A couple weeks ago I walked into a pawn shop and apparently minutes before me someone else walked in and sold their 95 Ebony LPS to the shop. The catch is that the guitar had a Mushroom skin plastered all over it. At first look I thought it was paint but at closer inspection it was cloth. The pawn guy offered it to me for $450 and even though it looked like hell and who knows what it was like under the skin, it sounded good so I took it. Not every day you find a LPS for $450. I also verified the Serial number and took a close look to make sure it wasn't fake. It also had Jackson tuners on it instead of the original tuners. Later I also noticed the bridge is gold (made in germany) on back so not sure if that is original.
I brought it home and was instantly impressed with the sound. Ive never owned a real Gibson before. While the Mushroom skin kinda grew on me and my wife and a few people thought I should keep it...I decided to take it off the Headstock first to make sure it had the Gibson and les paul logos.
It was great when I realized the skin was coming off easier than I though, but it did leave residue. Which I used mostly distilled white vinegar to remove. I was super excited when the Gibson and Les Paul logos appeared when ripping off the skin.
After cleaning the headstock as well as I could, I decided top leave the body as is for the time being. But it kinda literally stunk. The Pawn guy said the previous owner was a "known" player going through hard times...and that the guitar was heavily used over the years (it shows). So this week I suddenly decided it was time to get this guy as close to it original form as possible.
Besides the skin, the guy also glued sparkly stuff on the binding and knobs. That sparkly stuff and glue is harder to remove than the skin itself.
I do have some questions for you experts. After peeling the body paint is very irregular...beat up...maybe why he decided to skin it. My question is....and may be hard to tell from photos, do you think it was repainted? Or is this how a weathered LPS paint job goes when used with little love. Also, the Gold Bridge made in germany...is that a replacement? I dont think it came with gold hardware..though the studs in the guitar for the bridge and tailpiece are also wore gold...the tailpiece is chrome.
Im still slowly cleaning scraping a little each day..especially at the binding..ordered a pickguard, switch cap and gonna order original tuners. I wonder if I should consider sanding and repainting or just leave it as is.
See photos of the work in progress. More photos in second comment.
I brought it home and was instantly impressed with the sound. Ive never owned a real Gibson before. While the Mushroom skin kinda grew on me and my wife and a few people thought I should keep it...I decided to take it off the Headstock first to make sure it had the Gibson and les paul logos.
It was great when I realized the skin was coming off easier than I though, but it did leave residue. Which I used mostly distilled white vinegar to remove. I was super excited when the Gibson and Les Paul logos appeared when ripping off the skin.
After cleaning the headstock as well as I could, I decided top leave the body as is for the time being. But it kinda literally stunk. The Pawn guy said the previous owner was a "known" player going through hard times...and that the guitar was heavily used over the years (it shows). So this week I suddenly decided it was time to get this guy as close to it original form as possible.
Besides the skin, the guy also glued sparkly stuff on the binding and knobs. That sparkly stuff and glue is harder to remove than the skin itself.
I do have some questions for you experts. After peeling the body paint is very irregular...beat up...maybe why he decided to skin it. My question is....and may be hard to tell from photos, do you think it was repainted? Or is this how a weathered LPS paint job goes when used with little love. Also, the Gold Bridge made in germany...is that a replacement? I dont think it came with gold hardware..though the studs in the guitar for the bridge and tailpiece are also wore gold...the tailpiece is chrome.
Im still slowly cleaning scraping a little each day..especially at the binding..ordered a pickguard, switch cap and gonna order original tuners. I wonder if I should consider sanding and repainting or just leave it as is.
See photos of the work in progress. More photos in second comment.
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