1943 Gibson J-45 Sunburst, Excellent, Original Soft,

The J-45 was introduced in the summer of 1942 as an update for Gibson’s J-35 model. The J-45 sported Gibson’s new gold script logo and a flashy banner on the front of the headstock that read “Only a Gibson is Good Enough.” This banner was mysteriously discontinued right at the end of the war. The J-45 model began as a 16 1/4″ wide dreadnought guitar with an Adirondack Spruce top and Honduran Mahogany back and sides. As World War II raged on, building supplies for American manufacturers dwindled. Gibson began substituting steel truss rods for triangular Maple rods and Spruce tops for Mahogany. The war also reduced demand for guitars as well as available men to build them. Gibson was manufacturing war related items but did find time to sneak in a greatly reduced number of guitars as well. The employees left from before the war were the oldest and most skilled luthiers in the company. The gap in the workforce was filled with women. Society was in a transition as more women desired company jobs instead of working in the home. The seasoned older luthiers combined with the dextrous feminine hands combined to make the iconic war time Gibson guitars commonly referred to as “Banner Gibsons.”

This 1943 Gibson J-45 was purchased new by Roy A. Graham of the central Alabama area. We know this because Roy used an ink stamp to mark his guitar and the case. Graham’s family sold this guitar recently in all original, unrepaired condition. Now it’s back in proper playing condition after standard maintenance repairs including a neck reset with new bone saddle, bridge reglue, one brace glued and one crack repair on the back. The guitar still retains its original nut, war time flat cog tuners and five of 1943 Gibson J-45 2314 40-057the six original Bakelite bridge pins. The original neck and fretboard show only four thousandths of an inch relief at full string tension – this neck wouldn’t benefit from adjustment even if it had an adjustable rod. This is clearly a testament to the build quality during this time period. The original chipboard case has a broken latch so the guitar currently resides in a new form fitting hard shell case.

The top bracing during this time period was thin, heavily scalloped and sculpted. This makes for an extremely resonant top and this one is no exception. The full girth of the war time neck profile and lack of metal truss rod cavity efficiently transfers the full energy of the vibrating strings from headstock to the body. The soft lacquer shows almost no color fading and only light finish checking and crazing. This is truly a beautifully preserved vintage collectible as well as a top quality musical instrument.