❌SOLD❌ Gibson Custom Shop SG Metallic Emerald Green, 1993

Here we have another rarity – from September 1993, a Gibson Custom Shop SG in Emerald Green Metallic finish with gold hardware and pearloid pickguard!

The Gibson SG had been produced for three years before it gained the name ‘SG’. It was originally introduced in 1961 as a complete redesign of the then-unpopular single cutaway, carved Maple top Les Paul model. An additional driving factor was addressing Fender’s characterization of Gibson as old-fashioned.

Ted McCarty, then Gibson CEO and Larry Allers, one of Gibson’s top carvers and design engineers had been involved in what became the Les Paul model since 1950, two years before the guitar appeared. In 1960, given unsustainably low sales levels, McCarty, Allers and team came up with a new design that re-used a double-florentine-cutaway body – as seen on the 1957 – 1962 ‘Double 12’, but with the upper horn offset towards the head.

This new design, created without Les Paul’s input, offered complete access to all the upper frets, something Fender did not offer. Sales increased significantly, with 2,175 of the new design shipped in 1961, compared to about 1,700 for the three prior years. In 1962, Gibson’s contract with Les Paul ended, and Paul did not want to renew it – partly due to the legal complications the renewal would have on his divorce from Mary Ford, and this situation persisted until 1968. So for 1963, the guitar was re-named the SG, as it is still known – except for a few reissue models.

Here we’re looking at a Gibson Custom Shop SG with a ‘Batwing’ style pickguard, a changed introduced in 1967. This larger pickguard removed the need for pickup mounting rings and offered better scratch protection to the guitar top. As with the originals, the body and neck are Central American Mahogany, with Indian Rosewood used for the bound fingerboard (until the late 1960’s, Gibson like others commonly used Brazilian Rosewood for fingerboards).

But this Gibson Custom Shop SG has gold plated hardware, a pearloid pickguard, and an Emerald Green Metallic nitrocellulose lacquer finish! Overall this example is in good condition with very light wear to the frets, but the body back has a few small dents, plus one on the rear of the neck behind the 8th fret. The gold plating on the bridge thumbwheels and pickup covers has some corrosion, but light wear. The neck shape and balance are very comfortable.

The original reddish – almost ‘Oxblood’ coloured – faux-gator hide, Gibson branded hard shell case is included.