1989 Epiphone Les Paul Collection

The 1989/90 production year was the first year that Epiphone started manufacturing set neck Les Paul guitars in their Korean production facility. This vintage features the rare and highly sought after Gibson "open book" headstocks, paper serial number labels, Gibson truss rod and other USA features. The first production run featured two Les Paul Customs in EB (Ebony) and AW (Arctic White), and two Les Paul Standards in CS (Cherry Sunburst) and HS (Honey Sunburst). This is the only complete collection we've seen of Les Paul models produced during that first year. Each guitar has been tastefully upgraded while keeping true to the original stock build.

*** Please Contact Us if you are interested in purchasing this collection of Epiphone 1989 Les Pauls. Final sale price to be determined. ***

1989 Epiphone Les Paul Custom - AW

This was our first 1989 Epiphone Les Paul find and restoration. Upgrades include Gibson 490R/498T pickups, new bridge & tailpiece combo, Schaller strap locks, and our StayTuned Custom Shop Les Paul wiring harness.

We found this guitar (body & neck only) a few years ago in Seattle, WA. Little did we know at the time that it was a vintage first-year run. This was our very first full-on, end to end restoration & upgrade project. This also marked the beginning of an exhaustive search for the other models manufactured that same year.

1989 Epiphone LEs Paul Custom - EB

This was our second 1989 Epiphone Les Paul restoration and upgrade project. Upgrades include Gibson 490R/498T pickups, new bridge & tailpiece combo, Schaller strap locks, and our StayTuned Custom Shop Les Paul wiring harness.

We found this guitar a couple of years later in Portland, OR. It was a sight for sore eyes when we first picked it up too, having obviously been neglected for many years. After a lot of work (and elbow grease!) it cleaned up well!

1989 Epiphone les Paul Standard - CS

This was our third 1989 Epiphone Les Paul restoration. Fashioned after the Gibson Les Paul Classic, premium upgrades include Gibson 496R/500T open coil ceramic pickups, Gotoh bridge & tailpiece combo, Gibson gold top hat knobs, Schaller strap locks, and our StayTuned Custom Shop Les Paul CTS wiring harness.

This guitar hails from Toronto, Ontario (Canada!). It too has seen better days, with it's fair share of dents & dings, nevertheless it's still a solid axe. The previous owner had installed a pair of EMG active pickups and black plastic trim which really took away from the bright, clean look of the Cherry Sunburst finish. It "cleaned up good" too and has been returned to its former glory with the proper cream trim.

1989 Epiphone les Paul Standard - HS

And finally, rounding out the collection, this was our fourth 1989 Epiphone Les Paul restoration. Premium upgrades include Gibson 490R/498T pickups, Gotoh bridge & tailpiece combo, Gibson Kluson style vintage tuners, Gibson top hat knobs, Schaller strap locks, and our StayTuned Custom Shop Les Paul CTS wiring harness.

This guitar came from Olympia, WA. Out of the four guitars, this one is far and away in the the best condition. The previous owner was a young musician who was eager to sell it to buy a different guitar. We were rather surprised when we opened it up to find that it already had a Gibson 490R in the neck, and a Gibson Tarback Super Humbucker no less in the bridge! Obviously a previous owner to that saw the same potential in the platform as did we.