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1974 Gibson hummingbird


Motherofpearl

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I have found an old gem and to be honest I know very little about vintage guitars so I'm hoping some of the knowledge in here could help me out on a good price for this 1974 all original hummingbird. There is no cracks and is in near mint except for some checking. Here are some photos also comes with original case which is in good shape

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What's a good value?

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He's asking 2150 what's with the norlin era? Why were they so bad?

 

....Read my post - Narrow nut.

 

Also quality issues/Cost saving during the Norlin era. A lot of hit and miss going on......have you played it?

 

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The 70s Norlin era Birds like Doves, J200s were Double X braced. ( Most have top issues anyways and need a Jack in the Middle to hold the Top up) . Somewhat of a Tone Killer.. most had a standard width Nut.. Not Skinny like the Late 60s.. as for value.. Most can ask what the wish.. Guitar stores do that all the time.. But I would have a hard time parting with a grand for one.. any more than that would get me a Much newer One.. and there are plenty out there..

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As has already been noted Gibsons from the late 1960s and 1970s are not considered the best of the breed due to the fact that there was far more emphasis on avoiding warranty issues than making a good sounding guitar.

 

There are a few things in particular that might help you.

 

During the period that guitar was made Gibson attached the pickguards and bridges directly to the wood (the areas were apparently masked during finishing). Applying the pickguard to an unfinished surface was not the best idea. The plastic tends to shrink which can cause cracks.

 

Also, in these years Gibson fitted the neck before putting on top on over the joint and then adding the fingerboard. This makes it tough to get to the joints if any repair is ever needed.

 

Mind you, I am not saying don't buy the guitar or anything. I ain't eyeballed or played the guitar and these types of potential issues may never actually come up. And even if there are some issues, I would never let something even like a top crack stop me from buying a guitar as it is a relatively easy fix. The price seems pretty good and the guitar looks to be in good condition.

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I see thanks I'm not interested in the narrow nut 1.725 is perfect I think!! Thanks for the help I think I'll walk away from this one. No I never played it if it was a good deal I would have made the trip!

 

Well you had better start saving then if you want a vintage Gibson with a wide 1.725 nut. It's gonna cost you!!!!!

 

Better start looking for a 50's or earlier model. From 1965 through all through the 70's most were around 1.5625, maybe 1.6875 if you got lucky in the 60's. Nothing like 1.725 in this era....

 

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Well you had better start saving then if you want a vintage Gibson with a wide 1.725 nut. It's gonna cost you!!!!!

 

Better start looking for a 50's or earlier model. From 1965 through all through the 70's most were around 1.5625, maybe 1.6875 if you got lucky in the 60's. Nothing like 1.725 in this era....

 

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Not sure you are correct about the narrow nuts being used throughout the 1970s. I may be wrong but although ther necks remained thin I believe Gibson went back to using at least 1 11/16" nuts on a number of guitars sometime during the late 1960s or early 1970s. I know Gibson re-designed their necks around '72-'73 at which time they returned to the 17 degree headstock pitch so maybe this is when as the switch to the narrower nuts came about when they started making necks with a 14 degree pitch (a move intended to reduce headstock breakage).

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Not sure you are correct about the narrow nuts being used throughout the 1970s. I may be wrong but although ther necks remained thin I believe Gibson went back to using at least 1 11/16" nuts on a number of guitars sometime during the late 1960s or early 1970s.

 

Zomby you need to read my whole post mate!

 

I'm not saying there were no 1 11/16 (1.69) 43 mm necks in the 70's - there were definitely some in certain models, the HB being one of them....

 

What I was saying is that they were definitely no 1.725 (1 12/16) 44 mm plus widths as far as I am aware in this era,.....which is what MotherOfPearl is looking for. Hence my post suggesting that he look for an older model with the larger nut.

 

 

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So the early 60s hummingbirds and c&w had a smaller nut as well? They are also long scale?

 

 

The thing about Gibson is they went through management changes (both at Gibson and CMI their parent company)and re-tooling in 1965 and 1966 so quite a bit changed.

 

The narrower nut was birthed in 1965. I have never been able to get a handle on the scales. It looks like they start showing up around 1969. But I am not sure what models saw a scale change or how long it continued. Gibsons made from 1960 through 1962, however, did have the thinnest neck profiles the company ever came up with for an acoustic.

 

The impression I get is that Gibson (as well as others) took notice of the growing popularity of electrics and tried to give their acoustics a similar feel.

 

The neck profile and nut width though really are a matter of preference. Either you like them or you don't. I play with my fingers so prefer a wider nut and overall just like a big old chunky neck that fills my hand. But that does not mean I cannot play anything else. I would just prefer not to.

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