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Photos of my 1935 Gibson Black Special (L50)


BluesKing777

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Posted

Here are a couple of photos I just took of my L50.....

 

 

Shows every wrinkle of its years:

 

BlackL50-1b_zps3189a14b.jpg

 

 

BlackL50-1c_zpsbfdb9dad.jpg

 

 

BlackL50-1a_zpsc8e0076a.jpg

 

 

BlackL50-1d_zpsd8a880ff.jpg

 

 

 

 

 

I'm off to play it for a while now...

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Posted

Gorgeous - love the black finish and the delicate F holes are beautiful. Got to be one of the best looking archtops out there.

Posted

Just beautiful. You do have yourself some awfully nice guitars.

 

My first guitar was an archtop - a 1930s Martin something or the other than a friend of the family had sitting in a closet and gave me for my birthday. But archtops are guitars that I think I should get but just don't. I have probably tried a hundred and have never been able to make peace with them other than the round soundhole variety. I have been told by folks who know about such things that it is me - that you can't flail away at that them like you do a flattop. But then again, I keep going back to a 1937 X braced L-12 a friend has been wanting to sell me. If there is an archtop that can break my fast that might be it.

Posted

Curious - knowing nothing about arch tops - is the bridge floating, or is it affixed to the top? Theres a wire running from the bridge/saddle down into one of the "f" holes? whats that about?

Posted

Curious - knowing nothing about arch tops - is the bridge floating, or is it affixed to the top? Theres a wire running from the bridge/saddle down into one of the "f" holes? whats that about?

 

 

The original (floating) bridge is sitting in the guitar case and the one on the guitar is a Schatten ebony bridge that comes with a piezo pickup in it....

 

All removable - the lead runs through the F-hole to the jack at the endpin.

 

 

Sounds great!

 

 

 

BluesKing777.

Posted

I'll bet that is a blues machine!

 

 

It is such a blues machine it needs to be called something else.

 

 

If I play some Robert Johnson-ish type tunes on it, you can start to think RJ played an old archtop on a lot of his numbers....

 

Very astringent sound, and not so good next to it because all the sounds throw 25 feet that way!

 

And a huge V neck to slow down proceedings to an old slow blues instead of the original plan - some acoustics say: 'Go for it!' While this one says: Hold it. Don't play a note more than you have to or I will bite you!" [mellow] [mellow] [mellow]

 

 

Some Beatles riffs sound good on it, but strummy acousticky thinks - not much!

 

 

BluesKing777.

Posted

I still say "every guitar has a "spirit". If you listen and succumb to it....."it will guide you" to its "very soul".... ;)

 

Your guitar has "soul-shine" to the max...

 

 

Posted

I still say "every guitar has a "spirit". If you listen and succumb to it....."it will guide you" to its "very soul".... ;)

 

Your guitar has "soul-shine" to the max...

 

 

Thanks Retro!

 

 

A very strange thing that I have never seen before - the fretboard has all the finish worn on the deep 4 strings all the way to the 12th fret.

 

I don't know the 'player history' of the guitar unfortunately, nobody knew....but someone has played 4 finger jazz chords ala Freddie Green for many, many years on it!

 

 

BluesKing777.

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