NGD: Custom Historic 1939 J-55

[FlatPicker_97]

Man first Gibson in quite some time and is it a doozy. Went to my local brick and mortar shop and had my pick of the litter (minus the J-35 and SJ) and this J-55 sang out better than the competition. It fits my flatpicking/bluegrass style very well but is so much more than a one trick pony. Fantastic finger picker as well and cant wait to go on the “string hunt”. Anyone else here have this model? Seems to be the redheaded step child of the series. 
 

https://imgur.com/a/p39yJga

[PrairieDog]

Terrific looking guitar! Congrats!!! 

Oh, and if you want to get the pics here. Just open your images full size and there will be a list of link options.  Click the “direct link” to copy, then paste the photos in your post here.  

Edited August 5 by PrairieDog

[FlatPicker_97]

18 minutes ago, PrairieDog said:

Terrific looking guitar! Congrats!!! 

Oh, and if you want to get the pics here. Just open your images full size and there will be a list of link options.  Click the “direct link” to copy, then paste the photos in your post here.  

Thank you! I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to do it on my phone. Just kept giving me the “error image too big” warning. I’ll have to use my desktop to post more often. 

[PrairieDog]

1 minute ago, FlatPicker_97 said:

Thank you! I couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to do it on my phone. Just kept giving me the “error image too big” warning. I’ll have to use my desktop to post more often. 

Oh, hey forgot to say, you go into your images under your profile on imgur get your thumbnails.  Then click the thumbnail you want to open it, then the list should appear.  On a phone it might be a drop down menu.  

[Sgt. Pepper]

Congrats.

So question. It’s a new guitar right? Seems like everything made by Gibson now is a 19?? even tho it’s brand new.

[Sgt. Pepper]

Edited August 5 by Sgt. Pepper

[Dave F]

Nice looking guitar. My '42 Banner SJ came with the same tuners. They were a little too creaky and I did not like them. Put on these Waverly's . Drop-in.

.

[FlatPicker_97]

6 hours ago, Dave F said:

Nice looking guitar. My '42 Banner SJ came with the same tuners. They were a little too creaky and I did not like them. Put on these Waverly's . Drop-in.

.

Very happy to hear the Waverly’s are drop in as I’m a huge fan of them in general. The stock ones aren’t too bad for the time being, it’s weird that some of the models come from Gibson with Waverly’s and some don’t. Surprisingly though I did find a friend on Facebook with an actual 1940 J-55 and his has the exact same tuners as the repro’s come with (same exact stamping on the base plate and everything). 

[FlatPicker_97]

7 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Congrats.

So question. It’s a new guitar right? Seems like everything made by Gibson now is a 19?? even tho it’s brand new.

Yessir new guitar, just built as a reproduction of a 1939. They do have the “modern” line for the Custom Shop acoustics, the smaller necks just aren’t my cup of tea personally. 

[Lars68]

That is a beautiful guitar! Unfortunately it’s a model I’ll never get to try here in Sweden. Please let us hear a short recording when possible.

Lars

[BoSoxBiker]

Congrats on your new guitar! Looks like a beauty.  You don't hear too much about the J-55's. I've got two different HC models (pre-war SJ-200 and the 1942 BannerJ-45). I decided to get the J-45 for the short scale.

Happy playing!!!

[BoSoxBiker]

10 hours ago, Dave F said:

Nice looking guitar. My '42 Banner SJ came with the same tuners. They were a little too creaky and I did not like them. Put on these Waverly's . Drop-in.

.

Nice to know they're drop in. I think creaky is the defining attribute to the ones that came on my HC 1942 Banner J-45. I'm keeping this one after a few years of sitting on the fence about it, so new tuners are sounding like a great idea.

[Dave F]

8 minutes ago, BoSoxBiker said:

Nice to know they're drop in. I think creaky is the defining attribute to the ones that came on my HC 1942 Banner J-45. I'm keeping this one after a few years of sitting on the fence about it, so new tuners are sounding like a great idea.

The foot print is a little different but not much. You can see it in my picture. The other issue I had was the truss rod. I had to loosen the nut and add a couple drops of oil. It’s one of my favorite guitars. 

[Sgt. Pepper]

13 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Thanks to whoever gave me a love heart, but I just posted the pic of FP97’s guitar so people could see it.

[BoSoxBiker]

28 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Thanks to whoever gave me a love heart, but I just posted the pic of FP97’s guitar so people could see it.

