Gibson L-4 Arch Top Acoustic Guitar (1934)
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Gibson L-4 Model Arch Top Acoustic Guitar (1934), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 1105 (FON), sunburst lacquer finish, maple back and sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, black tolex hard shell case.
This lovely L-4 originally dates to 1934, a transitional time for the model as it evolved from its original 1910s oval hole format to the "modern" F-hole form it would eventually take in the later 1930s. This one is a unique example as it was rebuilt and refinished at Kalamazoo in late 1958; amazingly the paperwork for this survives intact providing not only full documentation of the guitar's current form but a fascinating window into Gibson's repair procedures at the time.
Inside a Gibson envelope postmarked November 17, 1958 are documents pertaining to this process. A quotation form from dated the same day lists the cost for a for new back, installed at $36.50, a new fingerboard installed at $27.50, new fingerrest and machine heads at 13.20 plus a complete refinish ("while in process) at "$30.25 add'l". The total bill is noted in pen at $107.25. This document is signed in a lovely flourished hand by Gerald Woodworth, manager of the service department. (And incidentally isn't "Woodworth" a fabulous name for the manager of Gibson's service operation?)
A card is included from Gibson postmarked Nov. 25 thanking the customer for approving the quotation on the 21st, and promising completion of the job by January 28 "under our present schedule". The customer noted on this card he mailed Gibson a check for the full amount on December 13. A receipt for this is also included, as are the railway shipping documents for the guitar's journey from California to Kalamazoo. While we have handled a number of guitars showing evidence of factory service over the decades, we have never had such a complete set of documents pertaining to the process before!
We would guess the original back was badly damaged taking the label and serial number with it (it would normally be noted on the service documents) but the ink-stamped Factory Order Number on the neck block survives confirming this as a 1934 instrument. At this time the L-4 was a 16" round-hole archtop with a carved top and back, single bound, with a bound dot-inlaid fingerboard and pearl Gibson headstock logo and diamond "stickpin" inlay on the headstock. In 1933 the L-4, which had at one point been the second in line Gibson guitar below the L-5 at $150 was down-priced to a $100 midline instrument, with the new F-hole L-7 taking its old place in the catalog. This means the player who had the guitar re-worked at 1958 paid more for the work than the instrument cost when new!
With its 1930s build and 1950s finish and hardware this is quite the hybrid! The neck has a slim "V" profile quite different from both earlier and 1950s Gibsons, while the 1950s pickguard and finish dress up the 1934 guitar in a new suit. The round hole archtop in general is a somewhat unusual form offering a sound that has some of the character of both flattop and archtop guitars, which this one bears out. It is a very good sounding and playing L-4 with a surprising amount of power and a well-modulated tone even when pushed. Not only a fine guitar, this factory re-worked Gibson is a hybrid time capsule of two fantastic Gibson eras and a truly unique piece.
Overall length is 40 1/4 in. (102.2 cm.), 16 1/8 in. (41 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This very clean guitar does not show evidence of a much use since its trip back from Kalamazoo in 1958. The now 68 year old "new" finish has some light dings, scratching and scuffing but no serious wear; this is most notable on the back. There are a few small additional dings and dents and that's about it. The hardware is original either to 1934 (notably the bridge and tailpiece) or 1958 except the tuners, which are modern repros of the "keystone" button Kluson Deluxe of that period.
The frets on the "new" fingerboard show only very light wear; the guitar plays very nicely with a surprisingly warm sound. The neck angle is shallow enough that the curved lower ends of the tailpiece hover close to the top, close enough to vibrate against it occasionally so there are small felt pads inserted there to damp this tendency. This is actually a surprisingly common situation with these, many of which seem to have been originally built with a fairly shallow neck angle.
This is a cool virtually one-of-a-kind piece mixing the 1930s and 1950s with impeccable documentation of its story in the form of the almost never preserved original Gibson paperwork. It lives in a later arched-lid Dreadnought HSC for security but the period (and pretty much non-functional) chipboard case it shipped back from Kalamazoo in is also included if desired; there is even some original 1950s Gibson tissue paper left inside! Overall Excellent Condition.
