1934 Gibson L-50 w/ K&K Pure Pickup

Introduced in 1932, the Gibson L-50 is a straight-forward, no-frills archtop guitar that embodies the sound and vibe of Depression-Era instruments. In the early years, its specs changed quite a bit, mainly so the guitar would continue to fit an affordable price point. Ultimately, it became more similar to traditional archtops, but for a few years, the L-50 filled an intriguing void in the Gibson line—an archtop with some flattop elements: a Dust-Bowl blues box through and through.  The 1934-35 L-50 spec is particularly interesting because it shares the same body  shape as the iconic '30s L-00, but of course it has an arched Spruce top. Its back and sides are also Maple like an archtop, but the back is flat and braced like a flattop. All of this makes for an archtop that sounds quite different from a traditional archtop. But in 1936, Gibson decided it should have a bigger 16" body, and the L-50 was never the same! 1934-35 L-50s are rare, and they're not quite like other Gibson archtops.