year of production: 2015
model: Gibson LP Traditional
factory finish: Honey Burst
new finish: Lemon Burst
style of new finish: Aged
scope of work: nylon nut; true ABR conversion; all hardware change; CustomBucker pickups; refinish
We received a Gibson LP Traditional from the controversial 2015 model year. Why controversial? Well, because Gibson introduced significant changes to virtually all of its models at that time: a 3mm wider neck, brass saddles with zero frets, no nibs binding, speed knobs, an electronic tuning system, a hologram under the lacquer on the back of the headstock, and an illegible Les Paul autograph instead of the Les Paul Model silkscreen on the front of the headstock. These changes had such a significant impact on sales that less than a year later, well in advance, the 2016 line was introduced, returning to the pre-revision Gibson specifications. And it was this 15, loaded with changes, that came to our workshop with a specific mission: make it something old-school while retaining the neck profile the owner liked.
We started by stripping the finish. We plugged the Nashville bridge holes and converted it to a true ABR. We installed a nylon saddle and slightly improved the top contour. We added brown filler, a nitro sealer, darkened the back with brown nitro, and added a lemon finish with a very subtle fade-style burst. We dusted the whole thing with amber nitro, polished it to a gloss finish, and finally added patina and weather checkings. A proper Les Paul Model silkscreen was a must.
The guitar features Kluson bushing tuners, high-quality historical frames, a new truss rod cover, and smooth black plastic back covers. The heart of this guitar is a set of Custom Buckers. We’ve stylishly aged all the metal and plastic components to create a cohesive whole with the paint.
We managed to squeeze this much out of the 15 to make it more like a classic Gibson, while not making any major revolutions in the wood. Couldn’t it have been done right away?
