Value of Gibson J45 from 1965

Jtaylor

Found this 65 J45 for sale, struggling to know what its actually worth though, what would be a reasonable price to pay for it? 

ICBM

It looks like it has a replacement bridge - the original would have had an adjustable saddle, hence the large amount of space in front of it. My '61 did. The finish has been wholly or partly sanded off too - there seem to be traces of the original sunburst around the lower bout.

Neither of these things make it a bad guitar, but they do compromise its value - how much is possibly hard to say. How much is it?

Jtaylor

He’s asking £2500 for it, is that wildly off considering the bridge and finish? 

ICBM

Jtaylor said:

He’s asking £2500 for it, is that wildly off considering the bridge and finish? 

I'm not certain, but it does sound high to me.

rustneversleeps

Seems strong money to me.

Jtaylor

How much do you guys think it’s worth? If I offered 2k would I be able to easily get my money back if I change my mind at a later date? 

ICBM

Jtaylor said:

How much do you guys think it’s worth? If I offered 2k would I be able to easily get my money back if I change my mind at a later date? 

That's the problem - in that condition, there aren't going to be too many buyers, and those that there are will want it cheap for the same reason... and that's even assuming there isn't any other bad stuff we can't see yet.

There's every chance it sounds great, too - it's clearly been heavily used, and they usually do. The question is are you prepared to buy it on that basis if you like it, knowing that you'll either be keeping it for a very long time or potentially having to lose money in order to sell it if you don't get on with it?

richardhomer

The issue with any ‘vintage’ guitar is originality. In ‘value’ terms, it usually transcends anything else - including whether it is a good musical instrument. I’m not saying this is the ‘right’ way to evaluate something - but in that market - it’s how things are.

I knew someone who owned a 1964 J45 from new - it was in the top five acoustics I’ve ever played - a truly great sounding guitar. It also happened to be totally original - so a great guitar - and a great ‘vintage’ guitar. The one you’re looking at may be the former - but isn’t the latter. I would proceed with caution - and try not to let your heart rule your head.... £2000 sounds too much to me.

Jtaylor

Thanks for the help guys, going to leave it i think

domforr

Are you sure it's a J45? Looks like a J50 to me  - exactly the same but no sunburst.

I have a 1966 J50 which I was considering selling for a while. It has a custom made replacement bridge and new tuners but I have all the original bits as well, so they can easily be put back on. I was probably going to sell it for about £1900 and it's in much better nick than this one. 

ICBM

That was my first thought as well, but there appear to be traces of sunburst around the lower bout.

The model number should be stamped on the back strip in any case.

JackieB33

Well they were 45 new. Definitely wouldn't go higher than 20 given the age of it like.. 

Jtaylor

Thanks for the offer @domforr, I've changed my mind about getting another acoustic though, realise I rarely play acoustics as I primarily play electric. Good luck with the sale though  

domforr

No problem Still not sure about selling it anyway.