Serial Number: 84471

Year shipped: 1929

FON:

Headstock: Horizontal ‘The Gibson’ logo, truss rod cover engraved ‘William Hengold.’

Neck/fingerboard: 20 fret fingerboard with pointed end and banjo style ‘hearts and flowers’ inlaid in pearl. ‘Billy’ engraved on pearl block at end of fingerboard

Body: Maple back and sides

Hardware: Gold-plated metal parts including Waverly three-on-a-strip tuners with engraved baseplate and pearl buttons, mounted so that the cog is positioned below the worm gear. Short bound pickguard.

Notes: Billy may well have been a banjo player, because when he custom ordered this L-5, he had the classic ‘hearts and flowers’ inlay installed in the fingerboard. In addition, he had the position marker inlaid at the tenth (rather than ninth) fret, which is standard practise on banjos and mandolins. The tailpiece has been replaced

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Images courtesy of Gryphon Music