Gibson J-45 ADJ. Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1967)
LOADING IMAGES
Gibson J-45 ADJ. Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1967), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 103208, cherry sunburst top, natural mahogany back and sides finish, mahogany back and sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, original black chipboard case.
By the mid-1960's Gibson's slope-shouldered Jumbo guitars had been very popular with Folk, Blues and Pop players for 30 years and picking this one up it's easy to see why. This is a very comfortable guitar to play with a sleek, slim round backed neck and a very warm sound. This J-45 is from the period where these were all the "ADJ" model, fitted with the company's adjustable bridge system with a ceramic saddle. The top finish is a bright cherry sunburst, a big change from the company's earlier dark and moody 'bursts of the '40s and '50s.
This guitar's serial number is in a series run in both 1963 and 1967; based on the features we gauge this to be a '67 model but the differences are actually fairly minor, mostly the slimmer neck that is actually bigger than some, just between 1 11/16" and 1 5/8". The J-45 is built with mahogany back, sides and neck with a spruce top and dot-inlaid rosewood fingerboard. This example shows typical features for the mid-'60s including the "belly up" bridge with the adjustable ceramic saddle, large tortoise celluloid pickguard and "double line" Kluson Deluxe strip tuners.
1967 saw 5670 of these J-45 ADJ's ship out of Kalamazoo, the model's all-time peak. Still, not too many will have survived as neatly as this apparently little-used guitar. This all-original survivor is also a superb playing example; a super friendly, comfortable guitar you just don't want to put down.
Overall length is 41 in. (104.1 cm.), 16 in. (40.6 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 5 in. (12.7 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 21/32 in. (27 mm.).
This guitar remains in very clean condition overall, with a finish that still shines like it did during the Summer of Love. There is very light play and handling wear scattered around, some scuffs, small dings and scratches but really this guitar looks more 6 years old than nearly 60. It is also completely original including the ceramic adjustable saddle fitting that has often been removed in the decades since. Of late we have found many folks like the sound of these as Gibson built them, and converting them to a standard non-adjustable bridge is no longer de rigeur.
The only notable repair is a one sealed grain split on upper treble bout from the front edge to the pickguard, with a small dink in the wood above it. Internally the guitar remains original and undisturbed. It has never had a neck reset (the idea of the adjustable bridge in the first place!) and plays excellent, with a nice chunky, midrangey sound typical of 60s Gibsons. This is simply a lovely find in a '60s J-45, complete in the original chipboard case. Excellent Condition.
By the mid-1960's Gibson's slope-shouldered Jumbo guitars had been very popular with Folk, Blues and Pop players for 30 years and picking this one up it's easy to see why. This is a very comfortable guitar to play with a sleek, slim round backed neck and a very warm sound. This J-45 is from the period where these were all the "ADJ" model, fitted with the company's adjustable bridge system with a ceramic saddle. The top finish is a bright cherry sunburst, a big change from the company's earlier dark and moody 'bursts of the '40s and '50s.
This guitar's serial number is in a series run in both 1963 and 1967; based on the features we gauge this to be a '67 model but the differences are actually fairly minor, mostly the slimmer neck that is actually bigger than some, just between 1 11/16" and 1 5/8". The J-45 is built with mahogany back, sides and neck with a spruce top and dot-inlaid rosewood fingerboard. This example shows typical features for the mid-'60s including the "belly up" bridge with the adjustable ceramic saddle, large tortoise celluloid pickguard and "double line" Kluson Deluxe strip tuners.
1967 saw 5670 of these J-45 ADJ's ship out of Kalamazoo, the model's all-time peak. Still, not too many will have survived as neatly as this apparently little-used guitar. This all-original survivor is also a superb playing example; a super friendly, comfortable guitar you just don't want to put down.
Overall length is 41 in. (104.1 cm.), 16 in. (40.6 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 5 in. (12.7 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 21/32 in. (27 mm.).
This guitar remains in very clean condition overall, with a finish that still shines like it did during the Summer of Love. There is very light play and handling wear scattered around, some scuffs, small dings and scratches but really this guitar looks more 6 years old than nearly 60. It is also completely original including the ceramic adjustable saddle fitting that has often been removed in the decades since. Of late we have found many folks like the sound of these as Gibson built them, and converting them to a standard non-adjustable bridge is no longer de rigeur.
The only notable repair is a one sealed grain split on upper treble bout from the front edge to the pickguard, with a small dink in the wood above it. Internally the guitar remains original and undisturbed. It has never had a neck reset (the idea of the adjustable bridge in the first place!) and plays excellent, with a nice chunky, midrangey sound typical of 60s Gibsons. This is simply a lovely find in a '60s J-45, complete in the original chipboard case. Excellent Condition.