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Topic: ID This Gibson? |
Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 20 Feb 2018 4:58 pm |
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Guys
What is this and what do they sell for?
thx
bob
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Ron Simpson
From:
Illinois, USA
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Posted 20 Feb 2018 5:35 pm
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| This is a Gibson Century. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 20 Feb 2018 5:40 pm
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| Ron Simpson wrote: |
| This is a Gibson Century. |
Year? Value?
thx |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 20 Feb 2018 9:56 pm
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| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Year? Value? |
1947-1951
One with some cosmetic issues recently sold for $175.00 on eBay. First generation Centurys are one of Gibson's all-time greatest lap steels, and they have recently been criminally under-valued. That one needs tuner buttons (most with their originals do), but looks to be pretty decent overall, and original. If I was in the market for one, I'd jump all over it. In a New York minute. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 20 Feb 2018 10:11 pm
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Thanks Guys
Do these have the Ricky growl or more like a Stringmaster tone?
bob |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 12:09 am
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| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Do these have the Ricky growl or more like a Stringmaster tone? |
Check out Doug Beaumier's many YouTube videos playing his Century-6 to get an inkling of how they sound.
Depending on the presence or absence and condition of the original oblong case, the functionality of the electronics, and the condition of the fragile Plexiglas pickup/bridge cover (Gibson called it a "finger-rest"), I would place a value in the $300.00 to $500.00 range. I paid something like $286.00 for mine several years ago, but the finger-rest was missing and there was no case. It remains to this day my favorite lap steel, with the notable exception of my Bakelite.
When you consider what Fender Champs sell for today, first generation Century-6s remain a terrific bargain.
There are people who have dissed the sound of Gibson lap steels, which is a complete mystery to me. With the exception of the overpriced and overrated Skylark (basically a Gibson copy of a Champ), every one I've owned and/or played (dozens), sounded awesome to my old ears.
That tape residue on the fretboard will likely come right off with naptha (Ronsonol), by the way. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 7:15 am
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| Jack Hanson wrote: |
| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Do these have the Ricky growl or more like a Stringmaster tone? |
Check out Doug Beaumier's many YouTube videos playing his Century-6 to get an inkling of how they sound.
Depending on the presence or absence and condition of the original oblong case, the functionality of the electronics, and the condition of the fragile Plexiglas pickup/bridge cover (Gibson called it a "finger-rest"), I would place a value in the $300.00 to $500.00 range. I paid something like $286.00 for mine several years ago, but the finger-rest was missing and there was no case. It remains to this day my favorite lap steel, with the notable exception of my Bakelite.
When you consider what Fender Champs sell for today, first generation Century-6s remain a terrific bargain.
There are people who have dissed the sound of Gibson lap steels, which is a complete mystery to me. With the exception of the overpriced and overrated Skylark (basically a Gibson copy of a Champ), every one I've owned and/or played (dozens), sounded awesome to my old ears.
That tape residue on the fretboard will likely come right off with naptha (Ronsonol), by the way. |
Thanks, Jack |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 7:47 am
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I really like my Century 6. I like the wide string spacing, the short scale, and the tone of the guitar. I would describe the tone as a midrange growl! I think I paid $230 for it back in 2010, and that included an old Oahu lap steel stand. I notice that sellers on line ask around $700 and up, but they don't sell at that price, as far as I know.
My Century 6 is pretty worn now and I had some mods done last week. The pots were shot so I had my local guitar shop replace them. I had them reverse the volume and tone controls so the tone control is now closest to my right hand. It's in a good position for the boo-wah tone move with the right hand. And the volume control is in the middle. The outer control is now a dummy pot... it's not in the circuit. I never liked the two tone control setup anyway. And I had them change the capacitor to .05 or close to it (similar to Fender specs) hopefully to make the boo-wah thing work better... and it does work very well. The tuners have been slipping for a long time so I had the shop put on a set of old Klusons that I've had for many years. I don't even remember where I got them, but they fit perfectly and they're in excellent condition. Black buttons that look good with the black body of the guitar.
_________________
My Site / My YouTube Channel
25 Songs C6 Lap Steel / 25 MORE Songs C6 Lap Steel / 16 Songs, C6, A6, B11 / 60 Popular Melodies E9 Pedal Steel |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 9:25 am
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| Doug Beaumier wrote: |
I really like my Century 6. I like the wide string spacing, the short scale, and the tone of the guitar. I would describe the tone as a midrange growl! I think I paid $230 for it back in 2010, and that included an old Oahu lap steel stand. I notice that sellers on line ask around $700 and up, but they don't sell at that price, as far as I know.
My Century 6 is pretty worn now and I had some mods done last week. The pots were shot so I had my local guitar shop replace them. I had them reverse the volume and tone controls so the tone control is now closest to my right hand. It's in a good position for the boo-wah tone move with the right hand. And the volume control is in the middle. The outer control is now a dummy pot... it's not in the circuit. I never liked the two tone control setup anyway. And I had them change the capacitor to .05 or close to it (similar to Fender specs) hopefully to make the boo-wah thing work better... and it does work very well. The tuners have been slipping for a long time so I had the shop put on a set of old Klusons that I've had for many years. I don't even remember where I got them, but they fit perfectly and they're in excellent condition. Black buttons that look good with the black body of the guitar. |
Was this before the mods?:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1pJUQAYYxc
thx
bob |
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Bill Groner
From:
QUAKERTOWN, PA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 9:37 am
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I think it's safe to say, you could take a tree branch, put a set of tuners, nut, bridge and strings on it and Doug could make it sound good. The video said 2013 so I would assume it was before the steel was updated.
