The first thing I have to say about this Gibson Custom Shop 1934 Reissue L-5 is that it is the best sounding example of one of these we have had in the shop, hands down. The 1934 Reissue represents the Gibson Custom Shop's attempt during the late 1990s and early 2000s at capturing the aestetic of the mid 1930s 16-inch L-5 while also making a fine acoustic archtop. The specs are largely the same, but one that is actually an improvement in this reproduction is the use of solid carved top braces, in contrast to the kerfed braces that were used in almost all examples of the original 1934 16-inch archtops by Gibson.
This example plays beautifully and has a great, punchy mid-focused tone that captures a lot of the element of the old 16-inch guitars. It's just not as seasoned. The neck is a rounded C-shape, on the larger side, but still not what I would call a baseball bat by any means. The nut width is also on the wider side, compared to most Gibsons, allowing a bit more space for larger hands or for finger picking. The frets show minor wear with a some flattening of the crowns of the first three frets primarily. There is ample life left in them and the guitar plays as effortlessly as can be expected for an acoustic instrument.
The guitar is in overall great condition, but does show some play wear, including a couple of small dents in the top, as shown in a closeup photo. Otherwise, the finish mainly just has light surface scratches.
Weight - 5.6 pounds
Nut width - 1.77 inches
1st fret depth - 0.91 inches
10th fret depth - 1.07 inches
Scale length - 24.75 inches
The guitar comes with the original Gibson Custom Art & Historic hard shell case.
Ships free in the United States and for reasonable rates worldwide.
top of page
$6,199.00Price
bottom of page