Grinnell Special Flat Top Acoustic Guitar, made by Gibson (1940)
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Grinnell Special Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar, made by Gibson (1940), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 694F-13, sunburst top, dark back and sides finish, mahogany back, sides and neck; spruce top, rosewood fingerboard, original brown chipboard case.
This is an interesting (and quite rare) variation on the Gibson-made Kalamazoo KG-14, specially branded for a retailer. In this case it was made for Grinnell Brothers of Detroit, the top music dealers of the area. The store was most known for selling pianos and organs but also carried band instruments, guitars, amplifiers, drums and sheet music. Over the years, the chain also dabbled in selling records, turntables, radios, televisions and household furniture. Martin had made ukuleles for them in the 1920s labeled "Wolverine" but by 1940 the store name was simply applied to the headstock of this otherwise standard KG-14, along with a stenciled doodad that looks rather like a doubly surprised exclamation point!
Apart from the custom logo this is a standard late-issue Kalamazoo KG-14 flat top, made not too long before the restrictions of WWII ended Gibson's budget line. This model was Gibson's best "budget" small body flat top for the Depression era; a good-sounding and playing solid wood flat-top at an affordable price. They tend to have a bright but well-balanced sound with a slightly funky/bluesy edge.
The KG-14 was the larger of the Kalamazoo flat-tops; the 14 3/4" wide body is the same as used Gibson's L-00, but the spruce top is ladder-braced and there is no adjustable truss rod. The neck on this 1940 guitar has a comfortably rounded and surprisingly modern profile; the earlier KGs had a sharp "V" style many modern players find uncomfortable. The top is finished in a dark sunburst with a white soundhole ring but tortoise celluloid outer binding, an unusual combination seen only on later examples. The tuners are early Kluson-branded strips that still work well.
Less expensive guitars like the KG-14 were a major factor in Gibson's survival during the worst years of the great Depression but were phased out shortly after the US entered WWII, never to return. This one is a very nice player with a cool and quite rare variant branding, a neat piece of Gibson (and Detroit) history.
Overall length is 39 3/4 in. (101 cm.), 14 3/4 in. (37.5 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/4 in. (10.8 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a very clean and original guitar overall, appearing not too heavily used since before WWII. The all-original finish shows checking, most heavily on the top and some random dings, dents and scratches overall. It remains all original except internally an extra diagonal brace has been added on each side of the soundhole to help stabilize the top. There is a small cleated grain split in the typical spot behind the top edge of the pickguard, another running about 1" off the back edge of the bridge and a third from the treble edge of the fingerboard extension to the soundhole rim. All are solidly sealed without any notable touch up.
The top has some typical bellying behind the bridge (almost unavoidable with these lightly ladder-braced guitars) but nothing severe and playability is not affected. The neck is quite straight and has been very neatly reset. The original frets show hardly any wear. The retaining bolts have been removed from under the pearl dots on the bridge, but there are no outward signs the bridge has been off or reglued. The small maple bridgeplate is original. The neck is quite straight and this is an excellent player with the bright but chunky sound characteristic of the KG-14. It is still living in the original (and surprisingly solid) chipboard case. Very Good + Condition.
This is an interesting (and quite rare) variation on the Gibson-made Kalamazoo KG-14, specially branded for a retailer. In this case it was made for Grinnell Brothers of Detroit, the top music dealers of the area. The store was most known for selling pianos and organs but also carried band instruments, guitars, amplifiers, drums and sheet music. Over the years, the chain also dabbled in selling records, turntables, radios, televisions and household furniture. Martin had made ukuleles for them in the 1920s labeled "Wolverine" but by 1940 the store name was simply applied to the headstock of this otherwise standard KG-14, along with a stenciled doodad that looks rather like a doubly surprised exclamation point!
Apart from the custom logo this is a standard late-issue Kalamazoo KG-14 flat top, made not too long before the restrictions of WWII ended Gibson's budget line. This model was Gibson's best "budget" small body flat top for the Depression era; a good-sounding and playing solid wood flat-top at an affordable price. They tend to have a bright but well-balanced sound with a slightly funky/bluesy edge.
The KG-14 was the larger of the Kalamazoo flat-tops; the 14 3/4" wide body is the same as used Gibson's L-00, but the spruce top is ladder-braced and there is no adjustable truss rod. The neck on this 1940 guitar has a comfortably rounded and surprisingly modern profile; the earlier KGs had a sharp "V" style many modern players find uncomfortable. The top is finished in a dark sunburst with a white soundhole ring but tortoise celluloid outer binding, an unusual combination seen only on later examples. The tuners are early Kluson-branded strips that still work well.
Less expensive guitars like the KG-14 were a major factor in Gibson's survival during the worst years of the great Depression but were phased out shortly after the US entered WWII, never to return. This one is a very nice player with a cool and quite rare variant branding, a neat piece of Gibson (and Detroit) history.
Overall length is 39 3/4 in. (101 cm.), 14 3/4 in. (37.5 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/4 in. (10.8 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a very clean and original guitar overall, appearing not too heavily used since before WWII. The all-original finish shows checking, most heavily on the top and some random dings, dents and scratches overall. It remains all original except internally an extra diagonal brace has been added on each side of the soundhole to help stabilize the top. There is a small cleated grain split in the typical spot behind the top edge of the pickguard, another running about 1" off the back edge of the bridge and a third from the treble edge of the fingerboard extension to the soundhole rim. All are solidly sealed without any notable touch up.
The top has some typical bellying behind the bridge (almost unavoidable with these lightly ladder-braced guitars) but nothing severe and playability is not affected. The neck is quite straight and has been very neatly reset. The original frets show hardly any wear. The retaining bolts have been removed from under the pearl dots on the bridge, but there are no outward signs the bridge has been off or reglued. The small maple bridgeplate is original. The neck is quite straight and this is an excellent player with the bright but chunky sound characteristic of the KG-14. It is still living in the original (and surprisingly solid) chipboard case. Very Good + Condition.