E-minor7 Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 21 minutes ago, cqlove87 said: I intend to play it until I die and then pass it down to my son. Here are some pictures of my Nanny with her mandolin when she was a teenager and then one of her a year before she passed on. Also a pic of her at my wedding. Best woman I ever knew. Very cosy pictures - the vintage lady looks as if she deserves the best : You keeping and playing it. Have you checked the neck block and generally looked inside with a lite and a little mirror. As already said above there may be a number and a letter or a combo. And if you get inside, use the opportunity to check the braces (rule-like structure under the top) and the fortifying so called bridge-plate where the strings go down. Are they loose - is the plate dissolving. ENJOY Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 14, 2021 Author Share Posted July 14, 2021 15 minutes ago, E-minor7 said: Very cosy pictures - the vintage lady looks as if she deserves the best : You keeping and playing it. Have you checked the neck block and generally looked inside with a lite and a little mirror. As already said above there may be a number and a letter or a combo. And if you get inside, use the opportunity to check the braces (rule-like structure under the top) and the fortifying so called bridge-plate where the strings go down. Are they loose - is the plate dissolving. ENJOY I have not checked inside with a light or mirror. The bracing is fine and im not sure what you mean by bridge plate dissolving or loose strings. I notice no loose strings or anything dissolving on the guitar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 2 minutes ago, cqlove87 said: I have not checked inside with a light or mirror. The bracing is fine and im not sure what you mean by bridge plate dissolving or loose strings. I notice no loose strings or anything dissolving on the guitar. Didn't say loose strings - loose was about the old braces. The bridge plate could shred. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuestionMark Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 Sal mentioned contacting Gruhn Guitars in Nashville. I suggest the same. They are the experts on vintage guitars and usually love to talk about specific models and model years for free over the phone. They can give you a lot of background in the phone. They have a great reputation. They can also do an appraisal via photos you send them for a reasonable charge, which can help you to insure it with your family insurance agent. It’s sounds like quite a vintage guitar! There is also a book called The Vintage Guitar Price Guide that can provide you with its pricing guideline and its materials. FYI. Just so you know , this particular forum has a few vintage guitar fans on it, but also has many newer guitar buyers who seem to quickly dismiss anything vintage as basically always falling apart…which of course, as vintage guitar fans know is not the case as many have been well cared for and/or well built so they are withstanding time and use quite well…although, of course, there are some out there in need of repair. Just like today’s newer Gibson guitar owners love and cherish their instruments, the original and later owners of now vintage Gibsons felt and feel the same about their instruments. The main thing is keep your instrument in its original state or if you do change its tuners or anything swappable, retain the original bone the less as original equipment guitars always retain their value better. On the other hand, if a guitar is not playable because of a part, get the part replaced as a non-playable guitar is always worth less than a playable guitar. QM aka “Jazzman” Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbpicker Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 Um…that mandolin didn’t by chance have a signature inside by a guy named Lloyd Loar did it? Maybe 1924 or thereabouts? holy smokes what a great gift to you. That J45 is beautiful. rb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cunningham26 Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 52 minutes ago, rbpicker said: Um…that mandolin didn’t by chance have a signature inside by a guy named Lloyd Loar did it? Maybe 1924 or thereabouts? holy smokes what a great gift to you. That J45 is beautiful. rb haha i thought the same thing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 (edited) 14 hours ago, QuestionMark said: FYI. Just so you know , this particular forum has a few vintage guitar fans on it, but also has many newer guitar buyers who seem to quickly dismiss anything vintage as basically always falling apart…which of course, as vintage guitar fans know is not the case as many have been well cared for and/or well built so they are withstanding time and use quite well… Sure don't hope this addressed me - I was trying to help by giving some basic information. And the second thing to do when standing with a vintage guitar is to inspect the inside for loose braces and a potential damaged bridge plate. First