The Gibson Company Guitars and Mandolins


A New Web Site Illustrating the Development of the Vintage Gibson Guitar

Created by Folk and Roots Music Photographer Robert Corwin

Featuring Instruments from the Phyllis, Jerry, and Robert Corwin Collection





1940 Gibson J-55 and Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe Guitars
 


Please note:  This web site has not been publicly announced yet, and is a work in progress, with lots of holes and place holders.  
Not all sections are complete - many have not even been started yet.  Not all links work.  If you've stumbled on this site,
feel free to enjoy what's here, and check back for further additions if you wish, knowing it will take some time before the site is finished.
And, for the time being, let's please keep this web site our little secret, between you and me!  









The Gibson Mandolins and Guitars
Made by Orville H. Gibson





Hand carved by Orville Gibson Arch Top Guitar and F Style Mandolin



 

1898 Orville H. Gibson Archtop Guitar
 
 
Hand Carved by Orville Gibson

Formerly of the Chinery Collection
 
Illustrated on p. 14 of Chinery

Illustrated on p. 20, 70, 71 of Boston Museum of Fine Art "Dangerous Curves"
 


 

 

 



 
 


 
 
 
 

 

 
 
1900 Orville H. Gibson Model F Mandolin
 






 

 
 
 
 

 
 

 

 
 
1901 Orville H. Gibson Model A Mandolin
 
 
 

 

 
 

From Mandolin Brothers:

 

 
 



 



Instruments Made by
    
Gibson Mandolin - Guitar Mfg. Co. Ltd.




1904 Gibson Style O

  
Early Gibson Company version of the Style O, quite possibly built by Orville or under his supervision when he was training the new workers to follow his designs.

Still with carved back and sides with no braces, and rims constructed from one solid piece of walnut.

Serial Number 2625


 


 








1906 Gibson Style F2 Artist Mandolin
 
  Serial Number 3959



 
 

 
 

 
 






1906 Gibson Style L1 Guitar

  
Early Gibson carved arched top and arched back Style L1 guitar with slotted headstock.  
 
Serial Number 5486


       
 
 
 
 
1907 Gibson Style O Guitar
 
Serial Number 5779
 
 
   



 
 


 

 
 
 
1907 Gibson Style O Guitar
 
Serial Number 7872


     
 
 

 
 

 
 

 

 



Instruments Made by
    
Gibson Mandolin - Guitar Co.



 
Gibson "Master Model" L-5 Guitar with "Virzi Tone Producer"

signed by Lloyd Loar, March 31, 1924

Serial Number 76710

Virzi #10184

The 1898 Orville Gibson archtop, the first arch top guitar built by Orville Gibson, this example exhibited in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts "Dangerous Curves" exhibit, with the 1924 "Lloyd Loar" L-5, the first "modern" archtop guitar, this example formerly owned by David Grisman, both built with the identical body size and shape.


  




The top, back, tone-bars and air chamber of this instrument were tested, tuned and the assembled instrument tried and approved
March 31, 1924.  
Lloyd Loar, Acoustic Engineer.









1926 Gibson L1 Guitar
 
 The first flat top Gibson, still with arched back, often made of local Northern Michigan Beech.

The Gibson Company did not think highly of flat top guitars for many years.  In fact, while Martin had been making flat top guitars in America since 1833, Gibson built their first in 1926, some 93 years later.

Gibson did not change body shapes often.  The shape of Orville Gibson's first archtop was used for their jazz guitars decades later, and the form of the L-1 archtop was kept for the first flat tops, and remained the primary small body shape until the 14 3/4" body was introduced as the 1920's came to an end.


   
 
 

The 1926 Gibson L-1, Gibson's first "flat top" guitar, the 1898 Orville Gibson archtop, the first guitar built by Orville Gibson, and first arch top guitar produced by any maker, and the 1924 "Lloyd Loar" L-5, the first "modern" archtop guitar.
  




1929 Gibson "Florentine" Nick Lucas Special Guitar


The early Nick Lucas Special was made with the same basic body shape as the first L1, such as the 1906 seen above, and the first flat top, the 1926 seen above.  The Nick Lucas is distinguished by a body with extra depth.

