-line tuning machines.

Lightweight for a Les Paul at only 8lbs 12oz, this Gibson has a resonant sonic foundation with a carved two-piece maple cap with offset center seam and Honduran mahogany body, yielding the note attack and detail of maple and the fundamental warmth and smooth growl of mahogany. The P-90 pair offers a distinct sound in each pickup position, measuring 7.5k ohms at the bridge and 5.95k ohms at the neck. The three pickup positions are all very balanced in terms of perceived volume, and the bridge pickup is the platonic ideal of a P-90, glassy and fantastically clear with plenty of bark on tap. There’s a shimmering brilliance to the treble response that makes it particularly well-suited for overdriven grit. The neck pickup is as warm and full as they come, with rich, layered harmonic bloom as the notes ring out (in part thanks to the lower wind) and yet still delivering exceptional definition. Rolling back the neck pickup Tone achieves a smokey quality, and the pickups are in-phase when engaged in the middle position on the switch. This Les Paul has been professionally setup here at Mike & Mike’s Guitar Bar with 10-46 strings, low action, and accurate intonation.

Neck Specs:

-Wood: Honduran mahogany
-Shape: Chunky C, shoulders not as overt as later examples, measuring .915” 1st fret, .985” 12th fret
-Fretboard: Brazilian rosewood (replacement grain-matched extension from fret 16 upwards), vintage-spec acrylic trapezoid inlays, replacement binding (with nibs)
-Frets: ‘58-spec medium jumbo (refret), pristine
-Scale Length: 24 3/4”
-Nut: 1 11/16”, bone (replacement)
-Headstock: Mojoaxe ‘50s-spec prototype truss rod cover
-Tuners: Kluson Deluxe “Pat. Pend” single-line (replacement Retrospec vintage accurate keystone buttons)

Body Specs:

-Wood: Two-piece maple (offset seam), Honduran mahogany
-Pickups: P-90 x2, 7.5k Bridge, 5.95k Neck
-Harness: IRC pots date to the 5th week of 1953, Grey Tiger capacitors
-Controls: Volume x2, Tone x2, Three-way pickup selector
-Hardware: Mojoaxe wraptail (nickel-plated with compensation)
-Plastics: Original gold speed knobs, deeply ambered pickup covers, and amber switch tip, 1970s switch surround, vintage-accurate reproduction one-ply pickguard and brown cavity/switch covers, Retrospec vintage-spec jack plate

The fresh gloss “All Gold” nitro lacquer refinish was executed by Riggio Custom Guitars, pitch-perfect in its hue and saturation. Riggio partnered with Gibson to share his gold finish formulation, which has been in-use on Gibson’s Custom Shop Historic instruments since 2023. The finish has been treated with Riggio’s aging process (light relic), exhibiting checking and marks of synthesized wear. The neck profile has undergone the same treatment.

A vintage 1970s Gibson black tolex hardshell case is included.