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2penny_hangover

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About 2penny_hangover

  • Birthday May 7

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    Berlin, Germany

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  1. Got the J-45 about ten days ago but only now I feel I have enough time with it to report back. It's legit. Sounded very impressive straight out of the case. Very bassy, with round mids and highs. Rediculously low action, with some -not unpleasant- buzzing sound when digging in 😉might be too muddy for some recording due to strong bass. The fretboard has beautiful dark rosewood but it was very dirty and I spent the better part of an afternoon getting all the gunk out from around the frets. Some frets were high, so I ended up doing a fret level+crown+polish and gave the tross rod more releaf. Now it doesn't buzz at all unless digging real hard and the action is still low at 2mm low e and 1.5mm high e (3/64'' - 4/64''). The frets were a bit low even before the leveling and with the low action it makes bending a bit more difficult than it should be (the string above the bent string often gets caught in the bend), but it might be a matter of adjusting my technique. The seller said it had red spruce for the top, which he probably heard in the shop, but the grain seemed too narrow for an adirondack top. I heard back from Gibson and seems mine has a sitka top, as they didn't switch to adirondack until 2013 for the 50's model. Possibly, in 2014, the shop had several of these when the seller was there, so it might have been a mixed bunch of adi (2013) and sitka (2012) tops, and he chose the sitka thinking it's (and possibly paying for) adirondack. I really don't mind the Sitka top as my other acoustic guitar has an adirondack top. It feels more easy to overdrive and make it bark. The thick neck I was expecting. I noticed it seriously changes the way I play. More relaxed and effortless, but less nimble (so far). I'm comparing back and forth with a Guild Orpheum (adi top, hog b&s, long scale, slim neck, slope shoulder with a slightly different shape). They are as different as can be. The Guild is more focused and balanced. The J45 more bassy and slinky. Back in 2012-13 there was the J-45 std. the J-45 TV, the J-45 Vintage and probably some historic re-issues. Additionally, it appears these "custom shop" 50's models were quite common (I saw a few online). By looking at specs, it seems identical to the 50's J-45 model on mass production today, but I've never played one for comparison. Only differences I could notice is the lack of label, different placements for serial number and the custom shop stamp in the back. I really wonder how this J-45 compares to the others that were made in 2012. In any case, It's a definite keeper. No other guitar I have plays like that. Might do a partial / complete re-fret at some point, but for now I'm happy. The price was very similar to a modern day J45 50's on the street. Not sure if I got something special objectively speaking, but it's special for me 🎸 Here's the gibby (left) next to the Guild Orpheum.
  2. As there were no more suspicious signs and the seller seems trustworthy I went ahead and purchased the guitar. Hopefully it will arrive within a week and I'll post more details in a NGD post.
  3. Thanks for the tip. Does make sense. Tomorrow the seller should show me the serial number behind the glue and I'm hopeful it matches the paperwork. For some reason I had the impression that custom shop instruments from Gibson come with a bit more than the checklist broschure.
  4. Thanks for the info Dave, I already stumbled upon this explanation, which is why I got to wondering why it's labeled as Southen Jumbo when it's obviously a J45. Probably a mislabel and nothing sinister... I wrote to Gibson support, asking for info about the guitar according to serial and model number. Also asked the seller to clear the glue from the serial on the neck join, to match it against the one on the broschure. Will probably pull the trigger if nothing suspicious happens.
  5. Any idea why the model number indicates southern jumbo?
  6. I asked the seller to peel the glue to expose the serial when he finds the time.
  7. What I really find weird is that the serial number you found is indicative of Southern Jumbo, not a J45. Gibson is known for mislabeling, but could it be the case here?
  8. Thanks gearbasher! This seems to be the very same model. This does make me relax a little.
  9. Hi all, I'm ramping up buy a second hand J45. It is said to be a 2012 J45 50's custom shop with adi top and 50's specs (not unsimilar to todays J45 50's appointments). There are a few weird things: - No oragne label in the soundhole. The seller says he bought the guitar from BTM music in Germany in 2014 and it didn't have a label to begin with. - No serial number at the back of the headstock. - The serial on the neck joint (inside) is covered with what looks like black goo. Seller says it is glue from a battery holder. The paper from Gibson with the guitar serial number says 10502005 and model name appears to be either RSSJIKNH1 or RSSJLKNH1 (it's hard to tell). Here's all the photos I have of the guitar: https://www.flickr.com/photos/194054856@N06/with/53461346376/ What do you make of this? Should I be suspicous? Would you prefer a brand new J45 50's over one like this? I really like the finish and thicker neck on this one. Thanks in advance!
  10. Probably a Norlin era J45 from the late 60's that was modded with electronics. If only it wasn't 10 hours by train to try it.
  11. Sorry about that. I tried to use the embeded link feature. The photo looked well in the preview, but now I see it's a broken link. Here's hopefully better links: https://yourimageshare.com/ib/DB8X4kXqqv https://yourimageshare.com/ib/mOzAuliXM5
  12. This one appeared on a classified website a few days ago. It some features of a late 60's J45 (and it's advertized as a 60's J45), but the knobs on the top and the placeholder for the pickup throw me off in the direction of a J160. What do you think?
  13. That explains it. So I guess it's a matter of shrincage of those two pieces that causes the lacker breaking. Not a great sign I guess.
  14. I'm considering this Southern Jumbo WG from 2012. I talked to the seller on a video call since we don't have a chance to meet in person and he showed me something that looks like a crack, a scratch or a sort of lacker reaction on the headstock. Has anyone seen this before or can explain what and why this is?
  15. Somewhat late for the party but I can say that I also have a very similar guitar - the tuners, label, production year - and including the Gibson logo inlay which got malformed over time. For a moment I was thinking it's my guitar in the photo 😄 I was also a bit sceptical about the model being TV, but: after a discussion on this forum and writing to Gibson with the serial I'm convinced that it is. Best giveaway is the finish on the top. It's very thin and exposes the thin grain of the wood. I believe that especially in the first years of the TV (round 2006) not all models got the "True Vintage" on the label, at least that's true for these birds. If you post more high quality photos of the top I believe it would assist in identifying the model. Or simply ask Gibson regarding the serial number via email. They answered me quite quickly...
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