Gibson's Most Successful 17-Inch Archtop
Essentially a Plain Version of the L-5

1957 Gibson L-7CN.

This fifty-nine year old L-7CN weighs just 5.80 lbs., and is one of just twenty-one natural example produced in 1957 (a total of just 413 L-7CN's were produced between 1949 and 1958). Seventeen inch wide body with hand-carved close-grained spruce top, two-piece lightly flamed maple back and sides. The two 'f' holes are edged in white. Two-piece 'lightly flamed' maple neck with mahogany center-strip with a nut width of 1 11/16 inches, a scale length of 25 1/2 inches and a wonderful thick profile. Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 20 original thin frets and inlaid pearl double-parallelogram position markers. The top and back of the body are triple-bound, the fretboard and headstock are single-bound. Headstock with inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo and pearl crown inlay. Bell-shaped single-layer black plastic truss-rod cover secured by two screws. Black laminate widow's peak on the back of the headstock. Individual 'single-line' Kluson Deluxe tuners with single-ring Keystone plastic buttons (stamped on the underside "D-169400 / Patent No." Original five-layer black / white / black / white / black pickguard. Frequensated rosewood bridge on rosewood base and standard trapeze tailpiece with three raised parallelograms on cross-bar. Original oval orange label inside the bass f-hole with the Style "L7-C" written in black ink and the serial number "A-25971" stamped in black. Inside the treble f-hole the FON (Factory Order Number) "U 6783 9" is stamped in black. This fine guitar is in near mint (9.25) condition with just the bare minimum of very feint buckle scarring on the back (nothing through the finish) and a tiny circular indentation on the bass horn. The original frets show some light playing wear on the first four frets only. A truly beautiful and exceptional example with a wonderfully rich and loud tone, by far the best we have ever seen. Housed in the original Gibson 'Faultless' brown 'four-latch' hardshell case with light brown 'padded flannel' lining (9.25).

Originally introduced in 1948 as a 'plain' version of the L-5. "Extremely popular for orchestra use, the L-7C with its modern cutaway design has outstanding appearance and an unusually rich tone. Gibson quality, exclusive features, and expert workmanship insure perfection in every detail of construction. Attractive alternate white-black-white ivoroid binding - hand graduated carved top of selected spruce, arched curly maple back with matching curly maple rims. Three piece curly maple neck, wit adjustable Truss Rod construction - bound rosewood fingerboard with attractive parallel pearl inlay design. Nickel-plated metal parts, Gibson designed tailpiece, laminated pickguard with attractive border, rosewood adjustable bridge, and enclosed individual machine heads with deluxe buttons." (1957-8 Gibson catalog).

"With the L-7 a player could buy a guitar that was almost as good as an L-5 but at no more than half the price. The earliest L-7s have fingerboard inlay appropriated from the Nick Lucas flat top, which, ironically, was the top model of the flat top line" (George Gruhn and Walter Carter, Acoustic Guitars and Other Fretted Instruments: A Photographic History, p. 172).