Whether you’re a collector or a player looking for some old-school mojo, the act of acquiring a vintage instrument can be stressful—even if you’re a pro.

“It can be very tense,” says Jack Hetherington, Guitar Center director of Used and Vintage. “My team and I trawl all the vintage sellers and sites, attend upwards of 20 vintage guitar shows every year and try to stay on top of what’s going on out there in the real world of dealers selling to customers and collectors. And yet, despite our best efforts, we don’t always get it 100-percent right on first inspection. Every instrument is guilty until proven innocent, so we dig deep until we can verify—to the very best of our knowledge—that a vintage guitar is what it is supposed to be. Or not.” 

That commitment to research—further refined by cross-examinations from the collaborative Used and Vintage brain trust—is why guitar heroes, serious collectors and vintage-obsessed players depend on the counsel of Hetherington and his team.

“Through the years, the people who have run the vintage business did really well,” says Hetherington. “They built a great and extremely trusted brand.”

The “trusted brand” is pretty much at everyone’s disposal. And if vintage Les Paul guitars are what you covet fiercely, Hetherington is one of the industry’s most knowledgeable and trustworthy experts who can skillfully guide you through the process of buying one. Let’s begin …

Pictured: 1953 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop Headstock

What are some of the common mistakes made by people in the market for a vintage Les Paul?

Hetherington: First off, it’s not taking a partner. I started by buying vintage guitars for myself, and I definitely made some very questionable decisions. Anyone who is interested in buying a vintage guitar should know someone who can help them identify the various parts that may be right or wrong, what era may be more valuable and so on. Where two minds are great, if you can assemble three, four or five knowledgeable people, it’s a wise idea to get their opinions. This is pretty much the process of Guitar Center’s Vintage Acquisition Team. Every day, a guitar will come into a Guitar Center, and between myself and the other six or seven people in the crew, we determine what is right, what is wrong, what’s hot and what has cooled off.

For example, there was a Julien’s auction where Kurt Cobain’s 1969 Fender Mustang with matching headstock sold for $4.6 million. Suddenly, Mustang guitars with matching headstocks—which are pretty rare—went from $3,500 for a decent one to $8,000 overnight. And it was like, “Whoa.” I picked up the “bat phone” and asked the guys, “Are we really getting that price?” They said, “Well, yes. It’s the Kurt Cobain thing.” I wasn’t hip to that. On the other side—and more pertinent to Les Pauls—black Les Paul Customs from the 1970s were really hot about two years ago, but they have cooled off. Again, it’s all about your partners and getting other opinions before you invest.

What are some of the critical steps your team takes to verify a vintage Les Paul?

Initially, it’s how does a Les Paul look as compared to how it’s supposed to look? Does the color make sense? Is the sunburst finish correct for that era? Then, you get into the minutia. We have a checklist of all the pictures we need for particular guitars. We will ask for photos of the pots and the solder joints to see if they’re original or not. Sometimes, you can tell by the solder joint whether a pickup came in or out of the guitar. The pickups might look original, but the solder could tell us that perhaps an original pickup was put in, but the one currently in the guitar is not the one that left the factory when it was made.

Pictured: 1953 Gibson Les Paul Standard Goldtop

Another big thing is taking blacklight pictures of the finish. We want to know how that thing glows. I call it the Scooby-Doo glow—like that green and purple glimmer you’d see when ghosts appeared in Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! episodes. Sometimes, a Les Paul doesn’t glow at all, and you know there’s a problem. For guitars on the cusp, I don’t believe we ever say, “Let’s blacklight it to see if it’s a ’70 or ’71.” It’s more about the state of the finish, because complete refinishes can look amazing to the naked eye—even out in direct sunlight. Blacklight photography is by far and away the easiest way to tell if there has been work done on a finish. A blacklight can reveal if there’s even a three-inch patch that has been expertly repainted. If so, that affects the value.

How reliable are serial numbers for dating Les Pauls?

Gibson serial numbers are mostly linear, in that they start at a lower number and kind of go higher. But you can still see a certain number that can represent a Les Paul produced anywhere from 1963 to 1968. There are a fair amount of serial numbers in their production books, but not all of them. So, the serial numbers typically give you an era. Then, you have to look at other things. Ideally, the potentiometers have not been changed, and you can get an actual date code from them. Virtually all American-made potentiometers have an original equipment manufacturer code with a date. It doesn’t say “January 5, 1972,” but the numbers are absolutely identifiable—perhaps a month and a year. The codes kind of changed over time. However, you can look at the pots, get a date code, and go, “Okay, the serial number identifies this Les Paul as anywhere from 1968 to 1972, but the pots say it’s a 1970. We’re good.” It’s another thing where it’s not exact, but it makes you feel better about dating a Les Paul.

