mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Here's my new (2014) Gibson J45 alongside my 1963 Epiphone Texan. I wanted a cherry sunburst Donovan signature J45, but that proved impossible in Australia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 What a lovely sunburst. And considering it's not exactly an expensive guitar eh? How's it sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 What a lovely sunburst. And considering it's not exactly an expensive guitar eh? How's it sound? The Texan is an original USA-made 1963, so would be valued at around the same as a J45 of the same vintage. The J45 pictured here is new and retails at around $3000 in Australia. I've had the Texan for 40 years and the 'bust was much darker back then. It sounds better with each passing year. Interestingly the neck on the Texan is super skinny, almost like a solid electric neck. The new J45 neck is a somewhat wider and thicker, without being clubby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flatbaroque Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Yea.great double.like to hear that texan.there are a few aussie posters in the acoustic forum.where are you based? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Yea.great double.like to hear that texan.there are a few aussie posters in the acoustic forum.where are you based? Hi, I'm in Perth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Sorry mojo , my brain just read '63 Texan as a reissue model. It's early Monday morning here , not awake yet :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Sorry mojo , my brain just read '63 Texan as a reissue model. It's early Monday morning here , not awake yet :) No sweat BlindBoy, I guessed as much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 J-45 Standards are superb guitars - especially when they begin to break in. Strangely it took about 4 years ! , , , for mine to evaporate a veil of compression (still a bit left). Apart from that, it's pretty serious to go after another cherry burst slope. I presume you realize the Donovan model is something completely different due to the adjustable bridge/saddle. Any thoughts. . . And talking 'bout adj. saddles, it seems the Texan have the metal/ insert w. plast/nylon/bone inlay, , , in the original plastic bridge. Now that's really something. Please post a recording of this oldie - if you feel like it, then shoulder to shoulder with the new (still plast-saddled ?) 45. Congratulations, mojow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MissouriPicker Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Great-looking guitars, Mojo. The J45 in all its various styles is a super instrument. Love that Epi also, especially the color it's taken on. About ten years ago I had one of the newer "inspired by" Texans. It was NOTHING like the guitar you have. Only kept it a short time after I got to hear an original Texan from the 60's. Totally different guitars to me.......You've got some super instruments.....Get us some recordings when you get the chance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smurfbird Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 This thread makes me curious about finding a vintage Epi Texan. A local music shop has one (not for sale, it's the owner's private stash) and it's a sweet guitar. No matter how I try to get with the new boxes, I find myself seeking out the old ones. Sadly, I know the Texan gets a decent premium due to the Paul McCartney connection. Still, might be fun to hunt! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 To give you a frame of reference, here is my mid-1950s Epiphone FT-79. Not much in common though with the Kalamazoo-made version. The Epiphone "French Heel" neck joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 J-45 Standards are superb guitars - especially when they begin to break in. Strangely it took about 4 years ! , , , for mine to evaporate a veil of compression (still a bit left). Apart from that, it's pretty serious to go after another cherry burst slope. I presume you realize the Donovan model is something completely different due to the adjustable bridge/saddle. Any thoughts. . . And talking 'bout adj. saddles, it seems the Texan have the metal/ insert w. plast/nylon/bone inlay, , , in the original plastic bridge. Now that's really something. Please post a recording of this oldie - if you feel like it, then shoulder to shoulder with the new (still plast-saddled ?) 45. Congratulations, mojow Thanks guys. Growing up in the 60s all we knew was the cherry sunburst J45 with adjustable bridge. Along with its sister model the blonde J50 it was the only J45 in the Gibson catalogue (at least in the UK), until the shape was changed around 1969/70. So that's why I've always had a love of the cherry sunburst and when the Donovan signature model came out it seemed perfect. It wasn't until much later that I noticed many people didn't like the adjustable bridge, but as I say, it was all we knew in the 60s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Thanks guys. Growing up in the 60s all we knew was the cherry sunburst J45 with adjustable bridge. Along with its sister model the blonde J50 it was the only J45 in the Gibson catalogue (at least in the UK), until the shape was changed around 1969/70. So that's why I've always had a love of the cherry sunburst and when the Donovan signature model came out it seemed perfect. It wasn't until much later that I noticed many people didn't like the adjustable bridge, but as I say, it was all we knew in the 60s I for my part really like the adjustables and think they offer a handfull of the genuine vintage Gibson sounds. Not saying it's a bad idea to have an ordinary saddle made, but once you go down that road, it's the point of no return. So don't if the original sounds good - and some definitely do. I've tried a couple of early 60's cherry-burst with adj. which were superb. But it has to be ceramic, old vase ivory, perhaps bone (even wood) - not tusq. