Gibson Heritage '74

deebeewhy

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Bebouz: thanks very much. There is a J-185 for sale nearby, very clean, 2001, which reminds me somewhat of an F47. Haven't played it, but it's a looker.
 

Neal

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Hmmm. Wonder what Orpheum the good folks at Yellow Mama are selling? It does not appear on their website inventory.

I got my 12-fret Orpheum dreadnought under similar circumstances from Cream City Music in Milwaukee. The Guild logo (painted on, as was traditional in the 1930's) was chipping off. I thought about getting a local artist to repair it, but ended up keeping it as is.

Who freakin' cares when it sounds the way it does. If offered at a firesale price, someone might be very happy with whatever Orpheum Yellow Mama has.

Neal
 

txbumper57

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Hmmm. Wonder what Orpheum the good folks at Yellow Mama are selling? It does not appear on their website inventory.

I got my 12-fret Orpheum dreadnought under similar circumstances from Cream City Music in Milwaukee. The Guild logo (painted on, as was traditional in the 1930's) was chipping off. I thought about getting a local artist to repair it, but ended up keeping it as is.

Who freakin' cares when it sounds the way it does. If offered at a firesale price, someone might be very happy with whatever Orpheum Yellow Mama has.

Neal

It is a 14 fret Mahogany Slope Dread. The have it listed in ebay. The previous owner removed the "Guild" script from the headstock. They are asking $2300 obo. They have had it listed for 2 weeks now and originally listed it as a 12 fret. I sent them a message regarding the Mislabeling and they fixed it in the current ad. Here is the link.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/USED-Guild-...ught-w-Case-/161778344627?hash=item25aabda2b3
 

bobouz

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There is a J-185 for sale nearby, very clean, 2001, which reminds me somewhat of an F47. Haven't played it, but it's a looker.
Okay, now you are talking about one of my very favorite Gibson acoustics, and yes, I have one of those, too. A smaller jumbo, with the shorter 24.75" scale & all maple body. J-185s are not nearly as common as the larger jumbo, and I would highly recommend you try it out. The early 2000s produced some fine instruments - with Ren's vision in full stride.
 

deebeewhy

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I asked by email about the Orpheum and didn't hear back, so thanks for supplying the info on the 14-fret Guild. Defacing the maker's badge is a peculiar move, though I see it done frequently with cars. But I also agree it is pretty trivial since it doesn't make any noise. I am glad to hear you say the J-185 could be a good bet - I have heard that the smaller jumbo bodies in Gibson can be real duds and you're lucky to find a good one. The J-185 has been on the market (in L.A.) for months on Reverb at $1750.
 

txbumper57

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Hey Deebeehwy. Hope you are having a good weekend. If you are considering a small jumbo I would also suggest looking into a Guild F47R or a Guild F47M from New Hartford. Both are Excellent guitars with an Adirondack top and either Rosewood or Maple for the back and sides. They even made a limited run with Koa back and sides.
 

deebeewhy

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txbumper - I love the F47, both the maple s/b or rosewood, and either the natural or burst. I recall some nice pics of one that an LTG member is considering unloading, his maple I believe, at $1200. That is a solid price and it looked squeaky clean.
 

Quantum Strummer

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J-185s are not nearly as common as the larger jumbo, and I would highly recommend you try it out. The early 2000s produced some fine instruments - with Ren's vision in full stride.

I've had a thing for the J-185 since seeing a photo, many years ago, of Skip James playing one. Of the examples I've had the opportunity to play, though, none have *insisted* that I own them. :) Which is what it takes nowadays for me to acquire another guitar.

-Dave-
 

bobouz

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I am glad to hear you say the J-185 could be a good bet - I have heard that the smaller jumbo bodies in Gibson can be real duds and you're lucky to find a good one. The J-185 has been on the market (in L.A.) for months on Reverb at $1750.
With most models of a particular guitar, you will usually have far more mediocre examples as opposed to stellar ones or duds. It's simply a bell curve scenario. The trick is to find the really good ones!

Interestingly, in 2001 I played a brand new J-185 that pretty well knocked my socks off. It was on sale, and when I went back to buy it, the sale was over & they wouldn't honor the lower price. Instead, I ended up with a new maple J-100xtra made in 2000, which I still have today. Love the sound of it, but still, that J-185 had left an imprint.

Fast forward to 2013 - it took me that long to land my J-185. This one was made in 2012, and I absolutely love it. The complaint I've heard about mini maple jumbos is that they often don't pump enough bass. Well, that was not an issue with the one I played in 2001, and it's not at all an issue with this one. In the world of guitars, generalizations can often be rendered meaningless by the next example you pick up!
 
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