Gretsch® G6131TDS Jet Firebird® - Sold

The Gretsch Jet guitars are from the earliest Gretsch guitar heritage. The DuoJet was black, the FireBird was a deep red, and the SilverJet was, of course, capped in silver sparkle plastic drum material. Here is a little of the history of these classic instruments:

The DuoJet and SilverJet were first released in 1954, alongside the 6130 Roundup. Jets differ significantly from their competition in that their mahogany bodies are extensively routed, making them, in effect, semi-solids. It also makes them considerably lighter than similar guitars and adds a special resonance to the line. The early Jets had two DeArmond pickups and block markers. Some Duo-Jets were finished in Cadillac Green, but they're pretty rare. Even more rare - the Bigsby B-3 tremolo that was an extra-cost option. By the end of the '50s, Jets wore "neo-classic" semi-circular fret markers, had two FilterTron pickups, the optional Bigsby was far more common and a "zero fret" had been added. The big change came in 1961, when the Jets became double cutaways. The first double cutaways are roughly equivalent to the earlier Jets, but shortly after the change-over Gretsch began to change the Jets. Vibrato tailpieces became standard in '62, but they weren't Bigsbys. Instead, a funky, Burns-sourced whammy was used. Other changes to '62 included gold hardware replacing chrome and other sparkle finishes, including gold, champagne, burgundy and tangerine being offered. Gretsch made few Jets with the special sparkle finishes, and they're quite rare today. A standby switch was also added in '62. In '68 a Bigsby was once again offered, and the Jets were fitted with Gretsch's SuperTron pickups. This configuration lasted until the 1970, when Gretsch, spurred on by Duke Kramer and plant manager Bill Hagner, switched back to a single-cutaway body, hoping to rekindle past glories.

This G6131TDS features a semi-hollow mahogany body with a one-piece mahogany neck, rosewood fingerboard with aged hump block "Alamo" inlays, dual Gretsch DynaSonic™ single-coil pickups, Gretsch Synchro-Sonic™ bridge, and Bigsby B3C tailpiece. Finished in gloss black with Firebird Red top. And here are the specific features:

Chambered, single-cutaway mahogany body
One-piece mahogany neck
Rosewood fretboard with vintage hump-block Alamo inlays
2 DynaSonic single-coil pickups
3-way pickup switch
Neck, bridge, and master volume controls
Master tone control
Bigsby B3C vibrato tailpiece
Multiple aged body bindings
Aged fingerboard and headstock binding
Black headstock overlay
Inlaid pearloid Gretsch logo on headstock
Black plexi pickguard
G-Arrow control knobs
Knurled strap retainer knobs
Adjustable truss rod

List Price: $3 325.00

Sale Price: $2 325.00

Freight cost (contiguous USA): $35.00

Reference #: 1145

Out of stock.

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