The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #176

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    Gibson L-4 CES Owners-fb8e568c-862f-46d7-bd34-221d7e95db5b-jpg2014 was the last year for ebony fretboards on L4's.
    Last edited by vinnyv1k; 08-10-2020 at 04:46 PM.

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #177

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    Just got my first archtop: a 2001 L-4!

    Got it off a dealer I had a great experience with last year on Reverb, and he fid it again!

    I was at first put off as it was shipped without strings on the axe (of that caliber and price, why?) and the masking tape (!) bridge markers, but the bridge was wrapped well and the guitar was fine at 19 years.

    I bought Thomastik Jazz Swing 12s and got to work stringing and setting up: for my first time I am happy. The intonation was on point (as well as “on point can be: both E’s were OK). I will need to work with the thumbwheel a bit but playing acoustically it was gorgeous.Gibson L-4 CES Owners-607a082d-8038-46d3-bb68-9a274b5296e0-jpgGibson L-4 CES Owners-4cf7a3a3-85bb-4906-91e0-a51797f2e4be-jpgGibson L-4 CES Owners-6e30f791-745e-484c-8054-8a199fa842de-jpg

    So far so good...loving it! It will be plugged in tomorrow: it has “Patent Applied For” stickers on the PUs: could the be real? Anyway I am happy for this new experience!
    Attached Images Attached Images Gibson L-4 CES Owners-ab0e7327-06c4-4004-93c1-c4f6c03cbcbf-jpg 

  4. #178

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    Quote Originally Posted by wintermoon
    Speaking of wacky 1 off custom Gibsons I had a '69 ES175 w short Byrdland scale , all L-5 appointments, including gold hardware, so it's not impossible you're remembering correctly and it was 1 off.
    Pretty sure it was a '67. ;-)

  5. #179

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    Quote Originally Posted by customxke
    Pretty sure it was a '67. ;-)
    yes, you're right



  6. #180

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    Quote Originally Posted by OsaSmiz
    (..,) it has “Patent Applied For” stickers on the PUs: could the be real? Anyway I am happy for this new experience!
    Congrats! Looks sweet!

    The pickups are probably real ones: teal Gibson Classic 57s. They have that famous sticker too.

    They were long the ’better’ standard Gibson humbuckers in late ’80s (or ’90s?) and since, beside a bit hotter 490-series. Then in early 2000s came Burstbuckers etc.

  7. #181

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    Quote Originally Posted by OsaSmiz
    Just got my first archtop: a 2001 L-4!

    Got it off a dealer I had a great experience with last year on Reverb, and he fid it again!

    I was at first put off as it was shipped without strings on the axe (of that caliber and price, why?) and the masking tape (!) bridge markers, but the bridge was wrapped well and the guitar was fine at 19 years.

    I bought Thomastik Jazz Swing 12s and got to work stringing and setting up: for my first time I am happy.
    Congrats! A dream guitar for sure. Enjoy!

  8. #182

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    Mike & Mike's guitars in Seattle has a really sweet one.

  9. #183
    Quote Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
    Mike & Mike's guitars in Seattle has a really sweet one.
    1998 Gibson L-4 CES Archtop Electric Guitar Vintage Sunburst Near Mint 100% Original w/ohc

    $5200? Very high price. I paid $2700 for a Mahogany back and sides in 2016. Double the price in 4 years? Hmmm

  10. #184

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    The L4CES and Tal Farlow used to be dirt cheap and the 2 best bang for buck Gibson’s. Those days are gone forever.
    You can’t touch either now in good condition for under $4K.
    You also can’t get a good L5 for under $6K unless you are OK with a players grade.

  11. #185

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    Here’s a photo of my little sunburst family. I’m very proud of them. But the family won’t be compete until I add an L-4 CES. Until I can swing it, there’s an empty spot in my heart.
    Gibson L-4 CES Owners-793d3594-6462-4f2a-ae4f-88db2a76a053-jpg

  12. #186
    Sunburst. I love Sunburst.

    Yes, I know I gave my L4CES away for $3k. But sometimes one simply has to pay it forward.

  13. #187

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    Quote Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
    The L4CES and Tal Farlow used to be dirt cheap and the 2 best bang for buck Gibson’s. Those days are gone forever.
    You can’t touch either now in good condition for under $4K.
    You also can’t get a good L5 for under $6K unless you are OK with a players grade.
    well, here's one for sale for a whole $5 less than 4K and there's a burgundy one for a couple hundred less.
    but yeah, those and Tals have definitely gone up lately, probably because of all the hoopla on this forum!

    1996 Gibson L-4 CES Archtop Guitar Jazzbox - Nearly Unplayed Condition | eBay

  14. #188

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    Quote Originally Posted by wintermoon
    well, here's one for sale for a whole $5 less than 4K and there's a burgundy one for a couple hundred less.
    but yeah, those and Tals have definitely gone up lately, probably because of all the hoopla on this forum!

    1996 Gibson L-4 CES Archtop Guitar Jazzbox - Nearly Unplayed Condition | eBay
    Wintermoon, as I think more about it, that guitar I mentioned playing back in ‘75 or ‘76 may very well have been an L-5 CES and not an L-4 CES. It may have been one of the pointy Florentine cutaway L-5s from the 60s. Your suggestions of the unlikelihood of an L-4 CES existing at that time make me reflect more deeply on the fact that there was a similarly named solid body guitar (L5S) in the same shop. I could never remember which was which and they had the same or very similar tailpieces. Who knew! I may have actually played an L-5 as a 13 year old!

    I do distinctly remember its finish being some variant of red (wine or cherry?). For many years, I’ve assumed it was an L-4 CES and have nostalgically pined for one. Well... I’m still pining for one, regardless. .