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 I for my part really like the adjustables and think they offer a handfull of the genuine vintage Gibson sounds. Not saying it's a bad idea to have an ordinary saddle made, but once you go down that road, it's the point of no return. So don't if the original sounds good - and some definitely do. I've tried a couple of early 60's cherry-burst with adj. which were superb. But it has to be ceramic, old vase ivory, perhaps bone (even wood) - not tusq. As you know the Texan also has an adjustable bridge and when I tried to have some work done on it recently the luthier didn't want to touch it because of the way the bridge is bolted to the top of the body. I don't fully understand the technicalities of it, but it seems to be a tricky repair job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 It wasn't until much later that I noticed many people didn't like the adjustable bridge, but as I say, it was all we knew in the 60s Not me! I got a 1965 J-50 with the adjustable bridge about 6 months ago and love the way it sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 . As you know the Texan also has an adjustable bridge and when I tried to have some work done on it recently the luthier didn't want to touch it because of the way the bridge is bolted to the top of the body. I don't fully understand the technicalities of it, but it seems to be a tricky repair job. As mentioned, one of the extraordinary things about your Texan is that it still has the original plastic bridge - correct if wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 . As mentioned, one of the extraordinary things about your Texan is that it still has the original plastic bridge - correct if wrong. At the risk of sounding dumb, I'm not sure. I've had it since the mid 70s and apart from changing the original button tuners for Grovers in 1976 (a bad move in retrospect) and a refret in 1984, I've had no work done to it. I'll have a closer look tonight and report back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 I am with you--that cherry sunburst is great. How come Gibson doesn't do it anymore, except on the Donovan model? The Donovan model itself is pretty darn cool, too, with the Lyric pickup standard (I guess because of the adjustable bridge, but personally I think it sounds way better than the Element anyway) and some other interesting features. I wonder if it is straight-braced like the J-45s of that era? Very thin, straight braces. Now we have the thick, but scalloped, x-braces. I think they should offer a J-15 with the cherry sunburst, but I guess that might dilute the catalog or something. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 I am with you--that cherry sunburst is great. How come Gibson doesn't do it anymore, except on the Donovan model? The Donovan model itself is pretty darn cool, too, with the Lyric pickup standard (I guess because of the adjustable bridge, but personally I think it sounds way better than the Element anyway) and some other interesting features. I wonder if it is straight-braced like the J-45s of that era? Very thin, straight braces. Now we have the thick, but scalloped, x-braces. I think they should offer a J-15 with the cherry sunburst, but I guess that might dilute the catalog or something. :) Thanks Jesse, glad it's not just me. On the Gibson website they have a Brad Paisley J45 in cherry sunburst but it's 4 grand US, which converts to over $5,000 by the time it gets to Australia. The pickguard is a little too fancy for me, but it's a non-adjustable bridge which should please the purists. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 I wonder if it is straight-braced like the J-45s of that era? Very thin, straight braces. Now we have the thick, but scalloped, x-braces. No they are not. Bozeman does not nor to my knowledge has ever offered any guitar with the non-scallop bracing they started using in 1955 and continued until 1968 (when it started getting bulkier). Guitars like the Hummingbird were never built with scalloped bracing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Thanks Jesse, glad it's not just me. On the Gibson website they have a Brad Paisley J45 in cherry sunburst but it's 4 grand US, which converts to over $5,000 by the time it gets to Australia. The pickguard is a little too fancy for me, but it's a non-adjustable bridge which should please the purists. Yep, I saw that one too. I just can't see spending that much on a signature edition either. But a good old, plain Jane Gibson with a cherry sunburst, like Orville intended, would be another story. The Iced Tea Burst J-45 they did was pretty cool, but maybe that was an upcharge compared to the standard. (Not as cool as cherry sunburst either, but still cool!) One reason I went with my Hummingbird Vintage over the Standard was that the Vintage Cherry Sunburst is pretty fantastic, and while the Heritage Cherry Sunburst is neat and great in its own way, it is just not what I had in mind. (Didn't hurt that the Vintage sounded absolutely phenomenal and seems to be getting better daily. Not that the Standard was any slouch at all...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 No they are not. Bozeman does not nor to my knowledge has ever offered any guitar with the non-scallop bracing they started using in 1955 and continued until 1968 (when it started getting bulkier). Guitars like the Hummingbird were never built with scalloped bracing. Interesting! So is the Donovan just standard x-bracing like the good old J-45 and J-15? (Specs just say scalloped, x-braced top, so must be. And that cherry sunburst finish, wow! Just says "scalloped top bracing" for the Paisley... and a 1.625" nut width... and icky pickguard inlay (I know, to each their own!) ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mojoworking Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 J45 lovers look away now. Here's a couple of pages from the 1970 Gibson catalogue. The J45 and J50 had just been revamped as square shouldered abominations, but on the following page the J160E is still available with the traditional round shouldered shape. Although the colour looks a lot more cherry than the one I (and the Beatles) had. Early models had the belly-up bridge, but this one is belly-down, in keeping with the later square shoulder models. Is this a transition model perhaps? And anyone fancy a Gibson Bossa Nova? A electric nylon string cutaway! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Pretty interesting to see the first 3 models are all long scaled - hhmmmm, , , can it be right with that 160E. Maybe. . Btw. mojow - just nail-tap the bridge to check if it's plastic. Or study the grains/missing ditto under looking glass. And yes, most cherry bursts - especially oldies - are major. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted August 18, 2015 Share Posted August 18, 2015 Here's my new (2014) Gibson J45 alongside my 1963 Epiphone Texan. I wanted a cherry sunburst Donovan signature J45, but that proved impossible in Australia.... Man, what a pair! She's out of her league here, but with all the talk of cherrybursts, the Epi Texan reissue I picked up off ebay turned out to be quite the looker.... . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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