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This Vintage Super V BJB model is a custom shop L5C body with a Super 400 neck. Built in 1979, this is one of only 43 of this model that were built that first year "making it one of the rarest Gibson archtops of the postwar era". This is a rare guitar in rare condition.
The guitar, priced at $7,699 US, features a Bookmatched Spruce top, Solid Carved Maple back and sides, 5-Piece Flame Maple/Walnut neck, 20 fret Bound Ebony fingerboard, Gibson “Johnny Smith” neck mounted floating pickup, the original 1/8th inch jack and volume control mounted to the pickguard, Kluson Sealfast tuners, Gibson Micro-Adjustable tailpiece (introduced on this model) and a Sunburst finish, original Hard Shell case. I am the second owner, and have played only finger style jazz, no pick, since I acquired it in about 1995. While I owned it, it was never gigged, actually never left the house.
This guitar is in Excellent condition for its age showing normal signs of play wear and slight binding separation on side and extra hole drilled in bottom (see pictures)
This guitar has a Custom-made Replacement pickguard (~$500 value). The original pickguard crumbled into small pieces and was not kept. The replacement was crafted by a luthier at Elderly Instruments in Lansing Michigan, of Ebony, with purfling matching the original. It is a remarkable example of the luthier's skill. (see pictures) Has a faint BGN stamp on back of headstock. The Gibson Custom Shop used a "bargain" stamp on any guitar with a slight imperfection and sold it for a 10% discount.
This is my guitar that I am selling through Guitar Pickers. They can be reached at 1-480-669-3909 for further information. The guitar can be seen and played at their Scottsdale, AZ store at 2302 N Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85257. Conrad Varela from Guitar Pickers posted a video playing this guitar on Facebook. I will also answer questions sent in response to this post. The guitar is also listed by them on Reverb: search Gibson Super V BJB. There are more pictures there.Last edited by Jknit333; 10-22-2025 at 06:14 PM. Reason: additional pictures
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10-19-2025 05:41 PM
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Beautiful guitar! Pickguard alignment seems off (or do my eyes deceive me?)...
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Hey Topper. Thanks for looking, and pointing out the alignment. I had this new pickguard for years and never thought of it being off. I see your point. I also agree that it is a beautiful guitar.
Originally Posted by Topper Roth
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Do you happen to have the original truss rod cover and BJB pickup? Thx
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Loosen screw on brace and push it where it's supposed to be. That support is slotted for this purpose.
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I don't see the binding issue or extra hole?
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That's accurate but the pickguard is currently tilted so that the volume pot is over the f-hole. Originally Posted by 58flame
Maybe if you move the guard to be perpendicular to the strings the pot will bump into the top.
I would remove the guard, put a yellow sticky or some low-tack tape down to protect the top, then put the guard back on 'straight' and see what you get.
If the pot touches the top you'll get scuffs and potential acoustic buzzing, so you can just set it back the way it is now.
GLWS -- I've admired Super Vs ever since I heard Bob Kobus playing his in 1982.
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A little piece of felt on the bottom of the pot will prevent scuffs, sop... Originally Posted by Sam Sherry
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That pot should be well clear of the top unless the bracket is bent. And those brackets are pretty heavy. There should also be a support under the pickguard that prevents the pot from contacting the top, should it take a hit.
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The truss rod cover and pickup are to the best of my knowledge original, I made no changes. Do you have a photograph of what you expected to see?
Thanks
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I have added two more pictures, showing the binding and the hole in the bottom. These are pictures I took, there are additional pictures from Guitar Pickers in the Reverb ad. You can search Gibson Super V BJB to see them, searching archtop will not find this guitar.
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Thanks to 58Flame, Sam and Wintermoon for the discussion of the fingerboard location. I guess I was so pleased with the replacement pickguard that I never investigated the position. It does sound like there are options but I suspect this angle was carefully chosen by the luthier at Elderly Music in Lansing MI. If the pot comes close or touches the top when it is straight, I would expect that leaving the top untouched was the choice made. Good to hear that there are options - thanks again.