Those who study vintage Gibson guitars have come to the conclusion based on the uniqueness of the various examples that the Nick Lucas Special was made in extremely small quantities, most likely made one at a time on special order.  The Lucas can be found in various combinations of 13 1/2" and 14 3/4" wide bodies, 12, 13, and 14 fret necks, mahogany, rosewood and maple bodies, with no pickguard, glued on pickguards, or raised pickguards, a large variety of bridge designs, with our without a trapeze tailpiece, and some with a raised fretboard extension.   

Nick Lucas Gibsons can be hard to date by conventional means, as it appears that labels with with serial numbers already assigned were pre-printed, and applied to the guitars as they were built over a period of some years.

This one of a kind Nick Lucas Special is far more unusual than most, with painted scenes of Venice on the fretboard.  What else would you expect of a Gibson "Florentine"?  The build date remains a mystery, as it has the smaller body and banjo style tuners associated with Gibsons built in 1929 and earlier, but a bridge design that was introduced in 1932!

  Serial Number 85102













 
 
 


1930 Gibson Nick Lucas Special Guitar


Every Nick Lucas Special is special.  It's hard to find two that are identical.  Perhaps the most common of the variations, however, are those with the later 14 3/4" body in mahogany and a 12 fret neck.  These are among the first of the Gibsons with the later, larger body style.  A number of collectors who have owned Nick Lucas Gibsons in numerous configurations, including the rare and more expensive  rosewood and maple examples, consider the 12 fret mahogany Lucas to be their favorite sounding guitars.


  Serial Number 86608   

 
 
 







 
 1930 Gibson Trujo Style A and 1931 Trujo Style B Guitars

 
 



Manufactured by Gibson for the Trujo Banjo Company of San Fancisco, owned by a couple of banjo teachers named Truett and George, whose names were contracted to form the name "Trujo".  

The Trujo style A is an extremely rare guitar, of which most dealers have seen no more than one in their lifetime, as Trujo sold mostly banjos, and very few guitars.  This example conforms to the description of the Trujo Style A in Gruhn and Carter: "Similar to Kel Kroydon KK-1, S.S. Stewart and Gibson L-2 of the period, single bound spruce top with x pattern bracing, mahogany back and sides, 3 ply soundhole ring, mahogany neck, 12 frets clear of body, unbound rosewood fingerboard, dot inlay, squared off peghead painted black, inlaid perloid rectangle approx 1 1/2" x 5/8" with Trujo stenciled in black, small painted and carved leaf designs in upper corners of peghead, open back tuners with white buttons, natural finish.  Available 1929."  

Until recently I didn't know if the rosewood model B was actually produced and existed in wood, or never made it further than existing on paper.  I'm thrilled to say that I now have a model B to show, and more importantly, to play.

This example conforms to the description of the Trujo Style B in Gruhn and Carter: "L-2 size, spruce top with x pattern bracing, rosewood back and sides, triple bound top and back, bound soundhole with 3-ply ring, mahogany neck, 12 frets clear of body, bound rosewood fingerboard with black line on side of binding, dot inlay, standard Gibson peghead shape, black peghead with inlaid perloid rectangle approx 1 1/2" x 5/8" with Trujo stenciled in black, finely carved and painted designs in corners and down center of peghead, banjo tuners.  Available 1930."
 
The Trujo A has a shallow round 1 3/4" at the nut neck similar to the early Martin OM of the same period.  The Trujo B has a deeper V shaped neck of the same width.

While Gibsons are generally thought of as solidly built guitars, the Gibsons built around 1930, including the Gold Sparkle L-2, the Kel Kroydon, and those built for Trujo and S.S. Stewart, have some of the most delicate braces you'll ever see. I've often said, this first batch of Gibsons with the new larger body, but still with 12 frets clear and an incredibly light build, are the sweet spot in Gibson construction for fingerpickers.

