Although the Les Paul Custom neck with which it was most often seen has lead to some confusion over the origins of Marc Bolan's guitar, the instrument was actually a late-'50s Les Paul that was stripped and refinished by Bolan himself in a faded translucent orange dubbed "Bolan Chablis", then "re-necked" after an accident in the early '70s. As such, the body of the Gibson Custom Marc Bolan Les Paul is produced with period-correct woods and techniques, and includes a solid (non-chambered)
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one-piece mahogany body and carved plain maple top, as revealed through Gibson Custom's recreation of Bolan's own "DIY" refinishing work, while its sides and back retain the original back finish.
Its mahogany neck is set with a long-tenon neck joint like all the great original Les Pauls, for added resonance and sustain, although its look and the rest of its construction mark a major departure for the instrument. Like the early-'70s Les Paul Custom neck that Bolan had added to his guitar in the course of its repair, this neck carries the ebony fingerboard that distinguishes that "upgraded" model, along with the large mother-of-pearl block inlays, period-correct 14º headstock pitch, and mother-of-pearl split-diamond headstock inlay in a holly headstock veneer.
To translate all of this thick, juicy vintage Les Paul tone to your amp of choice, the guitar carries a pair of Custom Buckers, an accurate PAF-reproduction humbucker designed specifically for the Marc Bolan Les Paul. Along with its mismatched nickel-plated ABR-1 Tune-o-matic bridge and gold-plated aluminum stopbar tailpiece, the Custom-spec gold-plated Grover tuners and a PLEK-cut Corian nut further enhance the resonance and singing sustain of this unique instrument.
With only 450 produced in total-100 hand aged, a further 350 given the VOS (Vintage Original Spec) process-they are bound to go fast, so get your hands on your own Marc Bolan Les Paul today. All are covered by Gibson's Limited Lifetime Warranty and 24/7/365 Customer Service, and include a black Gibson Custom case with plush red lining, Artist Model Certificate of Authenticity with Marc Bolan photo, warranty and adjustment literature, and a vintage style guitar strap.
Body and Finish
Made from the classic tonewood combination of carved maple top and one-piece mahogany back, and dressed in a DIY-style faded translucent "Bolan Chablis" finish, the Marc Bolan Les Paul is an accurate rendition of the much modified late-'50s Les Paul that the T. Rex frontman made his own, and which propelled numerous glam-rock hits of the early '70s.
Species
The body of each Marc Bolan Les Paul is crafted from a two-piece carved plain maple top glued to a solid, one-piece lightweight mahogany back.
Design
The Marc Bolan Les Paul precisely follows the body lines and dimensions of the original late-'50s Les Paul, with a gently arched carved top and rounded lower bout, and combines the classic tonewood combination of mahogany back and carved maple top. The body's back is cut from a single piece of solid, high-grade, lightweight clear mahogany, and capped with a two-piece top of plain maple that is carved into a period-correct "dish", or arch.
Tonal Characteristics
The Marc Bolan Les Paul's body woods present the classic combination of good clarity, definition and treble bite from the maple, and excellent depth and richness from the mahogany, all of which are elements that are found in the legendary tone of the original Les Paul. This is one of the most revered wood combinations of all time, and truly offers a "best of both worlds" design in the way that mahogany and maple complement each other to offer superior resonance, sustain, depth, clarity, and definition.
Average Weight
Weights vary slightly, according to wood supplies, but Gibson's Custom Shop seeks out the lightest, most tonally advantageous mahogany for the one-piece bodies of the Marc Bolan Les Paul.
Color
The top of the Marc Bolan Les Paul wears an accurate reproduction of Bolan's own "DIY" refinishing job in faded translucent orange, a color dubbed "Bolan Chablis".
Surface Texture
To replicate the appearance of the original guitar, the guitar's nitrocellulose finish is aged in one of two ways: 100 examples will be hand-aged by the artisans of Gibson Custom, while another 350 will be treated with Gibson's VOS process, resulting in an authentic road-worn patina.
Process
The body of the Marc Bolan Les Paul is hand-finished in nitrocellulose in a process that closely replicates the finishing process applied to original Les Pauls of 1958-'60. Like the great Les Pauls made 50 years ago, this instrument is finished with minimum build-up, in an effort to produce a finish that breathes with the guitar and enhances natural resonance. The top finish represents a "DIY" finishing job, replicating the look of a guitar that has been hand-stripped and finished with two thin coasts of nitrocellulose lacquer.
Pickups and Electronics
A pair of custom-made humbucking pickups accurately replicate the tone and performance of the original PAF pickups in Marc Bolan's late-'50s Les Paul, with the unparalleled blend of power, clarity and depth that has made these pickups famous. They are routed through high-quality CTS potentiometers for volume and tone, with "bumble bee" tone capacitors, and a Switchcraft three-way toggle switch.
