Where are they now...

[Strings Jr.]

Thank you Randy,this is an awesome thread.I have an older model I wish I could have said it were one of yours, before your start though.Thanks for sharing this history with us,I love guitars and love trying to build a bit,I am not a pro by any means,(building or playing)still enjoy learning and trying.I only have built one so far, it is somewhat a strat kind of body with LP soul electronics inside,(although the new pcb board,not the old school mojo) and after I bought my first LP, and I really learned alot just from seeing and feeling a true work of beauty Gibson luthiers create. I have alot to learn.appreciate it.

Thank you sir :salude

 

[JRF134]

wouldn't allow my pic,probably for the best

 

[Danny W.]

I once owned a bunch of Gibsons from the '80's. Here are some of them, no longer have either guitars or serial numbers:

355 with hearts & flowers inlay, '82 I think:

L-5S in antique natural, no volute, 1983, best one I'd owned (had 6):

Custom Shop ES-355 in very dark cherry. A fabulous guitar!

ES-357 (ES-Mitch), one-off, I think, with ES-355 trim instead of ES-347:

25th Anniversary Johnny Smith I bought from Johnny himself, 1985, nice looking, but not best Smith I'd owned:

Another 25th anniversaru I also bought from Johnny in 1988. I don't remember anything about it, but I have photos and correspondence:

Danny W.

 

[Strings Jr.]

Hello Danny. Those are some fabulous guitars :dude:

It would have been very hard for me to let go of that L-5S.

I think that all of those guitars were built in Kalamazoo, with the possible exception of the wine red ES-355.
And the only reason I say that is because it appears to have PAF stickers on the pickup rings.
I always assumed the stickers were a Nashville thing. Anyone know if Kalamazoo used them too?

 

[Danny W.]

Hello Danny. Those are some fabulous guitars :dude:

It would have been very hard for me to let go of that L-5S.

I think that all of those guitars were built in Kalamazoo, with the possible exception of the wine red ES-355.
And the only reason I say that is because it appears to have PAF stickers on the pickup rings.
I always assumed the stickers were a Nashville thing. Anyone know if Kalamazoo used them too?

I posted guitars built during the transition years--also had many from late '80's through mid '90's. I could post some of those if you'd like to see them.

As nice as that blonde L5S was I mostly like to play semi's for stand-up gigs--about 22 years ago I sold all of my solids.

Here's the serial # for the WR ES-355:

Danny W.

 

[Strings Jr.]

I posted guitars built during the transition years--also had many from late '80's through mid '90's. I could post some of those if you'd like to see them.

As nice as that blonde L5S was I mostly like to play semi's for stand-up gigs--about 22 years ago I sold all of my solids.

Here's the serial # for the WR ES-355:

Danny W.

Looks like I was right. It is a Nashville guitar.
In fact, I built it on February 11th, 1985.

 

[Danny W.]

Looks like I was right. It is a Nashville guitar.
In fact, I built it on February 11th, 1985.

That was really an excellent guitar--if I had kept an ES-355 it probably would have been that one.

Here are a couple of later ones, also excellent guitars:

Serial on the next one looks like 92845000 or 5008

Serial number on next one was 94012382:

All those guitars were wonderful--if I still played the 355, I'd be happy with any one!

Danny W.

 

[Satch0922]

Hello Randy,

Just stumbled upon this thread and wanted to know if you had any history on my 1988 Reissue Gold Top Serial 8 - 0543. This guitar is a beast and has been through hell. Sounds amazing and plays like a dream. Just curious more than anything about its origin. It was refretted and Plek'd by Joe Glaser in Nashville.

Thanks!

 

[corpse]

GT's need a belly and that one has a regular gut!

 

[Strings Jr.]

Hello Randy,

Just stumbled upon this thread and wanted to know if you had any history on my 1988 Reissue Gold Top Serial 8 - 0543. This guitar is a beast and has been through hell. Sounds amazing and plays like a dream. Just curious more than anything about its origin. It was refretted and Plek'd by Joe Glaser in Nashville.

Thanks!

Hello Satch, and welcome to the forum.

By 1988 I had moved on to building carved tops and then doing Final Inspection. There were many versions of the LP "re-issue" in the early / mid 80's. Most had similar features, but the final version was known internally as Special #130. It remained the "normal" re-issue version into the 90's with features such as nickel hardware, ABR bridge, thin binding in the cutaway, amber switch tip, taller bridge pickup mounting ring, open b and open o in the logo, and the LP Model decal moved up closer to the logo.

No wonder it has been played so much. They were great guitars!!

