Rod Brakes Classic Gear

Gibson's supersize acoustic has always been the "king of flat-tops"

Gibson SJ-200

Gibson's SJ-200 acoustic guitar first appeared in the 1930s. Around this time, Gibson and Epiphone were going head to head in a size war each trying to outdo the other under the premise bigger is better' while equating instrument dimensions with power, projection and, ultimately, status. This spirit of competition led to several developments, notably Gibson's 18-inch-wide Super 400 and Epiphone's 181/2-inch-wide Emperor. These supersize archtops were deemed flagship models, and both sat at the top of their respective price lists with a $400 tag. Along with the Super 400, Gibson unveiled its Jumbo flat-top (named after the colossal elephant) in 1934 in order to compete directly with Martin's large-body Dreadnought design (named after the gigantic battleship). Also in '34, Gibson's seminal L-5 archtop (which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year) was "Advanced" from 16 to 17 inches in width.