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Banner LG2


Aurélien

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Hello everyone and happy new year !

 

This is my first post and I would like to apologize for my English which is far from perfect.

 

So, I have recently bought a 43 Banner LG2. A dream guitar.

 

But I'm not sure about the bridge, I mean I think it is not the original one.

 

My question is : how to determine (is it possible ?) if the bridge is the original one ?

 

If just a pic is needed I could post it.

 

Thanks

 

Aurélien

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Here's a shot from a '51

 

IMG_0627_zpse928d157.jpg

 

 

And from a '43, ignore the extra holes and saddle.

 

59BA1165-9780-4755-BDFB-1807033672DA_zpsfk3pd66q.jpg

 

 

 

I've noticed this era has the radiused area at the ends of the saddle tapered inward verses newer ones that are straight

 

54B2DDC1-439D-42EB-98A2-05052C6EBCA0_zps3lk34rtw.jpg

 

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It certainly looks like the bridge could be original, as slight variances in bridge details in this period are not unusual. As Dave's photos indicate, the bridge footprint should be about 25mm by 150mm.

 

Usually, but not always, the bolts near the bridge ends which are covered by the pearl dots are in line with the bridge pins. Yours are slightly off, but I've seen that before.

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I think my bridge look almost to new to be original...

 

I didn’t know for the for the dots alignment...

 

Also, my luthier said that it is Indian rosewood on mine. On Banner guitars bridge aren’t supposed to be only Brazilian rosewood ?

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Nice looking guitar! I think that bridge could very well be original, but more photos would help. Brazilian and Indian rosewood can overlap as far as appearance. I would not take your luthiers word as written in stone. Also, during the war years, Gibson was scrambling for materials and all kinds of combinations were possible. I have seen photos of guitars with rosewood backs and mahogany sides (or if it was the other way around...).

 

Below is a link to the best resource for Banner guitars.

 

http://bannergibsons.com/registry.html

 

Go to the registry tab to read about general bridge differences. You can also check out several Banner LG2s in the registry list and compare to your guitar. I'm sure Willi Henkes, who runs the registry, would appreciate pictures of your guitar to add to the registry (perhaps it's already on it?). Willi is perhaps the single best source of information in the world for Gibson Banner guitars.

He was tremendously helpful to me a few years back, when I got my 1942 J-45.

 

Good luck!

 

Lars

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I played a '46 LG-2 for many years and the bridges were also thicker on the bass side. That might be something many would overlook when making a replacement. The bridge had been replaced on my '42 J-50 when I stumbled across it. I was lucky in that the luthier who restored the guitar for me made repro bridge out of a piece of NOS Braz rosewood which you never would have known from looking at it and measuring it that it was replacement.

 

I actually had grown disenchanted with LG-2s over the years. When I sold off the last one I pretty much figured it would never be replaced. But never say never. A few months ago I was at a small guitar show and ran into a maple body Banner LG-2. I would have snagged it on the spot if the seller had been set up to take plastic or had it not been a Sunday with no bans being open. I cannot get that guitar out of my head.

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Nice looking guitar! I think that bridge could very well be original, but more photos would help. Brazilian and Indian rosewood can overlap as far as appearance. I would not take your luthiers word as written in stone. Also, during the war years, Gibson was scrambling for materials and all kinds of combinations were possible. I have seen photos of guitars with rosewood backs and mahogany sides (or if it was the other way around...).

 

Below is a link to the best resource for Banner guitars.

 

http://bannergibsons.com/registry.html

 

Go to the registry tab to read about general bridge differences. You can also check out several Banner LG2s in the registry list and compare to your guitar. I'm sure Willi Henkes, who runs the registry, would appreciate pictures of your guitar to add to the registry (perhaps it's already on it?). Willi is perhaps the single best source of information in the world for Gibson Banner guitars.

He was tremendously helpful to me a few years back, when I got my 1942 J-45.

 

Good luck!

 

Lars

Great advice, Lars.

 

I created the registry, our friend Travis MacCrea rendered it presentable, and Willi, who knows more about this stuff than anyone on the planet, has brilliantly maintained it.

 

As Lars advised, check the other LG-2s in the 2300 FON range.

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Nice looking guitar! I think that bridge could very well be original, but more photos would help. Brazilian and Indian rosewood can overlap as far as appearance. I would not take your luthiers word as written in stone. Also, during the war years, Gibson was scrambling for materials and all kinds of combinations were possible. I have seen photos of guitars with rosewood backs and mahogany sides (or if it was the other way around...).

 

Below is a link to the best resource for Banner guitars.

 

http://bannergibsons.com/registry.html

 

Go to the registry tab to read about general bridge differences. You can also check out several Banner LG2s in the registry list and compare to your guitar. I'm sure Willi Henkes, who runs the registry, would appreciate pictures of your guitar to add to the registry (perhaps it's already on it?). Willi is perhaps the single best source of information in the world for Gibson Banner guitars.

He was tremendously helpful to me a few years back, when I got my 1942 J-45.

 

Good luck!

 

Lars

 

Thanks for all the answers.

 

More photos below. What do you think ?

 

47TgFo.jpg

 

5xPNRS.jpg

 

4yvDp4.jpg

 

I had a look to the register it's a great great work. But it doesn't necessarily help me. The nearest FON(2313, mine is 2311) indicated an narrow bridge type with angled edges to the wings and it seems to be like that on mine...

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Everybody don’t care but me 😀 hey that’s my guitar !

 

And of course I am not going to sell it because the bridge is not the original one !

 

I love to play my guitars but I also love to do some research about my older ones (I love the JT book).

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It's hard to say. It's very clean for an original bridge, but it's a pretty decent copy if it isn't original. Usually you can tell by comparing the wear to everything around it. Look inside the guitar to verify that the two small bolts whose heads are covered by the pearl dots are in place.

 

After that, play it and enjoy!

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I noticed the pore structure on the end of the bridge.

A few years ago I decided to shop around for some BRW and educated myself as well as I can. I'm no wood expert so I did not want to depend on visual or smell.

If you have a known sample of one or the other, the comparison method works well.

I've used close up photography through the sound holes to check out back of guitars.

I keep a sample of each for this purpose.

I have an HD28 BRW and when I had a couple well respected luthiers check it out they both did the same thing. Rub a piece of sandpaper on an inconspicuous area and smell it. They said BRW smells likes chocolate.

One of the luthiers ( Bob Willcutt) looked at it and said it was not BRW because the grain was too straight but after he checked it he was 100% absolutely certain it was BRW.

I know this doesn't apply to you, but a couple other differences-

If you take shavings of each and put them in a test tube or small jar of water, the BRW is buoyant and the EI is not. While still in the water, turn out the lights then shine a UV light on the samples. BRW will illuminate and EI will not.

I've performed the test and they do work.

 

 

Here's an excerpt from

https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/distinguishing-brazilian-rosewood-from-east-indian-and-other-rosewoods/

 

 

brazilian-rosewood-endgrain-zoom.jpgeast-indian-rosewood-endgrain-zoom.jpg

 

 

Endgrain: Pay close attention to the endgrain, as it’s one of the best ways to separate the two woods. Each sample above represents approximately a 3/8″ square section of endgrain. The key is in the pore density: East Indian Rosewood has about twice as many pores per square inch as Brazilian Rosewood. This can be difficult to gauge if you don’t have any known samples to compare, but Brazilian Rosewood should have fairly sparsely spaced pores, while East Indian Rosewood should be almost riddled with pores.

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