Gibson Console Grand Restoration Photos

[Kevin Glandon]

Here are some photos for the before during and after restoration. I even made the knobs.

[Bill Groner]

Very nice work Kevin! I am IMPRESSED. Love the sunburst.

[Bill Sinclair]

Wowee! I was hoping you'd post some before pictures of your restoration after your introductory thread. I'm usually not real big on refinishing vintage guitars but that flamed maple deserves to be seen. Great work. Beautiful guitar.

[Kevin Glandon]

I had hoped when I bought the guitar that all I had to do was re-attach the binding and start that pup up. When I got the guitar and saw it's actual condition, it no longer seemed an option. The old finish was literally falling off. Much binding was missing or badly damaged. The metal work was so deeply pitted it could not be polished out. The body was splitting apart. One of the pickups was open. Soooo.......I made the decision to do a full restoration. I feel as you do. If the guitar can be left alone and work...leave it be. In my judgement this instrument was totaled. The before photos that I posted don't show the true extent of the guitars damage.

[Bill Sinclair]

The metal work was so deeply pitted it could not be polished out. The body was splitting apart.

So, did you have to fabricate the control plate, pickup covers, etc.? Are those replacement tuners? If so, where'd you get 'em? Sorry to pester you but I'm sure I'm not the only one interested in how you got from picture 1 to picture 10.

[Kevin Glandon]

Love answering the questions. I prepped all the metal parts by sanding them down to bare metal removing most of the pitting. I then took the parts along with one leg that I had to fabricate to a professional plater and had them nickel plated. It was cheap because I did all the prep work. I sent the pickups out to Lindy Fralin for rewinding. I had him match their output and to RWRP them. This way if I have both necks on, there is no hum, yet the pickups keep their individual voice because of their distance from one another. They were also wound hotter than stock thanks to a fortunate accident. Normally these pups show about 8K ohms. These in my guitar now show 10K ohms. I like them hot! They sound a bit fatter than stock. There tuning machines are replacements. I have the originals. The were badly battered and one was missing. I chose to replace them. The replacements are Grover Vintage Sta-Tites. They were relatively inexpensive and worked with only having to elongate one of the mounting holes on each tuner. The binding I made from scratch as I could find none commercially made at the size I needed. That was a bitch of a job. Don't want to do that again. I bought pre-slotted fretboards from Luthier's Mercantile. I then cut, shaped and bound them. Installed position markers and the "frets". I made the volume knobs from round lucite stock on my lathe. And so on and so forth......

[Brad Davis]

This must be the most brutally mistreated Grande I've ever seen, but WOW! What a great restoration! I'm impressed.

And I know what you mean about that binding, I think questions about it came up fairly recently and there's really not anything commercially available. There were suggestions to try to fabricate it. Those knobs look great too.

[Ben Elder]

Where on Earth (or elsewhere) did you find a Console Grande decal in the 21st Century?

[Brad Davis]

I don't know about Ken but this is out there:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/557075768/ ... waterslide

[Kevin Glandon]

There are people out there who make decals. I searched the net and found a few. I used Bedlam Creations. He did wonderful work. Just so you know you cannot get an exact reproduction with regards to paints or inks that were used "back in the day". They do not exist.

[Bill Groner]

Kevin, how long did this project take you to complete?

[Kevin Glandon]

I worked on the guitar on and off throughout the summer and fall. I only did it in my spare time so I can’t really give a clear answer to that question.

[Steve Wilson]

Kevin,
I just found your next project...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Nation ... Sw8oxasUBw

[Kevin Glandon]

Funny! Actually my next project is going to be a pedal steel guitar. Yes, I'm going to the dark side! Pedals! I will be building a pedal steel guitar from scratch unless I find an existing one for the budget I've allotted for the build. So far that just isn't happening.

