super jumbo

[Steve Marcus]

Perchance, are you implying something, bloke?

[iiipopes]

Here's a super jumbo guitar player playing a super jumbo guitar:

[iiipopes]

Here is another:

[iiipopes]

And this super jumbo western guitar player, Ray Whitley, who had, if not the first, at least the first well-known SJ200:

ray whitley2.jpg

[Donn]

"Does this super jumbo make my butt look big?"

[iiipopes]

Oh, BTW - Pete Townsend actually has his own custom model SJ200 by Gibson.

Let's see: who else?
Gene Autry (better known for playing a 00 Martin, and also was seen with the SJ200 predecessor, the AJ)
Emmy Lou Harris
Cheryl Crow (even though she now has a custom Hummingbird)
John Lennon (yes, in addition to his EJ160)
Jimmy Page (when not playing one of his Les Pauls)
Lefty Frizzell
Hank Williams preferred to play Lefty's guitar, in spite of owning several fine Martins
Stephen Stills
Noel Gallagher (who has a custom ES335-style guitar by Epiphone)
Neil Young (again, in spite of having many fine Martins as well)

And the long list of players set forth on page 77 of the book, "Gibson's Fabulous Flat-top Guitars: An Illustrated History & Guide" by Eldon Whitford, David Vinopal, and Dan Erlewine (who has worked on most of them at one time or another).

And if you include the Montgomery Wards version made by Gibson, the Recording King, which my uncle had one and is one of the guitars I learned how to play on, many, many people had SJ200's.

And if you include L5 players, the archtop model on which the SJ200 flattop was developed, well, the list is endless, starting with Mother Maybell Carter and Roy Rogers.

An SJ200 was and is one of Gibson's most expensive guitars, another reason why most folks, including me, have a J45 instead. When I first got my own acoustic guitar as a teenager and could not afford a Gibson, I got a Conn acoustic which was a copy, having a SJ200 size and contour lower bout and a Martin 000 upper bout. Even though I finally was able to afford a new J45 a few years ago, I still have the Conn, now rebuilt twice as the frets wore out and the bolt bridge almost snapped off, as my onstage acoustic guitar. Even as a copy, it still approaches that big tone we associate with such famous recordings as "My Sweet Lord" and "Behind Blue Eyes."

Pam Tillis' red SJ200 looks as good as it sounds. I got to see it up close when she played a show at the same theatre I was playing in Branson in 2007.

I'm sure there are many others.

[Brown Mule]

If you're the size of Little Jimmy Dickens , all Guitars look Jumbo.

[iiipopes]

If you're the size of Little Jimmy Dickens , all Guitars look Jumbo.

Indeed. Especially a SJ200:

800px-Little_Jimmy_Dickens.jpg

[Fratto]

I mostly use my horn as a prop. Not a lot of playing happening, but damn I look good with it.

[Walter Webb]

The Gibson SJ100, despite it's jumbo size, is derisively called "The Whispering Giant," because of it's wimpy tone and utter lack of lower harmonics. It's analogous to a 90 pound Sousaphone player with tiny lung capacity tooting on the biggest horn.

[ppalan]

Maybe they just had big hands.?!

[iiipopes]

Guitar designers are stupid.
Guitar necks need to be curved to fit the players' hands.

At least two companies do helix the neck:
http://littleguitarworks.com/torzal-natural-twist/" target="_blank
http://www.lacemusic.com/Lace_Shop/prod ... lt-On_Bass" target="_blank
And my custom electric bass and guitar have the fanned frets to ease the elbow and wrist:
http://www.talkbass.com/threads/a-diffe ... ss.755914/" target="_blank
I'm saving my $$$ to have Jerome Little make a bass for me that does both, so it is "curved" both ways to fit my hands.
http://littleguitarworks.com/" target="_blank (scroll about 1/4 to 1/3 the way down the home page)