During World War II, Gibson pared its flat-tops down to six standard models, the Gibson LG-1 acoustic guitar among them. As a student model, the LG-1 was introduced alongside the LG-2 and LG-3 to be a less expensive model that even younger players could afford. Because it was initially intended to be a lower-end guitar, the LG-1 uses ladder-style bracing and is made of a mahogany back with a spruce top.