It appears to be factory black and with an ugly bit of routing under the middle pickup, suggesting that it originally perhaps had only two pickups. There is evidence of overspray. At least one of the pickups is a Seymour Duncan and it's possible that the others aren't original to the guitar.
It came to me with a Japanese tune-o-matic, a recent pickguard, the later Gibson branded tuners and the nickel vibrola that now graces the '64 SG Standard which had the sideways vibrola fitted (Handy as a counterweight!). I had them swapped over as I thought the Standard should be as original as possible. The pot codes, I think, are dated 1965 and the heel, it was felt over at the SG Forum, was either '65 or '62 style. The serial number has been obliterated at some stage. As it stands now it has a new nickel ABR-1. Who did the alterations and when remains a mystery but the guitar looks cool with the nickel hardware on black.
I've often thought about having the middle pickup removed and the hole filled which would then entail the guitar being refinished (in black of course). It would then also get a set of nickel Grover Pat. Pending Rotomatics put on. I did once take it to Vintage & Rare in Bath, UK for their opinion on the date and the ethics of getting the work done but they seemed more concerned about valuing it rather than providing any constructive advice.
