79 Les Paul

[straycat]

Found one today for $1500
Still have to sell some gear to get it so just wondering if that's a pair price.
Kind of a dark red burst and plain top.
Larger electronics cavity due to the factory coil tap switch.
One of the last of the Norlins being a Kalamazoo guitar.Wider headstock and volute.
I know the collector's don't give these much of a look but its a solid non weight relieved body and weighs a ton but it kicks ass tone wise
Bill Lawrence bridge pick up I know that much.
Big 50's neck which feels awesome.
Sooo what do you L.P guys think?

[Newc]

Norlin era extended into the mid 80s.

$1500 for an LP is average, even for 70s models.

[straycat]

Kinda felt it wasn't to much pay just not sure on the Norlins.
I have been looking at the traditionals and the trad pros but they are &1900 - $2300.Swiss cheese holes or chambered but I want some thing solid.
Call me crazy I love old guitars.

[Fender]

Wouldn't that 79' be during the notorious Pancake built LP era? I wouldn't dump that much on a cheaply built LP. I know people will debate that it was for tone, or strengthening, but it's all bs lol. Gibson did it to reduce cost. I don't blame em' it's expensive to find slabs that thick to build their LPs. I might be wrong about 79'. My buddy had a 77' that was a pancake. Piece of crap. Sounded like a box of shit compared to his 84' Standard and 85'custom. Get some pics when you can, i still love seeing a Les Paul. such classy looking guitars.

[straycat]

Not a pancake IIRC the back is one piece I do know that, I will have to double check on that.
I know they had pancake bodies then but from what I could figure out online not all were done that way.

[Fender]

Hopefully you have a quality instrument there. That's a nice price and like you said way better than the swiss cheese monstrosities of today.

[Grim]

If it sounds good, who cares whether it is a pancake or not? I gathered that you'd played it, from your post, straycat. I say do it. I am not into LPs, but $1500 is a fair price.

straycat, have you ever played a Guild Bluesbird? IIRC they only made them for a few years but I played an early-2000s natural that was fantastic. Played and sounded great and only cost $1100 (used; mint). Mahogany w/ quilt maple top (AAA), rosewood fingerboard (very dark, could've been Ebony), MOP inlays, dual SD '59s... just immaculate. I would've bought it but I just can't get used to where LP-shaped guitars sit on my body.

[straycat]

Yeah I had a chance to play one just didn't care for it.Nice guitar tho'.

[DonP]

Wouldn't that 79' be during the notorious Pancake built LP era? I wouldn't dump that much on a cheaply built LP. I know people will debate that it was for tone, or strengthening, but it's all bs lol. Gibson did it to reduce cost. I don't blame em' it's expensive to find slabs that thick to build their LPs. I might be wrong about 79'. My buddy had a 77' that was a pancake. Piece of crap. Sounded like a box of shit compared to his 84' Standard and 85'custom. Get some pics when you can, i still love seeing a Les Paul. such classy looking guitars.

Fender,

I wouldn't expect you to get this right(). Pancake years were from 1969 to 1976 (at te latest). By 1977 they were solid mahogany, just like my 1977 Custom.

Cheaply? It ended up costing more money because of all the additional labor required.

[DonP]

Found one today for $1500
Still have to sell some gear to get it so just wondering if that's a pair price.
Kind of a dark red burst and plain top.
Larger electronics cavity due to the factory coil tap switch.
One of the last of the Norlins being a Kalamazoo guitar.Wider headstock and volute.
I know the collector's don't give these much of a look but its a solid non weight relieved body and weighs a ton but it kicks ass tone wise
Bill Lawrence bridge pick up I know that much.
Big 50's neck which feels awesome.
Sooo what do you L.P guys think?

I think this would be better than that 1950's tribute LP Studio. I don't get that at all.

I have a 1977 Custom, but I was going for a specific combination of solid body, maple neck, 100% original and low price. I paid $1360 for mine.

Larger electronics cavity due to factory coil tap switch??? You gotta show me a picture of that. That raises red flags.

Bill Lawrence pickup doesn't sound original. Should be T-Tops. BL pickups didn't really show up until the late 80s.

Big 50's neck is odd. My LP Custom definitely has a thin 60s neck, but each neck is different.

[Axewielder]

homer-drool-pancakes.jpg

[Fender]

Additional labor? Slap 4 pieces of wood with glue in each layer in a press. Wooooo , lots of labor there. MUCH cheaper than dishing it out the cost of large cuts of mahogany at the time. You got lucky, pancakes were phased out during 1977. HOWEVER, you could order Customs before 77' that weren't pancake. I think i've heard that after 74' , the customs were largely 1 piece mahogany + maple top. Then again you were paying a lot more. Still had the 3 piece maple neck though. Kinda spoils the Les Pauls tone in a way, but some people appreciate it. The Standards were different. I think some Deluxes even into 1978 were found with pancake bodies. Just proof of Gibsons production inconsistencies. It was easier for Gibson to pancake wood than it was for them to make a large scale purchase of quality and thick mahogany slab. Some idiots try to debate that it was an experiment Norlin was conducting on acoustics and bla bla bla. People will do anything to sleep better at night.

[straycat]

Yes Don there were some with a bit larger cavity I have seen lots of these at guitar shows and my L.P info guru has confirmed this.Why gibson did the route that way I have no clue.
Pick ups being the BL means nothing really those could have been changed I know T tops would have probably been the originals.
The switch is either a coil tap or an out of phase thing there is a dude on YT demoing a 79 just like this one.

[DonP]

Yes Don there were some with a bit larger cavity I have seen lots of these at guitar shows and my L.P info guru has confirmed this.Why gibson did the route that way I have no clue.
Pick ups being the BL means nothing really those could have been changed I know T tops would have probably been the originals.
The switch is either a coil tap or an out of phase thing there is a dude on YT demoing a 79 just like this one.

Dave Meniketti.

Post a link to the demo if you can. I'd like to see it.

[straycat]

You tube Don.LOL do a search for 79 L.P.
He demos a custom but you can see the switch and a small glimpse of the bigger cavity.
Fretted Americana is the dealer, Phil X does the demo.