1930s Kalamazoo KG-21 (Gibson-made) Archtop Guitar

It's been a while since I've worked on a Kalamazoo KG-21. These were made quite a bit in the mid-'30s but petered-off in favor of the 16" models rather quickly as far as I can tell, production-quantity-wise. This one has a factory order number that looks like 836 but it's pretty smudged. I would guesstimate 1935 as the year.

Anyhow, this was in for "the usual stuff" and turned into a nice, chunky-sounding player when it was done. It's in relatively good shape compared to most of these and is crack-free and has just the right amount of pickwear near the fretboard.

These instruments share the L-00's body shape and have deeper sides than your average archtop.

Repairs included: neck reset, fret level/dress, side dots, bridge adjustments, tuner adjustments, cleaning, setup, brace repairs (to the rear).

Weight: 4 lbs 0 oz

Scale length: 24 3/4"

Nut width: 1 25/32"

Neck shape: medium-big C/softer V

Board radius: 10"

Body width: 14 3/4

Body depth: 4 1/2" + arching

Top wood: solid spruce

Back & sides wood: solid mahogany

Bracing type: fan/hybrid X

Bridge: rosewood adjustable

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

Truss rod: nope

Neck relief: hair of relief

Fret style: low/small

Condition notes: no cracks, all original except the endpin, and in good shape. It has the usual weather-check to the finish and pickwear on the upper bout, as you'f expect.