Gibson L-00 Century 12-Fret Ebony

Gibson L-00 Century 12-Fret Ebony
Serial Number: 22166055
Weight: 3.44 lbs.

The Gibson L-00 Century 12-Fret in Ebony is a small-body Gibson flat-top whose neck meets the body at the 12th fret instead of the 14th (Serial #22166055). It's part of Gibson's Century Collection, which marks 100 years of Gibson flat-tops. The 12-fret L-00 goes back to the earliest L-00s of the early 1930s and has appeared since only in occasional limited runs. Here it's a production model. It has a Sitka spruce top over a mahogany body with scalloped X bracing. Single-ply cream binding runs around the top and back, and the rosette is a cream multi-ring design. Everything is finished in thin satin nitrocellulose lacquer in Ebony. At 3.44 lb., it's light and easy to hold.

The mahogany neck uses Gibson's 12-fret SlimTaper profile (.900" at the 1st fret, 1.00" at the 9th). It joins the body with a compound dovetail set in hot hide glue, Gibson's traditional acoustic joinery. The rosewood fretboard has a 12" radius, 19 standard frets, and mother-of-pearl dot inlays. You get a 24.75" scale and a 1.725" bone nut. The shorter scale keeps string tension relaxed, so bends and fingerpicking come easy. The vintage details continue throughout. The headstock carries an early-1900s Gibson script logo decal, and the Golden Age open-back strap tuners have cream buttons. A rosewood rectangle bridge holds a bone saddle and TUSQ pins, and the L-00 pickguard rounds it out.

The 12-fret design puts the bridge closer to the center of the lower bout, where the top has the most room to move. That gives this L-00 a warm, punchy voice with more low end than you'd expect from a body this size. The shorter neck also brings the first position closer, so the guitar sits snug against you. It responds well to a light touch, which makes it a natural fit for fingerstyle, home recording, and songwriting. Whether you're a fingerstyle player who wants a responsive small-body acoustic, a singer-songwriter who needs a guitar that sits under the vocal, or a collector who wants a production 12-fret L-00, this one deserves a close look. (Serial #22166055) It ships in a premium Century Collection tweed hardshell case. Order today from Brian's Guitars, your authorized Gibson dealer.

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Body
Type: Parlor
Shape: L-00
Top Material: Sitka Spruce
Bracing Pattern: Scalloped X
Body Material: Mahogany
Finish: Thin Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Color: Ebony
Body Binding: Single-ply Cream
Rosette: Cream Multi-Ring

Neck
Material: Mahogany
Shape: SlimTaper
Dimensions: .900" at the 1st fret, 1.00" at the 9th fret
Joint: Compound Dovetail with Hot Hide Glue, 12th fret
Fretboard Material: Rosewood
Neck Finish: Thin Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer
Headstock: Early-1900s Gibson Script Logo Decal
Inlay: Mother-of-Pearl Dot
Radius: 12"
Frets: 19, Standard
Scale Length: 24.75"
Nut Width: 1.725"
Nut Material: Bone

Hardware
Bridge/Tailpiece: Rosewood Rectangle Bridge, Bone Saddle, TUSQ Bridge Pins
Tuners: Golden Age Open-back Strap with Cream Buttons
Hardware Finish: Nickel
Pickguard: L-00

Other
Case/Gigbag: Premium Century Collection Tweed Hardshell case