A Gibson model WTF

[Tudorp]

I posted this in another area, but not sure it was the right one. It doesn't belong anywhere, so thought I would ask about it in here. For now I am calling it a model "WTF". For obvious reasons.

 

At any rate, I just recently picked up a Franken/Gibson of sorts, and I would love to find out what this guitar is, or used to be. The story is that it was build by a Gibson employee some time ago and is built from "parts". It is a "project" and was never finished. I am trying to find out what this guitar was, or is. I am pretty sure the neck isn't original to the body, but both are made from curly maple and seem to match in wood, and bindings. I had thought the body might have been a Les Paul Jr. Double cut, but I believe those are all flat top. Melody Maker? Don't think so, again those are flat? This one is a carved top. There is no rout for a bridge pick up, but is one at the neck position. It might have been a "blank" body maybe? It has one one pick up in it, that I am pretty sure it isn't a Gibson pickup. The pot that is in it, is a Gibson pot I think though. The headstock inlay looks like it is a Joe Pass Emperor style of graphic, but those were only on Epiphone I think? Did Gibson use this graphic on any Gibson headstocks? Any help in identifying the neck, and/or body would be greatly appreciated. I would like to find out more about this guitar. It has a stamped in 7 digit serial #. The tuners have markings on the body of them that say "made in W Germany" and I think they are Schaller. I would like to figure out what those are as well. Here are some pictures to help in identifying this guitar. It has some nice curl maple wood, however an amature finish. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jdgm]

Yes the tuners are Schallers, the less expensive ones.

The neck is the best and most interesting part of this guitar by far. It is a neck for a reissue Gibson jazz guitar of some sort and I would think it may have been 'hanging round' in the factory for some years before the builder got hold of it and used it for his/her project. That headstock is like old Gibson jazz guitars of the 30s and 40s.

 

I think the whole guitar started with the neck, it's far too good for the rest of it really, however the neck/body join looks strong (what I can see of it - the heel shape looks a bit odd) so I hope it stays in tune ok.

The body just looks a bit small to start and obviously wasn't finished but it's a nice matched top, it got binding put on it and a paint job! The pencil marks in the control cavity show there were going to be 2 pickups each with vol and tone control.

It is obviously a complete one-off. I think they got given the neck cheap or free and put the rest of it together because the neck is so good, the board is ebony and the neck itself most likely maple with those 2 mahogany lines down it.

Best wishes!

[Tudorp]

Yes, the heal is odd looking at best. The neck is a 5 pc curly maple with the two strips of mahogany laminated in. The body is also curly maple 2 pc (book matched), no separate top, solid curl maple. The finish is "ify" but fortunatly, it's not on it very heavy, and isn't going to be too big of a problem to remove for a refinish job. I also thought the neck is pretty impressive and sort of overkill for the guitar. The inlay work on it is really nice job, and probably done by Gibson. Like you said, probably laying around in the Gibson shop and ended up in someones "lunchbox", lol. I was thinking a Jazz guitar myself like an ES or similar. I plan to rout in for a bridge pup, and set up up in a Les Paul/SG type of set up. Myself and my daughter restored a busted up Les Paul a couple years ago that turned out pretty nice, and I picked this one up for her for a solo project. She's only 16, and been playing guitar since she was 7, and has been wanting to get into the "mechanics" of guitar work herself. She really enjoyed the Les Paul project, and I think she is ready to take the lead on her own. I found this thing, and thought it was a great opertunity for her to build herself something she can enjoy for a life time. It actually plays suprisingly well as it sits, so we're looking forward to see how it turns out.

 

Thanks for your input.

 

 

Yes the tuners are Schallers, the less expensive ones.

The neck is the best and most interesting part of this guitar by far. It is a neck for a reissue Gibson jazz guitar of some sort and I would think it may have been 'hanging round' in the factory for some years before the builder got hold of it and used it for his/her project. That headstock is like old Gibson jazz guitars of the 30s and 40s.

 

I think the whole guitar started with the neck, it's far too good for the rest of it really, however the neck/body join looks strong (what I can see of it - the heel shape looks a bit odd) so I hope it stays in tune ok.

The body just looks a bit small to start and obviously wasn't finished but it's a nice matched top, it got binding put on it and a paint job! The pencil marks in the control cavity show there were going to be 2 pickups each with vol and tone control.