Pictured: 1953 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop P-90 Pickup

There are also different things that happen with the “i” in the Gibson logo inlayed into the headstock. Sometimes, the dot is higher or lower, or even a bit further away from the base of the “i.” This is yet another check that can help you: “Hey, that dot is too close to the base, so it has to be a ’72 or ’73.” Even the depth and curvature of the arm cutaway can offer insights. Because, especially in the ’50s, Gibson might use a part for five years, and over time, that part gets a little duller and the curves get a bit more rounded from sanding. We just have to put all of the research together to help us validate whether something is an “19XX” Gibson Les Paul or not. 

Gymnastics judges take deductions for errors. Does your team have something similar in place when rating the condition and value of vintage Les Pauls?

There’s no set version of a “devalue list,” but our assessments are highly dependent on what was changed from the original guitar. You can have a really amazing, say, 1956 Les Paul Goldtop that’s all original except the pickups have been changed. That’s unfortunate, because it may bring a $40,000 guitar down to around $35,000, or thereabouts. However, if you bring in the same guitar with its original pickups but it has been refinished—now maybe it’s a $25,000 guitar. So, there are certain things that have a bigger impact on value.

Pictured: 1953 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop Control Cavity

Refinishing is probably the number one, generally speaking. Headstock breaks have a really big impact, as well. But honestly, we don’t see many refinished Les Pauls, because they are so hard to refinish—especially when compared to a Fender, where you can simply remove the neck from the body. With a Gibson, you have to tape off the neck and the binding. But it absolutely happens, and it used to happen more often. In the ’70s, for example, you were refinishing a $500 guitar. It wasn’t that big of a deal. Back then, they tended to like sunbursts more than Goldtops, so why not? Well today, you would be refinishing a $40,000 guitar. Guess what? You’re not refinishing that.

How do you initially counsel someone who comes in looking for a vintage Les Paul?

I try to tease out some information. I’ll ask, “What do you want to do with this guitar?” If you want to collect it and never play it, that’s totally fine with me. I’ll help you get what you’re looking for, at whatever price range makes sense for that particular piece. But there are also players who come in—maybe their band just got signed—and they’ll say, “I want a vintage black Les Paul Custom. I don’t care what it looks like, because I want to play it, and I have a deal with Seymour Duncan, so I’m going to put my own pickups in it.” When I can determine what someone wants, I may be able to get it for them. There are other factors in play, as well. Sometimes, a buyer may be steered by what we have in stock. They want something right there and right then. So, what they walk out with, may not be what they thought they wanted when they came in.

Pictured: 1953 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop Volume and Tone Controls

Would you put the brakes on if a player was buying a pristine mid-’50s Les Paul and admitted they planned to modify it rather extensively?

It's not my job or my place to not sell someone a vintage guitar—even if they are dead set on making changes to it. Hey, it’s going to be your guitar, so more power to you. Even if they just plan to put in new pickups and keep the originals to replace later, they’ve broken the solder joints, so it’s no longer in the condition it left the factory. But I would highly recommend they leave it as is. I could certainly find them something else.

Do vintage buyers need to be watchful for counterfeit Les Pauls?

We don’t see many outright fakes in the vintage world—especially with Les Pauls, because it’s not easy to take apart a Les Paul and put other parts in it. Where we’re seeing the preponderance of fakes is in the used world, where they’re replicating recent Les Paul guitars. These counterfeits look like Les Pauls—even up to the headstock. But someone is not necessarily going to know Epiphone pickups don’t belong in Gibson guitars. Used fakes are rampant—in the hundreds of thousands of guitars—and it’s a drag.

Pictured: 1959 Gibson Les Special Double Cut

Is it possible for a 1958 or 1959 sunburst Les Paul to become available these days?

Well, we don’t see bursts very often, because they’re few and far between. There was only about 1,500 of them made, give or take. But we see Goldtops and Customs from the ’50s.

Personally, what do you love about vintage Les Paul guitars?

I would say it comes down to the mythos and materials—the older woods, and for better or worse, the finishing formulas that aren’t even legal to use anymore. Vibe is certainly a big part of it, as well as knowing the pride a small group of people had back then as they made these guitars by hand. For example, if you can get a Goldtop Les Paul from the mid ’50s, you’re holding something that was designed and made public just a few years before that. For me, it all comes together to create something that goes beyond anything that can be made today.

Considering all the marvelous vintage guitars you’ve had a chance to evaluate and play, was there a particular model that simply rocked your world?

The best guitar I’ve ever heard was a ’57 Les Paul Goldtop with PAFs. There was absolutely something special going on with that guitar.

Pictured: 1959 Gibson Les Special Double Cut Headstock

Go for Vintage

Hopefully, this article has inspired you to hunt for a vintage Les Paul of your very own. You can start your search at our Vintage Les Paul Collection. If you need a little more information to be comfortable during the quest, our knowledgeable Gear Advisers are waiting to come to your aid.

If you’re not quite ready for a vintage Les Paul, check out current models in How to Choose the Best Gibson Les Paul. Fans of all things Les Paul shouldn’t miss How to Choose the Best Epiphone Les Paul.

More interested in old-school Strats? Get Hetherington’s advice on How to Buy a Vintage Stratocaster.