Some are. It's a matter of preference. I dig the older Goldtops--the RI's I've played haven't been as nice, but I've only played the display models at box music stores, which are never even close to set up.

The guy in TFA went back to save a '65 LP (the photo looks like LP Jr to me), and I think I'd do the same.

I'm partial to my Gretsch, though.

Jesus, I'd do that for a '65.

Crawl through napalm for a '59

You run into a burning building for a '65 is your legs work.

*IF* your legs work

for a '65? You run into a house.

For a BFG....you let it cook a little bit...adds to the character. But you get it back, dammit.

There's some things not quite right with that guitar. I'd love to see more/better pictures.

Not impressed.

Yeah, count me in for risking my life to save that one.

Although, I've never owned a Gibson. If I did, I wouldn't own a Les Paul. They just feel funny.

I'd probably play a 355 if I wasn't a broke-ass slacker, and you can damn well bet I'd rush inside a burning house to save a Gibson acoustic, too...:)

I'd probly run in there for a any decent 1965 guitar.

robbyking

Nice guitar. Is that a Atkins model or a Country Club?

I'd run in for any guitar ($200+) I didn't have insurance on.

Oh god - almost any '65 guitar is worth trying to save.

I'd run in for my '69 Martin.

As much as I love my '79 Silverburst, yes, they are somewhat overrated. I had an RD Artist Custom that sounded about as good and played the same. The Les Paul is very heavy, so I play my Jackson more often, which also sounds great.

I'm not sure if i'd run back in for it... but if I could reach it safely, heck yeah i'd get my guitar. It's a Gibson SG that I bought myself. Took a year to earn the money, and I bought it for my birthday.

Wouldn't be a matter of running back in -- I'd grab my Jazzmaster and jump out the window with it if I had to.

Dreadstar: There's some things not quite right with that guitar. I'd love to see more/better pictures.

It has dot inlays and the face of the headstock looks like natural mahogany instead of black. The body looks like natural finish mahogany too. I don't know what the fark kind of '65 Les Paul that is.

mrplavick: Dreadstar: There's some things not quite right with that guitar. I'd love to see more/better pictures.

It has dot inlays and the face of the headstock looks like natural mahogany instead of black. The body looks like natural finish mahogany too. I don't know what the fark kind of '65 Les Paul that is.

Yeah, and it looks like 2 pickups, but where's the switch? And what does the truss rod cover say? "LP %@&$%^!~"

Yep! I'd go back in for my '86 Les Paul Custom...

I have to agree with others that there is something a little fishy about that one being a '65...

I'm guessing it's an LP Junior, although I'm curious as to what's printed on the headstock. '60 LPJR:

Byn: Oh god - almost any '65 guitar is worth trying to save.

I'd run in for my '69 Martin.
=================
The submitter is an uniformed mongoloid. That guy was running back in for something that is worth well over $10,000.

Not much different than running back in for 10 grand in cash, unless there was a separate insurance policy on it.

By the way, your '69 Martin ain't cheap either.

you guys all have small wangs.

Way back in '70 I was working at The Music Loft in Greenville NC, which was located underneath The Attic, at that time one of the major stops on the Southern nightclub circuit. The Allman Bros were in town touring behind Idlewild South - about the third time they had played the club. The cover charge was $1 and the first beer was free.

The afternoon before the show, Duane Allman and "Red Dog" the roadie stroll into the shop to look around. I was just the shop go-fer but all the salesmen were upstairs having a beer. I got them the few things they wanted and as I was putting the stuff in a bag, I asked if the '58 was indeed the best Gibson ever made.

Allman laughed. He said he had a '58 because older guitars were pretty cheap back when he was first in the market. He did note that he felt the wood had a closer grain and the finishes seemed to be nicer but he also said something that made a lot of sense:

"Boy, I'm sure Gibson made some bad guitars back in '58. But you know, the bad ones are all gone - they've been burnt up or broke up or thrown out a window somewhere. It's like natural selection - only the good ones survive."

saulecker: you guys all have small wangs.

Thank god!

Actually it looks like a "The Paul" model. And I'm starting to think the TRC says "LP Firebrand".

