Over the past 20 years I must have owned about 10 Gretsches, a few newer Terada made but mainly vintage guitars. I loved their sound and looks but somehow never got along with them in my then current band, either because of sound/character or size and ergonomics. Also I preferred the most familiar models like the 6120, Tennessean, Anniversary etc.
What I like about this in 1963 beginner/cheapest Gretsch archtop is its low weight, no frills approach. It's a thinline depth archtop similar in depth to an ES330 which works well for ergonomics. It only weighs 2,5kg. I even like the low-power Hilotron pickup and the wooden bridge, they sound nice together plugged in.
Many of these guitars are compromised by low or failing neck sets and/or sinking tops and binding rot but this guitar is great in that respect. It's a great sounding acoustic guitar, binding isn't pristine but apart from a few spots in good condition.
Yesterday I played the Clipper at a smaller gig and it did great. It sounds and responds completely different than my mainly used Jazzmasters and wouldn't work well in a loud band. But for smaller semi-acoustic gigs its distinct character really comes through. I might eventually go for an aluminium bridge to make it sound a bit brighter but will leave the original wooden bridge in place for a while.
