Epiphone Les Paul Special Double Cut 1960 Reissue Pelham Blue

A "1960" Special: The Golden Age of the Double Cut, Revisited with Gibson Custom

Born in the mid-1950s, the Les Paul Special established itself as a more versatile alternative to the Junior, notably thanks to its two P-90 pickups. The switch to a double cutaway marked a turning point: greater ease in the higher positions, a more open playing style, and ergonomics perfectly suited to demanding electric styles. This 1960 reissue features one of the most sought-after evolutions: the 60s SlimTaper neck profile, renowned for its speed and comfort, combined with a vintage aesthetic highlighted here by the elegant and iconic Pelham Blue finish.

Who Is This Les Paul Special Double Cut For?

This Epiphone is aimed at intermediate to advanced guitarists who want an instrument with strong character without compromising playability. The double cutaway encourages solos and licks high up on the neck, while the P-90s are suitable for rock, blues, punk, pop, as well as more rootsy genres (garage, classic rock, indie). It remains perfectly accessible to a motivated beginner who wants to start right away with an inspiring guitar, featuring a true sonic identity and excellent touch response.

Sound: The Attack of the P-90 and the Warmth of Mahogany

The combination of a mahogany body and mahogany neck provides a warm, dense tonal foundation with present mids and a very natural sustain feel. The rosewood fingerboard balances the sound by adding a slight softness to the attack, ideal for rounding off the highs when pushing the amp. The two Gibson Custom USA P-90 Soapbar pickups are the heart of the guitar: sharper and more open than humbuckers, while retaining more body than most single-coils. This results in articulate clean tones, punchy crunches, and harmonically rich saturations, with dynamics highly responsive to the guitar's volume and pick attack intensity.

Hand-wired electronics, CTS potentiometers, and Paper-in-Oil capacitors enhance the smoothness of the controls: you can clean up the sound by lowering the volume, shape the attack with the tone knobs, and switch between pickups via the 3-position selector to cover a wide spectrum, from vintage bite to thick rock grit. Finally, the vintage-style Wraparound bridge promotes excellent resonance and a direct feel under the fingers, perfect for tight rhythms and expressive leads.

Recommended Compatible Accessories

To fully exploit this guitar, you can pair it with electric strings in gauge 10-46 (original gauge) to maintain tension/attack balance, a strap compatible with standard strap buttons (classic fittings), and a 6.35 mm instrument jack cable for reliable connection to your amp or pedalboard. A tuner and some picks of varying thicknesses will also help explore the full dynamics of the P-90s.

Technical specifications

Electronics: microphone configuration	P90 P90	Scalloped	Double
Category	Single cut	Body	Mahogany
Left handed	No	Bridge / tailpiece	Fixed
Strings	Steel	Electronics	Passive
Nbr of strings	6	Color	Blue
Fingerboard	Rosewood	Finishing	Glossy
Nbrs of frets	22	Hardware	Nickel

Shape	Les Paul	Tuners	Epiphone Deluxe Three on a plate, white buttons
Body Style	Double Cut	Tuner Plating	Nickel
Wood	Mahogany	Control Knobs	Black Hat knobs with nickel pointer
Finish	Vintage Gloss	Control Finish	Black and gold inspired by Gibson Custom logo
Pickguard	Black 5-ply vintage Les Paul Special, wide bevel	Pickup Covers	Black Soapbar
Material	One-piece mahogany	Output Jack Plate	Black 3-ply
Neck-Body Joint	Set neck	Strap Buttons	2 (bottom and back of body)
Profile	60s SlimTaper	Selector Knob	Amber
Scale Length	24.75" / 628.65 mm	Selector Ring	Black with white text
Truss Rod	Dual action	Neck Pickup	Gibson Custom USA Soapbar P-90
Radius	12.0" / 304.8 mm	Bridge Pickup	Gibson Custom USA Soapbar P-90
Frets	22, medium jumbo	Selector	Switchcraft 3-position switch
Inlays	Pearl dot	Output Jack	Switchcraft 0.63 cm
Binding	Single cream binding on fingerboard	Controls	2 volumes, 2 tones; CTS potentiometers; Bumblebee Paper-in-Oil capacitors
Nut	Graph Tech	Case	Hard shell, brown exterior, pink interior, Inspired by Gibson Custom motifs
Nut Width	43.0 mm / 1.69"	Headstock	Gibson Open Book; Historical Headstock Wing Blocks
Truss Rod Cover	Black Bell 2-ply, wide and white	Headstock Inlay	Aged pearl Epiphone logo, gold screen-printed "Les Paul Special"
Bridge	Vintage Wraparound with intonation adjustment screws	String Gauge	.010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046
Hardware Finish	Nickel