would be to check the top in front of and behind the bridge and of course the neck angle (action). I see there is a truss rod - hope that works too. Edited July 15, 2021 by E-minor7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 14, 2021 Author Share Posted July 14, 2021 (edited) So after reading the comments I can assume this is in fact a model J45 from the World War 2 Era? Is there a possibility that it can be anything else? What other model does this guitar look like? Thank you for all the help so far! FYI ... I would like to upload more pictures of the guitar but my max total size dropped from 500kb to 66kb. Does this forum only allow you to post so many pictures per day or something?? Edited July 14, 2021 by cqlove87 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanvillRob Posted July 14, 2021 Share Posted July 14, 2021 I’m about 99% sure it’s a J-45. you need to look for the FON that should be on the neck block inside the guitar. It might be really light, so take your time and look hard. the mandolin should really be evaluated too….it’s very possible it’s worth more than the J45….but could be getting destroyed if your aunt isn’t storing it correctly. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbpicker Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 (edited) I was sort of kidding in my post above regarding Loar. I noted that the mandolin is an oval hole. Did Lloyd Loar only make only f-hole instruments? I’ve seen and played one of his (a ‘24). It was f-hole style, so I don’t know about the others he may have been involved with. whatever it is it is cool and likely worth a lot of money. rb Edited July 15, 2021 by rbpicker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 Somehow I missed this thread! Congratulations on your Banner J-45! Fantastic guitar. Looks to have a mahogany top, which puts it in 1944. Is there a readable factory order number (FON) on the neckblock inside the guitar? Again, congratulations. (Oh, and Loar did not sign oval hole mandolins.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 15, 2021 Author Share Posted July 15, 2021 3 hours ago, jt said: Somehow I missed this thread! Congratulations on your Banner J-45! Fantastic guitar. Looks to have a mahogany top, which puts it in 1944. Is there a readable factory order number (FON) on the neckblock inside the guitar? Again, congratulations. (Oh, and Loar did not sign oval hole mandolins.) Was the mahogany top just for that year? What was the top for the other years? I will look for that number today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanvillRob Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, cqlove87 said: Was the mahogany top just for that year? What was the top for the other years? I will look for that number today. CQ...you're talking to 'da MAN' now! Edited July 15, 2021 by DanvillRob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 4 hours ago, cqlove87 said: Was the mahogany top just for that year? What was the top for the other years? I will look for that number today. More or less (everything with vintage Gibsons is "more or less" 🙂 ), for about a year, beginning mid-1944. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 15, 2021 Author Share Posted July 15, 2021 1 hour ago, jt said: More or less (everything with vintage Gibsons is "more or less" 🙂 ), for about a year, beginning mid-1944. Ok. I took quite a bit of pictures of her and unfortunately this forum has reduced my size from 500kb to max size 66kb and it will not let me upload the pics. Is there a moderator that will allow me to upload these pics? Also I put a mirror in the soundhole looking for numbers. My findings were unsuccessful. I do not see any numbers on or inside this guitar. Thank you all for the help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 Congratulations on owning a great guitar with some rich family history. Add me to the chorus of those saying you should have an expert examine and appraise the guitar. The examination will locate any structural issues that might need to be addressed in order to keep it around another 75 years. Now is the time to deal with them. The appraisal will tell you what it is worth -- and what it should be insured for. And, lastly, if it is still in the original case, get a new case. Case technology has improved quite a bit in the years since that guitar was built. