Heritage Rose Custom order Set Humbucker signed by Johnny Smith Archtop Guitar

Product Description

Johnny Smith gave his fellow players some of the most playable guitars ever designed. First the Guild JS, then the Gibson JS and  his final endorsement deal, Johnny Smith created this rare and ornate Heritage Rose model expressly to his detailed  Produced from  1989 to 2001, the Johnny Smith Rose was hand built in Kalamazoo by former Gibson artisans in the old Gibson plant. An instrument of surpassing playability, the Rose features a warm X-braced top, sleek 25″ scale and generous 1 3/4″ fingerboard,

 This JS was played and loved-the action on this 1992 Johnny Smith Rose is smooth and effortless, with a medium D profile neck,  The hand graduated, X-braced soundboard offers a clean warm articulate jazz tone, which is enhanced by a set Humbucker to reduce feedback. Jazz players have always had a love hate relationship with a Johnny Smith- they loved that it was the best archtop that they ever owned, but they hated the fact that they could not perform with it  because of feedback. The custom ordered factory installed  set Humbucker increases the performance ability of this guitar tremendously, making it perfect for performing.  This JS has been played and shows normal wear for a 30 year old guitar, very minor marks, but nothing through the finish except for one area on the side of the bottom of the bass bout where the finish has been slightly marked  probably from jeans that the guitar was resting on during normally playing shown in one of the photos. Out of production now for several decades, the Johnny Smith Rose is a rare find. 

The Johnny Smith ROSE Specifications – This model is no longer listed in the Heritage catalog and may be difficult to find!.

Fingerboard : 25″ scale ebony fingerboard with 20 frets; mother of pearl abalone positions marker 1.74″ at th nut and  2.06″ at the 9th fret

Neck: maple neck 0.824″ at the 3rd fret, 0.903″ at the 9th fret

Body : Single venetian  cutaway solid carved spruce top and back; solid curly maple rim;  bound top and back wood pickguard; with f-holes.Rim Thickness – 3″      Body Width – 17″     Body Length – 20 1/4″ -figured tiger flame maple throughout, and  abalone inlays 

The idea to start Heritage Guitar began when the Gibson Guitar Corporation closed its Kalamazoo, Michigan factory in September of 1984 and moved all production to its other plant in Nashville, Tennessee (in operation since 1975). When this took place, some of the employees were asked to move to Nashville. However, since their families had spent many years in Kalamazoo, it made it difficult to uproot and move. Therefore 3 men, Jim Deurloo, Marvin Lamb, and JP Moats, decided to start a guitar manufacturing business. In 1985 when the company was incorporated, 2 other former Gibson Guitar Corporation employees, Bill Paige and Mike Korpak, joined as owners. Mike left the company in 1985.

The founders biggest resource is and was the group of craftsmen they could draw from to begin operations. The owners themselves each had in excess of 25 years of hands on experience in making guitars. To this day each of the owners is directly involved in the manufacturing of each instrument.

Heritage started operations in the oldest of five buildings formerly owned and operated by Gibson Guitar Corporation. That building was completed in 1917 and has been a center for guitar manufacturing ever since. Much of the machinery that Heritage uses today, was purchased from Gibson Guitar Corporation.

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