It is obviously a complete one-off. I think they got given the neck cheap or free and put the rest of it together because the neck is so good, the board is ebony and the neck itself most likely maple with those 2 mahogany lines down it.

Best wishes!

[Tudorp]

Hmm.. An early L-5 maybe? Did they offer these in a double cut body? Notice the location of the phono jack.and the control cavity on these is just like this one.

 

[jdgm]

Hmm.. An early L-5 maybe? Did they offer these in a double cut body? Notice the location of the phono jack.and the control cavity on these is just like this one.

 

Yes I thought of that - the board looks very similar but the headstock and inlay are very old style. They didn't make double-cut L5S's and the L5S body is markedly bigger but 'you never know'.

[pippy]

Hi. Very interesting guitar!

 

There are a few things which strike me as being odd regarding the neck.

 

That style of peghead inlay was used on the Gibson version of the old Epiphone Howard Roberts from 1974-on but that guitar/neck didn't have the 'open-book' shape at the p'up end.

 

And the serial number........SEVEN digits?

From the mid-'60s until '75 Gibson used a six-digit system and from then on used an eight-digit system; but I've never heard of them using a seven-digit number.

It may be that as it was a one-off it didn't get a regular production number but why choose a seven-digit one at all? Unless it was stamped afterwards by an owner? Curious.

 

The 'Gibson' inlay in the headstock has the closed 'b' and 'o' but with a dotted 'i' so that suggests a late '70s/early '80s timeframe but these features changed occasionally so I can't be 100% sure.

What IS notable, however, is that both this inlay and the fret-markers are Abalone. Gibson HAS used abalone as an inlay material but it's not used very often.

 

I'd love to know more. Perhaps e-mailing Gibson Customer Services directly with the snaps and info you have here might bring some info to light?

 

http://www2.gibson.c.../Talk-2-Us.aspx

 

If so, please keep us informed!

 

P.

[Tudorp]

All the little tid bits and suggestions certainly help assemble the puzzle, so thanks and please continue to add opinions and suggestions. I did write Gibson with what I knew, and pictures, and I did get a reply. Their reply was, quote,

 

" Hello,It's certainly an interesting instrument, but unfortunately, we have no records that might help to ID it or confirm it as a genuine Gibson. Thank you for the inquiry."

 

I thought also that the serial # might have been hand stamped by the builder. The digits are not as straight as if it were machine stamped on an assembly line. The finish definatly is not Gibson, it is an "amature" or incomplete finsih, and very thin. I can not find the body. I'll keep ya'll posted as I find more...

 

Thanks again.

[Tudorp]

I am pretty convinced the neck is from an L5S. I still haven't found one with that style inlay. But, other than that, it matches up with what I am finding on that. Look at the L5S at this link, it also has that odd shaped heal, and the 5 pc laminated neck. . I am still not sure what the body is, I am pretty sure it isn't an L5 body, so still looking for that.

 

http://bear.webplus.net/gibson.html

 

Also, take a look at this one, and compare the pot, switch, and phono jack location on these L5s, And look at the picture of my Franken Gib. It looks like the builder of this was laying out the controls in the same configuration, so apparently they had the L5S in mind building it.

 

 

[pippy]

I am pretty convinced the neck is from an L5S. I still haven't found one with that style inlay. But, other than that, it matches up with what I am finding on that...

Well, the 'board is pretty much identical but the peghead of the L5 was (is) a different shape from yours.

Also the L5S neck goes all the way to the end of the 'board whereas yours stops slightly beforehand.

 

That peghead shape has only very rarely been seen on a Gibson model - their version of the Epi Howard Roberts being the most obvious - but that peghead-shape was in common use across much of the Epiphone range.

 

Gibson acquired the Epi brand - and pretty much all the tooling - at the end of the fifties and from 1960-on the two brands were made in adjacent buildings in Kalamazoo until the move to Nashville at the end of the '70s.

One possibility is that someone took a Gibson H-R neck - complete with floral inlay - and fitted it out with an L5S-style 'board.

Another is they took a similarly inlaid Epi neck and gave it the same treatment with the addition of the Gibson logo on the holly head veneer.

 

It's a shame Gibson themselves know so little.

 

Hope some others come up with more ideas!

 

P.