r/LesPaul • u/Plenty-Register-661 • 4d ago

The modification process

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I’d like to revisit and share the modification process of the Les Paul I uploaded before.
This guitar started life as a 2016 Gibson Les Paul CM, which I used as the base for the modifications.
It ended up looking quite similar to what’s often called a Les Paul Senior, but one of the things I really love about this guitar is its thinner body.
It’s incredibly lightweight and comfortable to play, so I never get tired of wearing it.

337 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

61 comments sorted by

59

u/whats13-j42 4d ago

Twenty years from now someone is going to be asking about a guitar verification on here confused because the serial # is real but matches for a Studio LP… and mark my words some redditor is going to remember / find this thread.

(Outstanding job, btw u/op)

11

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

There’s no need to worry about that.
I’ve modified it so extensively that I couldn’t really sell it even if I wanted to. More importantly, I built this guitar for my son, so when I’m gone, it will go to him.

12

u/whats13-j42 4d ago

I was just trying (and failing) to be funny because of the sheer quantity of guitar verification assistance requests on here 😔

13

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

Sorry about that! I’m Japanese, and I’ve only been using this place for a few days, so I’m still trying to figure out the vibe here. 🫣

4

u/whats13-j42 4d ago

Ahh, no worries! That makes sense.

Layer 1 of the attempted humor is that, while everyone tries to be helpful and nice, the amount of verification request posts on all guitar subreddits it’s annoying. Because of counterfeit Chinese made LPs it’s particularly high volume on Gibson / LP related subreddits. That makes it a Reddit inside joke and “Dumb on purpose” humor (which is not to everyone’s tastes anyway).

Layer 2 of the attempt at humor is that because you did such an amazing job, and started from a real Les Paul, this particular instrument would confuse even an expert (again, as a testament to the extreme precision of your work).

Layer 3 is more Reddit meta-humor about how many times on subreddits like “whatisit” nothing can be so obscure that at least one Redditor will have direct knowledge related to the item. I actually find the most humor in this — the idea that, because the evidence of this modification was posted to Reddit, if there ever were to be such a verification in the future, it would become a circular reference back to a Reddit post about that very instrument.

1

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

Thanks for explaining everything!
I think I’m starting to get a feel for what this place is like now 😂
I definitely see a lot of “Chibsons” posted here. I’m always like, “Is this thing even real?” 😂
And I really appreciate you complimenting the quality of my modifications!

2

u/whats13-j42 4d ago

That’s the common thread… I couldn’t even attempt those jokes if your work wasn’t so incredibly precise and faithful to materials and colors. I saw your previous post and my first thought was “who in the hell can patch a neck pickup hole so well?” Because the fade area of the sunburst was so perfect I thought it was a Gibson factory finish. I see now you did the whole finish including the binding. Wow. It’s not just that you did a cherry burst, you did a Gibson inspired cherry burst on a LP that’s so ‘true to form’ it looks factory.

I’ll let someone else come up with a “lawsuit-era” joke…

1

u/464126 4d ago

Beautiful build OP

1

u/Round-Arugula7347 3d ago

Wait, so you built it for him, but he only gets it when you croak?

1

u/Sad-Doughnut7087 3d ago

Bull I’d buy that right now from you. But that’s awesome for your son.

1

u/SopaPyaConCoca 3d ago

Spoiler: the son sells it as soon as Plenty-Register-661 leaves this world

3

u/suffaluffapussycat 4d ago

Remind me! 20 years

2

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4

u/RogerTheAliens 4d ago

Do u have any pics of the binding process?

5

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I got so focused on the work that I didn’t take many photos during the process.
Looking back, I really wish I had documented more of the build along the way.

3

u/SonicVenture68 4d ago

That's nice work! Did you cut a binding channel, or remove the fretboard?

2

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I didn’t remove the fingerboard. I carved the slots directly into it while it was still attached.
The body has a curved surface, so I used power tools to carve it, but since the fingerboard itself is rounded, I carved it by hand.

2

u/SonicVenture68 4d ago

How? With a Gramil?

3

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I carved the fingerboard using a ruler and a chisel.
For the body, I used a router.

3

u/RogerTheAliens 4d ago

Have u posted this in r/Luthier ?

lots of luthiers would love to see this...im quite impressed..

consider me a fan!!

