Description
Exc(-) condition • SN: 95527
1-5/8″ width at nut • 25-1/4″ scale length
Tone Bar Bracing • 17″ Width lower Bout
This 1938 Gibson L-5 guitar is very nice. The late 1930’s sunburst is great, but so are all the appointments. Figured Maple back, sides and neck. The back shows a smattering of birds’eye figure among the beautiful tiger stripe flame while the sides show a huge array of closely packed birds’eye. The excellent Spruce top has very nice grain.
The entire guitar is bound with multiple binding: The Peghead shows 5-ply bindings around upper edge, seen from the top; The Fingerboard shows 5-ply from the face and 3-ply along the sides; The top shows 5-ply binding on the face of top edge; The Back shows 3-ply; Pickguard and Heelcap show 3-ply; The f-holes are single bound on inside edge.
The peghead has original Gold Grover Imperial tuners that work well. Top of Ebony peghead veneer has the old coveted Gibson “balloon Logo” pearl inlay with the famous Gibson Flowerpot inlaid below. The truss rod cover is the old cool black cover with white outline. Bone Nut. Gabon Ebony fingerboard has the usual L-5 large Pearl Blocks inlaid and also black side position dots in bass side binding. New tortoise plate pickguard, professionally made using old mounting hardware. Again, the f-holes are bound inside.
The original L-5 gold and nickel tailpiece is in great shape, with original screws and original plating. The sides are dinged up a bit, but you don’t notice because the sides are packed with such beautiful birds’eye figure! The back also has some dings and slight wear and one crack repaired near center of the back that is 5″-6″ long (repaired beautifully).
The top has an area repaired around treble bridge foot: two cracks seem to emanate 1″ and 1-1/2″, respectively, from under the bridge foot.
There is a crack repaired from the lower circle of treble f-hole down to the binding, a 6″ crack repaired outside the pickguard, and one slight shrinkage crack outside the top edge of bass side f-hole, between the f-hole and the waist.
The back of neck shows old thumb wear down thru the finish along the center of back of neck, down to about the 7th fret.
This 1938 Gibson L-5 is just back from getting a few cracks repaired, a full professional fret job, restored bridge saddle, new reproduction pickguard, and a full setup. It is playing and sounding great. Real smooth playing with a full sound.
Comes with period (Lifton?) hard case.
