Sweetwater’s Homage to the Les Paul’s Refinished Relics
Back in the Les Paul Standard’s pre-“'Burst” era, just about every model produced by Gibson came with a gleaming golden top. It’s an iconic look, but certainly not for everyone — which is why you’ll find scores of refinished vintage Les Pauls with striking custom color undercoats that are only revealed once the top coat is worn through. Our Sweetwater-spec Gibson Custom Dealer Select 1957 Les Paul Standard pays tribute to those rare and modified axes, sporting a maple-topped mahogany body that pairs a Murphy Lab Ultra Heavy Aged Ebony finish laid over a Cherry Sunburst base coat. The mahogany neck, with its robust 1959 Medium C-shaped profile, is a pleasure to get your hands on. The rosewood fingerboard, garnished with eye-catching cellulose nitrate trapezoid inlays, provides the perfect platform for rapid-fire playability. The sound of this Les Paul is driven by Sweetwater’s custom-designed Alnico IV–loaded Sugarbucker pickups, delivering a gorgeous array of dulcet PAF-inspired tones. Finally, our 1957 Les Paul Standard seals the deal with a Tune-o-matic bridge with a stopbar tailpiece, Kluson Deluxe tuning machines, and gold top hat knobs — and you can only get it at Sweetwater!
Related Videos: Dealer Select 1957 Les Paul Standard Electric Guitar - Ebony over Cherry Sunburst, Murphy Lab Ultra Heavy Aged, Sweetwater Exclusive
Dealer Select guitars: curated perfection from Gibson Custom and Sweetwater
This unparalleled instrument wears the badge of Sweetwater and Gibson Custom’s Dealer Select collaboration, a prestigious program that enables us to provide our most discerning customers with custom-spec’d, limited-run Gibson Custom guitars with exclusive features and appointments. Through this initiative, Sweetwater’s guitar experts work closely with artisans from Gibson’s Custom Shops in Nashville and Bozeman, Montana, to dream up inventive and alluring variations of Gibson’s most beloved guitars. From custom finishes to from-the-ground-up tonewood transformations and beyond, our collection of Dealer Select instruments boasts a personalized touch that off-the-shelf production models simply can’t match — and you can only get them at Sweetwater!
Handcrafted by Gibson’s elite luthiers
Painstakingly handcrafted by Gibson’s elite luthiers in the company’s Custom Shop using only the finest materials, this Sweetwater-exclusive Les Paul— like every Gibson Custom guitar — is optimized for playability before leaving the factory. The superior craftsmanship of Gibson Custom's master luthier is apparent in every detail, from their immaculate fretwork to the comfortably rolled and beveled fingerboard edges. In every respect, these exquisite instruments — whether they be vintage replications or all-new creations — are among the finest Gibson has built since the company was founded in 1902.
Sweetwater-exclusive Sugarbucker pickups
This Gibson Custom Dealer Select 1957 Les Paul Standard is equipped with a set of Sweetwater Exclusive Sugarbucker pickups. Designed in collaboration with Gibson’s resident pickup-winding wizard, Jared Brandon, Sugarbuckers forgo pure period-correct specs to offer modern players and vintage die-hards a sweeter spin on the classic PAF formula. Loaded with Alnico IV magnets and boasting wax-potted construction, these humbuckers combine legendary PAF clarity with modern, microphonic-free performance. They also feature a very slightly underwound construction, which accentuates the naturally lower-output voice of Alnico IV. It all comes together to form what we’re proud to call our perfect PAF-style humbucker — and you can only get them at Sweetwater!
Hair-raising vintage-style hardware
One of Gibson’s many accomplishments during the 1950s was the development of the ABR-1 — the famous Tune-o-matic bridge — which allows for precise intonation of each string. The patent for this design was granted to Gibson president Ted McCarty, a fact that has never been in dispute. However, it wasn’t until more recently that McCarty’s many innovations have been fully recognized. Since then, millions of guitars have been built with variations on this theme. This Dealer Select 1957 Les Paul Standard includes an ABR-1 bridge, further enhanced by a stopbar tailpiece and Kluson Deluxe tuning machines.
Gibson Custom Dealer Select 1957 Les Paul Standard Features:
- Dealer Select solidbody electric guitar, available only at Sweetwater
- Unique “color-over-color” finish places an Ebony finish over a Cherry Sunburst base coat
- Maple top with classic aesthetics and eye-catching binding
- Non-weight-relieved mahogany body with a spotlight-ready Murphy Lab Ultra Heavy Aged nitro finish
- Mahogany neck with a substantial 1959 Medium C-shaped profile
- 22-fret rosewood fingerboard with cellulose nitrate trapezoid inlays
- Sweetwater’s Alnico IV-loaded Sugarbucker pickups combine legendary PAF clarity with modern, microphonic-free performance
- TOM bridge with a stopbar tailpiece, Kluson Deluxe tuning machines, and gold top hat knobs
- Handcrafted in Gibson’s Custom Shop
