'Pick of the Day' - 1971 Gibson Les Paul Custom and Matchless Chieftain

It's a great day for an awesome Les Paul, and today's 1971 Custom will not disappoint! This guitar is in good condition, with a few changes made for playability, and Jay will give you the details but at the heart we've got a pair of great and fat sounding humbuckers, the great black and gold look, and the expected Les Paul sustain. For amplification, we've got the venerable 1996 Matchless Chieftain, a killer Sampson-era combo that can touch on just about any genre, in a compact 2x12 combo! We've got Aaron Hiebert in the shop today, so lets get to it!

For more information on the guitar or amp, please check out:

Music: The Hollers "When We Were Young" (Instrumental)

[HooksBill]

Sounds killer! I got chills and yes they were multiplying.

[MichaelSorensen-blec]

Very responsive and dynamic. Impressive demo. I've always shied away from guitars with gold hardware, because it seems to tarnish so much. But on this one, it just adds to the patina.

[_RLP]

Aaron killed it, man... That first riff is pure rock n roll.
Kudos, guys.

[mikelembo]

When I close my eyes, that’s the Les Paul sound I hear! I love Les Paul Customs.

[billgessel]

what an Amazing Gibson custom, ,,i about cried when i saw it, , , nothing is more beautiful

[christianmarchan]

That guitar is in my bucket list it's gorgeous... love the demo, Aaron always makes me wanna grab my guitar and crank the amp all the way up!!

[REDISMATRIPICO]

Love guitars that's my hobbies playing with music thanks sharing..

[MikeSrok]

Very nice LP Jay, and that amp's a beauty! Killer tone🎸🎶

[darrtetzy]

Sell them together - they sound so good as a team it'd be a shame to separate them.

[waynewhiteside]

I have a 1971 Black Custom sitting next to me. The only difference is it has witch-hat knobs all the numbers worn off. The neck is kind of thin but perfect. It had a headstock break and has no volute now.

[johnpike]

Had one, and because of the fat boy frets had tuning issues.
I tried everything but discovered that raising the Stop Bar to the same Break Angle from the nut to the tuning posts, helped a lot.
The Les Paul has been criticized For the Break Angle but an extensive study shows us that most ancient stringed instruments had even more radical BA's at the tuning posts.
Unlike the 2 Piece "Bolt On Neck" the Les Paul's tone is driven and then translated into and down the neck and into the body from that preload on the nut.
(most good guitarist will confess that; They Can actually FEEL the note in their finger board hand)
Matching that Preload Angle at The Other end (stop bar) allowed a more balanced ability for the Bent string to find its place rather that slipping up beyond the nut where many thought their tuning issues were.
We also keep in mind that a Jazz Guitarist designed it and there are very few bends used in Jazz.
signed; prune juice and viagra

[glenkepic]

My all time favorite Custom type. Chieftain was something I only read about (Guitar Shop Magazine). This was late '90s.
Both sounded great here.

[pjones]

THAT is breathtaking. Perhaps my favorite sounding combo I have heard here.

[ryanfulldark]

I have an owners manual that belongs to a 71 Custom.

[seanhershey]

The Amp sounds amazing...I actually thought the price was a bit cheap..:)

[garysmith]

I love the idea of the custom, but they always feel heavy and clunky to me. I actually tried another 57 reissue Monday, but Actually this guitar is not priced too badly and sounds killer with the Matchless. Arron seems to like a very bright sound, which can be a bit brittle, but great playing man. I need to try out an AC30 voiced amp. I was in a guitar shop in Truro a few years back and heard this killer sound and it was a guy trying an AC30. Some good players in Cornwall UK.

[nigel]

And what's the absurd price of the day?

[PPoyares]

The first time I heard from this amp was reading about a Scott Henderson "dog party" recording. He said he plugged his fender 60s stratocaster in a maxon od-9 straight throught this matchless amplifier. I can say this amp has one of the best tones I ever heard in my life.

[DIARIODEIMIGRANTE]

Wowwww beautiful Guitar and presentation. Thank you so much, from Brazil, United Kingdom.

[jak]

Hello friends!
given your incredible knowledge of these tools, can I ask you which product do you use to polish it?
my black beauty of 73. when I pass the damp cloth it immediately becomes dull and hazy gray, it's horrible.
I do not know what to do.
thank you so much!!
sorry my english translated by google
Paolo, Italy