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 1 hour ago, cqlove87 said: Ok. I took quite a bit of pictures of her and unfortunately this forum has reduced my size from 500kb to max size 66kb and it will not let me upload the pics. Is there a moderator that will allow me to upload these pics? Also I put a mirror in the soundhole looking for numbers. My findings were unsuccessful. I do not see any numbers on or inside this guitar. Thank you all for the help! The numbers often fade, but sometimes the women who built these guitars simply forgot to stamp numbers on the neckblock. Using a light, including black light may help. I love the mahogany topped Banners! Mine is currently on loan (to Jennifer Nettles of the band Sugarland) and I'm itching to get it back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 15, 2021 Author Share Posted July 15, 2021 11 minutes ago, jt said: The numbers often fade, but sometimes the women who built these guitars simply forgot to stamp numbers on the neckblock. Using a light, including black light may help. I love the mahogany topped Banners! Mine is currently on loan (to Jennifer Nettles of the band Sugarland) and I'm itching to get it back. Cool! Thank you for the information. I just bought a copy of your book off Amazon. Can't wait to read it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 18 minutes ago, cqlove87 said: Cool! Thank you for the information. I just bought a copy of your book off Amazon. Can't wait to read it! Thank you, my friend! I'm honored and humbled by every purchase. Send me a private message with your mailing address if you'd like a signed, personalize bookplate sticker to stick inside on the title page (or on your car's bumper! 🙂 ) Again, I'm humbled and honored by the response to the little book that changed my life. Much upcoming news, including a premier of a clip of the upcoming documentary at AmericanaFest in Nashville, at an event joined by my favorite guitar company, Gibson. Details soon. Again, thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 First off, my condolences for the loss of your Nanny. Your comment - "Best woman I ever knew." says a lot. I'm sorry you had to get the guitar in this manner, but I'm glad you got the guitar. Such a great connection to her, your family and your past every time you pull it out to play. For more images, this is a site some of us use. https://imgur.com/ Basically, post pictures there, and then there will be a series of links you can use to post the pictures here. Paste the "Direct Link" into the text and the image appears. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanvillRob Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 26 minutes ago, jt said: Thank you, my friend! I'm honored and humbled by every purchase. Send me a private message with your mailing address if you'd like a signed, personalize bookplate sticker to stick inside on the title page (or on your car's bumper! 🙂 ) John, if you have a spare book.... I'd buy it from you personally if you'd sign it for me! I'm sure I could simply Pay Pal you whatever the cost would be. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted July 15, 2021 Share Posted July 15, 2021 13 minutes ago, BoSoxBiker said: First off, my condolences for the loss of your Nanny. Your comment - "Best woman I ever knew." says a lot. I'm sorry you had to get the guitar in this manner, but I'm glad you got the guitar. Such a great connection to her, your family and your past every time you pull it out to play. For more images, this is a site some of us use. https://imgur.com/ Basically, post pictures there, and then there will be a series of links you can use to post the pictures here. Paste the "Direct Link" into the text and the image appears. I’ve had good luck with Flicker too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cqlove87 Posted July 15, 2021 Author Share Posted July 15, 2021 Ok ,here are the pictures I took today. I hope the link works! Let me know if yall can see them! Here is the link. Thank you my Rolling Stones man for the info on the picture sharing.https://imgur.com/a/HHrfl4z 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorrisrownSal Posted July 16, 2021 Share Posted July 16, 2021 (edited) I a, struck by the beauty of this guitar. I also notice the saddle is tall with plenty of room to adjust if needed. I wonder if it’s had a neck reset at some point. I am glad JT saw this post, and that you bought the book that is the Bible for Gibson acoustic fans. one last thing… if you do not have a serious luthier near you, there are some you can still have the guitar checked out long distance. Stay away from any big box shop with that guitar. Brothers Music in Wind Gap PA restores and works on old Martins and Gibsons, from around the world. Rich and Strunk are probably the only people I’d let touch that guitar now that Mandolin Brothers is no more. Edited July 16, 2021 by Salfromchatham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted July 16, 2021 Share Posted July 16, 2021 1 hour ago, cqlove87 said: Ok ,here are the pictures I took today. I hope the link works! Works fine here - the guitar looks great. Something tells me it's a spruce top, , , I may stand corrected before knowing it. The screwed down shield on the head covers a metal rod meant to adjust the neck. The truss rod. Some of these oldies didn't have them, , , yours does, be glad. And try to open it, perhaps even check if the thing still turns. But go with care (no wrong tool) - and not more than '5 minutes' either right or left. Turning to the bass side means lower action, treble higher. Good Luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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