The Saga of the Gretsch Electromatric Pro-Jet
by Sue-On

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December 2010, Bill and I made a deal to just order a pile of books and CDs from Amazon as our joint Christmas present to each other. The boxes arrived and sat under the most perfectly shaped and newly decorated Christmas tree. The boxes looked boring and held no real surprises, so what to do?

As I have for many, many years since our marriage, I’ve always turned to Ted Good Music for inspiration: 12-string guitar (good for another story), a Telecaster, a Stratocaster, various effects pedals, guitar straps, etc.

Bill had mentioned one evening a while back that he'd like to get a pick-up for his Gibson acoustic guitars one of the days. With that in mind, I slipped away one afternoon to the music store. The guys always smile when I go in - knowing this was my annual Christmas run. Scott showed me a very nice stand-alone pick-up: + $300.00. He went away to look for another model, slightly cheaper. 

While waiting, I saw this "very pretty”"black shiny guitar, saw a "SALE PRICE" tag and couldn't resist having a look. It was a Gretsch. Now, I don’t know much about guitars even though I've been surrounded by them for the last 45 years, but I do know the name stood for quality. I mean, I made Bill buy 3 Americana collection acoustic Gretsch guitars (for me) even though they had cowboys painted on them!

After being assured as to the guitar's playability, and thinking that it was only $300.00 more than the pick-up, I knew this would be the best stocking stuffer for Bill!  Scott threw in a Gretsch baseball cap autographed by Chet Atkins -- another perfect "stocking stuffer". I added the guitar case as well. These were to stay at the store until I could sneak them into the house.

With our kids installed in the basement bedroom, it was the perfect place to hide the surprise. Christmas morning, after Santa filled the stockings, we woke up to see what he'd left behind. Bill was quite intrigued by the cap and wondered where I found it! Then one of the kids brought up the real surprise. Bill was quite speechless! It was well worth the extra money ;-) It seems I made a good choice and remain the perfect wife!

The single-cutaway Pro Jet™ with Bigsby® features a chambered mahogany body and set mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, dual Gretsch® mini-humbucking pickups, anchored Adjusto-Matic™ bridge, die-cast tuners and Bigsby® B50 vibrato tailpiece. 

Body
Body Shape: Jet™ 
Body Back: Mahogany Body 
Body Top: Arched Laminated Maple 
Body Finish: Array 
Body Depth: 1.875" (47.6 mm) 
Body Width Lower Bout: 13.25" (33.65 cm) 
Body Binding: Bound Top 

Neck 
Number of Frets: 22 
Position Inlays: Neo Classic™ "Thumbnail" 
Fretboard: Rosewood 
Neck Material: Mahogany 
Nut Width: 1.6875" (43 mm) 
Scale Length: 24.6" (62.5 cm) 

Electronics
Pickup Configuration: H/H 
Bridge Pickup: Gretsch® Mini Humbucking Bridge Pickup 
Neck Pickup: Gretsch® Mini Humbucking Neck Pickup 
Pickup Switching: 3-Position Toggle: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Neck Pickups, Position 3. Neck Pickup 
Controls: Master Volume, Master Tone 

Hardware
Hardware Finish: Chrome-Plated 
Bridge: Anchored Adjusto-Matic™ Bridge 
Bridge Cover: Bigsby® Licensed B50 Vibrato Tailpiece 
Tuning Machines: Vintage Style Tuning Machines 
String Nut: Synthetic Bone 
Tremolo Arm Handle: Bigsby® Flat Handle 

Miscellaneous 
Unique Features: Neo Classic "Thumbnail" Inlay Position Markers, Matching Painted Headstock, Pearloid Gretsch and Electromatic Headstock Inlays, White Pearloid Pickguard with Gretsch Logo, Bound Top, G-Arrow Knobs, Knurled Strap Retainer Knobs, Adjustable Truss Rod 

Accessories
Pickguard: White Pearloid Plexi 
Hard Shell Case

Excerpt from our 50 Years of Gig Notes series:
www.hillmanweb.com/book/gigs . . . Across the street another treat awaited us. Guitar and technology legend Les Paul played Broadway's Iridium Club every Monday night. This was at the top of our list for NY visits, but a guy seated at our table was much better prepared for the evening. He brought the pick guard from his Gibson Les Paul guitar for Les to autograph. We did, however, briefly meet the 91-year-old "Father of the Electric Guitar" off-stage and got some good photos. The photo we treasure most captures Les good-naturedly giving me the finger when I told him I played a Fender Telecaster Guitar. Gibsons rule the Iridium stage. Les in action at the Iridium on YouTube