Here’s what we know, and what we don’t, about this early 1960s Gibson Johnny Smith guitar.  There was finish added to the back of the headstock, which  has made the serial number difficult to read. It’s clear there are only 5 digits, and we’re fairly certain they are 58061, which would date this guitar to 1962. The 5 digit serial number became 6 digits in 1963, and the Johnny Smith models was introduced in 1961, so even if our reading of the number isn’t exact the guitar dates to that 3 year period. The paper label under the bass side f hole is missing, and there is lots of sprayed mess on the back under both soundholes, plus some brownish stains. We’re certain the guitar has been refinished, and the brown stains in the body suggest the original finish was sunburst, not natural as it is now. 

The top is X-braced, which is standard for the Johnny Smith. The string scale is 25" and the neck is just shy of 1 3/4" at the nut. The good news is that the carved back has no cracks, and there are no cracks to the neck or the sides. The tuners and bridge have been replaced, and while the tailpiece may be original it has been chrome plated instead of gold. The pickguard and pickup assembly are missing. Note the damage to the top binding where the pickguard mounting bracket was screwed to the side, and the binding repair to back binding at the waist on the bass side, with another minor binding issue below the tailpiece bracket. 

There are also binding shrinkage issues to the binding joints on the headstock and fingerboard. The frets have been replaced and these newer frets have been heavily milled but all the pearl inlays on the fingerboard appear to be of decent thickness with no cracks or thinned edges. There are chips in the ebony fingerboard from the refret. The lacquer on the top is checked. This guitar is being sold for an estate and Gryphon has done no repairs.  String action is very low with the bridge as shown, we put on .012 to .052 strings tuned to pitch for the photos but be advised that the guitar needs significant set-up to be playable (we would suggest it needs a refret). This is not an "unpack it and play it" guitar but it has lots of potential to be a great Gibson arch-top.

This comes with a hardshell case that's in good condition, but it was stored in foggy San Francisco and while the guitar smells fine the case has a strong musty odor. It's not the original case and isn't a particularly good fit, so we didn't bother taking photos of it, but it will protect the guitar during shipping.

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The hardshell case is not original. This guitar was stored in San Francisco and while the guitar smells OK the case has a strong whiff of mold. We'll use the case for shipping the guitar but it's not pictured as we question if it is useable and it's not an impressive fit anyway.