L - 2 cir. 1930?

[Chalkie]

Groups: Member

 

Joined: 3/14/2008

Posts: 1

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Hello All

 

Seeking information to help I.D. an L- 2 cir. 1918-1930.

 

It has only 4 #'s in serial. 9630

 

Head stock has "The Gibson" (not on angle)

 

Other features -thin gold inlay around entire top and around sound hole.

 

Any help greatly appreciated.

 

Chalkie

[L5Larry]

This style L-2 seems to have been produced from '29-'35 (gold colored body and sound hole trim). The straight "The Gibson" headstock logo is also correct for this period. But, as you obviously already know, that seriel number does not seem right. That number comes up 1911 in my reference materials. The '29-'35 numbers should be somewhere around 87XXX-93XXX.

 

I'm assuming that the serial number is handwritten on a paper label inside the guitar. Is it possible that a number has faded away over time. If the first number faded way and was an eight. (8)9630 would date to '29. If the last number faded, 9630(x), would put it about 1940 which wouldn't be possible since the model had been discontinued by then ('35). Or, one of Orville's buddies forgot to write a digit as he was filling out the label.

 

There are a few of ways to determine if there ever was another digit written on the paper label, none of which would harm the guitar in any way if your careful. Let me know if you want details on those precedures.

[Chalkie]

L5 Larry,

 

Thanks for all the insight and info on this guitar. I think you are right on with all the time dates etc. As for the serial #, it corresponds to the # that is stamped at the base of the neck inside the body. This # is looks like a black ink stamped #, not hand written.

 

I don't know if I can ever authenticate it's date other than it's style, L-2, accents, etc., but I'll go with it as somewhere around '29-30.

 

Again, many thanks for your time to respond and the info you supplied. It is a great help.

 

Regards and good colllecting,

Chalkie

[TM]

The L2 flat top also has the "jester" inlay on the peghead. All the L2 with gold sparkle trim have the Argentine Grey finish on the top which is to me looks more like a green. The only Gibson guitar ever with this finish. If I can I will post a pic of my Argentine Grey L2.

 

The number of the neck block, 9630, is a FON (factory order number). I keep a data base of these early Gibson models. We are trying to determine what years these numbers represent. The L2 was Gibson first cataloged guitar with the "new" larger body size, what I call the L00 size, it was first picture in the 1929 catalog. Most of these early L2 were built around 1930 and few were built. Terry

 

Argentine Grey Gibson L2