Red 333

Poly can be gloss, semi-gloss, or matte, depending on the formulation of the finish, and how much flattening agent is added to it. Epiphone makes guitars with poly finishes in a range of gloss. There are satin models, "aged gloss" models, etc, The new Inspired by Gibson Custom models have a new V.O.S. finish on some of is meant to emulate the soft sheen of a well preserved vintage guitar, for example. Red 333

Only the John Lennon 1965 Casino and John Lennon Revolution Casino (which were built in Japan and given final assembly in the US ) have nitro finishes. In some marketing literature, "Elitist" was also added to the names. They were seen as an offshoot of that series in that they were made by Terada, the factory that made the hollow-body Elitists, and during the period the Elitists were being made and marketed. These two John Lennon signature models sold for $2K each. This was in the mid 2000's. The Inspired By models (which came later, and were made in China) have a poly finish. The name is meant to suggest they were inspired by the features of the two John Lennon signature models that preceded them, but with changes to make them more affordable (including the poly finish instead of nitro, and a change in their place of manufacture, China instead of Japan, and other things). These were widely available new for around $700, I think. Red 333

I like your singing, Buc. Red 333 And the playing.

Great to hear. Can't wait to see one in the wild for myself. Enjoy yours! Red 333

The Japanese made Paul McCartney 1964 Texan and John Lennon 1965 and Revolution Casinos had nitro finishes, as did variants of these models issued in the Epiphone Elitist series, as well as some others like a John Lee Hooker Sheraton. There was also a Japanese made Epiphone LQ series that preceded the Elitists which included Les Paul models and 335s, etc. Red 333

Poly is also difficult to remove because of the way it's applied. The wood on a nitro finished guitar has grain filler applied before the nitro, to fill up open grain in the wood (think of open grain like the pores in your skin). When the nitro is finally applied, it sits more or less on top of the wood, instead of sinking deep into the open grain. Poly is faster and less expensive to apply because it is a self leveling finish. It fills open grain without needing a filler. It may be hard to remove from some wood types because of the difficulty of fully removing it from the open grain. Red 333

Many of the Epiphones made in China now have the very same components as the USA models. I recently bought a Shinichi Ubukata ES-355 that features Gibson '57 Classics and Gibson-spec pots and caps. It's a stellar guitar. It has the import style bridge and Bigsby, but the same Grovers that you'd find on US models, plus an ebony board. The newest Inspired by Gibson Custom ES-355 has Custom Buckers and the Gibson Historic lightweight tailpiece. You don't have to upgrade the higher-spec Epiphones, or even the mid tier unless you want to. Red 333

Music Villa put up a short demo comparing it directly to the Gibson version. The Epiphone acquitted itself nicely. It didn't have all the low end of the Gibson, but it definitely had the dry crispness you associate with vintage style voicing. And it has a nice pickup, which is something of a plus if you're playing out There's also a 1957 J-200 and a J-180 in this new Inspired by Custom Shop line up, both with thermally aged tops. The J-45 has thermally aged Red Spruce, and the other two Sitka Wildwood Music has photos of the J-200 they have in stock, and it's gorgeous. Lots of flame and figure on the back and neck. The top looks a little blotchy, though. Still, overall a stunning looking guitar for comparatively very little. I did play a regular Inspired by Gibson J-45 over the Christmas holidays and was very impressed. Except for the headstock and the laurel, it looked every inch a Gibson. Very nice mahogany on the sides, back, and neck. I was especially impressed with the feel of the finish. I don't know what advances they've made in poly formulations, but it felt terrific. As you may know, I am no stranger to J-45s and the Inspired by I played sounded great. Worthy of the J-45 appellation for sure. I THINK it was Indonesian made, but don't remember exactly. Red 333

And the companion to that model, the John Lennon Revolution Casino. Perhaps that is what the OP is referring to. If it is a poly finished Inspired By, no change should occur to the finish. But you would expect a nitro finish (as on the JL Revolution and JL 1965) to sink in time, which indeed might make the top feel rougher. In any case, I would use Gibson Pump Polish on it. It won't make the top feel too much smoother, but it is an excellent cleaner and polish. Red 333

No problem. There are other guitars from that run of 34 on the web, and the features match, so looks like the genuine article. My concern was that it didn't match the features of the original edition of Legends, but as Dave F has shown, Gibson changed the specs. Good luck and let us all know what route you go Red 333

