Gibson L-48 Arch Top Acoustic Guitar (1951)
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Item # 11725
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Gibson L-48 Model Arch Top Acoustic Guitar (1951), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 6941-32 (FON), sunburst lacquer finish, mahogany body and neck, rosewood fingerboard, black gig bag case.
The L-48 was Gibson's most basic archtop acoustic guitar, intended for student players and teaching studios. Like all such Gibsons, it was designed to play quite well so that once the young player got their hands on one they would never go back to the likes of a Harmony or Kay but be a branded "Gibsonite" for life! This proved a good strategy; in 1951 Gibson built nearly 1600 of these, the peak production of the model. As the decade went on many of the "kids" had their heads turned by electrics and by later in the decade the L-48 was vastly outsold by the likes of the Les Paul Junior!
To this end the L-48 is a simple 16" laminated all-mahogany instrument with minimal trim, just single binding on the body, dot fingerboard inlay and a gold Gibson logo on the headstock. The neck is mahogany with a rosewood fingerboard and the typical round profile Gibson used in the 1950s, if a little slimmer than some. It has the standard Gibson adjustable truss rod giving it a major advantage over the low-budget competition in the early '50s.
All the hardware is typical for Gibson in the period including the adjustable rosewood bridge, nickel plated tailpiece and Kluson Deluxe strip tuners. This one is fitted with one of the last generic off-the-shelf tailpieces Gibson used in the 1940s, no doubt being used up on this budget model. This is a nice example of this usually unsung guitar, for one of the nicer sounding L-48s we have had.
Overall length is 40 3/8 in. (102.6 cm.), 16 1/8 in. (41 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is a nicely preserved, clean guitar overall, showing some light wear overall with some fairly minor dings, dents and scrapes. It remains original except the pickguard has gone missing and the buttons on the original tuners have been replaced. There are no repairs except one very small resealed side crack on the treble waist, sealed but not touched up. The missing guard exposes an ancient piece of masking tape on the top, which has ossified in place and resists easy removal. This L-48 is a fine player with a surprisingly excellent sound, a lovely example of the early model L-48. Overall Excellent - Condition.
The L-48 was Gibson's most basic archtop acoustic guitar, intended for student players and teaching studios. Like all such Gibsons, it was designed to play quite well so that once the young player got their hands on one they would never go back to the likes of a Harmony or Kay but be a branded "Gibsonite" for life! This proved a good strategy; in 1951 Gibson built nearly 1600 of these, the peak production of the model. As the decade went on many of the "kids" had their heads turned by electrics and by later in the decade the L-48 was vastly outsold by the likes of the Les Paul Junior!
To this end the L-48 is a simple 16" laminated all-mahogany instrument with minimal trim, just single binding on the body, dot fingerboard inlay and a gold Gibson logo on the headstock. The neck is mahogany with a rosewood fingerboard and the typical round profile Gibson used in the 1950s, if a little slimmer than some. It has the standard Gibson adjustable truss rod giving it a major advantage over the low-budget competition in the early '50s.
All the hardware is typical for Gibson in the period including the adjustable rosewood bridge, nickel plated tailpiece and Kluson Deluxe strip tuners. This one is fitted with one of the last generic off-the-shelf tailpieces Gibson used in the 1940s, no doubt being used up on this budget model. This is a nice example of this usually unsung guitar, for one of the nicer sounding L-48s we have had.
Overall length is 40 3/8 in. (102.6 cm.), 16 1/8 in. (41 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 1/4 in. (8.3 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is a nicely preserved, clean guitar overall, showing some light wear overall with some fairly minor dings, dents and scrapes. It remains original except the pickguard has gone missing and the buttons on the original tuners have been replaced. There are no repairs except one very small resealed side crack on the treble waist, sealed but not touched up. The missing guard exposes an ancient piece of masking tape on the top, which has ossified in place and resists easy removal. This L-48 is a fine player with a surprisingly excellent sound, a lovely example of the early model L-48. Overall Excellent - Condition.