1970 Gibson Crest Gold

“Crest – The progressive guitarist will enjoy the new look and sound of this professional instrument. Beautiful suspended gold humbucking pickups not only contribute to the unique tonal capabilities of the instrument, but also highlight the seasoned Rosewood bookmatched top, rims, and back.” — 1969 Gibson Thinline Catalog

Make and Model: Gibson Crest

Year: early 1970. No Made In USA stamp, no volute, orange label.

Specifications: Fully hollow thinline archtop, laminate bookmatched Rosewood body, neck joint at the 15th fret, 24 3/4″ scale, 1 11/16″ nut width, .8″ neck depth at the first fret, 1″ depth at the 12th fret, two top mounted Johnny Smith style mini humbucking pickups, Custom inlay on the headstock, large block (Custom) inlays on the fretboard.

Originality: All original parts except the strings. Original case, original paperwork…

Condition: Near perfect. There is no finish checking or cracks. The neck is dead straight with a properly working truss rod. The frets show no wear. The electronics work like new. The hooks on the tailpiece sagged a bit as a result of having .012 gauge strings on it for a long time but it feels solid and is currently set up with .010 gauge strings.

Playability: 100%, no excuses.

Notes: I’ve been working hard to source a clean Gibson Crest for a long time now. With only 156 examples shipped throughout its four year production run (1969-1972), it was an uphill battle. This near mint example was irresistible. It’s likely that this one was produced in 1969 but not finished out with electronics until early 1970 (potentiometer code: 137701x, 10th week of 1970). The Gibson shipment ledgers record a total of 61 Crests shipped in 1970.

This clean Gibson Crest has just emerged for the first time in more than 30 years. I received it from the son of its long time caretaker after his passing years ago. I was shocked to find the original manual, string tag, and the Gibson Diamond Jubilee tag for 1969 (even though this one probably shipped in 1970!). The original case is clean but the handle is a poor replacement. The guitar itself is scary clean and is sure to please the most discerning collector and player.