Are Kalamazoo guitars worth it?
There were two main body styles of Kalamazoo guitars in the 60’s. Despite the fact that these guitars were made and marketed to be low-cost, beginner guitars, they are definitely still a viable option for collectors and fans today.
What year did Gibson stop making guitars in Kalamazoo?
1984
The company closed its Kalamazoo factory in 1984 and moved its headquarters to Nashville. That factory was later adopted by former Gibson employees who started Heritage Guitar Inc. to make handmade guitars.
How do you date a Kalamazoo guitar?
The headstock shape is the best dating feature of the guitar, since Kalamazoo serialization does not follow Gibson’s. The top of your headstock tapers up to a point, placing the date of manufacture between 1938 and 1940.
Who made Kalamazoo guitars?
Gibson
Kalamazoo is the name for two different lines of instruments produced by Gibson.
What guitars were made in Kalamazoo?
The Kalamazoo factory has 100 years of instrument-making, and one big wartime secret. Although the classic Gibson guitar, used by such greats as Prince, Keith Richards, Johnny Cash, and B.B. King, might bring to mind its current Nashville home, the guitar’s roots are actually in the Michigan city of Kalamazoo.
Where are Waterloo guitars made?
Austin, Texas
About Waterloo Guitars | Made in Austin, Texas.
Is Gibson still in Kalamazoo?
Ultimately, in 1985 the Gibson factory left Kalamazoo and headed for Nashville. However, a few Gibson employees stayed behind and created Heritage Guitar on the site of the old Gibson factory, so Kalamazoo’s rich history of instrument-making lives on.
What is Kalamazoo famous for?
It’s a major international pharmaceutical and life sciences center; it’s the original home of the Upjohn Co., Stryker Corp, Gibson Guitars, Checker Motors and Bell’s Brewery, among many others; the Kalamazoo Gazette is the second oldest newspaper in Michigan; and a century ago, Kalamazoo was so famous for one crop, it …
Are Gibson guitars still made in Kalamazoo Michigan?
When Gibson left Kalamazoo, a number of former employees picked up right where they left off in the Parsons Street factory with Heritage Guitar Inc. After more than three decades, Heritage is still producing some of the highest-quality guitars in the world right here in Kalamazoo.
Are Waterloo guitars good?
Some jumbo guitars have an overwhelming bass response, but the Waterloo is perfectly balanced, with just enough low end. It’s also a terrific instrument for fingerpicking: When I play gently, the sound is warm and dulcet, but when I dig in, the guitar responds with a nice growl and bite.
What kind of guitar is the Kalamazoo KG-14?
Hart’s solution was the affordable Kalamazoo range, the source of the beautiful KG-14 flat-top acoustic you see on these pages. Of course, we romanticise stripped-down blues machines, such as the KG-14, as a porthole into sinister deals down at the crossroads and raucous nights in a back-road Delta juke-joint.
What kind of wood is a Gibson KG 14 made of?
The back and sides are mahogany. The KG-14 was closest in size to the early 30s L-0 model. At 14.75 inches across its widest point, it came with a natural finish mahogany top, mahogany back and sides with a bound top and back, unlike the single-bound KG-14.
What kind of tuner does Gibson Kalamazoo have?
The black buttoned open tuners are a Kalamazoo feature. Gibson branded flat-tops, such as Robert Johnson’s L-1, generally had white buttons. In classic 30s style, the KG-14’s mahogany neck has a V profile. Gibson wasn’t the only brand to use this neck shape.
Where was the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo located?
No-one was spared, from dirt farmers to sportsmen such as ‘Cinderella Man’ James J Braddock, to the car plants in Detroit. Things were so bleak that the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo, Michigan cut back on guitar production to make wooden toys or anything else that could keep the workers employed.