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1954 Gibson L-7C
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Serial #: A-16970, white oval label. FON: Y6302-9
Body size at lower bout: 17". Scale length: 25 1/2" Nut Width: 1 11/16" Neck depth, 1st/10th frets: .90/1.00
Materials: Hand-carved solid spruce top; solid figured maple back; three-piece maple neck; solid Brazilian rosewood fingerboard with split-parallelogram mother of pearl inlays; solid bone nut.
Hardware: Triple parallelogram chrome trapeze tailpiece, compensated adjustable rosewood bridge, nickel Gibson Deluxe Kluson tuners, 5-ply black pickguard with nickel bracket.
Notes: The L-7C was produced between 1948 and 1972, and was constructed with the same materials, body size, bracing, and scale length as its costly cousin, the L-5C. One of just 33 examples in natural finish produced in its model year, this guitar has a factory order number indicating it was started in 1953, with a label number showing it shipped the following year.
Gibson cutaway archtops of this era are the lightest they ever produced, and at a mere 5lb 2oz, this guitar is no exception. Its soundboard is graduated to extremely fine tolerances, with traditional parallel bracing that produces a clear, vibrant acoustic voice, with powerful volume and projection.
Preserved in remarkably fine condition, the guitar remains without cracks, and is notably free of pick, buckle, thumb, fret or fingerboard wear. Now aged to a deep amber, the blonde lacquer finish appears to have been re-applied at he Gibson factory more than a decade later, as the rest of the hardware is of a type that first appeared in the mid-60's. The narrow style frets still retain their binding nibs at their ends, another sign of factory installation.
The neck has a traditional C profile, solid in the hand, with smooth low action over a fresh high precision setup. The multi-ply binding is original and tight to the body, and apart from a few incidental finish nicks and some lacquer dings around a few of the tuners, the instrument has been maintained almost entirely free of playwear. An older pickguard bracket appears to have been replaced, and remarkably, the guitar has remained all acoustic, with no sign of a pickup installation over its considerable lifespan.
Gibson archtops in natural finish were premium priced, and represented just a fraction of total production. This lustrous example is ready to play, and an exceptional rarity in this sort of gleaming condition. Let others squander a small fortune for a vintage L-5, and bag this value at a fraction of the fare. One only, call now.
Setup: 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; bridge wheels and tuners lubricated; fingerboard and bridge oiled; body and neck cleaned and hand polished. Medium gauge nickel roundwound strings, setup 4-5/64" at the 12th fret.
Case: Original deluxe brown Lifton hardshell case.