Gibson made very few guitars of rosewood, and most were of other varieties than Brazilian.  More importantly, the few small body rosewood guitars that Gibson built were as a rule built with a tailpiece, as on the tenor L-2 that follows and a small number of rosewood Nick Lucas Model guitars, and not a pin bridge.  While some have been converted to a pin bridge, the location of the bridge plate and braces make the conversion less than entirely sucessful.  To find a lightly built 12 fret, pin bridge, 14 3/4" Gibson, such as the Trujo, with a Brazilian rosewood back and sides, is more than a dream come true!

My Trujo A and Kel Kroydon guitars each weigh about 2 5/8 lbs.

1930 Trujo A Guitar Serial Number 36 / FON 9804  

1931 Trujo B Guitar Serial Number 9731
 

 
 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 










 
 
Gibson L-2 Tenor Guitar
 

While Gibson made relatively few rosewood guitars, it's long been assumed that those vintage rosewood Gibsons were built with Brazilian rosewood.  It's recently been discovered, however, that even rare and expensive rosewood Gibsons such as the Advanced Jumbo built from 1935 on were built with Amazon rosewood.
 
While most earlier small body rosewood Gibsons, such as the rosewood L-2 and Nick Lucas Special, were built with Brazilian rosewood, some transitional guitars were built with an Amazon rosewood back and Brazilian rosewood sides.

This 1931 L-2 Tenor is a surprisingly early example to have the transitional mix of Amazon rosewood back with Brazilian rosewood sides.

1933 Gibson L-2 Tenor FON 595
 
 


 
 

 
 

 
 

 


 
 
 

Gibson "Century" L-C Guitar


The Gibson L-C "Century" Model, with it's space age plastic "mother of toilet seat" fretboard, was built for the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago.

1934 Gibson Century FON 889




 
 
 

 
 

 
 




Gibson Jumbo Guitars




1940 J-100, 1940 Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe, 1934 Roy Smeck Radio Grande, 1940 J-55, 1939 Recording King Ray Whitely, 1939 Recording King Carson Robison Jumbo
 
 


1940 Gibson Carson Robison 1052 Model K Jumbo Guitar


The Gibson Recording King Jumbo was the first flat top Gibson to utilize the same popular size and shape body which was ubiquitous on archtop Gibsons such as the L-5.


 The Gibson J-185, produced in the 1950's, is the only postwar flat top Gibson to be produced with the same shape and size body as the archtop L-5, which is also the same shape body used by Orville Gibson for his first guitars built at the turn of the century.  

No number  



The Gibson Recording King Jumbo Carson Robison Model K, 1898 Orville Gibson archtop, 1924 "Lloyd Loar" L-5.

 



 
 


Surprisingly enough, the only other Gibson using this popular body shape was the somewhat uncommon Gibson J-185 which was produced in the 1950's.  

Here you can see a Recording King Jumbo with a J-185:

 
 








1932 Gibson HG-20, HG-22, and HG 24 Hawaiian Guitars

While Gibsons had previously been made available with nut adjusters for Hawaiian playing, the first Gibson guitars intended specifically for playing in the Hawaiian style were the dual chambered HG-20, HG-22, and HG-24, unique feats of engineering with an inner baffle, in essence a second set of sides set 1 1/2" inside of the outer sides, attached to the top of the guitar, but ending one inch above the back of the guitar, creating the greater volume of a National or Dobro resonator guitar while breaking up unpleasant lower frequency overtones.  The HG has a 3 1/4" round soundhole in the normal position and four "F" holes, two smaller 3" "F" holes on the upper bout, and two larger 6 3/8" "F" holes on the lower bout, located above the outer chambers between the two sets of side walls.

The HG-24 was Gibson's first full size 16" Jumbo 14 fret Dreadnaught guitar, first appearing by 1932, well before the six string Gibson Jumbos and Martin's 14 fret Dreadnaughts, made with Brazilian rosewood back and sides, and selling for a huge $160 when a Martin OM-28 cost $85.  The HG-24 has mahogany baffles, a sunburst top finish, three ply binding on the top and back, three-ply bound fingerboard with large pearloid block inlays, a pearl script Gibson logo and fleu-de-lis on the peghead, and clipped end Grover tuners with scalloped buttons. 