_________________
Currently own, 6 Groner-tone lap steels, one 1953 Alamo Lap steel, Roland Cube, Fender Champion 40 |
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Chris Walke
From:
St Charles, IL
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 11:20 am
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| Related question (sort of) - what's the difference between a Century and an Ultratone? |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 11:49 am
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| Chris Walke wrote: |
| ...what's the difference between a Century and an Ultratone? |
On the first generation Centurys and Ultratones, basically just the paint job and trim level. They are structurally and electronically identical. |
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James Hartman
From:
Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 2:38 pm
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| Worth noting: first version of both had a different pickup (6 alnico pole piece magnets) than subsequent iterations which had P-90 pickups. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 2:55 pm
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| James Hartman wrote: |
| Worth noting: first version of both had a different pickup (6 alnico pole piece magnets) than subsequent iterations which had P-90 pickups. |
Which is more desirable and how do you tell?
thx |
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James Hartman
From:
Pennsylvania, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 3:09 pm
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| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| James Hartman wrote: |
| Worth noting: first version of both had a different pickup (6 alnico pole piece magnets) than subsequent iterations which had P-90 pickups. |
Which is more desirable and how do you tell?
thx |
The P-90 has adjustable screw pole pieces, the earlier pickup does not. Any examples I've seen, the earlier pickup doesn't have a cover over the flatwork and coil. The P-90s are the typical "soap bar" type seen on many Gibson guitars.
Here's one of Doug's videos where he has the lower cover-plate off and you can see the (earlier version) pickup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr0TPpZSR0Y
Which is more desirable? That's pretty subjective. They both sound great, but somewhat different. I have an Ultratone with the P-90. Given a choice, I might lean toward the older style, but that's just personal preference. Meanwhile, I'm perfectly happy with my P-90 Ultratone. |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 3:19 pm
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| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Which is more desirable... |
Both are desirable. They sound more alike than different. A slight edge may go to the P-90 due to its adjustable poles.
A common misconception is that a P-90 is a P-90, when in fact there are at least three different versions. P-90s for lap steels have a 1-6 polepiece spacing of 58mm. Those for Les Pauls and ESess were spaced at 50mm. There was also an 8-string P-90 for console and pedal steels, and possibly others.
Last edited by Jack Hanson on 21 Feb 2018 5:08 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 4:13 pm
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| Doug Beaumier wrote: |
| I believe the early Century 6 was called the BR-2. |
Yes. The Ultratone, which came out in 1946, was the BR-1. The Century, which debuted in 1947, was the BR-2. The short-lived BR-3 came out in late 1945 to be superseded by the nearly identical BR-4 in 1946. Gibson's first entry level black BR-6 made its appearance in late 1946. The sunburst BR-6 was upgraded to a mid-level instrument after the BR-9, a low-priced student model, was first introduced in late 1947. So, between 1945 and 1947, Gibson introduced no less than seven distinctive and entirely new lap steels.
The "BR" prefix designates Barnes & Reinecke, the noted Chicago industrial design firm who is accredited for many of Gibson's new postwar designs. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 4:35 pm
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Which one had the Charlie Christian (sp) pickup?
bob |
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 5:26 pm
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| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Which one had the Charlie Christian (sp) pickup? |
The so-called Charlie Christian was a prewar pickup, Gibson's very first in fact. It made its debut on the cast aluminum EHG (Electric Hawaiian Guitar) of 1935. Sometime in 1938 they changed from bar magnets to a u-shaped magnet, but the pickup looked the same from the outside.
Incidentally, neither lap steel pickup was a true "Charlie Christian" type. The pickup for the ES-150, which Charlie played, was built to different specs than the steel guitar pickups.
All the info I have cited so far is straight from the pages of the wonderful "Gibson Electric Steel Guitars 1935-1967" by Andre Duchossoir. Bigly recommended. |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 21 Feb 2018 5:39 pm
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| Jack Hanson wrote: |
| Bob Snelgrove wrote: |
| Which one had the Charlie Christian (sp) pickup? |
The so-called Charlie Christian was a prewar pickup, Gibson's very first in fact. It made its debut on the cast aluminum EHG (Electric Hawaiian Guitar) of 1935. Sometime in 1938 they changed from bar magnets to a u-shaped magnet, but the pickup looked the same from the outside.
Incidentally, neither lap steel pickup was a true "Charlie Christian" type. The pickup for the ES-150, which Charlie played, was built to different specs than the steel guitar pickups.
All the info I have cited so far is straight from the pages of the wonderful "Gibson Electric Steel Guitars 1935-1967" by Andre Duchossoir. Bigly recommended.
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Right, ES-150, beautiful guitars.
bob |
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Willis Vanderberg
From:
Petoskey Mi
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Posted 28 Feb 2018 5:57 pm
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| Some Br-9 model had a P-90 that had fixed poles,no adjusting screw. My first steel was a brand new BR-9 with a matching amp. I paid a hundred dollars for it at Ferees Music in Battle Creek Michigan. I played a lot of Roy Wiggin stuff and that little guitar really honked. |
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Michael Hogan
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Posted 2 Mar 2018 2:46 am Century and Ultratones
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Her is what they look like.
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Bill Groner
From:
QUAKERTOWN, PA
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Posted 2 Mar 2018 2:24 pm
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Those sure are sweet. Lucky man!
_________________
Currently own, 6 Groner-tone lap steels, one 1953 Alamo Lap steel, Roland Cube, Fender Champion 40 |
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Bob Snelgrove
From:
san jose, ca
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Posted 2 Mar 2018 2:32 pm Re: Century and Ultratones
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| Michael Hogan wrote: |
Her is what they look like.
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Nice!
Different vintage/pick ups?
bob |
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