1931 Gibson L-1 with the original plush green case... Gorgeous

I hear a lot of folks talk about how it isn't like "the good ole days" anymore in the vintage guitar world.  They are referring to when you could run across great guitars that were undiscovered.  I was too busy soiling myself and eating creamed broccoli and carrots during the good ol' days but I have a feeling that they were somewhat similar to now.  Great guitars are everywhere and here is one of them.

The owner lives in California and was kind enough to send me some pictures.  She was wondering what it was, when it was made and about what it was worth.  This is a 1931 Gibson L-1 in the original case.  It features 12 frets to the X braced body made of Honduran Mahogany back and sides with an Adirondack Spruce top

The bridge and banjo tuners on this one kind of threw me off.  I hadn't seen either of these on a small body L-1.  After a quick research session I saw that banjo tuners were fairly common but this is the only example I could find with the large body L-1 style bridge.  That's Gibson for you I guess.  

I'd love to have one of these L-1s someday.  They are incredibly light builds resulting in great fingerpicking tone.  It doesn't take much to drive a lightly braced top so there is no need for picks.  Plus, just look at thing!  Gorgeous.

TVG