Gibson Custom Shop’s new Murphy Lab has one purpose: to take expert aging artist Tom Murphy’s proprietary techniques to the next level. Here, Tom and his personally trained team of artists use cutting-edge technology and Tom’s own processes, developed over years of careful testing, to produce perfect replicas of golden-age Gibsons, each dressed with Tom’s brand of authentic, hand-applied playwear, and scientifically reverse-engineered nitrocellulose lacquer, identical to that which the brand used in the 1950s and 1960s. Each Murphy Lab model corresponds to one of four distinct aging levels and features extra-rolled fingerboard binding for a broken-in feel and true-to-life look.
The 1958 Les Paul Standard Reissue features all the painstaking historic construction methods of the famous ’59 Reissues with a few historically-accurate spec differences that allow it to stand on its own. Like the 1958 originals, it has narrow frets which help more of the fingerboard wood to be heard in the tone profile. It also has a round, chunky neck profile for a full feel and maximum bending leverage. It has a beautiful plain maple top; each is unique and full of character. It also features Ultra Light Aging by the skilled artisans of the Murphy Lab. The Murphy Lab Light Aged finish treatment, paired with lightly aged hardware, simulates decades of light play wear, giving it the unique character, vibe, and feel of an original example from the Gibson Golden Era.
Serial #: 82965
Weight: 8lbs 12oz
Body Shape: Les Paul
Back: 1-Piece Lightweight Mahogany
Top: 2-Piece Plain Maple, Hide Glue Fit
Weight Relief: None
Binding: 1-Ply Royalite
Neck: Solid Mahogany
Profile: Chunky C-Shape
Nut width: 1.687″ / 42.85mm
Fingerboard: Indian Rosewood, Hide Glue Fit
Scale length: 24.75″ / 628.65mm
Number of frets: 22
Nut: Nylon
Inlay: Aged Cellulose Nitrate Trapezoid
Bridge: No-Wire ABR-1
Tailpiece: Lightweight Aluminum Stop Bar
Knobs: Butyrate Gold Top Hats
Tuners: Kluson Single Line, Single Ring
Plating: Nickel; Murphy Lab Light Aged
Neck pickup: Custombucker Alnico 3 (Unpotted)
Bridge pickup: Custombucker Alnico 3 (Unpotted)
Controls: 2 Volume, 2 Tone, CTS 500K Audio Taper Potentiometers, Paper-in-Oil Capacitors
Case: Brown/Pink Lifton Reissue 5-Latch