“It will play like a beast, be a 24-fret guitar, and have the heel shaved down:” Dave Mustaine issues an update on his long-awaited Gibson Les Paul – which could be his most radical signature model yet

Dave Mustaine is continuing to build on his relationship with Gibson, as the Megadeth founder has confirmed that a signature Les Paul is definitely in the works.

“I love what’s going on with my Gibson relationship. I look at a lot of that stuff,” he says in the latest Guitarist issue.

“We’re doing some models, like the Flying V with 24 frets, and we’ve talked about a couple of others and are making them perfect. One of those is the Dave Mustaine Les Paul. It will play like a beast, be a 24-fret guitar, and have the heel shaved down.”

Mustaine previously teased the release of the Les Paul in a 2022 interview with Songfacts, saying, “We’re working on the Explorer, and we have a 24-fret Les Paul I finished creating, but this is something for next year, maybe the year after.”

His guitar tech, Bryan Jones, also hinted at a signature Les Paul, posting a photo of what we can only assume is this guitar on social media in November 2022. The post has since been removed.

The guitar, pictured above, has similar black hardware and inlays to Mustaine’s signature Flying Vs, with added witch-hat knobs. It sports 24 frets, his signature Seymour Duncan pickups, and a black finish.

So far, the Dave Mustaine collection includes the flagship Flying V EXP model with Seymour Duncan Thrash Factor pickups, the limited-edition and higher-end Flying V EXP Rust in Peace (currently sold out online), and the Songwriter, the first-ever Gibson acoustic with a 24-fret fingerboard.

In addition to these Gibson models, Mustaine has a more affordable line of signature guitars with Epiphone and Kramer: the Epiphone Dave Mustaine Flying V Prophecy, the Custom, and the Kramer Dave Mustaine Vanguard. These models were released last year after being initially announced back in February 2021.

Dave Mustaine Flying Vâ„¢ EXP – YouTube

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In other Dave Mustaine news, Gibson recently released signature electric guitar strings with the Megadeth leader. The top-heavy set promises to “bring out the best in his signature Gibson guitars” and was unveiled alongside a signature guitar strap.