The Ultimate Transitional Time Capsule
For your consideration is an exceptional, collector-grade 1969 Gibson J-50ADJ in outstanding, original condition. This is a true, single-owner instrument that was preserved detuned in its case for decades. It features undeniable provenance, including its original 20-page Gibson owner’s manual hangtag booklet completely filled out at the time of purchase on February 2, 1970, at Carl Fry's Music in Youngstown, Ohio, noting the original purchase price of $265.00.

Transitional Specifications
Built during a historic pre-Norlin pivot point at the Kalamazoo factory, this guitar captures a rare crossover window. It sports the newly introduced square-shoulder dreadnought silhouette and 25 3/8" long scale driven by its competition, the Martin D-18, yet completely retains the most desirable structural elements of the 1960s:

• Solid Old-Growth Woods: Built with a premium, tight-grained solid Sitka spruce top paired with beautifully figured old-growth solid Honduran mahogany back and sides. This stands in stark contrast to the thick-cut cuts, heavy laminates, and multi-piece woods Gibson adopted just a few years later. The J-50 is exactly the same as the J-45, except for the natural finish that required higher quality woods and grains that would show.
• 1960s Single-X Bracing: Built with the traditional single-X internal bracing pattern. While these late-60s braces are unscalloped for excellent structural stability, they completely avoid the tone-stifling double-X bracing system introduced in the 1970s.
• Sleek, No-Volute Neck and 1 11/16" nut: Features a comfortable 3-piece mahogany neck profile completely free of the clunky headstock volute block that defined the Norlin era. 1 11/16" nut is a comfortable width, not the mid-60's "pencil-necks". The classic Gibson pantograph still featured the dot on the "i".
• Premium Brazilian Rosewood: Built right before Gibson exhausted its premium wood supplies, it features a beautiful, pre-CITES Brazilian rosewood fingerboard and bridge.
• Original Wooden Adjustable Saddle: Features its original "belly-down" rosewood bridge with the period-correct, slanted wooden adjustable saddle insert and original bridge pins. This setup delivers a warm, dry, and uniquely percussive mid-range thump. Easily converted to bone or tusk.
• Black Pickguard: The original black pickguard is cleanly glued to the top, rather than mechanically screwed down like later 70s models.
• Setup: The guitar currently has Martin Custom Lights (MA175) 80/20 bronze strings .011 to .052.  Neck angle is great and there is a lot of saddle either direction. With its woody, chunky "punch and thump", this guitar would be great for flat picking and bluegrass, etc.

Condition Report (8.5-9 / 10 Excellent Condition)
This guitar is in remarkable condition for its age. The nickel plating on the original 3-on-a-plate strip tuners remains bright, the headstock is in good shape, and the original binding is in near-perfect shape. There is no buckle rash on the back, the finish on the back of the neck is smooth and un-marred, and the frets show minimal wear. Remarkably for a nitro-finished acoustic, there is only minor finish checking in the nitrocellulose finish (most noticeable on the sides), and just light player wear and a few minor dings. The original strap pin on bottom is still there. It weighs under 5 lbs fully humidified, showcasing the solid, road-ready build of this transitional era, while still being reasonably lithe.

Minor Cosmetic Flaw
The body is free of structural body cracks, wood repairs, or deep dings. There is one minor, surface-level hairline crack along the fingerboard extension on the top. As is common, this occurred due to dryness when the guitar was moved from Ohio to Colorado. A professional luthier has evaluated it and verified it is entirely superficial, does not go through the wood, and has no impact on structural stability or playability. It was reinforced with some very thin glue to ensure stability, plus humidity has been added inside case (included). There are two pics of this area.

J-50 Changes & Evolution: This J-50 was one of the first "square-shouldered" ones made. In the 70's (Norlin era), the guitar was renamed "J-50 Deluxe", and heavier woods plus double X bracing, neck volutes and screwed-in pickguards emerged.

Included with Sale:

• Original 20-page Gibson owner's manual hangtag and warranty card (completed with Carl Fry's Music 1970 purchase history). This is an epic view into the 60's and a rare bonus.
• Era-correct, red-lined Ess & Ess 4-latch hardshell case made for Gibson, with Excelsior hardware - also in excellent condition.
• MusicNomad "The Humitar" humidifier and Hydrometer - value $30

The J-50 was last made during its initial run in 1982 (since re-issued costing not much different than this timepiece). This is a highly stable, completely original piece of Gibson history with excellent provenance. The guitar will be shipped fully insured with the strings detuned.