Les Paul 50s Prewired Wiring Harness

Les Paul 50s Prewired Wiring Harness

This prewired wiring harness is built for Gibson and Epiphone Les Paul models with two volume controls, two tone controls, and 50s wiring — hand-assembled and tested on our workbench before it ships. Every harness ships with a wiring diagram and installation instructions, and arrives prewired on a drilled assembly board sized to your Les Paul's control cavity.

Built with 50s wiring for the classic behavior players want from this control layout: rolling back the volume knob keeps more high end intact instead of dulling your tone, while the tone control stays smooth and responsive across its full range. If you've been searching for a Les Paul wiring harness or a prewired harness for your Gibson or Epiphone Les Paul, this is the harness.

Choose Your Configuration

Harness Only, or Harness with Prewired 3-Way Switch & Jack

Both configurations share the same prewired 50s-wiring harness, Bourns pots, and Orange Drop tone caps — the only difference is whether the pickup selector switch and output jack are already built in.

Harness Only provides four prewired potentiometers and tone capacitors mounted on a drilled assembly board, ready to be wired straight into your Les Paul's existing 3-way switch and output jack. This is the right choice if your current switch and jack are still in good shape and you only need to replace the pots and capacitors.

Harness with Prewired 3-Way Switch & Jack adds a Switchcraft/Centralab 3-way toggle switch, prewired and with a black tip, in your choice of Chrome or Gold, plus a Switchcraft 1/4-inch output jack — a complete drop-in harness with nothing left to source.

Is This the Right Harness for Your Les Paul?

This harness is built for the standard Les Paul control layout — two volume controls, two tone controls, and one pickup selector switch — used on Gibson and Epiphone Les Paul Standard, Traditional, Classic, Custom, and Studio models. A few Les Paul variants use a different control layout entirely and need their own harness:

• Three-pickup Les Paul: see our Les Paul 3-Pickup wiring harness instead.
• Les Paul Junior: see our Les Paul Junior prewired harness instead.
• Epiphone Les Paul Special: see our Epiphone Les Paul Special prewired harness instead.
• Gibson Les Paul Special: see our Gibson Les Paul Special prewired harness instead.

What's Included

• Four 500K Bourns Pro Audio potentiometers, coarse-spline — your choice of short shaft or long shaft
• Orange Drop tone capacitors (.022uF bridge / .022uF neck)
• Vintage-style Gavitt cloth push-back wire
• Fully prewired onto a drilled harness assembly board and tested before it ships
• Wiring diagram and installation instructions included
• With the Prewired 3-Way Switch & Jack configuration: a Switchcraft/Centralab 3-way toggle switch prewired with a black tip (Chrome or Gold), plus a Switchcraft 1/4-inch output jack

Specifications & Fitment

• Long-shaft potentiometers fit Gibson Les Paul Standard, Traditional, Classic, Custom, and Studio models manufactured in 1977 and later.
• Short-shaft potentiometers fit Gibson Les Paul Standard, Traditional, Classic, and Custom models manufactured before 1977 — some later reissue models also use a short shaft, so measure the threaded part of your current pot shaft if you're not sure which one you need — and ALL YEARS of Epiphone Les Paul models.
• Each pot mounts through a 3/8-inch control-cavity hole (relevant for Epiphone Les Paul fitment).
• Knobs require an 18-tooth coarse-spline fit (replacement knobs sold separately).
• Not sure what your guitar needs? Reach out through our Contact Us page before ordering.

Shipping & Build Time

• Custom-built to order, with a 5–10 business day lead time before it ships
• In-stock means we have the components on hand to build yours — not a pre-built unit sitting on a shelf
• Free shipping to U.S. addresses
• 30-day return policy
• If anything about your harness isn't right, we want to make it right

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between short-shaft and long-shaft pots?
Shaft length is about knob height and fitment, not tone. Long-shaft pots fit Gibson Les Paul models from 1977 onward; short-shaft pots fit Gibson Les Pauls made before 1977 (and some later reissues) plus every Epiphone Les Paul. Measure the threaded part of your current pot shaft if you're not sure which one you have.

Does this harness include the pickup selector switch?
Your choice. Order the Harness Only configuration if you're keeping your existing 3-way switch and jack, or choose the Prewired 3-Way Switch & Jack configuration (Chrome or Gold) for a complete, ready-to-install harness.

What tone caps does this harness use?
Orange Drop capacitors (.022uF bridge / .022uF neck) on 50s wiring, for a bright, consistent roll-off as you turn down the tone knob. Click here for our Premium Les Paul 59 Series wiring harness with paper-in-oil (PIO) caps  

What knobs fit this harness?
Pots use an 18-tooth coarse-spline shaft, so you'll need coarse-spline knobs to match — we sell replacement knobs if you need them.

Will this fit my Epiphone Les Paul?
Yes — the short-shaft pot option fits all Epiphone Les Paul models.

Will this harness fit my 3-pickup Les Paul?
No — a three-pickup Les Paul uses a different switching setup than this harness provides. See our Les Paul 3-Pickup wiring harness instead.

Does this fit a Les Paul Junior?
No — the Les Paul Junior uses a simpler single-pickup, two-control layout. See our Les Paul Junior prewired harness instead.

Does this fit an Epiphone Les Paul Special?
No — the Epiphone Les Paul Special uses its own two-control layout, different from the standard four-control Les Paul. See our Epiphone Les Paul Special prewired harness instead.

Does this fit a Gibson Les Paul Special?
No — the Gibson Les Paul Special also uses a two-control layout, different from the standard four-control Les Paul. See our Gibson Les Paul Special prewired harness instead.

How long does it take to ship?
Each harness is custom-built to order with a 5–10 business day lead time before it ships. Shipping to U.S. addresses is free, and every harness is backed by a 30-day return policy.

Cheers,
Gary Standerfer / Tone Man Guitar