Check this (new window) out.

And this (new window).

saulecker: you guys all have small wangs.

I'll bet you're a big fan of Guitar Hero...:)

Rock Band?

TommyymmoT: By the way, your '69 Martin ain't cheap either.

So I've heard. It's the guitar my dad used to play for me when I was a kid. He gave it to me a couple of months ago, and I swear I almost had to pry his fingers off it when he handed it to me. :)

Before he gave it to me he took it to a guitar shop to get some new strings and such, and when he put the case on the counter, people started to gather around. But, when he actually opened the case, a collective gasp was heard through the store. The guy that runs the shop said that he stayed hours past closing just to polish the thing.

I truly feel unworthy.

My vintage tube collection would come out first. Depending on how horribly disfigured I was, the Les Paul might make it on my second foray into the flames. Unless I saw like a box of pop tarts or something else equally valuable and distracting. I have to assume that plotting a third dash through the inferno would be hindered by my near certain numerous and painful burns and smoke inhalation. Also, keep in mind I would now have a sweet box of pop tarts and they would likely already be toasty. I have to admit, the Paul would probably not make it.

whidbey: I'll bet you're a big fan of Guitar Hero...:)

shiat yeah!

I'd have to save my cats first, but when it comes to my guitars I have "in-case the house is burning down" pecking order.

Nice find Dreadstar.

Never heard of that. That ain't no '65 that's for sure.

I sold my '78 Les Paul Anniversary model a year ago. I've played it every gig of my life up until I sold it. It sounds awesome, plays awesome, and stays in tune. It was the perfect guitar.

Until I figured out my lower back problems were from packing that much lumber 4 hours a night. I had to get rid of it because my body couldn't take it any more.

Used the money to by me a brand new PRS CE22 that is almost as good and got rid of my back problems.

/lawn, off - you know the drill

I had a '58 Goldtop back in college. I let it go shortly after marriage. Dumbest thing I've ever done.

Les Paul? Pffft, dime-a-dozen. I'd only go back for a Corvus.

saulecker: you guys all have small wangs.
========================
Ummm, no, they just have taste, and can appreciate an instrument that's pretty much a piece of art, and that appreciates in value more, and faster than gold, or rare coins.

I used to work repairing rare, and vintage guitars, and once talked a guy out of replacing the pickups on his 57 Paul with Demarzios, which had just come out.

It would have been a big sale, but even the owner of the place agreed it would be an act bordering on blasphemy.

Also, saulecker, you must have a wang the size of a small midwestern farming community to be seen riding a scooter like that.

I feel like I'm offending my guitars just looking around and thinking about them but I'd have to save my Raven. It's just a pawn shop special, strat knock-off that's fallen to pieces more than once but it was my first guitar and I've never come across one like it anywhere. Then the actual Fender Strat with Seymour Duncan pick-ups I got off a friend ultra cheap.

/Sorry off-the-shelf Acoustics

A real '65 Les Paul is worth some serious coin. I wouldn't own one, but I do appreciate them.

I just upgraded my Les Paul with Burstbuckers. Those pickups transformed my $700 purchase into a musical chainsaw...

I'd rescue it in an instant...along with my SG.

I actually prefer Les Pauls BECAUSE of the weightiness. When I'm on stage, it gives me a bit more balance when I jump around and such. Any other guitar would probably fly off or something. Plus it makes a great weapon if a stage diver thinks he can fark with me.

/apparently a Gibson sponsorship would sit well with me.

TommyymmoT: Ummm, no, they just have taste, and can appreciate an instrument that's pretty much a piece of art, and that appreciates in value more, and faster than gold, or rare coins.

I bet they're all Yankees or Manchester United fans too.

Also, saulecker, you must have a wang the size of a small midwestern farming community to be seen riding a scooter like that.

I have a small wang too. I just don't feel the need to compensate for it.

Fark U: so "dumb question" here but... why do i see some guitar players that have all the excess string hanging off the tuner posts, instead of clipping it short? is there some insider reasoning for this?

Laziness. I damn near lost an eye once because someone couldn't be bothered.

They're too damn heavy.

