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Joes B's grovered 59 and grovered les Bursts in general

W

Wally

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Joined
Feb 27, 2003
Messages
3,535
RE: Klusons falling apart. IMe, it is very difficult for those to fall apart due to that tab on each end of the cover box which goes through a hole on the backing plate and then is bent over. They can be taken apart, but one needs a certain pair of cutting pliers to get at those tabs. I have never seen one of these 'fall apart'. NOw...the modern 'square-back' Schallers that Gibson uses and that some people think are Klusons are worthless. They do not have a tab that comes through the base and is bent over but rather have a short tab that sits in the hole in the base. They hit that tab with a little chisel to spread it out....but it takes only a bit of time and use before that tab works its way out of that hole...and the tuning machine then comes apart.
+1 on Grovers changing the sound. IT has to do with the difference in the mass....Grovers being much more substantial than Klusons. That increased mass creates sustain.
 
JPP-1

JPP-1

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Jul 11, 2006
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1,336
imho Grovers and Les Pauls look great together. Never been a huge Kluson fan as far as their performance is concerned. Gibson even offers Grovers as an option on some guitars. What I do not understand is why there are no replacement Grovers that can fit the standard headstock without routing.
 
Tom Wittrock

Tom Wittrock

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JPP-1 said:
What I do not understand is why there are no replacement Grovers that can fit the standard headstock without routing.
Click to expand...

There are, but they are inferior to the common Grover model [Roto-Matics] that most people are talking about when merely saying Grovers.
Grover has made quite a few different models of keys over the years.
 
mistersnappy

mistersnappy

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Jan 20, 2006
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On the one vintage Les Paul I own, I *replaced* the Grovers with Klusons (not vintage) about 6 years ago. Wished I'd done it sooner. I remember thinking at the time that it rolled off some of the plinky high end and made the guitar's action a little more supple. YMMV.
 
Kris Ford

Kris Ford

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Jan 6, 2007
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One thing I HATE is the big dents left after going back to Klusons AFTER Grovers have been there for decades..at that point, the Grovers are part of the guitar in my opinion...and it's not really bringing them back to stock if there are 6 awful looking circular dents on the headstock...:wah

Then to repair correctly, you actually have to remove even MORE originality..and just not worth whatever is gained by going back to the Klusons..I have left every set I have ever had..mainly on SGs though..

At that point, for me, they stay...
 
TM1

TM1

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Jun 27, 2003
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8,371
I have a set of Grover Rotomatic's from the late '50's that are stamped "GIBSON" where the Grover name is usually stamped on the back. They came in the original Box that has an orange label marked GIBSON in place of the light green-ish Grover label.
 
Tom Wittrock

Tom Wittrock

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TM1 said:
I have a set of Grover Rotomatic's from the late '50's that are stamped "GIBSON" where the Grover name is usually stamped on the back. They came in the original Box that has an orange label marked GIBSON in place of the light green-ish Grover label.
Click to expand...

I would love to see a phot of that! :hmm
 
Trainkeptarolling

Trainkeptarolling

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Apr 22, 2017
Messages
68
Tarcisioo said:
Is there anyone Grovering vintage Gibsons these days?
Click to expand...

It's funny to see the Joe Perry Tobacco Burst go from Grovers when JP owned it to Klusons after Slash bought it and then have Gibson release the Joe Perry 1959 Burst with Klusons and have two pictures on their site of him with the original (Grovers) and the re-issue (Klusons). Wish I was a fly on the wall during that discussion.
 
JJ Blair

JJ Blair

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Trainkeptarolling said:
It's funny to see the Joe Perry Tobacco Burst go from Grovers when JP owned it to Klusons after Slash bought it and then have Gibson release the Joe Perry 1959 Burst with Klusons and have two pictures on their site of him with the original (Grovers) and the re-issue (Klusons). Wish I was a fly on the wall during that discussion.
Click to expand...

I think you're giving them too much credit by assuming there was any discussion. :)
 
Trainkeptarolling

Trainkeptarolling

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Apr 22, 2017
Messages
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JJ Blair said:
I think you're giving them too much credit by assuming there was any discussion. :)
Click to expand...

Oh no...I'm sure it was something like this:

Marketing: Hey man, we can't do grovers because we'll turn off the Slash fans
Luthier: Well then if we're doing Klusons, I'm going to have to install Grovers and then take them out so there's extra holes so it's accurate
Marketing: How the hell do you expect us to sell these at a ridiculous price with extra holes?
Luthier: I hate you corporate suited sellouts.
Marketing: You're an overpaid carpenter...just do as I say.
 
Tom Wittrock

Tom Wittrock

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Aug 2, 2001
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42,567
Trainkeptarolling said:
It's funny to see the Joe Perry Tobacco Burst go from Grovers when JP owned it to Klusons after Slash bought it and then have Gibson release the Joe Perry 1959 Burst with Klusons and have two pictures on their site of him with the original (Grovers) and the re-issue (Klusons). Wish I was a fly on the wall during that discussion.
Click to expand...

Grovers were not original. :ganz
 
J

jens5

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Mar 18, 2017
Messages
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From the posts I've been reading here and to be clear. It sounds like there is no direct swap from Klusons to grovers without some modification?
 
Tom Wittrock

Tom Wittrock

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jens5 said:
From the posts I've been reading here and to be clear. It sounds like there is no direct swap from Klusons to grovers without some modification?
Click to expand...

If you are talking about traditional Kluson Deluxe keys versus Grover Rotomatics, some modification is required.
 
J

jens5

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Mar 18, 2017
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Tom Wittrock said:
If you are talking about traditional Kluson Deluxe keys versus Grover Rotomatics, some modification is required.
Click to expand...

Whatever came on my 2016 R8. Are those considered traditional Klusons or a newer interation with a Kluson name on it?
 
Tom Wittrock

Tom Wittrock

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jens5 said:
Whatever came on my 2016 R8. Are those considered traditional Klusons or a newer interation with a Kluson name on it?
Click to expand...

I wouldn't know without seeing them.
If it is a reissue, it should come with the traditional type.

What so many forget when asking questions like Klusons vs. Grovers is, that both brands make lots of different types of keys that can vary quite a bit.
 
Ron

Ron

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Joined
Aug 3, 2001
Messages
848
To those who hear a positive tonal improvement with Grovers: Would an R8 that overall is a decent sounding guitar but is just a little mushy in the low end, lacking focus and a little harsh in the high end, lacking midrange benefit from having the stock Klusons replaced with Grover Rotomatics?
 
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