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J-50 ADJ


j45nick

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How's this for a misleading description, from someone who represents himself as a Nashville dealer, no less? Did you know that a late-60's J-50 ADJ was one built with Advanced Jumbo characteristics, rather than an adjustable bridge model? LOL!

 

I did send him a terse but polite message asking him to do his homework and fix his listing. We'll see if anything happens. For some reason, this type of stuff really frosts me.

 

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So, I heard back from this guy, who tells me I'm full of it, and this guitar never had an adjustable bridge. He also said the Gibson Acoustic forum is full of misinformation like this.

 

Anyone have an opinion on this?

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I did the same, Nick, and got an equally terse (indignant) reply assuring me he got it all straight. Go fig.

 

 

Yeah, his reply to me was pretty indignant as well. He says that he was the Gibson web editor for five years, and that ADJ never meant "adjustable bridge". I have a bit of trouble accepting that.

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Clearly nobody here has a clue and this gentleman is clearly in the right. I've just no idea what ye's were thinking in the first place...

 

pot-stirrer..... [biggrin]

 

It's a miracle: most models with adjustable bridges in the 1960's got "ADJ" stamped next to the model designation, and all this time it meant it was built with "Advanced Jumbo" characteristics, even though that model had been out of production for 25 years when these guitars were built? What was I thinking?

 

I guess the fact that all these guitars with "advanced jumbo" characteristics also had adjustable bridges was pure coincidence...... (although he claims this J-50 never had an adjustable bridge).

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Same guy selling this. This one has the adjustable bridge " which many people change"

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/FABULOUS-1968-GIBSON-B-25N-NATURAL-ACOUSTIC-GUITAR-926-/111054980021?pt=Guitar&hash=item19db6483b5

 

On another note, I saw B25Ns new and never saw the logo on the pick guard, but I may not have seen one new made after 1966. Was this original to this guitar?

 

I have a picture of me playing a B25n in 1966 that does not have that logo. I'm pretty sure the guitar was new then.

 

Rich

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Same guy selling this. This one has the adjustable bridge " which many people change"

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/FABULOUS-1968-GIBSON-B-25N-NATURAL-ACOUSTIC-GUITAR-926-/111054980021?pt=Guitar&hash=item19db6483b5

 

On another note, I saw B25Ns new and never saw the logo on the pick guard, but I may not have seen one new made after 1966. Was this original to this guitar?

 

I have a picture of me playing a B25n in 1966 that does not have that logo. I'm pretty sure the guitar was new then.

 

Rich

 

The pickguard with the Gibson "boob" logo like this was used in 1968, but not on all models. I've also seen '68s without it.

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Gibson hadn't made or marketed an Advanced Jumbo in nearly thirty years when the guitar in the eBay listing was made, so why on earth would the ADJ stand for Advanced Jumbo? What a liar. Not to mention that except for body shape, the AJ doesn't share any specs with the J-45. Different top bracing (usually), back bracing, scale, bridge, inlays, type of back and side wood (typically), etc. What a hoot that listing is. Shame on the seller, whose lengths to obfuscate the truth are certain proof that he/she knows better.

 

Red 333

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See... This seller is a genius and everyone in here is talking out of a hole... msp_thumbup.gif I'm off to make up some random stuff about one of my guitars, sell it on ebay and tell everybody you lot know noting.

 

The scary part is he claims that Don Ruffatto at Gibson Montana confirmed this, and that "many Advanced Jumbo models without adjustable bridges had "Adj" on the back cleat". I never knew any AJ models were built WITH adjustable bridges, but as he says, what do I know?

 

He also says he wrote much of the descriptive copy for various models on the Gibson website, which might partly explain why so much of that copy is completely wrong.....

 

AND, he describes the B25-N he has for sale as "a cannon". At least he didn't say it "plays like butter". [biggrin]

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"This is a Gibson J-50 ADJ from 1968. Inside the soundhole you can see "J50ADJ" stamped on one of the braces, and depending on your source the "ADJ" either means "Adjustable Bridge" or "Advanced Jumbo". Personally, we go with whatever the Gibson Customer Service department tells us, and they tell anyone that calls that "ADJ" stands for "Advanced Jumbo" so that's what we'll go with."

 

Was this in the original ad copy or did he change it to this?

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"This is a Gibson J-50 ADJ from 1968. Inside the soundhole you can see "J50ADJ" stamped on one of the braces, and depending on your source the "ADJ" either means "Adjustable Bridge" or "Advanced Jumbo". Personally, we go with whatever the Gibson Customer Service department tells us, and they tell anyone that calls that "ADJ" stands for "Advanced Jumbo" so that's what we'll go with."

 

Was this in the original ad copy or did he change it to this?

 

That's what it said when I responded to it. Of course, given the placement of teardrop pickguards on some models, I sometimes wonder if the folks at Gibson even know their own company history...... [biggrin]

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The scary part is he claims that Don Ruffatto at Gibson Montana confirmed this, and that "many Advanced Jumbo models without adjustable bridges had "Adj" on the back cleat". I never knew any AJ models were built WITH adjustable bridges, but as he says, what do I know?

