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Will I Devalue My 1999 Les Paul Classic If I...

torren61

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2010
Messages
228
... change out the pickups? The guitar is a 1999 Les Paul Classic Premium Plus. I don't want to post pics yet because the guitar gets here tomorrow and the pics I have are from the Reverb ad. That guitar should come with the stock 496R / 500T pickups.

I think they're going to be too hot for the tones I like so I bought a pair of Custombuckers. I plan on de-soldering the pickups and pulling out the entire wiring harness including pots and caps and replacing them with the Custombuckers and a solderless MojoTone wiring kit.

That way everything can be put back to stock if I ever decide to sell it. However, once I pull those electronics, it's not really factory stock installed anymore.

What is your opinion?
 

Tollywood

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 16, 2022
Messages
394
I think changing the pickups is a good idea so that you will like how it sounds. The way you are doing it will allow a future buyer to put it back the way it came. I don't know if that will make it worth less than a completely stock guitar, but if I were a buyer it would not bother me that you changed it.
 

torren61

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2010
Messages
228
I think changing the pickups is a good idea so that you will like how it sounds. The way you are doing it will allow a future buyer to put it back the way it came. I don't know if that will make it worth less than a completely stock guitar, but if I were a buyer it would not bother me that you changed it.
If I were to sell it, I would certainly disclose that. The axe gets here tomorrow and wait til you see the top...
 

Mr. Papa

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 14, 2002
Messages
1,418
I would swap pickups and pots. Not a problem as long as you keep the originals to re-sell, should the time ever come.
Exactly. I have the original parts for my Classic in a baggie, and will put them back in if I ever decide to sell. But the stock pickups and wiring are just not my thing.
 

El Gringo

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 8, 2015
Messages
5,657
I say go for it and make the UPGRADES . You will most certainly love the upgrade . Also it's not a vintage guitar and you can restore the mods down the line if you so choose to do . I have always changed out pickups and at times wiring harness as well . Go for it and don't think twice about it as you will certainly improve her tone . Best Wishes and report back your findings and results as I would be most interested in finding out how you like the tone afterwards .
 

Old dude 70

Member
Joined
Dec 20, 2021
Messages
41
Sorry I don’t take future value into my guitar decisions, I do what I feel is best for me and the guitar since I don’t do a lot of selling…

for me it would be an upgrade depending on the sellers choices, btw I swapped the originals in my classic to wrc crossroads and upgraded the pots and caps. Gave the 490s to a friend who needed some buckets so I don’t even keep the original parts…..
 

torren61

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2010
Messages
228
Sorry I don’t take future value into my guitar decisions, I do what I feel is best for me and the guitar since I don’t do a lot of selling…

for me it would be an upgrade depending on the sellers choices, btw I swapped the originals in my classic to wrc crossroads and upgraded the pots and caps. Gave the 490s to a friend who needed some buckets so I don’t even keep the original parts…..
I used to feel the same way until I was selling my old '99 LP HoneyBurst and got less than I really wanted because the pickups had been changed even though they were "upgraded".

I've kept all of the original parts and boxed them. I DID swap out the pickups for Gibson CustomBuckers. I installed a MojoTone solderless wiring kit but the neck pickup didn't work. I couldn't figure out why as I had followed the instructions point by point.

I clipped out the terminal buss from the MojoTone kit and kept the pots and caps. I looked up a 50s wiring diagram from Throbak. I tested the included three way SwitchCraft switch from the new kit and checked it against the original three way switch and found the colors did not match and hence was the reason for the neck failure. I swapped out the original switch for the new switch and soldered everything back into place and I'm quite happy with the results.

The pickups are MUCH lower output than the original 496R / 500T pickups and fit my style more directly. Additionally, I swapped out the aftermarket stop tail for an aluminum TonePros, the plastic jack plate for a metal Gibson replacement and I went from 10s to 8s for string gauge. I had to adjust the neck relief to compensate. She sounds great through my '73 Marshall JMP and plays very well.

Pics:

Or1tWn1h.jpg


Before:

HhwVULNh.jpg


After:

KY0g8P4h.jpg
 
Last edited:

Pat Boyack

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 19, 2011
Messages
4,510
Just keep everything you have replaced safe somewhere. If you put it on the market just swap them back. Simple.
 

torren61

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2010
Messages
228
Just keep everything you have replaced safe somewhere. If you put it on the market just swap them back. Simple.
Yeah, I agree. That's what I was intending to do. My question was more about polling the knowledge base from the view of a prospective buyer and how would you feel if you knew you were buying this guitar and everything was put back but it's not fresh from the factory. I have it all in a box and labeled. It's hard to imagine ever wanting to sell the guitar. It plays well, sounds great and has such a unique (to me) top.
 

