Gibson L-7 Model Arch Top Acoustic Guitar (1946), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 98710, sunburst top, dark back and sides finish, maple back and sides, spruce top; laminated maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, period black hard shell case.
This lovely Gibson L-7 was made a just after end of WWII, when the company was just starting to get back to full time instrument production. The L-7 was Gibson's lowest priced pro-grade 17" archtop guitar, a staple of the company's line for many years. Features specific to this era include the headstock logo (still the pre-war Gibson script) and the tuners, wartime flat-base Kluson individual units with riveted gears and plastic buttons. The neck has a fairly chunky profile, though not so thick as some wartime guitars..
The warm sunburst top and dark finished back have thick triple celluloid binding; the fingerboard and headstock are single-bound. The rosewood fingerboard features the double parallelogram inlay that became a post-war Gibson trademark. The tailpiece and bridge are typical Gibson fittings; the pickguard has gone missing over time. We originally got this L-7 directly from Mark Ribot in 2010, this was a working instrument for him for some time before that. It has seen further professional use since then and remains a wonderful player with a quite versatile tone, well capable of sounding sweet while having a substantial reserve for pushing into swing rhythm territory.
Overall length is 42 3/8 in. (107.6 cm.), 17 in. (43.2 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 25 1/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
Despite decades of professional use this remains a lovely original guitar; there is some scuffing and checking to the finish on the face with small dings, pick scratches and chips here and there, but overall it is nicely preserved. The back of the neck has several dings down by the heel, but most of the surface is surprisingly clean. There are no cracks to the instrument, which is kind of amazing. The original frets have been crowned down a bit and show only minor subsequent wear as does the fingerboard. This is a very fine sounding L-7 that has served several excellent players well over its 75 years on the planet. It is housed in a solid and correct period cast that is fine for storage but has only a single functioning hinge remaining. Excellent - Condition.
