Gibson J-45 Flattop Acoustic

You might be wondering why I put up a page on the website about "a guitar." I'll try to answer that as briefly as possible.

To me, it's not just a "guitar." It's a musical instrument and holds many qualities, the most magical of which is its ability to sing. Yes, I said it sings. That's what an instrument does when you play it. I had always admired Gibson acoustic guitars, they have a sound like no other. I've had a few in my time and when I got this one, I was amazed. Turns out that this one is a collector's item of sorts. So there is my reason for this page.

Background...

My ex-wife's stepfather gave it to me. We were touring their new house and I saw three acoustic guitar cases, and being the musician that I am I asked if I could have a look. The first two were old pieces of firewood. Then I opened the case on the third one and saw the Gibson logo.

I picked it up gently and blew the dust off of it. It was completely out of tune, of course. No telling how long it had been sitting around. I then asked Dale (my stepfather-in-law) if he would mind me borrowing it. "No, go right ahead," he told me. "I never play them anymore. Besides, Adam (my then infant son) will need to learn how to play it someday." On the way out of their driveway, I remarked to my wife how gracious of him it was to let me borrow it - and she announced that he was giving it to me, that was just his way of doing it. I sat in stunned silence for a while contemplating that one.

I got home and promptly got some new strings and cleaned up the guitar and case. I restrung it and played it for the very first time, and the most amazing sound came out of it. It may sound silly, but I was in love with it right away. What an amazing gift.

Recent History

Now, I told you that story to tell you this one. I've had the guitar for close to ten years now. Only recently I got around to taking it to the local music shop to have them take a look at it and make a few adjustments. I was having a little bit of trouble with the harmonics, meaning I could tune it, but it would not play correctly on all positions on the neck. The action (distance between the strings and fingerboard) was also a little too high.

As soon as I pulled it out of the case, the guy at the music store, Chris was his name, started gushing about it. He was in awe, really. It turned out that I had a mid-50's vintage J45 in excellent condition. Everything, from the wood condition to the finish, was astounding. I had no idea, since I'm not a guitar junkie. All the original parts were there and intact - even the handle on the case, which apparently is prone to breaking. Chris took care of me and fixed up my baby for a paltry $20. He explained some things I could look at as far as dating the guitar to find out exactly what I had, year and such, and to determine its value. He made a few notes and told me to bring it back in the next time I restrung it, telling me that he would have some more information for me by then.

I went home and did a lot of research on the Internet. I got the Blue Book of Guitars for all Gibson models, checked enthusiast websites, and really did my homework. What I discovered was that I likely have a 1960 J45, and its market value for its condition is roughly $1,300 USD. I say "likely" because Gibson guitars are notoriously hard to date. I have the specs and information I used below, so if you read this and know more than I do, please share it with me!

Now you have an idea of why this page exists. A lot of people are into vintage guitars, and find the topic fascinating. I admit to being sucked into it myself with this experience. Now that I know what I've got, I'm very proud of it, and NO I WILL NOT SELL IT! If my music ever does anything more than find a home on my home-made CDs, this is one of the things that will make it unique.

Minor update: I had a guitar shop in the Columbus, Ohio area fix the bridge that was pulling off the body. Their luthier did astoundingly good work at a steal of a price - around $50. If you are ever in the Columbus Ohio area, check out out Music Royale.

Identifying Features

• 1952-1961: Factory Order Numbers beginning with the letter Q to Z, ink stamped on inside back, all hollowbody models.
• Headstock logo: "G" has a tail, the "i" dot is touching the "G," the "b" and "o" are open. This logo made its debut in 1947.
• Tuners: Kluson Deluxe single line marking. Single ring around stem end of button. Indicates mid-late 1950's production.
• Finish: Sunburst. This was the only finish offered for the J-45.
• Pickguard: Redesigned version introduced in 1955.
• Bridge: upper belly, introduced starting in 1950.
• Body binding: single stripe.
• Stamp on bottom of neck, inside body: R4601 3
  • R was used for 1960
  • 4601 is the batch
  • 3 is the production/ranking, indicating where in the run of 40 it was built.
• This places the guitar at 1960, noting the finish that is described for the 1959 model.