Pickups Model
The guitar is fitted with custom-made Custom Bucker units with slightly mismatched coils wound with accurate turns of 42 AWG enamel-coated wire, just like original PAFs, to attain output readings comparable to pickups from that era. They are made with genuine Alnico III magnets for an outstanding blend of smoothness and clarity, and represent some of the fines PAF reproductions ever released by Gibson.
Magnet Material
Gibson's Custom Buckers use Alnico III bar magnets, just like some of the most prized original PAF humbuckers of the late '50s and early '60s.
Tonal Characteristics
The Custom Bucker recreates all the most beloved tones of the original PAF humbucking pickups. It offers added clarity mixed with vowel-like tone in the neck position, and is perfectly balanced with its partner in the bridge position. The bridge pickup has a slightly hotter output in the range of some of the more over-wound PAFs of the era, for more grind and sustain from the lead position. Between them, they accurately translate all the warmth, depth, and clarity of the Marc Bolan Les Paul's woods into a tone that is rich yet crisp and can range from an aggressive wail to a mellow moan, all at the flick of a switch and the turn of a knob.
Volume Controls
Just like the original, the Marc Bolan Les Paul uses an independent Volume control for each pickup, which consists of a quality CTS 500k audio-taper potentiometer for a smooth, natural volume roll-off.
Toggle Switch
The Marc Bolan Les Paul features the classic three-way Switchcraft toggle switch with cream plastic tip. In the down position this selects the bridge pickup, in the up position the neck pickup, and in the middle it selects both pickups together.
Tone Controls
Individual CTS 500k audio-taper potentiometers with accurate .022mF "bumble bee" tone capacitors provide independent tone controls for each pickup.
Output Jack
The guitar features a 1/4" output jack made by Switchcraft, for years of trouble-free service.
Neck, Fingerboard and Headstock
As with the most familiar incarnation of Marc Bolan's own Les Paul, this Artist Model carries an early-'70s style Les Paul Custom neck. This includes an ebony fingerboard with mother-of-pearl block inlays, a period-correct 14º headstock pitch, and a holly head veneer with mother-of-pearl split-diamond inlay. It is topped by a Corian nut and aged gold Grover tuners
Neck Species
The neck of the Marc Bolan Les Paul is constructed from one solid piece of quarter-sawn, lightweight mahogany for improved strength and resonance. The luthiers in Gibson's Custom Shop carefully match the grains and weights of these guitars' bodies and necks to optimize tone and sustain.
Headstock Angle (Pitch)
Just like Les Paul Customs of the early '70s, from which Bolan's replacement neck was derived, the Marc Bolan Les Paul headstock is carefully angled at a period-correct 14º
Neck Profile
The neck on the Marc Bolan Les Paul is carved to a fast but rounded profile that measures .800" at the 1st fret and .960 at the 12th.
Truss Rod
Gibson's traditional truss rod, found in most all of our guitars, is highly responsive to the individual adjustments you'll want to make to personalize and optimize string action and sustain.
Tonal Characteristics
Every detail counts in the effort of bringing the classic Les Paul tone to the Marc Bolan Les Paul, and the angled, classical-style peg head and mahogany neck work together to provide exceptional tonal richness and resonance from the neck, with a good string definition and sustain.
Logo
The traditional, period-correct Gibson logo is inlaid in mother of pearl across the top of a holly headstock veneer, with a mother-of-pearl split-diamond Les Paul Custom inlay in the center of the head.
Joint
Gibson uses what is known as the Mortis & Tenon joint to bind neck to body so that the two pieces form one solid unit. On the Marc Bolan Les Paul, this technique incorporates the lauded "long neck tenon" which extends further into the body than the tenon on the necks of many other, later guitars, greatly enhancing resonance and sustain, as well as neck strength in general.
Adhesive
The adhesive used to join neck and body is Franklin Titebond 50, one of the strongest glues on the market today. Tolerance
When fitting the neck and body together, we take advantage of our precise measuring equipment so that all angles, pitches and alignments maintain a tolerance within .005 of an inch. Not only does this help to keep your guitar in tune but it also maintains proper string alignment relative to the fingerboard.
Joint Angle
4.0° (+/- 15 seconds)
Fingerboard Species
The Marc Bolan Les Paul carries an ebony fingerboard, the traditional fingerboard of the original Les Paul Custom. Ebony is known for its superior durability and its bright, clear tone, and has long been considered and upgrade on any electric guitar.
Inlays
The Marc Bolan Les Paul fingerboard carries mother-of-pearl block position-marker inlays, echoing the traditional look of the original Les Paul Custom.
Frets
The Marc Bolan Les Paul's fingerboard carries 22 medium-jumbo frets, all immaculately dressed and polished by Gibson PLEK system.
Tonal Characteristics
Ebony fingerboards are known for their enhanced clarity and definition.
Radius
Just like that of the original Les Pauls, the 12-inch radius of the Marc Bolan Les Paul fingerboard provides smooth note bending capabilities and eliminates "dead" or "choked out" notes, common occurrences on fingerboards with lesser radiuses.
