Zero Fret on a Vintage Gibson Guitar

[Aloha_Mark]

I've never seen one on a old Gibson with PAFs. The disadvantage is that it does not allow you to adjust the action significantly away from what exists on the guitar. Should a collector avoid guitars that have been modified as such?

http://elderly.com/vintage/items/40U-5644.htm

 

[JimR56]

Good question, which I'd say is subjective. The average collector would probably frown on an odd feature like this, but there are also people like me who can appreciate guitars with unique features. In this case, I don't have a strong opinion either way about the zero fret.

What really catches my eye and makes me curious about this guitar is the nut width. 1 23/32?! As I look at the photos, it doesn't appear that it's that wide, but Elderly is a long-established organization that I have respect for, so I tend to believe that they have it correct (I almost wonder why they didn't emphasize it more in the listing as being an unusual and desirable feature). The usual nut width on a Byrdland (1 5/8, or 1 20/32) is of course narrower than the standard Gibson nut width (1 11/16, or 1 22/32). For this one to be not only not narrower, but wider than the standard Gibson width of 1 11/16 is highly significant, I'd say. Many players have taken a pass on the Byrdland model over the years because of the narrow neck size. This example would thus be more appealing to a lot of players, and I would have to think that it's pretty rare to find a Byrdland with a wider-than-standard nut width. It kind of puts this guitar into a similar category as the very rare electric George Gobel L5CT's (although the Byrdland has that shorter scale).

 

[abalonevintage]

That's not a zero nut...it is a 70's Ibanez nut.

For a shop that has been around "forever and a day," they should know this.

 

[Aloha_Mark]

Thanks, Eric. Does this mean that the guitar is more suited to jazz than rock?

 

[abalonevintage]

Thanks, Eric. Does this mean that the guitar is more suited to jazz than rock?

No.

Ibanez used that nut on all kinds of guitars.