1936 Gibson-made KG-14-style Carson Robison Flattop Guitar

Update 2022: This guy came back in for resale after some excellent use and so I've updated this blog post, video, and photos...

This model was sold by Montgomery Ward as the "Recording King Carson Robison 1281," but in actuality it's a rebadged, Gibson-made, Kalamazoo KG-14. A Gibson factory order number stamped at the neck block pegs it at '36 and after work it's a loud, sweeter-than-average (for a KG-14), woody-sounding sort-of guitar and absolutely ideal for fingerpicking.

This one came in with better-than-average health conditions, so it didn't need a whole lot to get it going -- which was nice, for a change!

These KG-14-style guitars make excellent country-blues fingerpickers as they have a forward, snappy, woody, bright, projecting tone that suits the pads of fingers or mellow fingerpicks. With a flatpick they're definitely snappy and can be heard in a mix -- meaning for playing against a chording guitar they'll stand out, but have a midsy, spanky voice for strummed chords. Depending on your playing habits and pick choice, however, your mileage will certainly vary!

Repairs included: (in 2017) I reglued a couple of braces (one top brace had split, but glued-up fine), added a "popsicle" brace under the fretboard extension to shore-up hairline cracks right next to it, and cleated a couple of hairline cracks directly above the soundhole that terminate at the fretboard. After that I gave it a fret level/dress, cleaned it up, fit new ebony pins all-around, and modded the bridge to a drop-in style saddle slot and refit the original bone saddle for better compensation. Later-on I installed a K&K pickup (with endpin jack) for its owner and the owner (at some point) replaced the original tuners with StewMac repro-style ones that work a lot nicer. It developed a long dryness crack at some point on the back and that was filled and cleated.

Top wood: solid spruce

Back & sides wood: solid mahogany

Bracing type: ladder

Bridge: rosewood

Fretboard: rosewood

Neck wood: mahogany

Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
String gauges: 52w, 40w, 30w, 22w, 16, 12 custom light

Neck shape: medium-bigger V

Board radius: ~10"

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: lower/smaller

Scale length: 24 3/4"

Nut width: 1 3/4"

Body width: 14 5/8"

Body depth: 4 3/8"

Weight: 3 lbs 7 oz

Condition notes: the neck is straight and action is set at 3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE at the 12th fret. It plays slick and easy. Aside from the hairline cracks mentioned near the fretboard extension, the only other crack I found on the guitar's front is a 1" one that's over kerfing directly to the right of the pickguard at its lowest point. It's good to go. There is a longer repaired hairline crack on the back-lower-bout, too. The finish shows average pickwear near the soundhole and plenty of weather-checking here and there throughout the body and neck (typical). Overall it looks nice and clean. The bridge's bass side was leveled to the same height as the treble side (flat deck, more like a '50s Gibson) and I touched-up the bridge finish so that it'd look the same as when it was unaltered. The saddle slot was modified to a drop-in style for more stability.

It comes with: a very nice TKL hard case and a K&K pickup already installed -- it's gig-ready!