Nut Material
The nut on the Marc Bolan Les Paul is made from Corian, which is mainly composed of acrylic polymer. This popular synthetic alternative to bone offers a very durable material, delivers enhanced sustain, and holds the tolerances of the precision cuts made in the slotting process. It is installed into the top surface of the neck, butting up to the end of the fingerboard to ensure proper tone and sustain transfer, and its nut slots are cut with Gibson's PLEK system to ensure precise fit, break angle, and string spacing.
Nut Width
The width of the nut on the Marc Bolan Les Paul is approximately 1.687", which is in line with the traditional nut width of Gibson electric guitars.
Hardware
The hardware set on the Marc Bolan Les Paul reflects the "mix and match" hardware on the T. Rex frontman's original Les Paul. The guitar wears the original nickel-plated ABR-1 Tune-o-matic bridge of the late-'50s Les Paul, partnered with a gold-plated aluminum stopbar tailpiece and gold-plated Grover tuners derived from the Les Paul Custom. All hardware is either hand aged or VOS aged.
Tuning Keys
The headstock of the Marc Bolan Les Paul is equipped with gold-plated Grover tuners, an upgraded tuner used on Les Paul Customs of the '50s, '60s and '70s.
Bridge
In the image of its predecessor, the Marc Bolan Les Paul carries a Tune-o-matic (ABR-1) bridge that is made from zinc and plated in polished nickel. This bridge provides a firm seating for the strings, allowing the player to adjust and fine-tune the intonation and string height in a matter of minutes. It also yields excellent coupling between strings and body, maximizing resonance, tone, and sustain. Bridge
Trussrod Cover
The truss rod cover on the Marc Bolan Les Paul follows the period-correct "antique bell" shape of the originals, and is made from black and white vinyl plastic.
Tailpiece
Every Tune-o-matic bridge is combined with a separate "stopbar" tailpiece, which is essentially a modified version of the earlier wraparound bridge that's designed to further enhance the connection between the strings and the body. The Marc Bolan Les Paul's stopbar tailpiece is made from lightweight aluminum, like the original, and is plated in gold like that on the most familiar incarnation of Bolan's own guitar.
Strap Buttons
The guitar's aluminum strap buttons are the same style and design that Gibson has used since the early 1950s.
Control Knobs
The Marc Bolan Les Paul's Volume and Tone controls carry historically correct gold top-hat knobs.
Pickguard
To replicate the look of the original, this guitar carries a single-ply cream plastic Les Paul pickguard.
Strings
The Marc Bolan Les Paul is fitted with genuine Gibson strings, sizes .010 - .046.
Body
Top Maple
Back 1-Piece Solid Mahogany
Binding .090, Cream
Adhesive Franklin Titebond
Neck
Species Mahogany
Profile 50's Rounded
Truss Rod Traditional
Joint Angle 4° (+/- 15 seconds)
Adhesive Franklin Titebond
Neck Fit
Joint Mortise & Tenon
Adhesive Franklin Titebond
Joint Angle Tolerance +/- .005"
Fingerboard
Species Ebony
Frets 22 Medium Jumbo
Radius 12"
Binding .075" White Binding
Inlays Mother-of-Pearl Blocks
Nut/E.O.B 1.687/2.062
Other Black Side Dot Markers
Nut
Material Corian
Width 1.687
Slots Gibson PLEK System
Headstock
Type Les Paul Custom
Logo Gibson Logo Mother-of-Pearl Inlay, Holly Head Veneer with Split Diamond Inlay
Binding .75" White Binding
Truss Rod Cover Vintage Gibson Bell Shaped Molded
Angle 14 Degrees
Tuners
Model Grover Kidney tuners
Tuning Ratio 14:01
Plating Gold
Bridge
Type Tune-O-Matic (ABR-1)
Material Zinc
Plating Nickel
Tailpiece
Type Stop Bar
Material Lightweight Aluminum
Plating Gold
Hardware
Knobs Historically Correct Gold Top-Hat Knobs with Metal Pointer Rings
Toggle Switch Washer Cream with Gold Silkscreen
Pickguard Vintage-Cream Plastic
Strings .010 - .046, Vintage Strings
Strap Buttons Aluminum Strap Buttons
Pickups
Neck Position Zebra Custom Bucker
Bridge Position Custom Bucker
Magnet Material Alnico III
Electronics
Potentiometers 2 Volume Controls, 2 Tone Controls
Type 500k audio-taper, 022mF "Bumble Bee" Tone Capacitors
Coil Wiring Parallel-Machine Wound
Toggle Switch Three-Way Switchcraft with Vintage Cream Toggle Cap
Output Jack 1/4" Switchcraft
Case
Type Custom Shop Hardshell
Case Exterior Black Pleather-with Bolan's signature silkscreened in gold
Case Interior Red Fur Lining |
