2014  Concert  Schedule   —   Final
Jan    8      Meadowood, Lansdale PA   —   Big Band Idols
Jan   15     Heath Village, Hackettstown NJ   —   Juke Joint Jive
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Feb   16    Valentine's Concert   —   Legendary Love Songs
               Oak Crest Village, Walther Blvd, Parkville MD 21234
               3:00 pm, Town Center Auditorium, www.ericksonliving.com
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Apr    5     Heritage, Raleigh NC   —   Juke Joint Jive
Apr    7     Lakewood Manor, Richmond VA   —   Bye Bye Blues
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Apr  14     Public Library Concert   —   Sunny Side of the Street
              Denville Library, 121 Diamond Spring Road, Denville NJ 07034

              7 pm, Library Theatre, 973-627-6555, www.denvillelibrary.org

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May   9     Friends of the Library Concert   —   Tin Pan Alley Cats
               Bridgewater Township Library, 1 Vogt Drive, Bridgewater NJ 08807

               7:30 pm, Meeting Rooms A-B-C, 908-526-4016, www.sclsnj.org

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Jun  11     Cypress, Raleigh NC   —   In The Mood
Jun  12     Springmoor, Raleigh NC   —   In The Mood

Jun  13     Lake Prince Woods, Suffolk VA   —   Broadway's Song Souvenirs

Jun  16     The Oaks, Orangeburg SC   —   In The Mood
Jun  17     Stewart Health Center, Charlotte NC

Jun  18     Bermuda Village, Advance NC   —   Radio Ramblers

July  14    Shannondell - Bradford, Audubon PA   —   Hollywood's Hit Songs

Sep   3     Heath Village, Hackettstown NJ   —   Big Band Idols

Sep  18     Country House, Wilmington DE   —   Big Band Idols

Sep  25     Arbors, Manchester CT   —   Juke Joint Jive

Sep  26     Overlook, Charlton MA   —   In The Mood

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Oct    9     Volunteer Recognition Brunch   —   Legendary Love Songs
               9:00 am @ Beaver Brook Country Club, Annandale NJ

               Sponsor: Hunterdon County Senior Center, 908-788-1359

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Oct    9     Wellington, West Chester PA   —   Juke Joint Jive

Oct   13     Riddle Village, Media PA   —   Speak Easy Jazz

Oct   16     Sherwood Oaks, Cranberry Twp PA   —   Juke Joint Jive
Oct   20     Lakewood Manor, Richmond VA   —   In The Mood
Oct   22     Cypress, Raleigh NC   —   Love Was Nifty
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Oct   26    Public Library Concert   —   Ragtime Rascals
               Sponsor: Friends of Library commemorate centennial of World War I
               Dorothy Henry Branch Library, 66 Rt 94, Vernon NJ 07462
               3 pm, Community Room, 973-827-8095, www.sussexcountylibrary.org
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Nov   3      Shannondell - Ashcroft, Audubon PA   —   Speak Easy Jazz
Nov   5      Meadowood, Lansdale PA   —   Hollywood's Hit Songs
Nov  13     Springmoor, Raleigh NC   —   Love Was Nifty
Nov  14     Lake Prince Woods, Suffolk VA   —   Hollywood's Hit Songs
Nov  18     The Oaks, Orangeburg SC   —   Broadway's Song Souvenirs
Nov  19     Bermuda Village, Advance NC   —   In The Mood
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Dec  16     AARP Chapter Concert   —   In The Mood
               1:30 pm @ VFW Building, 125 Main Avenue, Wallington NJ 07057
               Sponsored by JFK Memorial Library, 973-471-1692; http://wallington.bccls.org
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©  2014 — Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved

1951 Gibson J-45

Big box with issues at a big-box store

Posted July 2012 — revised Nov 2014
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© 2014 by Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved
          Please see FEEDBACK at end of article

In the last 17 years I've owned and played 160 vintage acoustic guitars. With ownership came the expenses of many repair jobs — resetting necks, refretting fingerboards installing bridge plate pads, replacing faulty bridges, saddles and nuts, mending pickguard cracks and cleating dryness cracks. I've also reset the action on many guitars to facilitate my flatpicking playing style.

One of seven comps for 1951 Gibson J-45

Over the years I've kept a couple dozen guitars and sold the rest. This includes this 1951 Gibson J-45 with a wide, woody sound and beguiling bluegrass aura.

This instrument is, however, one reason I'm dubious of guitar dealers, large or small, who say a guitar was "gone over" by their repair person, offered in "original condition," or "ready to play 70 more years."

Among my favorite pieces of dealer dribble is this misleading phrase: "All it needs is your fingers on the strings."

