Dudz Posted September 30, 2008 Report Share Posted September 30, 2008 Over the weekend I went to one of the guitar stores I like and in there was a very unusual guitar. A Gibson Les Paul Firebrand. It was not stock as the original bridge and tailpiece were replaced with a roller bridge and some sort of tremolo that works like a bigsby but fits in place of the stop bar. The tone from the thing was glorious and the only bad thing was that the grooves in the nut were too low, the bridge was positioned too low, and the pickup height need adjustment. These were all very minor things as well. I researched it and that it was a special model with a thiner walnut body, the pickup selector switch was also where it would be on an sg, it has an ebony fret board, and pickups were gibson t tops. The store was asking for about $560 for if I remember correctly and i might be able to put it on layaway until I have the money to fully pay for it. Anyone else have experience with these les pauls? It's the first time I ever loved a les paul or any sort of humbucker equipped guitar before like this. To describe the tone I'd have to say rich, chimey, full, edgy on the bridge soft on the neck pickup, and more sustain than I'd ever need! I've only heard of 80's gibsons being terrible not amazing however I believe this series began in the late 70's. One more thing, the light reddish finish has faded to a pink-red slightly yellow color that just looks awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psw Posted October 1, 2008 Report Share Posted October 1, 2008 I remember when they came out! They probably didn't last long....they were the cheapest gibsons around by taking away all the frills and decorative features and fancy woods. They were called firebrands because the gibson logo was burnt into the headstock. They also saved on routing and such by locating all the controls in the one cavity. They came in three types...The Paul, The SG and an interesting 355S which was a solidbody version of the 335. In many ways they are like the old melody maker guitars in construction and intent... They were great guitars but as new sold in a very "brown" finish that was never going to be terrifically popular. The trem you have was also a 70's thing and a bit like a bigsby that fitted to the tailpiece. I had one and it was never very reliable and a bugger to keep in tune on an LP...plus it had a tendancy to mark the top...not good. The original tailpiece may have been the fine tuner version and some of the models had a coil cut switch (mini toggle) and I think dirty finger pickups. A typical gibson TOM would be a good return to form I suspect... They were good no nonsense guitars at the time and probably a bit rare now. If the finish has faded to something attractive over the original dark brown, it would be interesting to see... If it sounds good and feels good...then it is good! pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ooten2 Posted October 1, 2008 Report Share Posted October 1, 2008 I had a 335S Firebrand back in about 1981 or so, bought it brand new. It had a TOM, and was very similar to the Pauls, only it was a double cutaway. PSW is exactly right on everything, it was a brownish wood finish, and the main thing I remember about that guitar, it smelled like smoke. Seriously, there was a smokey smell to the finish. It was a great guitar, with a great tone and it played very nice. I sold it to a buddy for $500 back in the late 80's because I had too many guitars and needed the cash. It's one of those guitars that now I wish I had held on to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted October 1, 2008 Report Share Posted October 1, 2008 i did a major refret and set-up on a much abused 78 'the paul'... I loved it. The thin walnut body sounded great , i think it had t-top humbuckers. that was the precurser to the firebrands and from your description i would say it is what you have tried http://vintage-guitars.blogspot.com/2006/02/gibson-paul.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dudz Posted October 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2008 This guitar wasn't "the paul" it is a different firebrand les paul that came with the only difference in the finish which on this one was a faded red pink finish as opposed to the brown stain and this has the t top pickups not the dirty fingers hopn I can scrounge up the money to put on layaway in case anyone else with an ear for tone stops by the store. Most people consider the guitar ugly though and sadly finishes usually sell guitars more than tone so I have little to worry about most likely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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