They appreciate over time. If you had to save one thing it's a pretty smart decision.

I was born in 1968. My father saw in me an extraordinary propensity to create beautiful and soul stirring music. He realized that I was truly worthy, and while he was not a rich man, he likewise determined that I required an instrument worthy of such a flourishing and monumental talent. He sold the family farm in winter of '69 in order to purchase a 1969 Martin.

Life was beautiful. I became one with that Martin, coaxing flawless and dare I say timeless melodies from that exquisite work of art. We were inseparable, myself and this wondrous mix of craft and art, my father watching proudly as I plied my burgeoning craft at the tender age of two.

The day started much as the ones preceding, my father had restrung my '69 Martin and brought it to my crib. I was happily playing while my father cooked a mess of Canadian bacon. We never saw him coming.

Bacon eh! That's right, a Canadian (probably visiting for our superior healthcare)had broached the compound, the smell of bacon drawing him unerring to our happy music filled home. He was savage, my little fingers played Oh Canada, Greensleeves, and possibly the solo from YYZ in a futile effort to placate the raging Canadian beast, all to no avail. He took the bacon, he took the last jelly donut, he gleefully drank our superior Budweiser beers, taunting us all the while. We were beaten severely, no doubt by a combination of Bret Hart wrestling skill and a couple of moves he could have only mastered by fighting Canadian polar bears.

His last act of bacon, donut, and beer fueled mayhem was to ply one 1969 Martin from my tender hands. My tenuous grasp weakened by his assault, I felt it slip away. I believe during the release, I played a perfect D minor appregio with an augmented 4th.

We drifted for a while after the incident. I don't know if we were looking for the 1969 Martin, solace, or revenge. I know that we visited the old family farm, I clearly recall my father saying "Yes, it was all worth it. We may have lost everything due to the raging Canuck, but it was worth it just to hear you play. You were truly worthy to play such a 1969 Martin my son".

If only I could find such an instrument again! Hope never dies.

Wait.. I thought they stopped making Les Pauls between 61 and 68

I don't have a Les Paul but I would run back in for my 2 Ibanez elects. and my dads old '77 Applause acoustic

pcrutch: I had a '58 Goldtop back in college. I let it go shortly after marriage. Dumbest thing I've ever done.

I was never much of a guitarist but working in a music shop I came across some bargains from guys down on their luck. A mid-60s SG for $90, a really nice ES-335 for $200, things like that.

Managed to hang on to them for ages but when it came time to put a downpayment on a house, those guitars had appreciated quite a bit. Much better than the stocks I had bought, that's for sure. It was a sad day to let them go, but I raised two kids in that house.

Unhip1: I just upgraded my Les Paul with Burstbuckers. Those pickups transformed my $700 purchase into a musical chainsaw...

I'd rescue it in an instant...along with my SG.

I actually prefer Les Pauls BECAUSE of the weightiness. When I'm on stage, it gives me a bit more balance when I jump around and such. Any other guitar would probably fly off or something. Plus it makes a great weapon if a stage diver thinks he can fark with me.

/apparently a Gibson sponsorship would sit well with me.

I did do that with my LP about 4-5 years ago. I put I think a #2 at the bridge and a #3 at the neck. The balls meter went up to 11 with tons of sustain.

Put a set of .010's on there with those burst buckers and use a thick pick - it'll make those farkers come alive.

saulecker:

I bet they're all Yankees or Manchester United fans too.


Be sure to let us know when you need a light down in that hole you're digging yourself.

When, for over half your life, you own something that's almost as old as you are, and you've used it almost everyday you've had it, you tend to form just the slightest shred of appreciation for and attachment to it. Is that really so hard for you to get? I think you'll find that to be the case in a significantly higher percentage of cases than the "couldn't buy a 'vette, but check out the awesome vintage guitar I just bought because it makes me feel cool" compensator types, at least around here.

I'd go back for my Ibanez Lawsuit Les Paul. Not that it's anywhere near as good or valuable as a real LP, but I've had it for nearly 20 years and I just love the way it feels and sounds.

sadbad: Wait.. I thought they stopped making Les Pauls between 61 and 68

well, that's what Wikipedia say too!