Educate me on the Epiphone Frontier

[hw2nw]

Hey all! Looked around thought the AGF crew would know what's up.

I'm looking at picking up a mid-60's Frontier. The ones i've played are not the cactus pickguard/light back version you often see, it's the natural version, stained back with teardrop guard, like this:



The prices vary so wildly on Reverb and in stores. Can anyone explain why some are in the 2000s, and others 4000-5000? Am I missing something making certain ones more desirable?

Thanks!

[Slim Zooms]

Hi all and hw2nw
this is my first post, but I've really enjoyed reading the forum during this last year and I've learned a lot. This post about the Epiphone Frontier caught my eye. I have owned 3 1960s Epi acoustics, a Caballero, Texan and a Frontier.
Of all the guitars I've ever owned, my 1966 Frontier, like the one in the photo, was the best and the one I regret selling the most. It had a great low end, a real thump and sounded fantastic picked or strummed, particularly excellent in open G for some reason.
I foolishly decided to sell it 10 years ago to fund another guitar at a time when similar guitars were fetching good prices, losing out massively because I put it on eBay and it only just made reserve.
I've played only 2 or 3 as I rarely see them in England except the sunburst cactus scratch plate one at guitar shows. They usually sound great and I'd love to drop on one myself.
I hope you can get one hw2nw.
All the best Slim

[hw2nw]

Originally Posted by Slim Zooms

Hi all and hw2nw
this is my first post, but I've really enjoyed reading the forum during this last year and I've learned a lot. This post about the Epiphone Frontier caught my eye. I have owned 3 1960s Epi acoustics, a Caballero, Texan and a Frontier.
Of all the guitars I've ever owned, my 1966 Frontier, like the one in the photo, was the best and the one I regret selling the most. It had a great low end, a real thump and sounded fantastic picked or strummed, particularly excellent in open G for some reason.
I foolishly decided to sell it 10 years ago to fund another guitar at a time when similar guitars were fetching good prices, losing out massively because I put it on eBay and it only just made reserve.
I've played only 2 or 3 as I rarely see them in England except the sunburst cactus scratch plate one at guitar shows. They usually sound great and I'd love to drop on one myself.
I hope you can get one hw2nw.
All the best Slim

Thank you! Agreed, such cool guitars. Just can’t figure out the fair pricing on them on Reverb, etc...

[Silly Moustache]

Hi, had one in the '70s. dreadnought shaped with a maple back and sides reputedly once owned by Mick Jagger.
IIRC - it had a VERY thin neck - maybe 1 & 5/8" nut width.

Not my favourite guitar frankly.

[zombywoof]

The Frontier was Gibson's first square shoulder dread. Although I own a NYC-made 1955/56 FT79 and am far from an expert on the Frontier my recollection is that the lower belly ADJ saddle bride would indicate a late-1960s guitar. Every Frontier I have seen built in the early and mid-1960s had an upper belly bridge. While all 1960s Gibsons had skimpy neck carves and those from 1965 on narrower nut widths, this is simply a matter of personal preference. The only thing I can think of that might come into play is that if the guitar is from the later-1960s, in 1968 Gibson started going with bulkier bracing which got even heavier in 1969. I am not, however, sure if Epiphones received the same treatment.

By the way, sometime in the early-1990s Bozeman came out with limited edition versions of the Frontier, Texan and Excellente. You might consider keeping an eye open for one.