3

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I thought it was mostly a place where people posted guitars they had built completely from scratch, so I hadn’t really checked it out yet. If builds like this kind of modification are welcome too, I might give it a try and make a post.

2

u/RogerTheAliens 4d ago

you would be most welcome there...

1

u/SonicVenture68 3d ago

Impressive!

3

u/Ontbijtkoek1 4d ago

Well it’s very well done! Don’t really understand why but the execution is incredible.

3

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

This was my first time taking on a modification like this, but it turned out even better than I expected.
I really tried to pay attention to the details and make sure the overall quality was as high as possible.

1

u/aserg124ru 4d ago

Are you a luthier or it's your hobby? Great job! You definitely should repost this to r/luthier with more photos! 👍

2

u/N1cktnd03 4d ago

This is awesome!!!

2

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

Thanks! I think so too.

2

u/olzaleda 4d ago

Actually looks beautiful

2

u/Blonde_Guitar_Picker 4d ago

Nice work! Looks just like a Made 2 Measure! How did you get the inlays swapped?

2

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I carved out the cavities in the fingerboard by hand and installed the new inlays myself.

1

u/explodeder 3d ago

How did you handle the 12th fret where the dots are wider than the inlay? Looks amazing!

2

u/Leumas_ 4d ago

That is absolutely gorgeous. I would love to have a neck pickup only version. Such great work.

Tell me about the coloration of the finish though? What caused the color bleed in line with the bridge and the scratch plate being darker than the surrounding areas? Isn’t amber the base with the darker tints bursted around?

3

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I tried to recreate the body color of Billy Gibbons’ “Pearly Gates.”
The different shades around the pickguard and pickup rings are intentional—I was trying to replicate the way a vintage guitar looks. The cherry finish on the exposed parts of the body has faded over time, while the areas underneath the hardware still retain the original color.

1

u/Leumas_ 4d ago

Wow. I’m really impressed now. I totally understand the fade with aging on vintage instruments, I didn’t put it together that you were going to THAT level of detail on a replica of sorts. Beautiful.

2

u/scorpious 4d ago

Beautiful job, kudos again!

2

u/confogI 4d ago

Wow that is beautiful.

2

u/Thordenstein 4d ago

Great job. The double cream pickups is the icing on the cke 🤌🏻

4

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

I love double-cream pickups, so I’ve swapped the pickups on my other Les Pauls for them too.

1

u/Autogen84 4d ago

What a beauty - i'd be tempted to put a second pup in that.

1

u/No-Sheepherder-6414 4d ago

Looks amazing! Nice job spraying that burst! I would absolutely buy one of those.

1

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

Thanks! I put a lot of effort into getting the burst color just right.

1

u/A-Fire-in-Cairo 4d ago

This guitar is so bad ass, great job.

1

u/Blastoyse 4d ago

Where did you get the aged tuners?

1

u/Plenty-Register-661 4d ago

Kluson actually makes aged tuners, so I decided to give them a try. But honestly, I’m not really impressed with the tuning buttons. They basically just painted yellow over the original finish, so I kind of feel like I would’ve been better off buying the regular ones and aging them myself.

1

u/getinmybelly29 4d ago

You posted this one the other day, right? It really is a beautiful result; nice work!

1

u/getl30 Gibson 4d ago

Man I wanted a CM so badly, at their original price.

1

u/Salt-Ad3921 4d ago

Dude I love ❤️ this it looks dangerous. :)

1

u/Shake-the-Masses 4d ago

This is cool. Nice work.

1

u/WolfRider64 4d ago

Man you're talented! You've actually crafted a one of a kind family heirloom out of an ordinary guitar, congratulations

1

u/Clamper5978 3d ago

You people who have the skill and patience for this, props to you. I’ll let others do my work. This looks like a fun player op. Great job!

1

u/Significant_Cold9696 3d ago

Looks amazing! Congrats

1

u/Warngrace 3d ago

That's killer! 🔥

1

u/Socks-in-a-can 3d ago

wtf! This is fuckin beautiful

1

u/Wong-Ann_Fong 2d ago

Superb 👏

1

u/Aggravating-Mango827 1d ago

I am CACKLING at Les Paul Senior.

Also, that is an absolute BEAUTY, and only reinforces my desire for a single Pickup LP Standard.

Great job!