Pat Boyack

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 19, 2011
Messages
4,510
Yeah, I agree. That's what I was intending to do. My question was more about polling the knowledge base from the view of a prospective buyer and how would you feel if you knew you were buying this guitar and everything was put back but it's not fresh from the factory. I have it all in a box and labeled. It's hard to imagine ever wanting to sell the guitar. It plays well, sounds great and has such a unique (to me) top.
Used gear is just that - used. Smart folk know that. Whether solder joints are original or not only applies to vintage/collectable guitars in most cases. I'll add that adding or upgrading electronics doesn't really add to the value of a guitar either.
 
Last edited:

torren61

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2010
Messages
228
Used gear is just that - used. Smart folk know that. Whether solder joints are original or not really only applies to vintage/collectable guitars. I'll add that adding or upgrading electronics doesn't really add to the value of a guitar either.
That part, I knew. I always get a chuckle when a seller describes their guitar as "upgraded this" or "upgraded that".
 

mjross

Active member
Joined
May 11, 2019
Messages
197
I used to feel the same way until I was selling my old '99 LP HoneyBurst and got less than I really wanted because the pickups had been changed even though they were "upgraded".

I've kept all of the original parts and boxed them. I DID swap out the pickups for Gibson CustomBuckers. I installed a MojoTone solderless wiring kit but the neck pickup didn't work. I couldn't figure out why as I had followed the instructions point by point.

I clipped out the terminal buss from the MojoTone kit and kept the pots and caps. I looked up a 50s wiring diagram from Throbak. I tested the included three way SwitchCraft switch from the new kit and checked it against the original three way switch and found the colors did not match and hence was the reason for the neck failure. I swapped out the original switch for the new switch and soldered everything back into place and I'm quite happy with the results.

The pickups are MUCH lower output than the original 496R / 500T pickups and fit my style more directly. Additionally, I swapped out the aftermarket stop tail for an aluminum TonePros, the plastic jack plate for a metal Gibson replacement and I went from 10s to 8s for string gauge. I had to adjust the neck relief to compensate. She sounds great through my '73 Marshall JMP and plays very well.

Pics:

Or1tWn1h.jpg


Before:

HhwVULNh.jpg


After:

KY0g8P4h.jpg
Different, I like it!
 

sozo

New member
Joined
May 20, 2022
Messages
16
Modifying the instrument may well devalue it in the eyes of some buyers, but after all it is only a '90s LPCPP, not a '50s 'burst.

Only you can decide what the right choice is for you, but I lean towards treating guitars as instruments to be played first and foremost. Which means make whatever mods you like that will improve it for you, no matter what the guitar is or what anyone else thinks.

Some purists will reel in horror at the idea of making significant changes to a vintage guitar like a real 'burst, but if the owner regards it as an instrument meant to be played then so what. Jimmy Page's '59 burst had already had the neck shaved down when he bought it from Joe Walsh in '69. The Klusons also got swapped for Grovers, JP preferred their tuning stability. Around '73 the bridge PAF got swapped for a '70s T Top. OK, that was a repair, the original bridge PAF had failed. But JP could have tracked down a '50s PAF, but he didn't, just took a T Top from a '70s Gibson. Then post-Zeppelin there were the wiring changes to allow coil splitting, etc. It was clearly a working instrument, not a museum piece. I like that.
 

Johnno

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Joined
May 22, 2022
Messages
6
Sorry I don’t take future value into my guitar decisions
This is me.

I've never bought anything with the idea of " making " money. A couple of times I've sold things on after a while and either broken even or made a few sheckels.
Not many times mind.

My attitude is if you buy something it's yours to do as you please.
 

Sybex7254

Member
Joined
Feb 4, 2017
Messages
14
I thin a pickup upgrade on a LP Classic from that era should be mandatory. First thing I did to my 2006 Classic was to dump the the stock 496R / 500T pickups for a set of PAF clones and installed Push/Pull tone pots to split the coils. Well maybe not the first theming, I had it for a bout a year before I came to the conclusion the ceramic 500T just wasn’t my thing.

Iconically my Frampton LPC has a 500T in the bridge and I like it in that guitar…go figure!
 
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