Love it! I have played 2 Gold Tops, but never owned my own. As a side note, I played Les Pauls mostly, and found a Memphis copy that played better than any Gibson I ever touched. I wish I still had it but had to have a BC Rich Warlock a bit more at the time and traded with a friend.
@RPlace thank you for sharing and what a find! Very cool that this one is a Kay and not an offline Kraftsman. Theyāre amazing guitars, especially for slide. I donāt know the full details on that pickup, but they āsure hellā smoke.
I talked to Ryan Bingham about his Kraftsman not long after seeing him play one at ACL 2011. I was standing in a nice elevated spot about halfway back by that white VIP tent (by it, not in it 
) when he played this set and could feel the impact in my chest. See below.
Some of those cheap, lightweight guitars are killer for slide - especially the imports. Have mercy
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Thanks for posting. Love it! I donāt know anything about the pickups either beyond they are referred to as āpancakesā. Ryan Bingham sure makes them sound yummy 
Fun little Sunday afternoon project. Never had a Bigsby before. Just had to have one with the āFā logo.
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Very niceā¦what do you think of the Bigsby?
I was very surprised by just how precise and stable the one on the Yamaha is.
Much more fun that I was expecting.
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This is all I have left. I wish i could still play them.
1986 BC Rich Warlock NJ Series and a 1987 Aria Pro 2 Zebra Vee ZZDeluxe
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I like it a lot. Handle stays where you put it. Good warble up and down. Just a small time with it so far, but no tuning issues yet. Like stereo equipment I like to look at gear and tweakā¦so already thinking of the Callaham front roller āupgradeā.
I must admit I dig the look quite a bit too. So no small part of the addition. On a Telecaster, I feel they just ooze Mojo.
Love 'em! Especially the Zebra Vee. Must have come with a case of hair spray back in the day. 
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I wish I could play a guitar periodā¦lol
I try but thatās as far as I will go.
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It is yes, and thank you. I have a dimarzio super distortion to go in the bridge, but the tone is so good I havenāt yet been able to do the surgery!
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Learn how to play! Itās never too late, unless you lost the dexterity in your hands as I have. I taught myself how to play, so if I can do it anybody can. It just takes some motivation. For me, once I saw all my friends in bands with the hottest girls, I started paying a little bit more attention to what those guys were actually doing. And it worked like a charmā¦
As much as I love the sound of the Super Ds, donāt do it LOL
I know, itās why I havenāt so far!
I thought that you only needed a neck pickup in a P90 gold top Les Paul #anotherbrickinthewallpart2 
Stevie Marriott might have begged to differ! 
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That is pretty radical surgery youāll be carrying out. If you decide to go ahead, good luck!
Youāre a braver man than I. 
The footage below is solely responsible for my love of Les Paul Goldtops. I first saw one in Brain Jonesā hands in the Rolling Stones 25x5 documentary. I didnāt know then that the reflector knobs gave it away as being a 1968 model. I just knew I had to have one!
Fun fact: Brian Jones could hardly play guitar during the filming of The Rolling Stonesā Rock and Roll Circus and is barely audible in some of the tracks. He had sprained his wrist only weeks earlier while looning about in Morocco recording the Master Musicians of Joujouka in Morocco. You can see him wince in pain at times while fretting chords.
When Gibson introduced the Les Paul Classic in a gold finish in the early 1990ās I was thrilled. But when I finally got my hands on one they were off the mark, in my opinion. I had handled and admired a real '52 Goldtop since first seeing the one in the film, and the new ones were a very pale comparison. The necks were like toothpicks and felt frail. I passed on them and waited.
I eventually picked up the one posted below. Added inspiration from Freddie Kingās Goldtop on the cover of Letās Hide Away and Dance Away with Freddie King drew my curiosity toward the wraptail version. In my opinion, the sensitivity and resonance provided by the wraptail is the zenith of tone. I can pluck a string on mine while the guitar rests in the case, and itāll vibrate the guitar body for a full minute and a half, easily. It also has a neck like a tree and feels great in the hand. All good, and nothing bad!
I named it Joujouka in homage to Brian Jonesā inspiration.
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If you like how it sounds now, I wouldnāt change it, @Glimmer. I thought about swapping the pickups in mine several times, researched a bunch of options, and nearly bought replacements several times. A nagging feeling always held me back.
I changed course and put vintage taper audio pots, and real NOS Sprague Vitamin-Q caps in it instead. Then had it rewired proper 50ās style. It made an incredible difference! They sounded every bit like boutique replacements. I was amazed.
Still, I asked my guitar repair guy if I should consider changing the pickups out after the wiring job. He told me that the pickups sounded nearer to real '50s P90s than any he had heard in a long time and that he wouldnāt change a thing. Heās been working on guitars for nearly 60 years and knows more about instruments than anyone Iāve ever met. I took his advice and Iām glad that I did every time I pick up the guitar.
Guitar tone is one of the last true mysteries of the world. Some people may scoff at that statement; others will hold their hands clasped at their forehead in agreement.
If itās working for you now, why risk it? I say leave it as is and play it 'til it smokes!
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Definitely a theme thereā¦ 
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