Gibson SJ-200 Custom Vine Brazilian Rosewood, Ren Ferguson! J-200

This guitar is one of my personal favorites I've ever owned. I'm a huge Ren Ferguson fan, and this shows some of his finest work. It is a one-of-a-kind custom SJ-200 hand-built by Ferguson himself. The guitar features a custom vine inlay, as well as Brazilian rosewood back and sides. It doesn't get much cooler than that.

The guitar was built in 1994 as part of Gibson's 100th anniversary celebration. Some people would refer to these guitars as “Master Museum” guitars. Though, technically that series was begun in 1998. The quality of this guitar is consistent with the Master Museum collection.

I once asked Ren why his guitars sound so much better than the standard Gibson guitars. I was thinking he would teach me about some of the building techniques he has learned over the years. His response, however, was simply “I pick wood that already knows how to sing.” I don't know how he does it, but his guitars truly are the best sounding guitars I've ever played.

I don't have to teach you about how rare Brazilian rosewood guitars are now days. Just imagine the collectability and value this guitar will hold a few years down the road. Like the “holy grail” Gibson guitars of past decades, this guitar, along with its sisters, will be the sought-after guitars of the future. Collectors will seek long and hard to find these Gibsons, and they won't find many. They'll find even fewer in Brazilian rosewood.

The tone of this guitar is simply amazing. It has a huge tonal body and response. The bass is as deep as a well. Because of the tone, this would be a special guitar even if it were ugly. Fortunately, though, it is not 🙂

Another unique aspect of this guitar is the individual saddles. These saddles are consistent with the original saddles built for the first ever SJ-200s (1938-1942). Ren added them to this guitar to commemorate some of the history behind the SJ-200.

The condition of this guitar is excellent. It has been minimally played during its lifetime, but shows very little signs of wear. It has no dings, dents, or scratches in the body. The body shows minor finish checking, consistent with its age. One corner of the headstock has been lightly touched against a surface and some finish was removed. There is no damage in the wood. The corner can be seen in the photo of the back of the headstock.

Included with the guitar is the original hardshell case.