Thanks for checking out this rare transitional Gibson L-1 from 1907! This may be the only fixed-bridge L-1 for sale right now!

This guitar is structurally solid, playable with low action and very clean! There aren’t a lot of these to compare to, but I believe the tuners, nut, bridge pins and end pin are original. There is no evidence of it ever having a trapeze tailpiece, and the serial number points to this being from 1907 when Gibson was phasing out the slotted headstock and about to start using a trapeze and floating bridge on the L-1.

The finish is clean and shiny with some touch-up along the back edge where it was missing from the bridge coming off over time. I did A LOT of very careful cleaning! It has fine, close pattern checking throughout, and there are scratches on the back and sides that are pretty typical for a guitar of this age. The finish is not worn through on the V profile neck, and the neck doesn’t have capo divots or other dents. As mentioned above, the finish had lots of small white spots from being in its case in the attic for decades. In certain light angles, there are very faint remnants visible in the finish.

This guitar has undergone a complete restoration after being found in pieces in its case in an attic. It’s not cosmetically perfect, but it’s pretty good for being 119 years old.

When it came to the shop, the neck was loose, the fretboard was not attached and in 3 pieces, the bridge and bridge plate were mostly detached, and the back was separated from the sides with broken kerfing except for a few inches to either side of the neck block The finish was very dirty and there were small, white spots all over the finish.

We’ve done the following work to get it playing and looking good:

-Neck reset

-Repaired the side of the heel on the low E side

-Repaired and-glued fingerboard, and replaced section of binding on Low E side over body.

-Replaced all broken kerfing (most of it for the back) and reglued the back

-Cleated the top crack between the bridge and end block

-Reglued bridge and bridge plate

-Repaired cracked front edge of the bridge/saddle slot

-Fabricated a new bone saddle.

-Cleaned the inside of the guitar while back was off

-Cleaned and polished the outside of the guitar

-Cleaned and oiled the fretboard and bridge

-Buffed the frets

I made the decision to keep that guitar as original as possible at the start of the project, and there are some cosmetic things I did not do:

-The cracked headstock veneer and two missing bits of headstock veneer at the D and G tuner posts were left as they were.

- I did not modify the back or sides so there are areas where the perimeter of the back is slightly larger or smaller than the sides.

-I did not sand or buff out the tool marks on the original nut.

-I did not level or sand the tiny original frets, and they exhibit slight signs of use, I did clean and polish them, though.

-I left the slight waviness in the neck binding from the wood shrinking over time while the frets did not.

The guitar is currently strung with Silk and Steel 11’s, and it plays very easily with medium action. It has surprising volume and sustain, and it’s very fun to play!

The guitar comes with a very old case that’s in very bad condition. It may be original, but I’m not sure. I wouldn’t trust it, but it will be yours.

The guitar will be well packed and protected, and it will ship quickly, fully insured, with a signature required.

I have many pictures of the repair process, and I’m happy to answer any questions.

All sales are final unless the guitar arrives with structural damage caused by the freight company.