Gibson Southern Jumbo (USED, 1949)

If a clean vintage Gibson flat top is what you're looking for, move right along.

If a great sounding player-grade vintage Gibson flat top is what you're looking for, dive in with us for a bit.

This 1949 Gibson Southern Jumbo represents one of the most desirable Gibson acoustics to come out of Kalamazoo. Surpassed in price only by the J-200 at the time, the Southern Jumbo is the fancier, more appointed version of the famous slope shoulder J-45 dreadnought. The addition of multi-ply binding on the top and back along with a more intricate rosette pattern and paralellogram fingerboard inlays added a level of sophistication to the more utilitarian looks of the J-45.

This 70+ year old example certainly shows its age, with obvious signs of play wear throughout. There's moderate to heavy finish wear on the top from decades of strumming and handling, along with two obvious areas of repair. First, there's been some level of resin or compound added along the lower edge of the pickguard, likely to replace the absence of spruce that had worn away. Second, the back had clearly suffered some damage at some point along the way. The rear lower bout shows approximately six longitudinal cracks along with a "pie piece" of Mahogany grafted back into the body. A few other cracks are present, including one alongside the pickguard (a common area of stress due to the guard shrinking and pulling at the top), and another 4-5 inch crack on the treble side of the body just off the edge of where the back joins the side.

An older refret with larger fretwire was done some time ago, and the original bridge was replaced with a proper "belly up" Rosewood bridge complete with a compensated saddle, and a new bridge plate was also fitted. Some of the braces have been reglued as well. The original Kluson 'no line' tuners remain, albeit with some fresh buttons that would've replaced the crumbling originals.

Lastly, a Fishman undersaddle pickup was added along with soundhole mounted controls for fine tuning your amplified tone.

Sure, lots has been done to this guitar, but preservation was made for the sake of keeping the tone alive, which this SJ has in spades. Classic low-mid punch with a clear, dry top end that is well established across the neck. Action is great, measuring at 5/64" on the bass side and 4/64" on the treble side, set up with a straight neck. A well-done reset ensures some longevity of playability in its current state as well.

Priced with an aftermarket hardshell case.