Awwww! Sarge got him an e-hug. Veddy Nice!  🙂 

[Buc McMaster]

A rare piece.......looks good!  No stair step headstock?  Hmmm..........that's one of the 55's iconic features.

[Red 333]

Elegant. Congrats and many years of enjoyment.

Red 333

[Red 333]

5 hours ago, Buc McMaster said:

A rare piece.......looks good!  No stair step headstock?  Hmmm..........that's one of the 55's iconic features.

It is an iconic feature, but they were made only briefly that way, due to the difficulty in shaping them. The J-55 was introduced (in 1939ish) with the stairstep, but transitioned to the standard shape (mostly) by 1940, I believe. I have seen J-55s that have been dated as after 1940 with the stairstep but that may just be Gibson being Gibson and finishing up guitars with whatever's on hand. Elegant ether way, I think, especially with the art deco pickguard and the moustache bridge.

Red 333

Edited August 5 by Red 333

[docr]

FlatPicker_97 - I have a J-55 from the "Historic Collection", bought last year, 2022 model year. I actually just went to the music store to pick up my Southern Jumbo from the luthier working there, he refinished the fret ends on the SJ. Unfortunately, the J-55 was hanging next to the cash register and I was allowed to try it out after seeing the model on the Gibson website and in a video by Ashley McBryde. Big mistake - the J-55 sounded so good that I raided my bank account and bought it, it wasn't cheap. 
You write that you like your J-55 for flatpicking/bluegrass. I had the same impression. My first comment after the first few chords was that it sounds like a Gibson Jumbo mixed with a Martin D-28. Just great, also for accompaniment to vocals. The neck is very strong, but I like it. In the store, the luthier immediately checked the settings and I drove home with my repaired SJ and the J-55 Historic Collection.

Lars68 - I didn't buy the HC J-55 that far away from Sweden. It was at BTM Guitars in Nuremberg and as far as I've seen, Thomann still has one in stock. But not really in Sweden to try it out.

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to hand, the guitar is stored in the band rehearsal room. Also, Gibson accidentally fitted the small pickguard from the J-35 to my J-55. The J-55 is demonstrably original from Gibson, probably the employee responsible for pickguards was careless. I'm leaving the wrong pickguard on the guitar because I don't want to damage it with the conversion. I certainly don't want to sell it on either, it just sounds too good and is very easy to play.

 

[fortyearspickn]

Docr,  Definitely a beautiful, classic look.  We can just imagine the great tone and power.   My only observation is the pick guard that it should have come with adds value and authenticity, even if you don't plan on selling it.  At some point - having what appears to be the original p/g but out of specs, will just add layers of confusion to people down the road.  I'd get Thomann to document the issue, have Bozeman send the correct p/g and attach it professionally, under warranty.   Easier to do while all this is recent history. But - obviously, you know better what is important and worth the effort. 

[PrairieDog]

5 minutes ago, fortyearspickn said:

Docr,  Definitely a beautiful, classic look.  We can just imagine the great tone and power.   My only observation is the pick guard that it should have come with adds value and authenticity, even if you don't plan on selling it.  At some point - having what appears to be the original p/g but out of specs, will just add layers of confusion to people down the road.  I'd get Thomann to document the issue, have Bozeman send the correct p/g and attach it professionally, under warranty.   Easier to do while all this is recent history. But - obviously, you know better what is important and worth the effort. 

I was thinking this too… Even if the OP doesn’t expect to ever want to sell it, stuff happens or his heirs might.   Hate to lose out if in the future it comes off a bit whiffy as authentic.  

[FlatPicker_97]

Kind of a separate question but I figured I’d ask on my own thread since I haven’t found much with these particular guitars. 
 

These seem super lightly built, anyone know if they can stand medium gauge (.13-.56) strings with no ill side effects? 

[BoSoxBiker]

I've actually asked the same question at least twice in years past. I defer to the folks here with tons more knowledge on this topic than I will ever have, but will share what I've done.

Most recently, my 2021 HC Banner 1942 J45 seemed to be have no issues handling Mediums. I've since settled for a spot in the middle by using hybrid string set sizes. It seemed to drive the top better, maybe? Something changed. I had a very, very welcome deeper tone that was actually what I was hoping to accomplish.

I do measure the string height at the 12th fret and the neck relief before and after string changes whenever I change brand, type and size. Probably overkill, but I do it just so I know what affect the change had. The outcomes are normally predictable enough. On the HC J45, Maybe I needed 1/16th to 1/8th of a turn to get where it was. Many folks won't even have to do that.