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1932 Gibson L-10

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Serial #: 90463

Body size at lower bout: 16". Scale length: 24 3/4" Nut Width: 1 3/4"

Materials: Handcarved bookmatched solid spruce top; solid handcarved maple back and sides, Brazilian rosewood fingerboard, variegated 'picture frame' mother of pearl fingerboard inlay and ornate peghead inlay; bound peghead and body; original bone nut.

Hardware: Original "Pat. Pend' nickel trapeze tailpiece; original compensated adjustable ebony bridge. Vintage correct bound tortoise pickguard, hand antiqued nickel Grover butterbean 16X1 butterbean tuning machines.

Notes: Until the very end of the roaring '20s, if you wanted a professional quality archtop guitar your options were largely limited to a single instrument: the legendary Gibson L-5. Introduced in 1923 at a whopping $250, the top-shelf L-5 was simply out of reach for most working players, so in 1929 the company debuted a more affordable alternative, the elegant model L-10 . Built in very limited numbers, the Gibson L-10 was introduced with identical body size, materials, scale length and bracing as the L-5, but with a very distinctive jet black finish. Originally fitted with a simple dot-inlay fingerboard and a plain script-logo headstock, the 16" L-10 was eventually decorated with 'picture-frame' Mastertone fingerboard inlays and a unique ornate peghead design, until the model was upsized in late 1934. Produced in very small numbers, the L-10 model was discontinued by 1939, becoming Gibson's rarest prewar pro-sized archtop.

This striking example was made for export, as witness the 'Made in USA' stamp on the back of the headstock, and was purchased some years ago from a music shop in Sweden. A fine crack free guitar, the instrument has all original ebony finish, showing typical patches of pick, buckle and thumbwear for an instrument of its vintage, along with some normal scattered finish dings and scratches. Hardware includes the original 20's style 'Pat. Pend' nickel trapeze tailpiece and the original adjustable ebony bridge has had its saddle shimmed up to ful original height. A vintage correct bound tortoise guard is installed, along with a fine set of hand antiqued nickel Grover butterbean 16X1 butterbean tuners.

At just barely 4lb., the instrument is exceptionally light in weight, and the finely aged parallel-braced soundboard has a brilliant, highly resonant voice, with exceptional volume, clarity and a pronounced natural reverb in the upper register. The neck has a comfy classic vee profile, and the fingerboard has a generous 1 3/4" nut width, enhanced with fresh precision fretwork, for low, smooth action. Extremely rare and uniquely elegant, this handsome guitar is one of the rarest birds in the Gibson aviary. Call now.

Setup: The frets have been precision leveled, recrowned and polished; trussrod tension and neck relief adjusted; bridge height adjusted; bridge compensation set; string slots at nut and bridge inspected and recut as necessary; bridge foot contour inspected and fit to top as necessary; bridge radius inspected and recurved as necessary; bridgewheels and tuners lubricated; fingerboard and bridge oiled; body and neck cleaned and hand polished.

This instrument is strung with medium gauge bronze strings (.013-.057). The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according to preference. String action is set at 5/64" to 6/64" at the 12th fret, with moderate relief for acoustic playing with medium strings. The action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable bridge.

Case: Original Gibson deluxe black hardshell case.

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