ATB Guitars
New member
- Joined
- May 6, 2022
- Messages
- 6
Thought the members here may like to hear the story of how we found this undiscovered Burst right on our doorstep here in Cheltenham, UK. It just goes to show they are still out there but sadly I do not think this will be an everyday occurrence for us...!
I have enclosed some pics of it in the exact state we received it. If anyone wants to see any more pics it is on our website, with a full set of around 60 pics, the direct link is here
A few weeks ago we received a call from a teacher who lives locally, for us to have a look at and value a guitar belonging to her Dad who gave it to her to look after while he was moving house. She looked online for the model and came up with prices of around £5,000 so she asked us to confirm the valuation so she could increase her household insurance.
She initially sent through some blurry pics taken at a weird angle which looked rather odd and at first I thought it may be some kind of 70's Burst copy made by someone like Dick Knight or similar (there were a few UK builders doing this in the 70/80's). The fingerboard in places did not even look like rosewood it was so dry so I said I would need to see it in person to give an accurate valuation. She made an appointment and two weeks later she walked in with an original looking Cali Girl case, at which point things started to get interesting...
I had a good look at it and instantly recognised it for what it was but to be 100% sure we delved in to it internally and checked out each part. It was and still is, in terrible condition. It had not been cleaned for 30 years and stored in a dry cupboard. The bridge posts had snapped clean off and the ABR-1 was resting on steel washers and old gaffa tape. The pickups had been out then spliced back in with cheap plastic wire and we could not get a sensible reading from them. The guitar was overall, in one of the worst condition I have seen and was totally filthy with a bronze wound D string. It also has an added Bigsby, extra screw holes and half of the original screws have been replaced.
When it came time for my assessment, I told her I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is it is in terrible, awful condition, it has bits missing and bits added. It is totally unplayable and will need a complete restoration before is in a condition to play and even work as an electric guitar. In fact it was one of the worst condition guitars I have seen!
The good news is it is an original early 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard aka the ‘Burst’. It is one of the most desirable guitars on the planet and it is probably worth close to £200,000. There was total stunned silence when I told her this and after a while her face just dropped in disbelief. I wish we could have filmed this!
She said her Dad bought it in 1967 for £50 after seeing Eric Clapton play one at the Marquee in London so it has been a pretty good investment for him to say the least. She told her Dad what we told her, but her Dad just thought she was pulling his leg and only started to believe her when the money started to appear in their account.
It has since been sold to a very good home and I believe it is being refurbished by its current owner who I am sure will bring it to life again.
In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy some of the pics which is exactly how it was presented to us.
I have enclosed some pics of it in the exact state we received it. If anyone wants to see any more pics it is on our website, with a full set of around 60 pics, the direct link is here
A few weeks ago we received a call from a teacher who lives locally, for us to have a look at and value a guitar belonging to her Dad who gave it to her to look after while he was moving house. She looked online for the model and came up with prices of around £5,000 so she asked us to confirm the valuation so she could increase her household insurance.
She initially sent through some blurry pics taken at a weird angle which looked rather odd and at first I thought it may be some kind of 70's Burst copy made by someone like Dick Knight or similar (there were a few UK builders doing this in the 70/80's). The fingerboard in places did not even look like rosewood it was so dry so I said I would need to see it in person to give an accurate valuation. She made an appointment and two weeks later she walked in with an original looking Cali Girl case, at which point things started to get interesting...
I had a good look at it and instantly recognised it for what it was but to be 100% sure we delved in to it internally and checked out each part. It was and still is, in terrible condition. It had not been cleaned for 30 years and stored in a dry cupboard. The bridge posts had snapped clean off and the ABR-1 was resting on steel washers and old gaffa tape. The pickups had been out then spliced back in with cheap plastic wire and we could not get a sensible reading from them. The guitar was overall, in one of the worst condition I have seen and was totally filthy with a bronze wound D string. It also has an added Bigsby, extra screw holes and half of the original screws have been replaced.
When it came time for my assessment, I told her I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is it is in terrible, awful condition, it has bits missing and bits added. It is totally unplayable and will need a complete restoration before is in a condition to play and even work as an electric guitar. In fact it was one of the worst condition guitars I have seen!
The good news is it is an original early 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard aka the ‘Burst’. It is one of the most desirable guitars on the planet and it is probably worth close to £200,000. There was total stunned silence when I told her this and after a while her face just dropped in disbelief. I wish we could have filmed this!
She said her Dad bought it in 1967 for £50 after seeing Eric Clapton play one at the Marquee in London so it has been a pretty good investment for him to say the least. She told her Dad what we told her, but her Dad just thought she was pulling his leg and only started to believe her when the money started to appear in their account.
It has since been sold to a very good home and I believe it is being refurbished by its current owner who I am sure will bring it to life again.
In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy some of the pics which is exactly how it was presented to us.