    I love the scale and body size of the L-4 CES. My ‘59 VOS ES-175 and other 175s I’ve owned over the years are just about the perfect size so I’m confident I’ll be right at home with an L-4. And that extra touch if mellowness from having the neck pickup just a bit farther from the bridge (compared to an ES-175).

    So, either way (special ultra rare run of late 50s L-4 CES prototype OR 60s L-5 CES) I was a lucky kid to be permitted to handle and play such iconic instruments by that shop owner. Guitars Unlimited, I pay respect to your memory!

  15. #189

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    Roli,
    It's all good, when you play a guitar 40 yrs ago you might not remember the exact details.
    I wasn't there of course but I'm still thinking it might have been a rounded (Venetian) cutaway, the 70s which were peak production for those I believe, I'm only aware of 2 ultra rare "red" custom made sharp (Florentine) cutaways L-5s in the 60s and they were translucent cherry red, not burgundy

  16. #190

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    A lot of information here!

    I have an ES-175 ‘59 VOS with a ‘59 Rounded C neck and an ES-275 (hollow body), also with a Rounded C neck. The 175 neck feels bigger so I assume the thickness at the 1st and 12th frets is greater even though they both have the same profile shape.

    Does anyone know how the L-4CES neck would compare? Back in this thread I saw a post listing 0.838” at the 1st fret and 1.130” at the 12th which would be comparable to the ES-175 ‘59 Rounded C neck in thickness but I cannot find a reference to the profile.

    Thanks!

  17. #191

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    Measuring at the 12th fret is probably not very useful as the neck heel has already started to get bigger there. You need to measure at the 9th or 10th fret if you wish to extrapolate how chunky the neck feels. My Crimson L5 goes from 0.867" at the 1st fret to 0.988" at the 10th fret. That is quite substantial and I love it.

  18. #192

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    Quote Originally Posted by Drifter
    Measuring at the 12th fret is probably not very useful as the neck heel has already started to get bigger there. You need to measure at the 9th or 10th fret if you wish to extrapolate how chunky the neck feels. My Crimson L5 goes from 0.867" at the 1st fret to 0.988" at the 10th fret. That is quite substantial and I love it.
    Wow! That is very close to the ‘59 VOS neck which is my favorite. I’ll bet that Crimson L5 is spectacular (hinting for a picture) . . .

  19. #193
    Nearly 32,000 views for a 4 page thread begun in 2015. Only a Gibson thread could do that!

  20. #194

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    Quote Originally Posted by Betz
    Wow! That is very close to the ‘59 VOS neck which is my favorite. I’ll bet that Crimson L5 is spectacular (hinting for a picture) . . .
    I took that when it was new right out of the box five years ago. Please don't let an L5 picture hijack an L4 thread.

    Gibson L-4 CES Owners-l5-jpg

  21. #195

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    I haven’t been here in a while. I’ve ended up with two of these. The ‘89 (bottom right) I’ve had for almost 30 years. The ‘05 (top left) is a recent purchase. It’s kind of redundant having two, but I couldn’t not buy it. These guitars are rare in my neck of the woods. I wouldn’t mind trading toward an L5 if the opportunity ever arose locally.


  22. #196

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    Quote Originally Posted by L4CESN
    I haven’t been here in a while. I’ve ended up with two of these. The ‘89 (bottom right) I’ve had for almost 30 years. The ‘05 (top left) is a recent purchase. It’s kind of redundant having two, but I couldn’t not buy it. These guitars are rare in my neck of the woods. I wouldn’t mind trading toward an L5 if the opportunity ever arose locally.

    You’re very fortunate. That’s a gorgeous pair of blondes right there.

  23. #197

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    Quote Originally Posted by L4CESN
    I haven’t been here in a while. I’ve ended up with two of these. The ‘89 (bottom right) I’ve had for almost 30 years. The ‘05 (top left) is a recent purchase. It’s kind of redundant having two, but I couldn’t not buy it. These guitars are rare in my neck of the woods. I wouldn’t mind trading toward an L5 if the opportunity ever arose locally.

    Glad to meet a fellow enthusiast with two L-4CES. I have an ASB from 2000 and a single neck pup Blondie from October 2010. The guy who custom-ordered it from Gibson consigned it to Archtop dot com in December 2010! I bought it in January 2011.

  24. #198

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    Hi all, been lurking for a while now but finally got around to registering.

    This guitar is for sale a couple of subway stops from me (in Hong Kong) and I was thinking about going to have a look at it.

    Serial number suggests July 1988 build, but I was wondering about the back? I was under the impression - possibly from this thread - that the L4-CES from this era, the sunburst extended to the back?

    Gibson L-4 CES 1988 | eBay

  25. #199

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    Quote Originally Posted by Rhayader
    Hi all, been lurking for a while now but finally got around to registering.

    This guitar is for sale a couple of subway stops from me (in Hong Kong) and I was thinking about going to have a look at it.

    Serial number suggests July 1988 build, but I was wondering about the back? I was under the impression - possibly from this thread - that the L4-CES from this era, the sunburst extended to the back?

    Gibson L-4 CES 1988 | eBay
    Gorgeous mahogany back. No, the sunburst wouldn’t go on the back of the mahogany.

  26. #200

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    No one is absolutely sure if the mahogany is solid or laminate from this era. I own a 1989, and also had a 2005 solid mahogany L4CES. I’ve just sold the 2005 and kept the 1989.

    Both of mine are blonde, so I can’t comment on the burst extending around the back. I can tell you that the case is not the original case (it’s likely from the early 2000’s).

    Also, it’s obviously missing the pickguard. Sometimes, they can rot and fall apart. Sometimes people just prefer them removed. It’s worth asking about, because it’s not easy, or maybe not even possible to get an accurate replacement due to the materials used and the binding.