Brand

Used Gibson guitars

Orville Gibson started selling mandolins from a one-room workshop in Kalamazoo, Michigan, in 1894, and the Gibson company followed in 1902. It made its name on archtops, then on early electrics like the ES-150 that Charlie Christian made famous. Chicago Musical Instruments bought Gibson in 1944, and under Ted McCarty, president from 1950, came the Les Paul, the humbucker, the ES-335, the SG and the Firebird, plus Epiphone in 1957. In 1969 CMI was taken over by the conglomerate ECL, which became Norlin, and collectors call the years until 1986 the Norlin era, with its volutes, multi-piece bodies and maple necks. Production moved to Nashville from 1974, the Kalamazoo plant closed in 1984 and became home to Heritage Guitars, and an investor group bought Gibson in 1986. Its Custom Shop has built Historic reissues since. In a listing, read the serial together with the features, since Gibson reused numbers for years, and check the back of the headstock for breaks.

10 guitars we cover.