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1962 Gibson Super 400C

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Serial #: 50353, orange oval label

Body size at lower bout: 18" Scale length: 25 1/2" Nut width: 1 21/32" Neck depth, 1st/10th frets: .78/.83

Materials: All carved bookmatched solid spruce soundboard; highly figured bubble maple back and sides; tiger flame maple neck; solid ebony fingerboard with mother of pearl block fingerboard and peghead inlay; 5-ply body, neck, head and pickguard binding, triple bound f-holes.

Hardware: Original hardware includes engraved gold trapeze tailpiece, gold Kluson Sealfast tuners, 'banner' truss rod cover, compensated adjustable ebony bridge, gold Johnny Smith floating humbucking pickup. Later Gibson marbleized tortoise pickguard, with volume control and jack.

Notes: The ascendance of the electric guitar made fully acoustic archtops some of the scarcest instruments in Gibson's postwar production. One of just 16 acoustic Super 400Cs made in its model year, this handsome guitar is rarer by far than its electric Super 400CES counterpart. This splendid top-line instrument shows tiger flame figure in the back and neck, with exceptionally fine grain in the solid carved parallel braced spruce top.

This guitar was one of the very last built with the original prewar style Super 400 headstock profile, which was retired the following year. Nicely kept, the guitar has all binding all tight to the body, and is notably free of thumb, buckle or fingerboard wear. A hairline crack on the treble side has been soundly resealed, along with a small patch on the cutaway horn, and a tight grainline crack solidly cleated at the bottom of the treble soundhole. Some finish nicks are visible on the lower bass soundboard, with a bit of clear lacquer added in that area as well.

The original gold hardware includes the engraved trapeze tailpiece with Vari-Tone adjuster, and ultra-premium gold Kluson Sealfast tuners, now long unavailable. The neck has fine original fretwork with a full width 1 11/16th nut, and a slim depth D profile, easy in the hand, with smooth low action over a fresh high-precision setup. The inlaid ebony fingerboard shows no divots, and the neck is free of the volute "bump" seen in some later years.

Played-in over many years, the guitar has the deep resonance of finely aged tonewood, now almost a half century old. Open and clear along the scale, the guitar has excellent balance and dynamic range, with the original Johnny Smith floating pickup bringing the voice faithfully to the amp, with a volume control and standard 1/4" jack, both mounted to the pickguard.

The pinnacle of Gibson's art, with classic tone, and effortless playability, complete with its original deluxe brown Lifton plush lined hardshell case. 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.

This instrument is strung with medium gauge nickel roundwound strings. The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according to preference. String action is set at 4/64" to 5/64" at the 12th fret, with moderate relief. The action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable bridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


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