Jedson Guitars

2012-12-31T10:15:00.000-05:00

Welcome!

Apparently, little is known about Jedson guitars. This site is intended to be a place where information about the guitars can be combined for the benefit of anyone having an interest in them. They may not be collectable guitars; however they certainly are rare!

The main website is located at http://jedsonguitars.net
Please visit the site to learn about:

The history of the Jedson brand
The acoustic guitar models
Solid-body electric guitar models
Archtop and semi-hollow electric guitar models
Links to photo galleries
Limited information about Jedson lap-steel guitars and Jedson/Dallas banjos

It you have any information to share or if you are the owner of a Jedson guitar, we would love to hear from you! info@jedsonguitars

If you would like to post a comment to this blog site, please feel free to do so. The comments are moderated and all that are appropriate will be posted as quickly as possible. I will not publish posts for individuals looking to sell their equipment (or viagra etc.) The best place to sell is on eBay. My main website has a "blue pages" page which shows the average selling prices for Jedson guitars on eBay.

Your blog posts can be accessed via the "comments" link under the main post.

Enjoy!

Mark E

Updated site and blog design

2011-09-09T12:41:00.001-04:00

You probably noticed that I cleaned up the blog site and altered the placement of some of the widgets. I also updated the main site . I like a cleaner look with fewer graphics -- this should help in page load times.

Any comments or suggestions are welcome. I will make a few more updates, including adding more photos soon ...

Jedson acoustic guitars made by Terada

2011-09-08T22:14:00.005-04:00

My friend Ian Barker and I spent a lot of time investigating the makers of Jedson-branded acoustic guitars. It is blatently obvious that the guitars were made by Terada.

At least two, but probably more, Jedson models are identical to Terada models. Because of this,

I created a PBase gallery for the Terada acoustic guitar brand. I don't intend to let it grow to the point as the Jedson guitar sites.

Jedson 1930-1931 Catalog

2011-08-29T19:01:00.001-04:00

Front cover of 1930-1931 Jedson catalog. I will update my history page to include new information discovered.

Jedson Acoustics in the USA

2010-07-27T17:45:00.000-04:00

I am afraid to ask, but does anyone know of any Jedson acoustics that are available in the USA? Shipping from the UK is pretty expensive.

Acoustics: solid or laminated

2010-07-27T17:37:00.001-04:00

Calling all Jedson acoustic owners,

Can you please examine the back and sides of your guitars and try to determine whether yours has laminated wood or solid? I believe, based on examination of my own, that these acoustics are made of solid wood from top to back. I am 100% sure that the tops are solid spruce.

I think that if the grain pattern of the back wood inside matches the pattern of the grain on the back then it's a good indicator that the wood is solid. It's hard to tell from the photos because the big label is usually in the way.
Take a look at some of these FW913s. Seems like this model commonly has quarter-sawn rosewood which I don't think is likely for a laminate from the 70s

Value going up ?

2010-07-12T16:56:00.000-04:00

I just received a couple of Jedson catalogs on CD from a fellow on eBay. The Jedson name was in use as far back as 1930! I think this will help boost the "vintageness" of the Jedson brand.

I asked the provider of the catalog information if I can post some of the content on the blog and/or the jedsonguitars.net website. If I get an approval, I will post the interesting content.

I can tell you that one acoustic guitar model looks just like my F907 except that it has a tailpiece. I suspect that Jedson made the guitars in house back in the 30's but outsourced the manufacture around the time Dallas merged with Arbiter. Outsourced to Japanese guitar makers obviously.

As you might see from the recent posts under the "Post here if you have a Jedson Acoustic" topic, Ian and I have concluded that several of the 70's Jedson acoustics models were made by Yamaki in Japan.

Acoustics are more loved ?

2009-11-22T09:49:00.005-05:00

After watching the blog for a while and other activity going on about Jedsons, it seems pretty clear to me that the Jedson acoustic owners are the most passionate about their guitars.

Jedson Lap Steel sold on eBay

2009-05-08T22:21:00.004-04:00

A lap steel like this one sold on eBay recently for 370 GBP. There were 15 bids. Obviously these are in high demand. Probably the most desirable Jedson instrument with the possible exception of banjos.