This lovely L-4 originally dates to 1934, a transitional time for the model as it evolved from its original 1910s oval hole format to the "modern" F-hole form it would eventually take in the later 1930s. This one is a unique example as it was rebuilt and refinished at Kalamazoo in late 1958; amazingly the paperwork for this survives intact providing not only full documentation of the guitar's current form but a fascinating window into Gibson's repair procedures at the time.
Inside a Gibson envelope postmarked November 17, 1958 are documents pertaining to this process. A quotation form from dated the same day lists the cost for a for new back, installed at $36.50, a new fingerboard installed at $27.50, new fingerrest and machine heads at 13.20 plus a complete refinish ("while in process) at "$30.25 add'l". The total bill is noted in pen at $107.25. This document is signed in a lovely flourished hand by Gerald Woodworth, manager of the service department. (And incidentally isn't "Woodworth" a fabulous name for the manager of Gibson's service operation?)
A card is included from Gibson postmarked Nov. 25 thanking the customer for approving the quotation on the 21st, and promising completion of the job by January 28 "under our present schedule". The customer noted on this card he mailed Gibson a check for the full amount on December 13. A receipt for this is also included, as are the railway shipping documents for the guitar's journey from California to Kalamazoo. While we have handled a number of guitars showing evidence of factory service over the decades, we have never had such a complete set of documents pertaining to the process before!
We would guess the original back was badly damaged taking the label and serial number with it (it would normally be noted on the service documents) but the ink-stamped Factory Order Number on the neck block survives confirming this as a 1934 instrument. At this time the L-4 was a 16" round-hole archtop with a carved top and back, single bound, with a bound dot-inlaid fingerboard and pearl Gibson headstock logo and diamond "stickpin" inlay on the headstock. In 1933 the L-4, which had at one point been the second in line Gibson guitar below the L-5 at $150 was down-priced to a $100 midline instrument, with the new F-hole L-7 taking its old place in the catalog. This means the player who had the guitar re-worked at 1958 paid more for the work than the instrument cost when new!
With its 1930s build and 1950s finish and hardware this is quite the hybrid! The neck has a slim "V" profile quite different from both earlier and 1950s Gibsons, while the 1950s pickguard and finish dress up the 1934 guitar in a new suit. The round hole archtop in general is a somewhat unusual form offering a sound that has some of the character of both flattop and archtop guitars, which this one bears out. It is a very good sounding and playing L-4 with a surprising amount of power and a well-modulated tone even when pushed. Not only a fine guitar, this factory re-worked Gibson is a hybrid time capsule of two fantastic Gibson eras and a truly unique piece.
Overall length is 40 1/4 in. (102.2 cm.), 16 1/8 in. (41 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This very clean guitar does not show evidence of a much use since its trip back from Kalamazoo in 1958. The now 68 year old "new" finish has some light dings, scratching and scuffing but no serious wear; this is most notable on the back. There are a few small additional dings and dents and that's about it. The hardware is original either to 1934 (notably the bridge and tailpiece) or 1958 except the tuners, which are modern repros of the "keystone" button Kluson Deluxe of that period.
The frets on the "new" fingerboard show only very light wear; the guitar plays very nicely with a surprisingly warm sound. The neck angle is shallow enough that the curved lower ends of the tailpiece hover close to the top, close enough to vibrate against it occasionally so there are small felt pads inserted there to damp this tendency. This is actually a surprisingly common situation with these, many of which seem to have been originally built with a fairly shallow neck angle.
This is a cool virtually one-of-a-kind piece mixing the 1930s and 1950s with impeccable documentation of its story in the form of the almost never preserved original Gibson paperwork. It lives in a later arched-lid Dreadnought HSC for security but the period (and pretty much non-functional) chipboard case it shipped back from Kalamazoo in is also included if desired; there is even some original 1950s Gibson tissue paper left inside! Overall Excellent Condition.