1930s Dobro Model 25 Resonator Guitar

The body and neck for this roundneck Dobro Model 25 were made by Regal in Chicago, though of course the cone and coverplate are Dobro equipment. This body shape is a "squashed 00" shape like a Kalamazoo KG-11 or Regal's own Junior Jumbo models. The body is a little shorter overall and it has a 14-fret neck joint compared to the 12-fret of the average Dobro.

This particular guitar led a hard life and when it arrived here it had a lot of "fixes" and muck-ups at the cone. I removed all that garbage, readjusted the cone's shape, put in a traditional saddle (but compensated), and did the usual glorified setup work to make it a good player.

Its sound is a bit warmer and fuller than your average roundneck Dobro from the time and I think that has mostly to do with the fact that the body is un-braced, thicker ply. A little less stiffness goes a long way to opening-up the bottom-end. It's still a spider-bridge resonator, though -- so don't expect a D-28 to pop out of this little guy!

At some point in the past the headstock was broken and reglued and it was a good, solid job (if not the prettiest) and it's holding pat. I replaced the replacement tuners that were on it with some older, '60s 3-on-a-plate types that look a little more correct.

Repairs included: a fret level/dress, side dots install, cone seating/adjustment, replacement (compensated) saddle, replacement (vintage) tuners, cleaning, and setup.

Top wood: ply birch

Back & sides wood: ply birch

Bracing type: none

Bridge: spider-bridge, Dobro cone

Fretboard: ebonized maple

Neck wood: poplar(?)

Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
String gauges: 54w-12 lights

Neck shape: medium-big softer V

Board radius: ~10"

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: medium-lower

Scale length: 24 7/8"

Nut width: 1 13/16"

Body width: 14 1/8"

Body depth: 3 5/8"

Weight: 4 lbs 13 oz

Condition notes: it has an old headstock repair that's ugly but solid. The saddle at the cone is on the lower side but, with the strings running "under" the tailpiece's bottom edge (as seen here), back-angle on the saddle is good. This tailpiece style has a flaw in the design that keeps it from adding good back-angle when strung "stock." There is a small piece of replacement binding on the back-lower-bout. The tuners are replacements. The saddle is a replacement. OH, and most of the hardware mounting screws are (vintage) replacements. Someone had fit a lot of non-slotted screws on here so I fit standard slotted screws from my parts-bins throughout. Also... the finish shows tons of wear and small scratches and finish checking throughout.

It comes with: an old chip case (1930s) in decent shape.