1973 Gurian J-R Mini-Jumbo Flattop Guitar

Local folks know that I can get sucked-in by stories. This guitar is owned by the son of the original owner and he's a honky-tonk, Americana kind-of player and is headed-down to record an album quite soon. He was hoping to get it ready in time for that session and because I liked the romanticism of that (use Dad's guitar on your record -- check!), I got it done -- despite the icky neck-block damage.

I like these rosewood Gurians for my own fingers a little better than the mahogany-backed ones as they cream-up the direct punchiness of these instruments for me. They're also an interesting design because they "look" like a 000-size instrument but the deeper body depth, wider waist, and wider lower bout really make them mini-jumbos in tone, feel, and sizing.

Work included repairing the neck block, a neck reset (bolted-n-glued), fret level/dress, crack repair to a long hairline on the back, and a good cleaning and setup. Thankfully, the truss rod works 100% (something I can't say for all Gurians) and it's stable and happy thus far and sounds the business.

Specs are: 25 5/8" scale, 1 11/16" nut width, mild-to-medium C-shaped neck profile, 1 3/8" string spacing at the nut, 2 1/4" spacing at the bridge, 15 3/4" lower bout, 12" upper bout, and 4 5/8" depth at the endblock. The board has something like a 16" radius to it.

Woods are: solid spruce top, solid Indian rosewood back and sides, mahogany neck, and ebony board and bridge. The headstock veneer is rosewood, too, and it has nice maple binding.

The original saddle worked just-fine after shimming it up and reprofiling the top a little.