Up for sale, a 1965 Gibson J-200 Jumbo in excellent condition, with a 100% original Cherry Sunburst gloss finish, complete with a vintage Gibson hardshell case. Coined "King of the Flattops," this J-200 is as tonally powerful as it is visually imposing, delivering a broad, warm sound with tons of projection and the definition afforded maple as a tonewood. The guitar has a very open, nuanced sound with considerably more warmth and body than a modern J-200 simply by virtue of its age. The bass register is defined and punchy, with a sweet bloom and smooth growl as notes sustain. Trebles are equally as punchy, and notes are full and clear with the delightful rubbery snap that maple provides. An extremely satisfying strummer, this J-200 does exactly what it was designed to do. Weighing 5lbs 11oz and professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar, this J-200 is strung with fresh 12-54 strings and dialed in for easy-playing action.

The three-piece maple neck with walnut stringers boasts deep, dimensional flame figuring extending along the entire profile length. The neck has a slender, easy-playing C profile carve with just enough roundness in the shoulders at the nut, filling out with more heft in the higher registers, measuring .815" deep at the 1st fret and .955" at the 9th. The dark, straight-grained Brazilian rosewood fretboard has pearl crown inlays, and the original medium jumbo frets show only moderate uniform wear on the crowns of frets 1-3, with much fainter wear extending to fret 5. Clearly the previous owner didn’t venture beyond the “cowboy chord” range. The scale length is 25 1/2", and this is one of the very last "wide nut" J-200s of the '60s, with a nut that measures 1.670" in width, just fractionally shy of 1 11/16". The headstock retains the original Custom truss rod cover with clean Gibson text and crown inlay on the face, and the original Kluson waffle back tuners are intact with metal tulip buttons, showing uniform patina on the gold plating.

The neck meets the body at an ideal angle, and the moustache Brazilian rosewood bridge with pearl inlay has been fitted with a modern gold ABR-1 bridge with vintage-correct nylon saddles. A second bridge with a traditional bone saddle is also included, slotting cleanly into the ABR-1 slot. The red tortoise pickguard is original and practically perfect with the silkscreen graphics fully intact. And save for a center seam repair on top, the guitar is crack-free. The original orange Gibson Kalamazoo label is visible through the soundhole with inked serial number, dating to '65.

Cosmetically, this J-200 is extremely well-kept, and the Cherry Sunburst nitro lacquer gloss is 100% original with no touch-up or overspray, highlighting broad curly flame on the sides, and very faint figuring in the maple on the two-piece back. There is faint vertical lacquer checking on top, and virtually no checking on the back and sides. Wear is limited to a few pick scuffs across the soundhole, one finish scratch on the treble-side lower bout on top, some faint finish scratches in the clear coat of the gloss on the back, and a few additional minor marks consistent with light, careful use.

A vintage black tolex Gibson hardshell case is included with purple plush interior and silver Gibson silkscreened logo on the exterior.