1934 Gibson-made Kalamazoo KG-11 Flattop Guitar

It's time to start weeding the KG-11 patch! This one has a factory order number that could point to '33 or '34, but it's probably a '34. It has the nice features of the early, small-burst KG-11s -- a flat headstock top, a slightly-slimmer and slightly-rounder neck profile, and bracing that's just a hair lighter than later KG-11s. That makes these a little less punchy but a little warmer on the low-end.

KG-11s are my favorite of the Kalamazoo flattops and while they're not as loud and all-out as the longer-bodied KG-14s (L-00 shape), they have a bit more sweetness to their voice and feel a little more relaxed to play as the body shape pulls the neck closer to your hands.

This one is in excellent shape and has no cracks. It used to have a '60s-style Harmony pickguard installed (with a few screws), but I've removed that and filled the old screw-holes. These make great fingerpicking guitars and work pretty-well for a light/medium-strength flatpicker for old-time or traditional backup needs, too.

Work included: a neck reset, fret level/dress, new compensated bone saddle, new StewMac Golden Age tuners at the headstock, new ebony bridgepins and endpin, minor brace and seam reglues to the back, side dots install, cleaning, and a setup. Action is bang-on at 3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE at the 12th fret. The neck is straight and it's strung with 50w-11 gauges. I wouldn't go any heavier than that for standard tuning on these guitars as they are pretty lightly-built. The saddle is plenty-tall and has lots of adjustment room.

Scale length: 24 7/8"

Nut width: 1 3/4"

String spacing at nut: 1 1/2"

String spacing at bridge: 2 3/8"

Body length: 17 3/4"

Lower bout width: 14 3/4"

Waist width: 9"

Upper bout width: 10"

Side depth at endpin: 4 1/16"

Top wood: solid spruce

Back/sides wood: solid mahogany

Neck wood: mahogany

Bracing type: ladder

Fretboard: rosewood, ebony nut

Bridge: rosewood, bone saddle

Neck feel: medium C/soft V, ~10" board radius

Condition notes: there's plenty of scratching and weather-check to the finish all-over. The back of the neck has been played-enough that it's almost down to bare wood for the first half of it, with wear patterns all over the back. It looks/feels great, though. The saddle, pins, and tuners are new, but the instrument is otherwise original. The frets are the original, low, thin Gibson type. For players looking for a modern feel, I can refret as desired at additional cost.

The wedge-shaped old Gibson bridges mean that if you want 1/8" height over the bridge top on the bass side of the saddle, the treble side needs to be quite a bit proud of the deck.