Information on what may be a 1965 L-1

[BIRD909]

I just bought this guitar today.   A brief search leads me to believe this is a 1965 Gibson L-1  serial #359814 don’t know a lot about  guitars and am wondering if my research is correct and if anyone has any additional information they would like to provide on this guitar.  It also appears to be missing the pick guard.   Does anyone know where I might get a correct replacement?  Should I even replace it?  I’m pretty excited to have found this guitar and would really appreciate any thoughts or information.  Thanks!

[fortyearspickn]

It looks to be in great shape cosmetically. If the action on the neck is good and the bridge is sound, you may not need to replace it.  If you do, have the luthier look at the bridge plate underneath. They get chewed up. The PG was thick and chunky. You might choose to leave it bare. Or get a thinner one.  They’re not expensive.  LG1s are going for around $2k now with the general upsurge in the market.  
Congrats! 

[dhanners623]

Where are you? In the mid-‘90s, I owned a ‘65 LG-1 and I know it sounds weird, but that serial number sounds vaguely familiar although I could be wrong. (Blame the years and/or the miles….) Bought it at Elderly in ‘91 or ‘92 and removed the pickguard. As I recall, after I moved to St. Paul in ‘94, I sold it or used it as a trade-in for a J-45ADJ (a ‘66 or ‘68; I can’t recall) at Willie’s American Guitars in St. Paul. As best I can remember, anyway. By the time I got it, the plastic bridge had already been replaced with a wood one. This could very well be a completely different guitar, of course.

Of the various guitars I’ve owned and then sold through the years, it is one of only two I now wish I had kept. At the time, I was solely a dread guy, but my tastes have refined since then….

Edited June 10, 2022 by dhanners623