Epiphone FT-45 Cortez Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1965), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 335192, sunburst top, dark back and sides finish, Mahogany back, sides and neck, spruce top, rosewood fingerboard, hard shell case.
This attractive if fairly unassuming flat top was the Epiphone branded equivalent of the Gibson B-25/LG-2 models, a good student or semi-pro guitar popular during the folk boom. It is a 14 1/2" wide flat top with typical Gibson construction, an X-braced spruce top over mahogany back, sides and neck. The sunburst finished top is triple-bound with a tortoise celluloid pickguard, while the natural finished back is single bound. The unbound rosewood fingerboard is dot inlaid, and the 24 3/4" scale neck is topped with the long "Thin" second-generation Epiphone headstock used from 1964. The bridge is the adjustable plastic piece Gibson was using at the time, still intact and functional unlike some. A nifty "E" logo ornaments the tortoise celluloid pickguard.
This model listed at $140 in June 1965, plus the cost of cases running from $14.00 to $53.50. It was the least expensive X-braced flat top in the Kalamazoo line, with only the ladder-braced, mahogany top Caballero priced beneath. "Choose this guitar for Epiphone quality at a modest price" the catalog helpfully offered. A decent number of folks did, with a total of 952 of these shipped in 1965, the model's peak production year.
These '60's Gibson-made Epiphone flat tops are mostly renowned as great rhythm machines; the smaller Cortez is a solid fingerpicker as well with a sweetly dry, midrangey tone that records very well. The Cortez is a lesser known member of this 1960s Gibson/Epiphone fraternity but a cool and very good playing instrument in its own right.
Overall length is 40 7/8 in. (103.8 cm.), 14 1/2 in. (36.8 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 9/16 in. (40 mm.).
This is a nicely preserved almost 60-year-old guitar showing just some general light wear overall. The all-original finish has typical checking with generally minor dings, dents and scrapes overall but far less pickwear or fade to the sunburst top than many. The back shows some deeper scratches and a small amount of "strap burn" in a few places. The back of the neck has some small dings and dents.
The instrument remains original except the truss rod cover is a later Guild-style replacement. The plastic adjustable bridge is fully intact with some minor shrinkage and discoloration but fully functional. The original maple bridgeplate is intact with some pinhole wear and a small crack through one of the bolts. The original frets show very little wear and this is a fine sounding, easy playing guitar with a very friendly vibe. It lives in a somewhat oversized HSC, the elongated headstock makes it more difficult to fit than similar size instruments. Overall Excellent - Condition.
