Unlike the now-classic “Ugly LP Zebrawood at Sweetwater.com” or the standard Gibson promotional photos, my guitar turned out to have a grain pattern that was not ugly but also not tight and uniform. It was reasonably-straight medium grain without any eye-catching definitive grain aberrations or color changes. It probably falls in the upper middle of the “zebrawood attractiveness scale”.

I have yet to take the guitar out and play it in public (most of my friends don’t even know I bought it!). Before it gets unveiled I want to address a few things. I have a TonePros nickle bridge/tailpiece set I want to install, oil the fingerboard, do a complete set-up and install new strings. I also want to take “000″ steel wool to the rough areas of the body finish (i.e. inside the cutaway) to make the guitar surface more uniform in feel.

I am in a quandry about the last touch I have been contemplating… installing the Antique-color pickguard that the guitar came with. I personally like to have a pickguard on my LP guitars and I prefer the look of an LP that way. However, this guitar does have a certain beauty about it and covering up part of that zebra-grain that makes it so unique feels a bit sacrilegious! I also want to check on the availability of a replacement in this color if I did use the original and wanted to replace it later.

I am torn between getting to work on it and making it a player or leaving it in its’ pristine factory condition in case I change my mind later. I don’t normally fret over things like this but I have never had a guitar with a finish that makes me second-guess some of my own acquired tastes! It isn’t a love/hate sort of thing, I just feel like I need to do right by the guitar because it IS special.

Am I nuts? Probably! This guitar invokes a different vibe that makes me consider things I normally just blast past on a more standard instrument. I don’t feel that I am in love with the instrument any more than other favorite guitars but I certainly have a higher regard and respect for it that is different than I have for all the other guitars I own.

Perhaps part of this is related to that chunk of Zebrawood… from what I have read this wood is difficult to locate, harvest, saw and transport and is considered an endangered species of sorts and this is why it is relatively hard to get and expensive. It usually only used for decorative trim and is difficult to work because of its density (it is classified as an exotic hardwood) and the unusual bad smell it exudes when cut or sanded!.

Maybe I have an answer. This guitar, appearance-wise, is a Les Paul in name only. Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, unless you own one you will never know. Guess what? I’m glad I own one.

When I first opened the case I was greeted by the sight of the zebrawood live and in person. I had never seen zebrawood live, and the appearance of the wood was overwhelming. The wood is not subtle, it grabs your attention. I think this is one reason why this LP seems to be not in great demand. This LP cannot be a guitarist’s only LP, it has to be a second or a spare. The wood grain is just too unconventional. If you own only one LP, you want a more traditional one. You don’t want a wild one.

The zebrawood has a very porous texture, and the satin finishing process did nothing to smooth it out. If Gibson had filled the pores and given it a gloss finish, I think the zebrawood would look absolutely awesome. But that would have added substantially to the labor and the cost. It would probably then be in the custom shop price range and I would not be holding one in my hand.

I will not go into tonal description, as it has been covered. The workmanship on mine is first-rate, and the weight is light, though I never actually weighed it. But it is a light LP. The fingerboard needed oiling right away, and once oiled the rosewood came alive with grain patterns. The pearloid inlays are not the greenish ones used on older LP Classics, but amberish. All the trims, except the pickup selector switch tip, match nicely. The switch tip is just too brownish for my taste.

Plug it in, close your eyes, and you are playing a LP. No doubt about it. The tone, the sustain, the action, the feel — it is all Gibson Les Paul. Once all the crud is off the frets, once the fingerboard is broken in, this guitar will play like a gem.

But the zebrawood’s stripes will always be there, to remind the owner that this is not a conventional LP. The wood will always grab your attention, and anyone else’s attention who happens to be looking at it. Some will say the grain patterns are fabulous, some will say they are ugly. The zebrawood demands your opinion — you cannot ignore the wood.

And this is why I think even though only 400 were made, they are still available. People cannot decide whether the wood is awesome or unsightly. And very few people will spend this kind of money to get a controversial Les Paul.

As for myself, I am waiting for the tan part of the zebrawood to darken in color like they say it will. I have seen pictures of aged zebrawood and they look very attractive. Through handling and playing the pores will smooth out, the overall appearance will be less satin and more glossy. Because to be honest, the sight of the zebrawood is still too loud for my taste. But I ain’t letting this baby go. We are going to grow old together.