1941 Gibson-made Kalamazoo KG-21 Archtop Guitar

Above: new video from 2023

Above: old video from 2019

Update October 2023: my friend Charlie is downsizing and so he's brought this back in for resale. It's as it left -- playing spot-on and ready to go -- but I've updated the description where necessary...

I've worked on a lot of KG-21s like this guy, but this one was the first one to arrive in "quite beat" condition. I do like these guitars a lot, though -- they're L-00 in size and shape so they're extremely comfortable in the lap. Their tone is actually just as warm and chunky as their larger 16" Kalamazoo archtop brethren, too, thanks to a deeper side depth than the average Gibson-made archtop.

My favorite versions of these are the ones from about this date, too, because the late-'30s and early-'40s models sport the more "medium-round-C" neck profiles found on '40s and '50s Gibsons than the big, harder-V shapes found on most Kalamazoo products. Bracing on these pressed-top Kalamazoo models is interesting because they're heavily x-braced with a ladder brace through the middle of the main X. Despite looking like it would sound like garbage, this bracing pattern gives these guitars that reliable lower-mids-emphasis, choppy grunt that many carved-top archtops dream of.

Work included: a fret level/dress, sorting-out absurdly-split and shifted (we're talking more than 1" overlaps and out-of-position, worn-edges cracks) side and back cracks (that had been "previously repaired"), bracing repairs (re-repairs), one crack repair to the top near the bass f-hole, cleaning, and a good setup. Despite allowing the major crack repairs to be "good enough," the guitar turned-out an awesome player, so I can't complain too much!

Setup: action is spot-on at 3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE at the 12th fret, strung with 52w, 40w, 30w, 22w, 16, 12 gauges. The neck is straight and the frets still have decent height left to them, though they are the original, slim, low old Gibson frets.

Scale length: 24 13/16"

Nut width: 1 11/16"

String spacing at nut: 1 1/2"

String spacing at bridge: 2 1/16"

Body length: 19 1/4"

Lower bout width: 14 3/4"

Waist width: 8 1/4"

Upper bout width: 10 1/8"

Side depth at endpin: 4 3/8"

Top wood: solid spruce

Back/sides wood: solid mahogany

Neck wood: mahogany

Bracing type: x-braced plus ladder-brace in middle ("star" braced?)

Fretboard: rosewood, pearl dots

Bridge: rosewood, adjustable, Gibson stairstep style

Neck feel: medium-bigger soft V/C shape, 10" board radius

Weight: 3 lbs 15 oz

Condition notes: lots of bad, ugly, not-quite-matched-up cracks on the sides (plus at the endblock) and on the back. From the front she looks good, though! Everything on the guitar is original save for a new endpin/strap button plus heel strap button. The tuner buttons and one tuner shaft are replacements, as well, and I added side dots. The finish shows plenty of wear and tear but still looks nice and a lovingly-used way. There's a lot of pickwear near the fretboard extension on the top. Several of the back braces are unglued at their edges but they're all glued down to the back and non-rattling and the back is stable. This is a problem on every single KG-21 that I've had in and on some it's worse than others. It has to do with the press-arched back trying to "settle" back to its flatter original shape. Gibson rectified this on the larger Kalamazoo archtop models by having a shallower press on the back but even those come apart, too, haha.

It comes with: a gigbag.