SOLD! - 1961 "STINGER" Gibson Les Paul SG Standard PAF Cherry Sideways Vibrola

100% Original collector grade "STINGER" Gibson Les Paul Standard (yes indeed...) - no cracks, breaks or repairs to the headstock, neck or heel!


Launched in 1961, the characteristic SG (Solid Guitar) only became to be known as the SG in 1963 after the deal with Lester Polfus (Les Paul) ended that year. Before that, these guitars were called the Gibson Les Paul Standard (2 pickups) and Gibson Les Paul Custom (3 pickups).

This particular guitar weighs only 3.25Kg and is 100% all original from top to bottom, including the original finish, 2 unopened and pristine PAF Patent Applied For sticker humbucking pickups, original wiring with untouched solder, original 1961 pots and capacitor, jack output, pickguard, ABR-1 bridge, studs, knobs, tuners, trussrod cover, backplates, plastics and the original case.

And on top of that it has a factory stinger on the back of the headstock that glows perfectly under UV blacklight and is all original to this guitar, straight from the factory! I have never seen a stinger on a 1961 Les Paul SG before, it must have been a special factory order of some sort. The seams along headstock wings show some widening on the back only, not on the front so it's all stable and ok. Around the jack input is has some small cracks as well but most likely it's only superficial from the trem arm and some stress from pulling the cable from the jack output.

Besides the rarity of this guitar, it plays and sounds like a dream. The pickups are very powerful and the bridge pickup is crazy cool for lead solo's, rock riffs and powerful cuts through the mix. The neck pickup is clear and open sounding with lots of warm and rich overtones. The neck feels like a 61 type, slim and fast but not too slim as one would think. It still feels like a solid neck that is just as fast as lightning. The sideways tremolo is currently fitted with a MojoAxe block to keep it all solid and the original 61 trem block is in the case. Could be restored in a jiffy if one would prefer, original screws (rare!!) are still in the trem!