Description
What makes this guitar special: Gibson's Barney Kessel model made its debut back in '61, so this is a fairly early example being from '63. One is immediately struck at just how visually captivating the guitar is, with its Super 400-style elongated headstock & double Florentine cutaways. The fully hollow 17" body resonates magnificently & the pair of Pat No humbuckers delivers that warm, rich tone we've all come to love from vintage Gibsons. Professionally set up by Cream City Music, so it plays & sounds amazing!
Cosmetic Condition: Cool, true vintage look with some honest wear & tear - various nicks, chips, dents & dings; surface scratches, weather checking & finish wear. There's about a foot-long crack in the lower bout, bass-side of the body that was professionally repaired. It's an excellent repair job with no playability issues. No issues with the neck either - the guitar plays & feels fantastic! Overall it has a wonderful, authentic look to it with a beautiful patina.
Neck: Slender profile mahogany neck with nicely aged cream binding & tortoise side-dots. Beautiful Brazilian rosewood fingerboard with mother of pearl double parallelogram inlays. Original frets are in great shape with hardly any wear. Bound headstock with unoriginal Schaller tuners, all in perfect working condition. 1 11/16" nut width; 25" scale length. Neck is straight & truss rod works fine.
Body: Double Florentine cutaway, hollowbody with 17" lower bout width & 3" depth. Laminated spruce top with 3-ply binding & dual F-holes. Maple sides & back with 3-ply binding. There's some absolutely gorgeous flame figuring in the back of the body that pops nicely against the cherry sunburst finish. The nickel Bigsby tremolo tailpiece is vintage, but not original to the guitar. Original ABR-1 bridge with nylon saddles & floating rosewood base. 5-ply black pickguard is in great shape with no cracks. Guitar weighs 7 lbs 15 oz.
Pickups: Original Pat No. humbuckers with nickel covers & black bezels. Bridge - 7.89K ohms; Neck - 7.69K ohms. Dual volume & tone controls with black 'top hat' knobs; 3-way toggle switch. All electronics are in perfect working condition.
Case: Unoriginal, later-period Gibson hardshell case included.