 

He also says he wrote much of the descriptive copy for various models on the Gibson website, which might partly explain why so much of that copy is completely wrong.....

 

AND, he describes the B25-N he has for sale as "a cannon". At least he didn't say it "plays like butter". [biggrin]

 

I have heard some at Gibson use the term "advanced jumbo" to describe the slope shouldered body shape itself, and not exclusively in reference to the Advance Jumbo model--more as away to differentiate the slope shouldered models (which are jumbos in Gibson terminology) from the J-200-sized/shaped Super Jumbos.. Epiphone does this, too. In fact, their slope shouldered dreads usually have the AJ prefix (for example, AJ-200, AJ-45, AJ-500M), to distinguish them from square-shouldered dreadnoughts, which usually carry the DR prefix. Even still, the poster is willfully misrepresenting what he selling, and he is distorting what Don may have said.

 

Red 333

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I have heard some at Gibson use the term "advanced jumbo" to describe the slope shouldered body shape itself, and not exclusively in reference to the Advance Jumbo model--more as away to differentiate the slope shouldered models (which are jumbos in Gibson terminology) from the J-200-sized/shaped Super Jumbos.. Epiphone does this, too. In fact, their slope shouldered dreads usually have the AJ prefix (for example, AJ-200, AJ-45, AJ-500M), to distinguish them from square-shouldered dreadnoughts, which usually carry the DR prefix. Even still, the poster is willfully misrepresenting what he selling.

 

Red 333

 

 

Given that the Advanced Jumbo was not the first Gibson round-shouldered jumbo, it seems odd that they would refer this body style this way, particularly given that so many of the AJ features don't carry over to other slope models.

 

I still so no reason that the "ADJ" designation should mean anything other than "adjustable".

 

Of course, the bridge on this seller's J-50 is exactly the same bridge used with the adjustable saddle, even down to the size and shape of the saddle cutout. Here's an identical 1968 bridge, but with an adjustable saddle:

 

boneadjustable.jpg

 

Has anyone here ever seen this bridge type with an original, fat non-adjustable saddle on a 1968 J-45/50?

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Given that the Advanced Jumbo was not the first Gibson round-shouldered jumbo, it seems odd that they would refer this body style this way, particularly given that so many of the AJ features don't carry over to other slope models.

 

 

 

It would have been the first with tapered sides. The OJ, Trojan, and Hawaiian models that preceded the AJ generally had sides of approximately the same height at both shoulder and lower bout. All the slopes that came after the AJ derive from its lower-at-the-shoulders, deeper-at-the-lower-bout template, more or less.

 

By the way, I have had conversations with Gibson employees who refer to the x bracing on a slope shouldered guitar as "advanced bracing," but when questioned as to whether they mean the same pattern and location as the Advanced Jumbos' or True Vintages' slopes, they say "no," so it seem "advanced" is sometimes used in a generic sense.

 

Red 333

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We know that ADJ was stamped on guitars meant to get the adjustable bridge. It has nothing to do with Advanced Jumbo.

 

It doesn't matter what Gibson may or may not say. They're the ones who put a banner on the new J 35.

 

I'm with Nick--this chaps me.

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Still, it may sell at far more than it's 'market vintage value'. Never overestimate the intelligence of the masses. I think the para-phrased saying pre-dates PT Barnum, but he gets the credit. Ebay ain't the Boy Scouts, when it comes down to it.

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The seller is a fricken moron and I don't think that bridge is original.

Look closely at it, it sure looks bigger then what Gibson was using back then.

I'll bet dollars to donuts it's not the original bridge !

Sellers like this just piss me off.

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The seller is a fricken moron and I don't think that bridge is original.

Look closely at it, it sure looks bigger then what Gibson was using back then.

I'll bet dollars to donuts it's not the original bridge !

Sellers like this just piss me off.

 

 

I think the bridge could be original, as it is almost exactly like the 1968 bridge I showed above. Some of the bridges Gibson used in this period have a slightly larger footprint than we normally see.

 

I would have to see it in the flesh to be convinced that the guitar "never had an adjustable bridge" as he told me. He is clearly defensive because several folks here have apparently called him out on it.

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I've been corresponding with Don Ruffatto last few days getting information on my new custom shop J 45 ADJ.

 

We've been discussing the adjustable bridge amongst other things. ADJ as a stamp means adjustable.

 

ADJ as stamped means adjustsble on all the models its been stamped on.

 

But the idiot seller isnt entirely incorrect in stating that his ADJ has Advanced Jumbo characteristics.

 

It does.... its made of wood.

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I just read more of his detailed description... lol

 

" But what people seem to forget is that the J-45 was only one of the acoustic guitars in this series of Gibson acoustics, of which the Gibson J-50 was the top of the line instrument. That’s right … the Gibson J-50 was the next step up from the J-45, and this one particular example is a great testament to the superiority of the J-50 over its little brother, the J-45."

 

Ahahaha.... priceless

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