"рIt was a dark and stormy Christmas Eve when a stranger showed up at my front door with this old guitar case,с recalls Drew Jacques, a guitar hobbyist and newly minted guitar tech. рHe just wanted a simple string change and a fresh setup. The first thing I thought about the guitar was who was the idiot that filed down and rounded the frets [laughs] и at this pointяbeing a bit of a rookieяI had no idea about the Fretless Wonder or its peculiarly low frets.с But that soon changed as Jacques dove deep into the history of this particular Gibson Les Paul Custom Reissue. рAfter cleaning it up a bit and doing a little homework on the instrument, I soon realized it was much more than an ordinary vintage Les Paul.с Through his research, Jacques used the serial number on the back of the headstock, which didnуt have the рMade in the U.S.A.с imprintяand the fact that it had no neck voluteяto narrow down the guitarуs origin to the late у60s. The рU.S.A.с stamp and volute were changes introduced in 1970 models. Other anomalies on this guitar were its one-piece mahogany body capped with a multi-bound maple top and a one-piece mahogany neck. "
GALLERY: Gear of the Month 2012
See all 12 unique instruments featured as Gear of the Month in 2012.
By Chris KiesDec 23, 2012
Chris Kies
Chris Kies has degrees in Journalism and History from the University of Iowa and has been with PG dating back to his days as an intern in 2007. He's now the multimedia manager maintaining the website and social media accounts, coordinating Rig Rundown shoots (also hosting and/or filming them) and occasionally writing an artist feature. Other than that, he enjoys non-guitar-related hobbies.