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Thinking of purchasing a 64 Junior with the Tremelo from a private sale. Tips..

Hotshot

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Joined
Jul 25, 2017
Messages
282
Going a decade past my comfort zone. Thinking of dipping my toe in the 60s. Here goes.

I played a 64 Special a while back and loved it. It was out of my price range though. A 64 Junior came up the similar neck / nut. Its all orig except for the truss cover. It has the Viola term on it. At first i thought it was a 65 but he says its a 64 and the Control cavity looks smaller that the 65s I've seen.

Everything seems in check and theres hardly any checking. Very good shape.

Any hidden issues I'm missing? Thinking that i don t know my hard core tricks on old P90 ID'ing. I can date pots, blacklight, etc..

I play on going out to see it soon. This one is my entry into that true Vintage Gibson world and Im just being cautious as the price seems fair.
 

david.beason

Active member
Joined
Dec 18, 2014
Messages
259
Like you mentioned, check the pot codes. If it's a '64, it will likely have a really nice neck. I had a '64 SG Junior and the neck was just perfect. If it ends up being a '65, you might want to measure the width at the nut as it could be 1 11/16" like a '64 would be, but could also be 1 5/8" or 1 9/16" as well. All of those are fine, but it might make a difference to how much you like it and could affect the value of it as well. Another sign of a '65 would be a mixture of chrome parts in with the nickel (or even all chrome parts).

As an example, my '65 SG Junior has a mixture of nickel/chrome, but a 1 11/16" nut width.

If there is no checking whatsoever, would it be possible for you to bring a black light to take a look at the finish? Most original finishes from that era that I've seen have checking, but it's possible for it to not have any and still be original (I have a '60 LP Junior with that being the case).

The serial number should also still be provide some indication of the year in this era, although there are some small ranges of overlap.
 

Hotshot

Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2017
Messages
282
Thx! Yup. All nickle. Unfortunately there are blobs of solder over the second digit of 6..
He measured the nut and it’s 1x 11/16ths. The braids on the wire checks and the pressed in 171 serial seems to be good as well. I will be bringing my blacklight and checking. Though he mentioned that its in very good shape.
 
Last edited:

Hotshot

Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2017
Messages
282
Re: Thinking of purchasing a 64 Junior with the Tremelo from a private sale. PICS

Like you mentioned, check the pot codes. If it's a '64, it will likely have a really nice neck. I had a '64 SG Junior and the neck was just perfect. If it ends up being a '65, you might want to measure the width at the nut as it could be 1 11/16" like a '64 would be, but could also be 1 5/8" or 1 9/16" as well. All of those are fine, but it might make a difference to how much you like it and could affect the value of it as well. Another sign of a '65 would be a mixture of chrome parts in with the nickel (or even all chrome parts).

As an example, my '65 SG Junior has a mixture of nickel/chrome, but a 1 11/16" nut width. YES I KNOW the Truss Rod cover isn't Stock. It was disclosed.

If there is no checking whatsoever, would it be possible for you to bring a black light to take a look at the finish? Most original finishes from that era that I've seen have checking, but it's possible for it to not have any and still be original (I have a '60 LP Junior with that being the case).

The serial number should also still be provide some indication of the year in this era, although there are some small ranges of overlap.

IMG_4479-L.jpg
IMG_4433-L.jpg
IMG_4480-L.jpg
IMG_4482-L.jpg
https://photos.smugmug.com/Junior/Junior-SG/i-cW5SPkt/0/c9e1d2b4/L/IMG_4486-L.jpg
 

Hotshot

Member
Joined
Jul 25, 2017
Messages
282
I’ve seen a few cavities where the solder is over the dates on these.
 
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