Silversurfer

Some people hear a noticeable difference, some don’t. I think it depends on the person and the guitar. I removed the Baggs Element UST from my J45 Standard and thought it made a huge difference. Part of it is that the Tusq saddle wiggles a bit in the slot. I put in a new bone saddle that was a snug fit in the slot and it seemed to make the saddle, bridge and top vibrate as one. If you’re unsure about removing it, you can try it by just removing the saddle, lifting the UST braid out of its slot and pulling/pushing it into the hole in the bridge under the saddle (into the guitar). The wiring clips will keep it from banging around in there and you can put in a new saddle and string it back up. If you decide to remove it permanently, you’ll need to pull the wiring out from the clips (you can feel inside where they are), detaching the battery bag, and removing the preamp and endpin jack. Just be careful removing the endpin jack so you don’t scratch the finish. You can do it, just take your time and use the right tools.

I have the Hummingbird 1960 Fixed Bridge as well and I agree with you - it doesn’t like to be capoed (capo’d?). I think it has to do with scale length as I hear this on my J-45, although not to the same degree. Hummingbirds just aren’t that loud. So, I could see how it’s not the best for playing outside. But they’re great for vocal accompaniment and sure do record well. I’m torn between using light and medium strings on my Hummingbird. My J-45 definitely sounds better with mediums. No contest. I have mediums on my Hummingbird now and they give it more over tones and overall volume. But you know how Hummingbirds do that slight “chorus“ effect (some say it sounds like 2 guitars are playing at the same time)? I’m leaning towards lights giving it more of that sound, but a bit quieter. I’ve only had this guitar for three months, so I’m still getting used to it. But I do love it.

Stunning. The Les Paul Custom headstock inlay is a nice touch. Congrats!

If you just clean it with a damp cloth, it won’t make it glossy. But if you WANT to make it shinier,, if you used a cleaner like Virtuoso or a compound like Meguiar’s Ultimate Compound applied by hand and put some effort into it, followed by a good polish, it will definitely get shinier. It just won’t be as shiny as a full gloss finish.

Here’s my 106 year old Gibson L-1. And it’s a guitar, 😆

Yes, you can do that to see if you like it before pulling the whole thing out. You’ll just need a slightly taller saddle. There are lots of non UST pickup options from K&K, Schatten, Dazo and now the LR Baggs HiFi.

Amazing and depressing at the same time. Man, I gotta practice more…

Exactly. Better to play it often and make music, than worry about keeping it pristine.

I highly doubt there’s water vapor or anything else under the finish and it doesn’t make sense that it would just coincidentally be in the same exact spot as your forearm (it would be in a variety of places). If Virtuoso cleaner doesn’t take care of it, try a light compound like Meguiar’s Ultimate Compound, applied by hand. But having that forearm haze is just the nature of having a nitro finish. You can keep cleaning it, but it will just keep coming back. Just play the damn thing.

Waverly. But you’ll need to use the conversion bushings and polish out the raccoon eyes on the face of the headstock by hand using Scratch-X, followed by Meguiar’s Ultimate Compound, and then polish. If you’re patient and careful, it comes out well. I did this on my J-45 Standard.

It’s not a big deal. Use some virtuoso cleaner and it’ll be good as new.

I’m a big Gibson fan and I love having a piece of its history as I’m sure you do, too.. Hope you enjoy them!

Congrats! I have a 1917 L-1. Looks like yours is in better shape than mine. But my L-1 still plays well for a 107 year old. My guitar has a giant V neck, does yours?

So I just saw an ad posted for an Atkin J43 (apologies if I’m using your images) and from photos, it looks just like the orange peeled finish on the new Gibson historic reissues. Can anyone confirm? https://reverb.com/item/78303211-atkin-j43-aged-2023

Hard to tell from the photos but looks like some finish was removed when removing and regluing the bridge? Or is that just dried glue? Have you tried cleaning the area? If it really bothers you, it can be touched up but I wouldn’t bother. Bridge reglues, neck resets, refrets, nut replacement… it’s all part of guitar ownership.

Well, the good news is that they all seem to be pretty consistent, unlike some of the other Historics like J-45s or Advanced Jumbos where there seems to be much more variance.

In all seriousness, the LR Baggs Element UST ISN’T paper thin and your action will definitely be lowered if you remove it. It’s also a braided wire that has a bit of “give” to it when compressed, unlike the Fishman UST which is more of a hard wire. Some people will argue that you can’t hear the difference in removing a UST from under the saddle, but I could. Your experience may be different.

Looks totally legit. If the price was right, sounds like you made the right decision.

I installed a Schaffer HFN active, which I think sounds much better than the stock Baggs Element, and no UST. There are others, like Dazzo and the new Baggs HiFi that also don’t use a UST.

Also a J-45 Standard owner and perpetual tinkerer. Here’s what I found… removing the UST and fitting a bone saddle that fit fairly snug in the slot vs. loose made a big difference in tone. The Tusq saddle is meant to be a little loose to work with the Baggs elenent. You can try this without completely removing the element - just lift it and push it through the tiny hole in the slot under the saddle and let it hang inside the guitar (the wiring clips will keep it from moving around). The Element braided wire is just soft and thick enough to dampen vibration transference a tiny bit and taking it out of the equation was an improvement, to my ears at least. The tighter fit (snug - not super tight) of the saddle also helped improve the tone, IMO. Lastly, if you don’t mind heavier strings, my J-45 Standard sounds best with a medium gauge set .13-.56

I have the CS Hummingbird 1960 Fixed Bridge model. It has surpassed all expectations. Something that I noticed is that it sounds great consistently in all YouTube demo videos. I think Gibson Montana figured out this formula just right and are like “okay, so that’s how we do them!” I have played a few Hummingbird Original and Hummingbird Standard models and they all sound a little different. The 1960 Fixed Bridge is a fairly decent bump up price-wise, but the tone and feel are very different. I encourage anyone who’s a fan of the Gibson acoustic tones to go check them out.

That’s the weird thing - it’s just on the top and the back and sides feel right. It’s like they figured it out for mahogany but it didn’t work as well for spruce. Regardless, the guitars do sound amazing.

This thread is a little past its “best before” date, but thought I’d add my recent experience with a Custom Shop Hummingbird 1960 Fixed Bridge model. The orange peel only appears on the top. You can see and feel the grain the back and sides, but it doesn’t have any of the “pebbled” appearance that’s happening on the top. The back of neck is also clear of any orange peel and feels really nice, much like the nitro finish on a vintage guitar. I wonder if the orange peel is something that has to do with how the nitro adheres to the spruce, as it doesn’t seem to be visible anywhere else. I’ve come to appreciate the VOS finish on Gibson’s Custom Shop reissue acoustic models. But it is surprising the first time you see it.

I have an SJ Deluxe from 1974. As much as it has the double bracing and gigantic bridge plate, it’s not muffled or dead sounding. It’s actually louder than my 2020 J-45. I’m convinced that part of the reason it sounds good is because of how the wood has aged. Not all the Norlin era acoustics were duds.

I never liked it when people say, “well, they call it the workhorse”. Who’s “they”? And wouldn’t a workhorse be more affordable/accessible to a working musician? I love my J-45. It looks and sounds like a classic. But I couldn’t even tell you what recordings were made with a J-45. Makes me think of the Stones, Mellencamp, and maybe Black Crowes. Everyone always says “James Taylor played J-50 and it’s the same thing just a plain finish.” But it wasn’t a J-45.