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Just push it over. It looks well clear. Loosen screw. Push into position. I have the same guitar, well same enough, a Johnny smith, and I can show you the guard. I don't know how to post pics here.
I think you're good.
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I would just leave it as is since the pickup is already up against the cupid bow at the end of the fingerboard. A slight mis calculation when making the guard.
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It will rotate into position. The support bracket is slotted. It would be be attached like that if it wasn't. Whoever put it on never straightened it out.
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If you can't move the guard over its probably because the guard binding at the top of the pickup cutout is slightly in the way.
If so just trim a little and slide the guard mounting bolt in the bracket over as 58 suggested and it should fit.Last edited by wintermoon; 10-23-2025 at 11:08 AM.
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I'm showing my age, but I remember when they came out with that sucker in college and thought, "That's what I want!" Ah but the price!
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The current price on Reverb is 7.599 USD.
what is the price on this forum?
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That pickup is a Johnny Smith design which is attached to the neck with a metal bracket, rather being attached to the pickguard like a BJB pickup. This means that re-aligning the pickguard won’t affect the pickup’s position at all. The pickguard should be straightened out. Originally Posted by guitarcarver
Keith
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What floating pickup said exactly!!
Just straighten it out. No big deal at all.
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If it's not too much to ask, please state the 'sameness'. I've recently acquired a GJS and I think I'm falling in love with it! Originally Posted by 58flame
Thanks!
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It's the same pickguard style. Super V is a little different guitar. Different scale, different bracing, available CES, Cupid's bow at end of neck, neck connection to body, nut width, etc. Both are fine instruments, it's all what you like. My point is - it's the same guard and pickup setup. Originally Posted by skykomishone
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Loosen screwS - both the one at the tip and the one through the bracket. I seriously doubt that the original pot and wiring would protrude into the f hole and make it necessary to angle the guard like that. If the current one does hang up on the top, it’s almost certainly either a replacement and the wrong part or mounted incorrectly (eg a nut too high on the shaft under the guard, an unnecessary washer, etc). Originally Posted by 58flame
One solution if the pot or wiring is hanging into the f hole and preventing correct alignment of the guard is to remove the screw through the guard into the bracket and shim up the guard with a washer or two. But I’d be surprised if that’s how it was delivered from Gibson.
Nothing like this would shock me, though. I bought a new ‘69 L5-CN that had so many defects that my dealer insisted on taking it back. For example, there was a splice in the top binding. A very visible patch of top wood wider than the fingerboard extending about 2 inches toward the bridge was totally unfinished. The overall finish was marginal at best, and it played badly - stiff feel, no warmth at all, minimally responsive to touch and technique. So Gibson’s delivered a few clunkers over the decades.
Still, a Super V is a flagship even above an L5. I seriously doubt that it was delivered like that.
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Thanks '58! I appreciate the clarity! I've not familiarized myself with the details of this model, and also, the older I get, the less I trust what I think I know about these things, unless I've played one, and even then one can't be sure because it could have been a rare, awesome specimen, or a flat out dud of a guitar, either way, not truly representative of the breed.
This looks like a nice guitar.
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Two gorgeous models, each with much to teach. Originally Posted by skykomishone
Both guitars are 17" x 3" carved archtops, made in the same factory by some of the same people. Each sports the Super 400 inlays.
The Gibson JS guitars were always** 25" scale, x-braced, wearing one or two of the unique and beautiful-sounding JS floating pickups, with the fingerboard squared-off. Mr. Smith reportedly exercised strict control over the neck carve.
The Super V was 25.5" scale with the L5 center-point at the end of the fingerboard. Some had set-in pickups and some had BJB flat-head floaters. I don't know if the Johnny Smith pickup was available as factory OEM but the OP's guitar obviously sports the JS pickup. I expect that the set-in Super Vs would have been H-braced because the GJS X needs to be cut to take a set-in neck pickup.
In short, unless you're a gearhead there is a lot of sameness but if you're a gearhead there are plenty of differences to feast on.
** This is Gibson we're talking about. There's an exception to every rule.
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