The HG-20 and 22 have a smaller 14 1/4" wide waisted Dreadnaught shaped body with laminated backs and sides made from maple, with maple baffles, dot fingerboard inlays, and a white painted Gibson logo, the 22 with a lighter suburst finish with white single ply binding on the top and back, a tortoise Celluloid pickguard, and three on a nickel plate tuners with Ivoroid buttons, selling for $80, and the economy HG-20 with a dark brown top finish without sunburst, dark stained back and sides, white binding on the top only, and three on a brass plate tuners with black buttons, selling for $45.50.  While the HG-20 and 22 have raised fingerboard extensions, the HG-24 does not.  I've also seen the HG-20 with a plain white pickguard.  The 20 and 22 sometimes have backs and sides made from local Northern Michigan beech.

Unlike later Gibson Hawaiians, these guitars have rather narrow necks, with a 1 5/8" nut on the HG-22 and HG-24, a 1 3/4" nut on the HG-20, and standard frets.  

While sometimes said to date from 1929, the first mention in Gibson records is in late 1931 and the first FON that I know of is from 1932.




1932 HG-20 FON 302, HG-22 FON 283, and HG-24 with no number.



Gibson Hawaiian Roy Smeck Radio Grande and Stage Deluxe Guitars


 The early Gibson Hawaiian HG guitars were followed by the Roy Smeck, a Jumbo 12 fret guitar built for Hawaiian Style playing in a rosewood version called the Radio Grande, and a mahogany version called the Stage Deluxe.  These were Gibson's first high strung Hawaiian guitars, with round but large necks, high nuts and straight saddles, and flush Ivoroid fret markers in the place of frets.
 
 
  

 
1940 Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe #FG2804, 1940 Recording King Roy Smeck Lap Steel #FWE727, 1934 Roy Smeck Radio Grande #888
 
 


This first year of production Radio Grande, built in 1934, is one of the small handful of Jumbo Gibsons built with Brazilian rosewood, before Gibson made the change to Amazon rosewood the following year.  
 
This example has been converted for Spanish style playing.  With it's huge 12 fret body, it is thunderously loud.  The neck is round, not square, but with a pronounced "V" shape, and quite large at 2 1/4" wide.  

  FON 888
 


 
 

 
 




Opinions of the Radio Grande will vary. Some may not prefer the sound as a non-Hawaiian. Some are philosophically against converting the guitars for non-Hawaiian standard style playing, and I can understand that. Some will find the huge neck impossible to play as is. Preferences vary with any guitar. That's why God invented Gibsons and Martins, and even Taylors, and many models of each. Some want one of each, and some have a clear preference for only one.

Some say it's wrong to convert a Hawaiian when you can buy a guitar that was intended to do what you want it to do.  Gibson didn't make many rosewood guitars, and the large ones are expensive. An original Advanced Jumbo, even with it's East Indian Rosewood, can cost $60,000 and much, much more.  Personally I find my converted RG to be an astounding guitar that cannot be matched by any other guitar at any price.  This example is one of the few made in the first year of production, the one year they were made of Brazilian rosewood.

The Radio Grande is a huge 12 fret dreadnaught with a huge sound. The price of a vintage Martin 12 fret Dreadnaught is astronomical, and the volume of the 12 fret Dreadnaught is huge. I'd say the volume of the Radio Grande is infinitely more. Besides being a boomer, I also find the sound quality to be wonderful. Some think it is great with a flat pick for old time/bluegrass jams. I love mine as a fingerpicking guitar. I'd say it's much smoother than other of the more boomy Gibson Jumbos, which have a tendency to be rough sounding.

Personally, I don't mind the neck as is, and wouldn't choose to alter or replace it for size and/or shape.  While some conversions are involved and expensive, without re-shaping the neck the Roy Smeck conversions seem to be minimally invasive, and rather easily reversible. The neck angle is not bad as is. The flush fret markers are made of Ivoroid, not of fret wire as they are on Martins.  It can be a bear to remove frets that are both metal and flush with the fingerboard.