Jedson Drums

2009-04-30T07:25:00.002-04:00

Did you know that Jedson (J.E. Dallas) was primarily a drum maker? Drums and Banjos were the first Jedson products and many collectors view these as much more collectable. Guitars seemed to be an afterthought,and that was right before the brand was discontinued and Dallas Arbiter fell apart. Of course, the lap steel is the most sought after Jedson instrument. Below is a Jedson snare drum that recently sold on eBay.

Jedson "Super-Strat"

2008-08-05T14:14:00.004-04:00

A couple of Jedson "Super-Strat" guitars have been brought forward. They have three single-coil pickups and a full set of control options. These guitars are clearly (at least to me) made by Teisco in Japan during the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Thin-line hollow archtop

2008-04-15T16:09:00.014-04:00

I found this thin-line hollow archtop model and had it shipped from the UK to the USA. It literally came out of the closet after 35 years! It's in mint++ condition, almost as new. See the photo gallery for detailed photograph.

I'll do a full writeup, but here's what I found so far.

* The entire body is laminated -- looks like Maple
* The neck is made of some sort of strange laminated hardwoodlot of them!
* Bound body and neck -- not high quality binding
* Very dark stained rosewood fingerboard (almost as dark as
ebony) having small and low frets.
* There is no headstock angle -- there is a straight run from
the tuning pegs to the tremolo
* The only indication that Jedson (Dallas Arbiter) had anything
to do with this guitar is the badge on the headstock. The
badge is a glued on piece of thin metal with the Jedson
logo painted on -- very cheap
* Full wooden floating bridge -- compensated saddle and base.
Since the saddle is like new, I will see how it plays. I suspect
there will intonation issues and will probably replace it with a
tunomatic roller bridge.
* Dual P-90 style single-coil pickups.
* The pots/knobs are very stable and smooth turning -- a little
more pressure is required to turn these than on my other
electrics -- seems like high-quality electronics.
* The neck is pretty straight -- better be with all that laminated
maple!

More to come!

UPDATE: Since my original post, three additional samples were discovered. One was listed on eBay ad two other owners came forward and discussed theirs.

Jedson Les Paul copy!

2007-11-01T22:52:00.001-04:00

Beautiful Jedson Les Paul copy located. Thanks to Simon Edwards in the UK for the photos!

Several flame maple LP copies have also been located. Here's the most beautiful example:

Click here to see the entire gallery

Jedson SJ-200 (Gibson) copy

2007-11-01T22:37:00.000-04:00

Beautiful Gibson Super Jumbo (SJ200) copy!
Images provided by owner, Henning, in the UK

Differences from the Gibson
--Slightly different bridge, although at least one model SJ-200 has this bridge
--Jedson has three-piece back

See the rest of the photos in the gallery

General Comments and Questions

2007-10-31T22:58:00.000-04:00

Here's a place for some small-talk about the guitars

Acoustic Models Located

2007-10-30T08:06:00.000-04:00

Table of Acoustic Models Located

New Tor-tis Pickguard Installed

2007-10-14T23:53:00.000-04:00

The second modification to my 1972 000 is complete: the replacement of the old black-plastic pickguard with a bright shiny new Tor-tis pickguard from Turtleworks (Sold by Maurey's Music)

Several photos of the pickguard and what I found under the old one can be found here

Bridge/Saddle Modification Complete

2007-10-09T20:41:00.000-04:00

The bridge/saddle modifications to my 000 are complete. The improvement in brightness, depth and sustain is significant! This is a recommended modification for anyone who has a metal adjustable saddle holder on their acoustic.

Visit the gallery and see the photo-story about this mod.

Gibson L5-CES Copy found!

2007-10-09T20:06:00.000-04:00

Our friend Peter Evans in the UK brought forward his fabulous and very rare Gibson L5-CES copy. Take a look at this beauty -- the only one we know about so far.

Jedson "L5" Gallery

Post here If you have a Jedson Acoustic

2007-10-03T22:48:00.000-04:00

Show your Jedson Photos

2007-10-02T22:50:00.000-04:00

If you have photographs of your Jedson to share, please post them here.
Better yet, please let me know and I will add them to the PBase gallery

Post here If you have a Jedson Electric

2007-10-02T22:49:00.002-04:00

Guitar Modifications

2007-10-01T08:00:00.000-04:00

This thread can be used to discuss modifications to the guitars. Assuming the guitars will never be considered collectable some modifications significantly improve the performance of the guitars.

Take a look at the bridge/saddle modification I completed recently: