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Hey it's Mat from Gibson Product Development - AMA

matkoehler

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Can any Gibson authorized dealer facilitate a M2M order or is it just select dealers?

To everyone else, I would be happy to have any dealer recommendations for a M2M order. Preferably via PM to avoid any risk of hijacking the thread.
Any Gibson Custom Shop dealer, but some have more experience than others...I would personally recommend the ones with lots of M2M experience. Thanks!
 

S. Weiger

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 25, 2002
Messages
1,744
Going to call it quits for today but I will be back at it tomorrow. How about some historical questions? Any Gibson mysteries you've been curious about? I love that stuff! Thanks all.
Greetings mr. Koehler, & thanks for taking the time to answer our many questions :)

I have a friend who is convinced that, in the old days, the pickups used were selected for the type of guitars to recieve them (i.e. Les Pauls / semi solid's often got humbuckers reading 8K ohm or more, while jazz guitars got lower reading pickups..)
Do you know if there is any truth to this?
I myself am convinced that it's not the case, the pickups were just put in the guitars without any specific selection
-other than the pickups for the Byrdland, due to the narrow spacing.
 

matkoehler

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Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Mat, thanks again for all your time. Historical question. Is there any truth to a few burst being made 1961-1963 on special order from left over parts?
I would not doubt if a burst made it's way out in 1961...there are several "Les Paul Custom (Old Style)" entries in the ledger book from 1961 and a few that simply say "Les Paul (Old Style)", however my gut says those were still probably Les Paul Customs and the person entering them just wasn't consistent. No 1961-serialized Bursts have been discovered to my knowledge.

I also don't doubt that some 1959 or 1960 serial number bursts shipped or sold later on...employee sales...BGN/#2 sales...etc. However I have not seen ledger evidence of this.

As for custom-ordered bursts in the rest of the 1960s, I don't see this as a possibility. They would be in the Special Order logbook, for one, and for two I don't think Gibson created any sunburst single-cut Les Paul shapes until the 1970s (with the possible exception of a 1968-69 LP with P90s of some sort...again wouldn't doubt it). And speaking of, the rumor that the 1968 Les Pauls used leftover parts is completely bogus.

Now for the fun part -- Gibson DID take and make a couple of custom orders for single-cutaway Les Pauls in the 1960s but no sunburst ones and not the traditional single-cutaway Les Paul shape. I've seen two, one of which was featured in VG Magazine. They had the shape of what became the Les Paul Professional, with the chunky, slightly-rounded cutaway. Thanks for the question!!!
 

matkoehler

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Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Years ago when I was running for the job of President and Grand Pubba of Gibson I promised a Mayonnaise machine in every room. Though I was sadly ignored during my attempted wrest of control of the TRUE CLUTCHES OF POWER IN THE MODERN WORLD I still am waiting by the phone. Tell me my dream has been realized and said machines have been installed!
Hey Ren, thank you for your patience and yes, the mayonnaise machines have been installed to your specifications. Every room we have including closets. It was not an easy or inexpensive thing to do, but it was the right thing to do.
 

matkoehler

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Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Yo! I had the chance to meet you at Rumble Seat once...big fan...quick question: has the "waist line" changed since you and JC took over? IE, more accurate dimensions on the "hips" of the Les Pauls between the pickups if that makes sense.
Hey man! Thanks for the message. Point of clarification...I am merely a humble product guy and JC and Cesar deserve all the credit for reviving the company proper IMO! Anyway, yes we did review the geometry of the bodies when we selected a new top carve back in 2017...actually tried a few different top carves and dimensional modifications based on scans of originals...they are all subtly different as you know. We simply landed on the combination of features we liked best.
 

deytookerjaabs

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 6, 2016
Messages
1,592
Now for the fun part -- Gibson DID take and make a couple of custom orders for single-cutaway Les Pauls in the 1960s but no sunburst ones and not the traditional single-cutaway Les Paul shape. I've seen two, one of which was featured in VG Magazine. They had the shape of what became the Les Paul Professional, with the chunky, slightly-rounded cutaway. Thanks for the question!!!

So...

Like this: https://www.lespaulforum.com/index.php?threads/1966-“torpedo-joe”-les-paul-owned-by-billy-gibbons-photos.214040/


Looked real to me 🤔


edit: you might have to google for "Torpedo Joe Les Paul" photos as it looks like the original photos/links were removed.
 

matkoehler

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Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Greetings mr. Koehler, & thanks for taking the time to answer our many questions :) I have a friend who is convinced that, in the old days, the pickups used were selected for the type of guitars to recieve them (i.e. Les Pauls / semi solid's often got humbuckers reading 8K ohm or more, while jazz guitars got lower reading pickups..) Do you know if there is any truth to this? I myself am convinced that it's not the case, the pickups were just put in the guitars without any specific selection-other than the pickups for the Byrdland, due to the narrow spacing.
You are very welcome, thanks for participating! And great questions. No, pickups were not tested for output before installation in that era...it was very much luck of the draw...pulled from a bin. However there is a mystery regarding Stereo models, which tend to be out of phase in the middle position...there is no documentation that I can find, even on the schematics, that speaks to the use of intentionally reverse-polarized humbuckers to achieve an out of phase effect. But they were definitely doing this, and regularly. So I've always wondered about that and why they consciously chose for some guitars to be out of phase. Even many non-stereo guitars were OOP from the factory.
 

matkoehler

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Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482

jb_abides

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Apr 6, 2005
Messages
5,274
Hey Mat, welcome back and thanks for being here. Please pace for the marathon not the sprint, as I hope all our LPF interested parties can help the company, and vice versa.
  1. A theme that's come across is production backlog & throughput capacity in terms of re-/introduction of classic/new models. Speaking as a southpaw, can we expect to see more Lefty models as percentages of more model lines and runs [apart from Iommi!], or would the best route be pursuing via M2M? FWIW: I know the economics doesn't always favor Lefty runs but the HC era was pretty good at making sure southpaws were represented across the entire product line...even when pickings from compadres like PRS and Fender were sparse.
  2. Also, when will the world see the re-emergence of the Archtop Collection? I think it's important to keep Gibson's heritage strong and the skill sets intact, for classic models and even more contemporary ones like the CS-356 and Johnny As. For jazz boxes like a L5-CES, Byrdland, etc. I know competition from the boutique builders is fierce but for many "Only A Gibson Is Good Enough" and I think it would bode well for the brand, not to mention useful as halo marketing. Surely, I desire a Lefty L5-CES and Barney Kessel; or be able to spec an EDS-1275 Hollow Body. Again, perhaps M2M is the only answer, but better knowledge of program parameters and online configurator would we welcome.
As a related aspect of the Archtop Collection, would be a Heritage Collection, maybe offered but built upon demand or M2M, which featured pre-War era e.g. Mandolins and Banjos. Seeing the respect for history displayed by the management thus far, I imagine it's been a point of discussion with Cesar, JC, et al.

I know first things first in terms of building the company, but hope these things are on the horizon.

Best wishes to everyone working to keep the company strong, and thanks again, cheers.

🍑
 

goldtop0

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 19, 2003
Messages
8,931
Is it a '59 Reissue ES-335? Shooting from the hip, I feel like the same format as on Les Pauls might make sense (Last digit of the year reissued as first number, then the last digit of the year made next)

Yes a '59. Thanks for clarifying (y)
 

sir_buzzman

New member
Joined
Sep 10, 2021
Messages
3
Hi, Matt. Thanks for doing this. To piggy-back on jb_abides' earlier comment, are there any plans to expand the standard, non-custom/historic ES line to bring it more in line to what the Memphis shop offered in the 2010s? I myself would love to see some additional ES-330s. Seems like a cornerstone model that should always be around in one form or another (and the Slim Harpos are already going for insane prices). Thanks!
 

matkoehler

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Hey Mat, welcome back and thanks for being here. Please pace for the marathon not the sprint, as I hope all our LPF interested parties can help the company, and vice versa.
  1. A theme that's come across is production backlog & throughput capacity in terms of re-/introduction of classic/new models. Speaking as a southpaw, can we expect to see more Lefty models as percentages of more model lines and runs [apart from Iommi!], or would the best route be pursuing via M2M? FWIW: I know the economics doesn't always favor Lefty runs but the HC era was pretty good at making sure southpaws were represented across the entire product line...even when pickings from compadres like PRS and Fender were sparse.
  2. Also, when will the world see the re-emergence of the Archtop Collection? I think it's important to keep Gibson's heritage strong and the skill sets intact, for classic models and even more contemporary ones like the CS-356 and Johnny As. For jazz boxes like a L5-CES, Byrdland, etc. I know competition from the boutique builders is fierce but for many "Only A Gibson Is Good Enough" and I think it would bode well for the brand, not to mention useful as halo marketing. Surely, I desire a Lefty L5-CES and Barney Kessel; or be able to spec an EDS-1275 Hollow Body. Again, perhaps M2M is the only answer, but better knowledge of program parameters and online configurator would we welcome.
As a related aspect of the Archtop Collection, would be a Heritage Collection, maybe offered but built upon demand or M2M, which featured pre-War era e.g. Mandolins and Banjos. Seeing the respect for history displayed by the management thus far, I imagine it's been a point of discussion with Cesar, JC, et al. 🍑
Thanks for the message and cheers. Great questions.

1) We will continue to cater to left-handed players as we always have. You can't expect us to make lefty versions of Custom Shop replica runs or anything that may require new tooling/fixturing/cases (only if demand covers the costs), but for other new product introductions we will always try to have lefty SKUs set up. The caveat is that we won't usually run the lefties as part of the original allocation...they would be scheduled many months later. One of the reasons it's difficult to plan around lefty runs is the forecasting is not a perfect science. There have been times when we've been saddled with an inordinate amount of left-handed inventory and there have been times where we're hand-to-mouth. But rest assured we are thinking of you and many of the employees here are southpaws as well!

2) I was hoping someone would ask this. We are in the thick of a major development project for both archtops and mandolins, and I have a meeting concerning banjos next week. Our existing range of archtops and mandolins doesn't really fall into Historic Reissue category nor a Modern category so they're incongruent with the current Custom Shop product archticture. And we don't even have them showcases on the website because there is nothing to market with such limited capacity. So we want to discontinue the current range, build all the current orders and incrementally introduce all-new models at a later time with way more capacity and many more skilled team members building them. An Archtop Historic Reissue collection. A Mandolin Historic Reissue and Modern Collection. A Banjo Historic Reissue Collection as well. It's going to take a lot of time but we're going to do it right, and I expect the first of the incremental new range to be released sometime in 2023. Stay tuned!
 

matkoehler

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Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Any plans (if you can say) for the 70th anniversary of the Les Paul? 1952 Reissue?
We've done that before...twice in fact...but we'll be celebrating the 70th Anniversary with new content and commemorative switch plates on all (applicable) Custom Shop Les Pauls shipped in 2022. Thanks for the question.
 

matkoehler

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Joined
Sep 12, 2014
Messages
482
Hi, Matt. Thanks for doing this. To piggy-back on jb_abides' earlier comment, are there any plans to expand the standard, non-custom/historic ES line to bring it more in line to what the Memphis shop offered in the 2010s? I myself would love to see some additional ES-330s. Seems like a cornerstone model that should always be around in one form or another (and the Slim Harpos are already going for insane prices). Thanks!
Yes we are actually seeing the capacity constraints at both the CS and USA facilities...we are full tilt and building more than Memphis did, actually...but demand has been through the roof. A good problem to have but it does mean longer product life cycles until we can clear a path. We are offering a killer Epiphone USA Casino which may fill the ES-330 void for now, but yes we intend to expand the ES range in time. Thanks!!!
 

sir_buzzman

New member
Joined
Sep 10, 2021
Messages
3
Yes we are actually seeing the capacity constraints at both the CS and USA facilities...we are full tilt and building more than Memphis did, actually...but demand has been through the roof. A good problem to have but it does mean longer product life cycles until we can clear a path. We are offering a killer Epiphone USA Casino which may fill the ES-330 void for now, but yes we intend to expand the ES range in time. Thanks!!!
Killer, thanks Mat (sorry about the two t's). The USA Casino is very cool, but I think I'll keep saving for a 330!
 

KeoRS

New member
Joined
Sep 10, 2021
Messages
3
Hey Mat,

Quick question for you (and no pressure): if I provide you my ML 58 LP Ultra Light Aged S/N, a guitar which has been sent back to the CS for repair/replacement over 8 weeks ago, are you able to get a sense of how long it may take until I get it back? I live in Canada and warranty claims are dealt through the sole Canadian distributor Yorkville Sound, and I cannot obtain the RMA # for customer support to give me an update. Also, it's weird that most people who were affected by the ML dark cherry back issue seem to have received replacements, but I keep being told that mine is getting repaired (which I would prefer given I fell in love with THAT one :p)

I'm trying to stay patient, but I really miss my LP!! :p Any input would be really appreciated!

Thanks in advance.
 

GreenBurst

Active member
Joined
Mar 5, 2004
Messages
748
Hi Mat, really appreciate you sharing your time and knowledge.

Which of the Collector's Choice 'aged' guitars sold out their allocations? I'm aware the limited edition totals varied by model (ie many were 300 units, CC01A was 125 units). Would be nice to understand the quantities built if you can share those details.

Many thanks.
 
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