Simply put, I don't think the sound of the Roy Smeck Radio Grande can be matched by any other guitar, but is probably most closely matched by a vintage 12 fret Dreadnaught Martin. I haven't played a bunch of the Radio Grandes to compare, but would guess they are fairly consistent.  I've played converted Stage Deluxe examples against each other, and found them to have vastly different sounds.



Smeck Style "Deluxe Flattop" Guitar



1940 Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe #FG2804,  Roy Smeck Radio Grande Style "Deluxe Flattop" #2544 with 1 3/4" Spanish style neck, 1934 Roy Smeck Radio Grande #888



The "Flattop Special" shown above is a one of a kind Gibson Made with a rosewood Radio Grande Style body and an original V shaped 1 3/4" wide non Hawaiian style neck.  While Radio Grandes are often converted to Spanish style guitars with new thinner Spanish style necks, it's clear that this neck is original, and this is not a conventional Radio Grande body.  Not the unusually long 22 fret neck, and the lower placement of the soundhole, near the center of the top.  The bridge, with compensated saddle, is finished over and original.

#2544 is listed in the Spann reference at the end of 1933 as a "Deluxe Flattop", immediately before the first "S-2" listings for the Radio Grande, potentially making this guitar a prototype.  The original tuners are the Wavery clipped end style tuners of the type commonly used by Martin in 1933.  Other features point to a later guitar, so the mystery continues.



 1942 Gibson Opaque Blonde Jumbo 35 Guitar

In 1934, Gibson began making standard six string guitars with a 14 fret round shouldered Dreadnaught size body similar to the HG-24 and the 12 fret Roy Smeck Hawaiian Guitars.  The first of these was known as the Jumbo.  After a transitional model known as the Trojan, the standard round shouldered Dreadnaught was known as the Jumbo 35 from 1936 to 1942, sometimes referred to as the Gibson J-35 guitar.  This was produced with a sunburst top finish, with a natural top optional starting in 1939.  From 1942 to 1982, Gibson made two distinct versions, a sunburst J-45, and a natural top J-50.

In 1942, Gibson made a couple of small batches of the Jumbo 35 with a unique opaque blonde finish, similar to what Gibson would later use on some archtops and the Les Paul Special, and Fender would later use on the "butterscotch" blonde Telecaster and Esquire.

This rare opaque Jumbo 35 just arrived with a finish covered with the signs of years of use, which I have just started to clean off.

FON 432H-20












Gibson J-185 Guitar, 1953

 The Gibson J-185, produced in the 1950's, is the only postwar flat top Gibson to be produced with the same shape and size body as the archtop L-5, which is the same shape body used by Orville Gibson for his first guitars built at the turn of the century.  The only pre war use of this body was on the Carson Robison model K built for Montgomery Wards.

#Y6401-20





1939 Montgomery Wards Recording King Carson Robison Model K, 1898 Orville Gibson archtop, 1953 Gibson J-185.
 




 
 



 

 
 







Rosewood Gibson Guitars




While all early Martin guitars with few exceptions were made with Brazilian rosewood backs and sides, and all of the higher quality 20th century Martins have been made with rosewood, Gibson made relatively few guitars with rosewood.  While Martin used Brazilian rosewood until switching to East Indian Rosewood in the late 1960's, Gibson discontinued the use of Brazilian rosewood after 1934.

Rosewood was used on some higher end models, such as the Nick Lucas and L-2, for only brief periods of time.  Other rosewood models, such as the HG-24, Roy Smeck Radio Grande, Advanced Jumbo, Ray Whitely Recording King, and Trujo Model B, were short lived and made in relatively small quantities.

The photos below show a small selection of rosewood Gibsons.




Gibson HG-24, Trujo Model B, L-2 tenor, Radio Grande style "flatop special" with 1 3/4" neck, Roy Smeck Radio Grande, and Ray Whitley Recording King.










To see Robert's new web site illustrating the development of the Early Gibson Guitar, visit:

earlygibson.com




To see Robert's new web site illustrating the development of the Martin Guitar, visit:

vintagemartin.com




To See Robert Corwin's Classic Photography of Folk and Roots Musicians, visit:

robertcorwin.com

 
 

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