Gibson L-30 or L-37

[Tokyo Ken]

Dear knowledgeable vintage Gibson players and collectors,

 

I recently acquired this old Gibson archtop. The seller stated it was a 1930s L-37 and upon playing it and seeing it I had no doubts that it was indeed a vintage Gibson with a silkscreened logo. It had undergone an extensive profession repair of cracks in the top near the F-holes and the back. Looking inside I could see that the supports along the entire back seam had been replaced with newer pieces of wood, and the cracks in the top had been braced with similar little bits of wood. All the work inside the guitar looks great and professional. I didn't notice a the time but it seems that the neck was probably reset at the time of the extensive internal repairs. The guitar plays and sounds great so I didn't have any problems. Neck angle is great, no warping in the top, really a nice player. Cosmetically it's a bit beat. The back and sides have some new thin lacquer applied to it but the repairman was smart enough to leave the top 100% original in terms of finish.

 

The problem is that when the neck was reset I think the serial number was sanded or planed away. Also, there is no label inside the guitar nor a serial on the back of the headstock. I tried to include a shot of the heel of the neck in the photos but it's hard to get the light and camera in close enough. I saw elsewhere that a 1939 L-37 had a serial on the back of the headstock so that makes me think that my guitar is likely a 1937-8 but I'm wondering what more experienced eyes think. What I'm wondering is 1) is an L-30 or and L-37? 2)what year do you think it was made?

 

Many thanks for your help.

[JimR56]

This is a tough one, as the two models are nearly identical, and yours is not complete and all original. One difference between the two models is the pickguard, which yours does not have. The finishes were also slightly different according to what I've read, but that's a bit difficult to judge- especially with the state yours is in. It's unclear to me whether the headstock logos on the two models were different throughout their production, but the L-30 originally had a silkscreened logo (white). Your guitar's logo does not appear to be silkscreened, so perhaps this might suggest that it's an L-37. Coming up with a precise date without any further information may be impossible, unfortunately.

[Tokyo Ken]

Hi Jim, thanks for your reply. Indeed, accurate dating is likely impossible. I also read that the L-37 had sunburst sides and back while the L-30 was black all over. I can see through the lacquer applied from the repairs that this guitar was bursted (and was told by the guy selling it to me that it is an L-37) so I'm inclined to agree with your suggestion.

 

One last thing I'd like to know a bit more about is the logo. I've never owned a Gibson this old before so I was surprised to see that the logo wasn't inlay but rather what appears to be silkscreen or white paint. Maybe it's unclear from the photos but it is white not inlay.

 

Thanks so much for your input, I've really been enjoying the playability of this restored 70+ year old instrument, just curious about its provenance. Lemme know if more pictures would help.

 

--Ken

 

This is a tough one, as the two models are nearly identical, and yours is not complete and all original. One difference between the two models is the pickguard, which yours does not have. The finishes were also slightly different according to what I've read, but that's a bit difficult to judge- especially with the state yours is in. It's unclear to me whether the headstock logos on the two models were different throughout their production, but the L-30 originally had a silkscreened logo (white). Your guitar's logo does not appear to be silkscreened, so perhaps this might suggest that it's an L-37. Coming up with a precise date without any further information may be impossible, unfortunately.

[JimR56]

Hi Jim, thanks for your reply. Indeed, accurate dating is likely impossible. I also read that the L-37 had sunburst sides and back while the L-30 was black all over. I can see through the lacquer applied from the repairs that this guitar was bursted (and was told by the guy selling it to me that it is an L-37) so I'm inclined to agree with your suggestion.

 

One last thing I'd like to know a bit more about is the logo. I've never owned a Gibson this old before so I was surprised to see that the logo wasn't inlay but rather what appears to be silkscreen or white paint. Maybe it's unclear from the photos but it is white not inlay.

 

Thanks so much for your input, I've really been enjoying the playability of this restored 70+ year old instrument, just curious about its provenance. Lemme know if more pictures would help.

 

--Ken

Thanks for the update, Ken. With regard to finishes, the first L-30's were indeed all black, but within a few years were finished in sunburst (a slightly different shade from the L-37's, as I understand it). With regard to the headstock logo, your photos fooled me. It makes more sense that it is indeed silkscreened (being a relatively low-priced model), but those 1930's era silkscreens usually appear as a brighter shade of white in photos. Silkscreening was a cheaper way of doing logos, of course, and was used on many different lower-end models over the years (they transitioned from white to a gold color during the 1940's). At any rate, probably an L-37, and some research regarding the evolution of headstock logo script styles may help you to narrow down when yours was made. It's a pretty small time window, as the model was only made from 1935-1941 (the L-30 was made from 1935 to 1943).