You hear what I hear?
My adventure with this guitar was short. I examined it  few times at The Guitar Center (TGC) in Langhorne PA in January 2006 and made this assessment:

It was offered as a 1949 Gibson J-45 (FON 6572 25) in VG+ condition. On the plus side, its interior braces were solid, the sunburst spruce top had only minor wear, the mahogany back and sides had no blemishes, and there was no pickguard crack.

On the other hand, it had what I believed was a shaved or possibly sanded rosewood bridge, thin bone saddle, plastic strap pin in the treble-side heel (easily removed and patched) and moderate-plus fret wear.

Worse of all, the bluegrass set-up seemed high and the frets buzzed. At my insistence, TGC's on-site repair person inspected it and provided truss rod relief. This work, however, was not enough to eliminate the fret buzzing, which was objectionable to me.

In my opinion the guitar needed a neck reset, fret dressing or new frets, and perhaps a new bridge with taller saddle. In all, I estimated this big box at a big-box retailer needed $500 to $700 in repairs to optimize its playability.

Finding price comps
TGC's price on the instrument was $4,500, which I considered a premium for a guitar that buzzed. In short order, I found seven sales comps on J-45 guitars made between 1949 and 1951 at other guitar dealers. At the time I considered buying this guitar — in early 2006 — retail prices ranged from $2,200 to $4,500 and averaged $3,675.

In addition, I was dubious of the guitar's vintage. While I wouldn't call the 1949 date by TGC a mistake, my research showed the combination of modern-style headstock, three-ply binding on top and back and the 6572 FON meant the guitar was likely made in 1951, not 1949.

In 1951 Gibson produced 1,520 of these J-45 guitars and sold them at retail for $80. In 1952 the firm began using letters in its FON code (Z = 1952, Y = 1953, etc.) and changed some design elements, which has made vintage dating somewhat easier.

I offered TGC $3,800 to reflect the guitar's age and condition, the work I felt it needed to optimize playability, and to match comparable J-45s in the market. After checking with its vintage experts in Hollywood CA, TGC in Langhorne responded as follows:

"It's a 1949 vintage Gibson J-45 which we'll reduce to $4,300 in 'as is' condition now. Otherwise, it's priced at $4,500 'firm' once TGC in Hollywood performs any repairs it deems necessary. In addition, afterwards there is no price negotiation and no guarantee the guitar would be returned to Langhorne."

Whew!

Biting proverbial bullet
I've conducted more successful price negotiations with TGC at its stores in Los Angeles CA, Towson MD, Columbus OH and Danvers MA. Still, on 9 February 2006, I accepted their "as is" price and paid $4,558 including PA sales tax.

I took it home, cleaned it, polished it, changed the strings and played it. I also installed my I.D. labels inside the body. A few people have found these tags inside vintage acoustic guitars I previously owned and inquired about my stewardship.

Nevertheless, even with TGC's set-up work, it only played OK — a lackluster acceptance on my part. What's more, once I'd played it for several days and learned what it could and could not do, I just could not justify spending another $500 to $700 for repairs and set-up on this guitar. Besides, I might find a similar vintage Gibson J-45 without issues at another dealer at the same or lower price.

So, a week later I returned it and got all my money back. Later, they re-listed the guitar — again as a 1949 J-45 and again at $4,500.

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© 2014 by Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved

FEEDBACK

Pretty interesting stuff. Specific dating by serial # of instruments other than Martin guitars [their system is pretty iron-clad] is often iffy, particularly with Gibson instruments. Serial # dating isn't always perfect, nor is dating by appointments, like bridges, pickguards or tuners. Almost anyone with extensive experience in these matters can come up with exceptions to the "rules."     —     Leo Coulson, Intermountain Guitar & Banjo, Salt Lake City, UT

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I like "this diversity of opinion confirms that it's a Gibson." No Gibson serial number list should be taken as absolute. In the case of the J-45, I think the tapered headstock indicates it was made before mid-1950. We don't know an exact date or even a month in 1950 when the headstock [design] changed. Most, but not necessarily all, 6000-series FONs are found in 1952, but the guitar should not have a tapered headstock that late. So, the most logical date would be early in 1951. And the teardrop pickguard lasts until 1955.     —     Walter Carter, Carter Vintage Guitars, Nashville, TN

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Thanks for the heads-up on this one. I get a kick out of finding your labels inside the instruments.     —     Mark Stutman, Folkway Music, Waterloo ON

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Thanks for the article. Anyone who takes The Guitar Center for their word about anything needs to be taught a lesson! All the best.     —     Steve Swan, Steve Swan Guitars, Burlingame, CA

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