Description
| Brand: | Gibson | Exact Year: | 1933 |
| Series: | Original |
The First F hole archtop guitars were the Gibson L-5s, introduced in 1923, part of the Master Model series including the F-5 mandolin. As the L-5 was priced quite high for those days ($275), after the depression hit in 1929, Gibson found the need for lower priced professional quality instruments. The first two added were the L-12 and the L-10, with the former being the higher priced. The L-10 was a short lived model, but versions of the L-12 continued to be made into modern times. The guitar offered is the earliest version, with a 16" body width and a 24.75" scale length. Gibson economized a bit by not sunbursting the back and sides, and by making the neck out of mahogany instead of figured maple (most people agree that mahogany is actually the superior neck wood, but it's not as flashy looking). This example is in VERY clean collector condition, with no cracks or significant finish wear. It retains its original Grover sta-tite tuners and Gibon tailpiece. The pickguard long ago disintegrated, as most of them do. The case is a high quality hardshell from the pre-war period, though I don't have any reason to believe it to be the original. The fingerboard inlays are fancier than the blocks or dots which early L-5s featured, largely because Gibson was using unsold banjo inlays on this model...they look great, in any case. The sound is quite satisfying, and suitable for many different types of music. Of course, the early L-5s were the chosen guitar of Eddie Lang in the jazz world and Maybelle Carter in country music. Feel free to ask any questions you might have concerning this instrument. If you are near the San Francisco bay area and wish to try it out, get in contact with me and we'll make it happen. Thanks for looking!
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