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Elmore]

Satch, that is a beauty. I have an 87 prehistoric/standard that I will never let go. Same deep dish top.

 

[Satch0922]

Thank you Randy!

Hello Satch, and welcome to the forum.

By 1988 I had moved on to building carved tops and then doing Final Inspection. There were many versions of the LP "re-issue" in the early / mid 80's. Most had similar features, but the final version was known internally as Special #130. It remained the "normal" re-issue version into the 90's with features such as nickel hardware, ABR bridge, thin binding in the cutaway, amber switch tip, taller bridge pickup mounting ring, open b and open o in the logo, and the LP Model decal moved up closer to the logo.

No wonder it has been played so much. They were great guitars!!

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Medinamario2000]

Hello String Jr. I dont have the word to explain how much I have learned from you. This thread fells like a good book you never want to put down. I also have a question for you, I have a Gibson Les Paul custom from 1987 with a bridge I have never seen on another custom. Other then that it is a normal custom but plays amazing the serial number is 82937565. I hope this helps I am trying to figure out how to upload pictures. Thank you for all you have shared.

 

[class5lp]

You know you mentioned the name Jim "Hutch" Hutchin's and it made me think of the time I met this wonderful man on my very first trip to the custom shop. I believe it was Phillip "Big Daddy" Whorton that introduced me to him if I remember correctly but it could have been Trish or Rick Gembar. Just cant remember for certain. At any rate Hutch was one of the nicest men you could ever want to meet. Truly a class act all the way. He made you feel warmed and welcome and was a genuine fellow. In the short time I spent with him he gave me an education on arch top building that was incredible. When I got home I ordered a Gibson Byrdland Florentine and it was built by Hutch and he signed the orange label inside. Just a killer guitar.

Here is some trivia for you! Most people dont know this and may not even care but Hutch was from Michigan and started with Gibson like in the 70's when they were in Kalamazoo and dig this. He started out at Gibson as a handy man/janitor and had no guitar building experience what so ever.

R.I.P. Hutch

 

[Strings Jr.]

Hello String Jr. I dont have the word to explain how much I have learned from you. This thread fells like a good book you never want to put down. I also have a question for you, I have a Gibson Les Paul custom from 1987 with a bridge I have never seen on another custom. Other then that it is a normal custom but plays amazing the serial number is 82937565. I hope this helps I am trying to figure out how to upload pictures. Thank you for all you have shared.

Hello and welcome to the forum.

I'm not aware of any bridge used on the LP Customs at that time other than the normal Nashville Tune-o-matic.

Looking forward to seeing some pictures.

Thanks!

 

[Strings Jr.]

You know you mentioned the name Jim "Hutch" Hutchin's and it made me think of the time I met this wonderful man on my very first trip to the custom shop. I believe it was Phillip "Big Daddy" Whorton that introduced me to him if I remember correctly but it could have been Trish or Rick Gembar. Just cant remember for certain. At any rate Hutch was one of the nicest men you could ever want to meet. Truly a class act all the way. He made you feel warmed and welcome and was a genuine fellow. In the short time I spent with him he gave me an education on arch top building that was incredible. When I got home I ordered a Gibson Byrdland Florentine and it was built by Hutch and he signed the orange label inside. Just a killer guitar.

Here is some trivia for you! Most people dont know this and may not even care but Hutch was from Michigan and started with Gibson like in the 70's when they were in Kalamazoo and dig this. He started out at Gibson as a handy man/janitor and had no guitar building experience what so ever.

R.I.P. Hutch

I will be forever grateful for the years that I spent working with Hutch. He was one of the first people that came to Nashville when Kalamazoo closed.

The only things he loved more than Gibson guitars were 1) His family and friends, and 2) Fishing.

Thanks for the memories!!

 

[Medinamario2000]

I hope this works.URL=https://app.photobucket.com/u/medinamario2000/p/094392dc-f656-4cd3-a498-2f05da6bf7bc]

 

[Strings Jr.]

Thanks for sending the pics. Appears to be a "Pro-Tune" vibrola.

BTW, very nice guitar!! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Medinamario2000]

Thank you so much for your info, I real appreciate all you have done please keep this going for as long as you can. Thank you

 

[Satch0922]

Randy,

Here is a crazy one. Do not own the guitar any longer but in the past I was told it was a Gibson "Employee" guitar. I wish I still had the serial number and I can not see it in the picture. However there is a secondary number in the middle of the headstock that looks like 0012? Crazy part about the guitar is the block inlays like a LP Custom but the traditional logo on the headstock. The guitar was a 1982-83 model.Thanks for looking.