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Frankenstein '38 J-35 Neck and Early 50's National 1155 Body


bayoubengal1954

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By the way, not sure if you have ever played one of those National/Gibson hybrids but they came with the "Stylist" neck which were made with a metal core wrapped with wood. They were full adjustable. National offered a J-45, LG-2 and J-160E version. Kay also made bodies for these guitars but these are pretty easy to distinguish from the Gibson bodies.

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I had seen that one. Agree it seems a bit pricey for a put together guitar no matter how good the parts are. But then again, I do not have a clue what the breakup value of that instrument would be.

Agreed. I could only bring myself to plunk down $2500 on it, and I would make the drive from New Orleans to play it first.

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I had seen that one. Agree it seems a bit pricey for a put together guitar no matter how good the parts are. But then again, I do not have a clue what the breakup value of that instrument would be.

I've never gotten to play an 1155. I've heard the neck is quite different. Did you ever get to play one, ZW? If so, what did you think?

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I've never gotten to play an 1155. I've heard the neck is quite different. Did you ever get to play one, ZW? If so, what did you think?

 

I owned a 1155E with the pickup poles poking through the fretboard for a bit. When I got the guitar it still had a brochure in the case explaining how the Stylist neck worked. The reason I did not keep the guitar was that it did have a bit of a metallic ring to it which I could never accustom myself to. I never tried adjusting the neck to see if it worked as Valco claimed. You got to it through a large plastic plate. I believe with these guitars Gibson supplied just the raw body. Valco applied the finish and the pickguard. The earlier version of the 1155 though did have a dovetail joint Gibson neck but without a truss rod.

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I owned a 1155E with the pickup poles poking through the fretboard for a bit. When I got the guitar it still had a brochure in the case explaining how the Stylist neck worked. The reason I did not keep the guitar was that it did have a bit of a metallic ring to it which I could never accustom myself to. I never tried adjusting the neck to see if it worked as Valco claimed. You got to it through a large plastic plate. I believe with these guitars Gibson supplied just the raw body. Valco applied the finish and the pickguard. The earlier version of the 1155 though did have a dovetail joint Gibson neck but without a truss rod.

Thanks for that information!

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Again, to me, the guitar would be worth the beak up value. If you have say a 1950s J-200 neck that still has its Kluson "G" stamped Sealfast tuners you are talking $700 to $1,000 for the tuners alone as they were used on some other very high dollar guitars such as the Super 400 and Byrdland. If it were me, if that neck had been wed to another 1930s J-35 body I would be very interested in the guitar at the asking price. But that is based on what an original intact J-35 would run me.

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I owned a 1155E with the pickup poles poking through the fretboard for a bit. When I got the guitar it still had a brochure in the case explaining how the Stylist neck worked. The reason I did not keep the guitar was that it did have a bit of a metallic ring to it which I could never accustom myself to. I never tried adjusting the neck to see if it worked as Valco claimed. You got to it through a large plastic plate. I believe with these guitars Gibson supplied just the raw body. Valco applied the finish and the pickguard. The earlier version of the 1155 though did have a dovetail joint Gibson neck but without a truss rod.

You had me at “pick up poles poking through the fretboard”. . . Would’ve loved to have seen that one. Good info regarding the National- I was gassing over those for a while; a bit clunky 50’s headstock styling/logo. Some had an almost greenish burst, and fairly sure Gibson was supplying only the bodies.

As for as the guitar in the OP’s link- that neck looks like it has been coarsely modified, judging by what is seen in the BACK of the headstock photo, so possibly not too original in the neck carve anyway.

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You had me at “pick up poles poking through the fretboard”. . . Would’ve loved to have seen that one. Good info regarding the National- I was gassing over those for a while

Here ya go, burst!

 

National 1155E 1955 Sunburst (made by Gibson)

https://reverb.com/item/2545572-national-1155e-1955-sunburst-made-by-gibson

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You had me at “pick up poles poking through the fretboard”. . . Would’ve loved to have seen that one. Good info regarding the National- I was gassing over those for a while; a bit clunky 50’s headstock styling/logo. Some had an almost greenish burst, and fairly sure Gibson was supplying only the bodies.

As for as the guitar in the OP’s link- that neck looks like it has been coarsely modified, judging by what is seen in the BACK of the headstock photo, so possibly not too original in the neck carve anyway.

 

When I picked up my National, I was gigging regularly and was looking for an alternative to the Dearmonds which moved around when you got energetic and chewed up the soundhole. Plus, not having an output jack on any of my guitars, the cable was a pain in the butt. It did not hurt that at the time the National version was a whole lot cheaper than a used 160E. The placement of the poles through the fingerboard extension was an interesting alternative to shortening the board to make room for the pickup. It was only with the CF-100E that Gibson opted to move the soundhole southward.

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