1966 Gibson J-45 ADJ Slope Dreadnought Guitar

I never get tired of J-45s and they all come in their own variation of that Gibson slope-shoulder dread flavor. This one sounds very 60s and has a big bottom-end presence (so much so that I had to aim it away from my mic to keep it from woofing) on the E&A strings. From the mids-on-up, however, it responds a lot like a mahogany-topped guitar with a woody, airy sort of sound and a creamed-off top end. I think it sounds best fingerpicked in a Townes van Zandt fashion, but it's healthy as a flatpicker in the 60s songwriter strummy style.

A local fellow brought this in and I believe it'll be up for consignment as he's looking for a smaller guitar. He bought this new and he's taken good care of it, though it certainly shows its age in weather-checked finish all over and a couple of (cleated, sealed) hairline cracks below the bridge. The bridge and saddle are replacements (ebony, bone) but well-executed and otherwise it's all-original. The original bridge would've been an adjustable type (hence ADJ stamped on the backstrip inside the body).

My work included a fret level/dress, cleating of one crack, light cleaning, and a good setup. It plays spot-on (3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE at the 12th fret) and is strung with 54w-12 strings. The neck is narrow at 1 5/8" at the nut, though a 12" radius and normal-medium C-shaped depth mean it doesn't feel tiny. It's very rock-and-roll and makes you want to play barred chords up and down like crazy.

Cherry sunburst is one of my favorite vintage flattop sprays -- it screams 60s country-western!

The original plastic nut and Kluson tuners survive in good health. The truss rod works perfectly, too.

The dots are "pearloid" and the frets are the usual, lower, jumbo stock from the time.

There's plenty of saddle to spare.

It's hard to see, but here are the two hairline cracks coming down below the bridge and near the center seam -- one short and one longer. Both are tight, cleated, and good to go.

The original Gibson chip/padded chip case comes with it.

Here's some of the weather-check on the top.