c.1964 Gibson J-45 ADJ Dreadnought Guitar

I wish customers wouldn't drop guitars like this off. They make me envious!

Of all the dreadnought-shaped designs, I've always liked the J-45/J-50 slope shouldered types the best, personally. This mostly has to do with how it sits in the lap and in the hand for me -- I like short scale instruments and the Gibson scale and rounded upper bouts as well as waist location make the J-45 infinitely more comfortable to play for me than a D-18 or similar. However, I love (and find useful) the sound of both, so for me it mostly comes down to the way it play.

So, naturally, while I was working on this guitar I found the old Gibson dread lust seeping into me.

This one was in for the usual -- fret level/dress, cleaning, and setup. It also had to have its peeling pickguard put back down, which I did with some double-sided adhesive pickup film stuff I have hanging around, though because the edges had curled up (presumably from heat in the case) I have my doubts as to how long this guard will stay put.

As a believer in adjustable bridges, I heartily endorse this one, as I value practicality pretty highly. To my ears they don't make the sound better or worse -- just different -- from a regular "set" bone saddle. The benefit of having the ability to set the guitar up very quickly via the truss rod and the adjustable saddle, however, means that for me any minimal extra perceived harmonic or dynamic loss is quickly made up for in easy adjustability.

This guitar is all-original and crack free. It's also nice to see the fun aged-in "iced tea" sunburst with some of the more intense color of the sunburst leached out.

Faux-MOP dots in a rosewood board.

Good mahogany back, sides, and neck.

Kluson tuners work fine. I shot some lubricant into them to get them to operate a little more cleanly.

It looks like some work was done at the heel area at some point.

It's a good one!