62burst

Nice pics, and they show some equally nice mods. Decent string break at the saddle, ✔️. Very good looking grain on that top, too. Of course, a sample clip would always be welcome. 😊.

Very good info there, Dave. You had explained before that an M2M build could actually be less expensive, but I'd forgotten why.

One thing to bear in mind- The Advanced Jumbo model is a different creature than the venerable J-45/ Southern Jumbo. The longer scale length and (usually) rosewood back and sides gets away from the quick decay that makes the J-45 and SoJo such a fine strummer and those two models are known to work well with vocals. The three AJs I've had (in different incarnations) have all had a "harder" sound. If you go forward with the repaired AJ, you might want to pop the truss rod cover off, make sure things look ok there, and maybe confirm that the truss rod functions as it should.

Personally, the bigger tragedy to me is that nowadays someone could ask the equivalent of $8300 US for guitars in this condition. As is often said around here, at one time these were just old guitars and many people thought nothing of “modifying” guitars to their liking. Probably sounds pretty good.

It’s also posted on Philly craigslist. Most CL sellers don’t ship, but rather prefer cash and carry. Prairie Dogs idea of ask for an unusual camera angle of something to verify the seller actually has the guitar. The strings are high off the fretboard and the saddle is low already. A neck reset could be up to $500. other than potential neck reset, guitar is in fine condition, but those aren’t the most desired years for Gibson acoustics. yes, proceed with caution… Odds are seller might not even get back with you after asking for additional pics.

Greta might shriek "how dare you" to me, but even if they make me go electric, I'll still have G.A.S.

I don't know. . . one of those had a small bit of finish missing from the heel. 😐. "Murphy" can go jump in a lake- 'took a look, and indeed, there were a couple late 50's in that price range that looked like they would be fine players. Don't know if the OP would be up for the ADJ guitars, but looks like there were some converted ones, too.

+1.

But wouldn't the movement of heated dry air increase desiccation ?

Pics would've helped on this. Were they the classic center seam separation cracks? Those are one of the first types of cracks to appear with dried out guitars, and quite often, one of the more repairable (esp. on newer guitars), which usually involves a couple of days in the guitar sauna where the humidity is kept in the low 60's r.h.

And it is a huge manatee. Happens at other places, as well. PEETA should be called. People for the Ethical Treatment of Acoustics. But it is no joke- letting damage from dry conditions happen is bad, and disrespectful of the work put in to make these guitars.

It's like shooting fish in a barrel to catch a forumite in that room. And it must've been a fun moment, after the two of you were talking, to realize that you were both Forum people. Thanks to you, and to JCV for sharing, too. ps- what's up with that koa J-45's top? Is that crazy bear claw?

Good acoustic stuff. . . doing what 12 strings do best. The Guild sounds fine, and we'll give you a pass on the Rush artwork. Cool lighting/ camera angle, +1.

I've had that rippling on the side thing before, and it was not from leaving the Bob Evans on a Sunday morning. . . 'went & just looked, but that guitar has already gone to someone else. The closest thing I'd found that could explain it had to do with the process of bending the sides of the guitar at the factory- sometimes internal forces in the grain of the wood try to equalize themselves, maybe it was slightly present before the guitar was finished, and in the interest of not wasting wood, it was located on the side where it would be less noticeable.

+1. Haven't we all been one of those morons before?

I wouldn’t. $2k off of a $4300 guitar doesn’t sound suspect to you? Good catch. looking at online pics, the Keb models have orange labels. And- Don’t export models normally carry a one year limited warranty? Why is the certificate in the OP written on the form by Gibson’s Repair and Restoration department? hmmm. . .

Good to know. 👍🏼.

There are many reasons this would be a much safer way to go. Even though the one in Japan is much less expensive, the risks are higher. The costs and risks of shipping , import duties, time languishing in Customs, to name a few. even if there was return., Those costs & risks would also be on the buyer. Occasionally, used 12 fret J45’s come up on Reverb for sale, also, but a US buyer purchasing from Sweetwater would not only qualify you for the full warranty, but you would be able to speak with your “sales engineer“ who would listen to your preferences and pick one of those four available guitars that most closely matched what you were looking for. Yes- imgur recently changed their website, making uploaded pics as “posts“ going into their stream of pics/emojis, and less as a photo hosting site.

Looks good. It’s not uncommon to see that sort of tarnishing on Grover tuners on guitars kept out of the case in a humid environment. if it were my purchase, I’d be putting on a nice set of tulip tuners, anyhow. The pickguard is fine- it’s just evidence that the guitar has been played… In that case, check the frets for excessive wear, and maybe get a mirror & get a look inside. . . you know, to make sure it’s not growing any mushrooms, etc.

I could see that. Maybe the J-185's previous owner's minute was up long before the guitar was sold, and it was forgotten that the magnetic brace was in there. Almost forgot- happy NGD. Long time forumites will likely remember that you've got "a few guitars". . . Is this your first '185? How are you finding it, compared to the big '200's?

Strange that the owner of the guitar would allow the magnetic cross brace to get separated from the Tonewood effects processor. It is a unique piece of gear that would be interesting to experiment with. A great demo of acoustic guitar music (and playing) with the Tonewood Amps (a tip of the hat to Sting's Fields of Gold just past the 4 min mark):

I am againts misspellings on the soundhole label.

This might help: 1935 1A to 1520A 1936 1B to 1100B 1937 1C to 1400C 1938 1D to 1000D 1939 1E to 980E 1940 - 1945 1 to 7900 (some with letter, some without) From 1935 to 1942, the FON included a letter suffix. The consistency around this stopped during WWII and resumed in the early 1950s.

A neck reset and a new saddle from a qualified guitar repair person can make your guitar playable again. This is not the end for your guitar.

Google translate can only do so much. Of course, you or Guitar can probably be saved! A good place to start is to check the neck angle. Hopefully this article from a well respected, belated Guitar Repair person can help you get some information. Checking the neck angle with a straight edge and seeing where it touches the bridge of the guitar is one of the key points of the article. Hope not too much is lost in the translation: http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/Guitar/Setup/NeckAngle/neckangle.html