an antique Gibson

[td160]

Hi Everyone.
I thought to share a photo of this old Gibson of mine.
It is an L-1 archtop from 1917



I have many more detail shots of this instrument at the link:
http://www.theanalogdept.com/gibson_lg.htm

It is a family heirloom. My fathers' guitar. When he was growing up his dad bought this guitar 2nd hand for him. And that was circa mid 1930s.

It is essentially in the same condition now as it was then, except that the tuners finally wore out and were replaced in the late 1960s.

It has a thing called a 'trapeze'. the strings anchor by means of it. Two of the ebony pins (string anchors) wore out. At the time there were no replacements, so the workaround was to simply loop the string as can be seen in the photos. As it is, it plays fine.

And think, that maple sound box is just about 100 years old by now.

Anyway, that's my story.

-Steve

[drive-south]

Beautiful. Love it.

You can replace the missing bridge pins with regular bridge pins. I'm not sure what size/taper you need. I bet Bob Colosi would know.

[td160]

Originally Posted by drive-south

Beautiful. Love it.

You can replace the missing bridge pins with regular bridge pins. I'm not sure what size/taper you need. I bet Bob Colosi would know.

Thanks for that.

Recently I found a seller on ebay that was reproducing what might look like an "exact" replacement pin for this application. Ebony pin with pearl inlay on top to match the appearance of the original pin. At least that was the claim. The truth of it would be to see if the seller can match exactly the taper on the body of the pin.

I'm new around here. Does Bob post at this forum?

-Steve

[Silly Moustache]

Lovely - I used to have one - in beautiful condition - I understood it was a 1915 model.

I had to sell it - got £150 (app. $230) one of my lesser deals!

I still miss it.

[Johan Madsen]

What a beauty! The neck seems to be very chunky, isn't it?

[td160]

Originally Posted by Johan Madsen

What a beauty! The neck seems to be very chunky, isn't it?

Yeah. Solid. The tailstock is solid Mahogany from Mexico. I'm not sure what trouble I might have with various environmental regulations should I carry this guitar into another country.

-Steve

[The Growler]

Very nice. That it was you father's makes it more special. Thanks for sharing.

[Joe McNamara]

May I suggest you take the guitar in to a shop that specializes in new and vintage acoustic guitars? Dusty Strings in Seattle is first rate. (http://store.dustystrings.com) They can help you with the tailpiece ("tailstock") of your guitar - repro pins ("anchors") are available, and if you can't buy two that match, a new set of 6 ebony pins with a pearl dot, about $25 for the set, will be acceptable to most buyers (you'd include the original 4) though I don't think you'll be overwhelmed by folks eager to pay your eBay asking price. Not for nuthin, but you might want to search completed auctions on eBay and check comps on reverb.com.
Back to the guitar - while it's stayed together with the half-fast string attachment, if the celluloid tailpiece DOES fail, it will be a PITA to replace with the proper part. Were I the buyer, a non-original replacement tailpiece would have a significant negative effect on the final price. Do you have the pickguard and the hardware that attached it to the guitar? Even if it's just the German silver bits with no celluloid they'll have a positive effect. If you still have the worn-out original tuners most buyers would view them as mitigating some of the hit on value the replacements have caused.
I'm sure that the Dusty String folks can help you with your efforts to sell your family heirloom.
Seattleites can probably offer other shop suggestions, but I'm long familiar with Dusty and know that you can walk in and be treated with respect by honest people who know what they're talking about, always a refreshing change.
Good luck with the sale.
Joe

[td160]

Originally Posted by Joe McNamara

May I suggest you take the guitar in to a shop that specializes in new and vintage acoustic guitars? Dusty Strings in Seattle is first rate. (http://store.dustystrings.com) They can help you with the tailpiece ("tailstock") of your guitar - repro pins ("anchors") are available, and if you can't buy two that match, a new set of 6 ebony pins with a pearl dot, about $25 for the set, will be acceptable to most buyers (you'd include the original 4) though I don't think you'll be overwhelmed by folks eager to pay your eBay asking price. Not for nuthin, but you might want to search completed auctions on eBay and check comps on reverb.com.
Back to the guitar - while it's stayed together with the half-fast string attachment, if the celluloid tailpiece DOES fail, it will be a PITA to replace with the proper part. Were I the buyer, a non-original replacement tailpiece would have a significant negative effect on the final price. Do you have the pickguard and the hardware that attached it to the guitar? Even if it's just the German silver bits with no celluloid they'll have a positive effect. If you still have the worn-out original tuners most buyers would view them as mitigating some of the hit on value the replacements have caused.
I'm sure that the Dusty String folks can help you with your efforts to sell your family heirloom.
Seattleites can probably offer other shop suggestions, but I'm long familiar with Dusty and know that you can walk in and be treated with respect by honest people who know what they're talking about, always a refreshing change.
Good luck with the sale.
Joe

Thanks Joe for that very useful reply.
I do have the original tuners.
The pick guard is long gone. I've never seen the guitar with it fitted. and I've seen this instrument for a long time. Nor the silver clamps that supposedly held it.

Thanks for the tip re: Dusty Strings. I'll make contact there.

The replacement ebony string anchors (now available) does seem like a sensible thing to do.

I know my ebay price is high, but do invite offers.

-Steve

[Howard Emerson]

Originally Posted by td160

Thanks Joe for that very useful reply.
I do have the original tuners.
The pick guard is long gone. I've never seen the guitar with it fitted. and I've seen this instrument for a long time. Nor the silver clamps that supposedly held it.

Thanks for the tip re: Dusty Strings. I'll make contact there.

The replacement ebony string anchors (now available) does seem like a sensible thing to do.

I know my ebay price is high, but do invite offers.

-Steve

Steve,
Might I suggest a browse through gbase.com, where you'll see this, for instance:

https://www.gbase.com/gear/gibson-l-4-1915-sunburst

Looks totally original (though I question the bridge) including pick guard & brackets, case handle, etc.

HE

[drive-south]

Originally Posted by td160

Thanks for that.

Recently I found a seller on ebay that was reproducing what might look like an "exact" replacement pin for this application. Ebony pin with pearl inlay on top to match the appearance of the original pin. At least that was the claim. The truth of it would be to see if the seller can match exactly the taper on the body of the pin.

I'm new around here. Does Bob post at this forum?

-Steve

Do a Google search for Bob Colosi. He sells nuts, saddles and bridge pins and some accessories.