Tom Doyle "Time Machine" Relic Historic Aged Les Paul '57 Reissue 2026, Factory Black

This Tom Doyle "Time Machine" Relic Historic Aged Les Paul '57 Reissue in Factory Black is a guitar where the past has been rebuilt by hand rather than merely imitated. The Time Machine program is Doyle's own service for Gibson Custom Shop '57 to '60 Reissue Les Pauls, and his site calls it a "complete transformation" rather than a makeover. The process ages the wood and the finish through hot and cold cycling, removes most of the nitro, and matures the wood, with the goal of recreating nearly seven decades of settling and wear. Doyle's site describes the work as handcrafted and bespoke, and says every Time Machine guitar is a one-off. His site also calls him Les Paul's longtime confidant and luthier, so the person behind this aging has a direct line to the instruments he is recreating.