Gibson SG 62 Reissue 1988 Made in USA Serial Number 80198662 The SG-62 (later: SG-62 Reissue and ’62 SG Reissue) was Gibson’s first ever reissue of an SG model. It was introduced in 1986, slotting between the Standard and newly reintroduced Custom (now based on the SG-62), and was produced until 1991. As the name suggests, it was an attempt at recreating the 1962 SG Standard. They are sometimes considered “Pre-Historic” reissues like the contemporary Les Paul reissues, but there are a couple differences. For one, the SG-62 was never ultimately replaced by a Historic Custom Shop model, nor was its direct replacement; the ’61 Reissue, which went on to be produced alongside the Historic reissue introduced in 2000. The SG-62 also used the normal serial number system unlike Pre-Historic Les Pauls. That said, it’s fair to say they were the closest SG equivalent of a Pre-Historic Les Paul. Compared to the 1986-1991 SG Standard, the SG-62 had a slimmer neck, a more historically accurate pickguard, deeper beveling (particularly in the cutaways), the neck set at the 22nd fret with a ’61 style heel joint, the traditional control layout, nickel plated hardware and an ABR-1 bridge. The major differences from a real ’62 Standard are the lack of a vibrola (the stopbar tailpiece was not offered on an SG until 1973), the lack of a “Les Paul” script on the truss rod cover and the body shape, beveling and pickguard shape still being off. Curiously, in designing the SG-62, they reworked the body shape unnecessarily, as it was never changed in the first place. Mainly, they made it smaller with a narrower waist. The body shape and pickguard were fixed when it was replaced with the ’61 Reissue about halfway through 1991. Curiously, advertisements and catalogs depicted what seems to be a more historically accurate prototype instead of the actual production model SG-62 until 1990 (with the exception of one 1988 Japanese catalog). These guitars were advertised as having “the fastest neck in the world”, and indeed, it is notoriously thin. While some original ’60s SGs may have been that thin due to hand shaping, most were not. The neck on the ’61 Reissue that replaced it became slightly thicker, mostly toward the heel end. The Cherry finish on SG-62s generally tended to be a darker red than the ’61 Reissue. Angus Young was heavily featured in advertising for the SG-62, however he never played one onstage. In very nice condition for its age, some minor marks and a small chip on the front, two marks on the back of the neck as photographed. Comes with a old Gibson SG case, possibly late 60’s early 70’s. The original chainsaw case was damaged.