[Bill Groner]

I think the next one will take up a considerable amount of your "free time". I have looked at the belly side of those pedal guitars. All I can say to you is.........GOOD LUCK and lots of it. From your photos I can tell you are capable and you seem to be a man on a mission and those two attributes are critical for a project like this. Please keep us posted with pictures as you progress. I, along with many others enjoy seeing pictures from a person willing to put in the hard work to make his dream come true.


Best of Luck,

Bill

[Bill Groner]

Love answering the questions. I prepped all the metal parts by sanding them down to bare metal removing most of the pitting. I then took the parts along with one leg that I had to fabricate to a professional plater and had them nickel plated. It was cheap because I did all the prep work. I sent the pickups out to Lindy Fralin for rewinding. I had him match their output and to RWRP them. This way if I have both necks on, there is no hum, yet the pickups keep their individual voice because of their distance from one another. They were also wound hotter than stock thanks to a fortunate accident. Normally these pups show about 8K ohms. These in my guitar now show 10K ohms. I like them hot! They sound a bit fatter than stock. There tuning machines are replacements. I have the originals. The were badly battered and one was missing. I chose to replace them. The replacements are Grover Vintage Sta-Tites. They were relatively inexpensive and worked with only having to elongate one of the mounting holes on each tuner. The binding I made from scratch as I could find none commercially made at the size I needed. That was a bitch of a job. Don't want to do that again. I bought pre-slotted fretboards from Luthier's Mercantile. I then cut, shaped and bound them. Installed position markers and the "frets". I made the volume knobs from round lucite stock on my lathe. And so on and so forth......

Kevin, where did you buy the Lucite from? What color do they that call that. You did a great job. They have to be turned very smooth initially, then step polished to get them transparent like you made yours. Again, great work.

[Kevin Glandon]

I bought the Lucite off eBay. I just found clear round stock at the diameter that I wanted which was one inch. I cut short lengths that I could mount in my lathe. It's not hard. Just turn at a slow speed with a sharp tool. I squared off the bottom. Then drilled hole with a 1/4 drill bit mounted in a chuck in the tail stock of the lathe to the depth I wanted. Then I turned the inside "skirt"(beveled part of the interior of knob).
After that I flipped the knob around in the chuck (headstock side of lathe) I squared off the top of the knob bringing it down to final over height. Sanded the top to remove some of the grosser tool marks . After that I mounted the mostly completed knob on a dowel mounted in the lathe chuck. While rotating the chuck and therefore the knob by hand I hit the knob with a propane torch. When you heat the lucite just right it turns perfectly clear and the tool marks disappear. Remove the knob, mask off the top and sides. Then spray paint the underside of the knob with gold paint and that's it.

[Larry Carlson]

That instrument is absolutely beautiful.
I wish I had 1/2 of your skills. Amazing work.
That is one lucky guitar to end up in your hands..

[Bill Galvan]

Great work Kevin. Your "before" pics don't show covers (hand-rests).
Where can I buy them for my T8 Console Grande? Again, this is a
real craftsman restoration. Beautiful.

[Kevin Glandon]

Thank you Bill. The guitar did come with the covers. They just were not attached to the guitar at the time. Don't know where you would find these covers.

[Paul Honeycutt]

Beautiful restoration! And the fact that you made the knobs makes my head explode. Awesome beyond belief. I'm working on a '54 National D-8, but it's going to just be in working condition, not a full out restoration. But your work is an inspiration.

[Kevin Glandon]

Thank you very much Paul. The knobs were not all that hard to do. Good luck with your restoration. Post some photos when you're done. Love to see it.

[David Matzenik]

Great Stuff! I love restorations, musical instruments, houses, boats, furniture, whatever. This one is top notch. Hey, that rug's pretty nice too.

[Lee Gillespie]

Beautiful Job. As a lover of the Casa Grande..( Mine is a 50ish... and in beautiful shape. I appreciate what you did with yours. Thanks for showing. Lee Gillespie

[Ron Simpson]

A most excellent restoration.