Yeah, I deleted my post. I see that the 2016 version of 34 (of which the guitar in question is one) had all these features. This is what you alluded to the other day in another post! I guess that when I think of the Legend, I think of the original run of highly accurate, all-hide glue guitars. Accurate of a specific guitar is more accurate. Gibson made J-45s with any number of features of 1942, so maybe the guitar in question is accurate to one of those! I must say, I prefer the finish on the 2016 version to the one with aged toner of the originals. It's the only reservation I have with mine. Red 333

Epiphone was doing it in 2004 on $499 Chinese-made Masterbilt guitars, which were certainly shaped by CNC, which is why I asked Ren that very thing. Red 333

That's good to know. Thanks for the tip! Red 333

Be still my heart. Enjoy! Red 333

I can't say. I've never seen a CS Banner or a Murphy. I'm sure they are excellent, in any case. I have a Legend, though, and love it. Red 333

The taper the OP is referring to is the depth of the headstock at the top (narrower) to the bottom (deeper), not the width. But yes, I've heard that as the reasoning for the addition of the wings on the sides of the headstock. I wholeheartedly agree with your observations about changes to design usually being about cost cutting (and the other things in your post). Leaving the headstock un-tapered saves time and time is money. Red 333

I don't know if anyone knows the origin or reasoning for the design, but the mechanical inconsistency, as you say, is certainty something that contributes to the character of those old instruments. Red 333

I asked Ren Ferguson this once. It was probably around 2004. I was curious, because the newly released Epiphone Masterbilt guitars (which were original designs, and not a recreation of any Gibson model) DID have tapered headstocks. He said he wasn't aware that the old Gibsons were like that. Remember, in the very early days, they were building guitars in Bozeman often without having seen guitars from the '30s and '40s, with jigs and tooling they often made themselves. Once they got set up, they kept building that way. While Bozeman famously had access to Eldon Whitford's Advanced Jumbo to measure before the model was reissued in the early '90s, they may not thought to have look closely at the taper of the headstock because they didn't know to look. This was at a time when vintage guitar knowledge was not nearly as easily available as it is now with the internet. I think it was even before Whitfield wrote his book on Gibson acoustics. Since then, much more has been noted and is more well known. Old guitars Bozeman did have more access to locally were likely from the 50's and beyond, which is when the headstock changed to the non-tapered style. These guitars were relatively newer and made in greater numbers than in early years, and had a better chance of making it to remote Montana. It's only later they began to get access to more old builds to examine and measure them and look to more closely make guitars with those exact specs. And that buyers looked for appreciated those details. As Dave F said, the Legend series did have the tapered headstock, but that was probably the most exacting recreation, and one of the most expensive. Red 333

The listing is not for a Keb Mo or even a Inspired By, but a J-45 Standard 12-fret. Whoever is using "Inspired By" may be using it loosely, as in, it's model that's like or takes some inspiration from or is in the spirit of an actual Keb Mo. Get some Keb Mo mojo without the premium of the Keb Mo name. In fact, the translation of the listing says, "This is the 12th fret specification model of Gibson Acoustic's super standard model. The 12th fret joint changes the position of the sound hole and bridge, producing a richer sound. Also, the specifications of the pegs and binding are different from the regular model, and there is no pickguard installed, so it looks like a "Keb' Mo' 3.0 12-Fret J-45" and has a more vintage spec look. It has a full body tone and excellent playability." Ikebe is a giant Japanese music store and legit business. They have a highly regarded Reverb shop, too. On their own website, use the e English language button to inquire about international shipping and fees. You can also contact them through Reverb. Red 333

Beautiful!

Very good, young man! Red 333

JFK.

Gibson began offering the adjustable bridge as an option in 1956. It became standard in 1961. I believe that in the mid-sixties, Gibson began adding additional rings to the rosette. With that in mind, if all the features of the guitar in the video are original, it certainly dates to between 1956 and maybe as late as 1965 (1963 excepting, as it doesn't have a plastic bridge). ksdaddy mentioned that he thought the color of the back and sides to be unusual, and maybe that it indicated that the guitar in the video was much newer, and from the Bozeman-era. I've seen quite a number of J-50s with this finish from the mid '50s on. Gibson used it on the Epiphone Texan, too, which was introduced in 1958. The Texan is essentially a long-scale J-50. That finish doesn't disqualify the guitar from being from the mid fifties to mid sixties. Red 333

Hahahaha!

Isn't that an adjustable bridge? Red 333