1967 Gibson SG Junior + Hard Shell Case
A cool ‘large guard’ SG Junior from 1967. Everything you’d expect of a vintage SG Junior - lightweight, resonant and with a hot P-90 that can scream and sing.
*Gallery below. Click on thumbnails to view in full screen*
Like it’s elder siblings, the single and double cutaway Les Paul Juniors, the SG Junior has earned its reputation as a pure, primal tone machine. The stripped back, no frills simplicity of these guitars belies the range of sounds that can be coaxed from the simple one pick-up, volume and tone combo.
SG Juniors are known to be particularly lively guitars and this one doesn’t disappoint. Acoustically this guitar is loud and resonant and with a focused mid range that gives it a naturally aggressive tone – just like all the best SG Juniors. Coupled with the powerful P-90 this Junior will sing and scream when cranked up, but is also warm and articulate and cleans up nicely when backed off. Roll the volume down to 6 and set the tone to 10 and it does a convincing Tele/Esquire like impersonation for example.
This one features a very nice chunky C neck profile similar to a ’64 or ’59 profile, which many players regard as the perfect profile. The 41mm nut width (while 2mm narrower that pre ’65 Gibson’s) doesn’t in any way feel tight. The combination of the low action, jumbo frets and neck profile make this an effortless playing guitar.
There are no breaks or repairs, or touch up or overspray on the original finish, and all solder joints are untouched. The pick up, volume and tone pots, and orange drop capacitor are all original. The pots date to the 15th week of 1967. There is a good amount of natural lacquer checking and some small nicks and dings, along with moderate natural playing wear which adds to the vintage vibe. The overall condition is very good, and this guitar has clearly been used but well looked after. The dark cherry finish has faded back somewhat to almost a deep rust like colour.
The tuners have been changed from the original three on a plate Klusons to individual 3 a side double line Kluson Deluxe tuners with white plastic tips. The original holes haven’t been drilled so it looks like these were a direct replacement for the original tuners. At some point it has had a refret with jumbo frets and is set up with a fast playing low action. The original vibrola has been replaced with a repro vibrola – our guess is that a previous owner removed the original and set the guitar up as a wraptail (which is a common and simple mod) and then sold the guitar without the original vibrola, and a subsequent owner has fitted a repro to return it to factory spec. You have the choice of either using it with the vibrola or as a wraptail, whichever variation fits your playing style and tone. One of the strap buttons is also none original.
If you are looking for a great playing and sounding vintage SG Junior in nice shape and at a good price then this is definitely worth a further look.
Comes with a new hard shell case.
Weight: 6lb 8oz
Pick up reading: 8.6k
