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Joined:
December 2011
Posts: 2
Location: central New York | Recently purchased 1627 with 1981 serial number. Blue oval label with GC printed signature on label. It is black top with all black neck & peghead. No truss rod cover, has truss rod adjust through body. Neck attachment bolt heads are visible. Has reinforcing web inside bowl each side neck block area.
1) Did Ovation make black 1627 models without GC truss rod cover ?
Also have natural 1627 with earlier 1981 serial number. Blue label listing 1627 model but without GC signature. This one has brace under fretboard extension drilled for truss rod - but has truss rod cover and adjustment at peghead. Does not have reinforcing webs inside bowl. Wood veneer over neck attachment bolts.
2) Was 1981 transition year for truss rod, and the bowl design ?
Regards,
Perry |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15678
Location: SoCal | Between 1979 and 1981, two major improvements were phased in to the Ovation lines (well, most of them). The first was A bracing instead of the VT bracing. The second was the Kaman Bar in the neck, instead of a standard truss rod. Made the neck heavy but it was stable as can be.
There's no truss rod cover with the KBar because the adjustment is in the guitar at the base of the neck.... |
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Joined:
September 2011
Posts: 402
Location: New Hartford CT | We made all the tension rods at our shop for 30 years. They are 3/16" dia, #10-32 thread pitch, in several lengths according to guitar model. Before the K-Bar was introduced all tension rods were oriented with the threaded end under the TRC. On the bowl end of the tension rod we welded a small steel block that had a 3/16" channel milled in it. Then, using a custom fixture we would gang weld about 10 rods at a time. We'd melt the rod right into the block real good then put a radius in the rod allowing the user to adjust the tension as necessary.
When they showed us the K Bar set up we had to figure out how to put a 180 degree hook in a 3/16 dia piece of cold rolled steel. The hook fits into a slot on the K bar and tension is adjusted with the brass nut inside the bowl. Anyway, after some trial and error we arrived at a process whereby the hook end was annealed so we could make the 180 hook without snapping the rod. Let me tell you it was no fun bending those rods one at a time in our roll fixture - you had to spin a handle on the end of the rod, insert it in the fixture, pull the handle like hell 180 degrees around the small pin inside to form the hook. It was a job that had to be done and done well.
Once the rod had the hook formed we trimmed the excess off the hook end in a die then sent them out for heat treat. We used to run 10 to 20 thousand at a time a couple times a year of the K bar T rods.
After the change, only classic guitars retained the original style welded rod. The rest went to a K bar set up. Then in the late 90's the current system using graphite strips to adjust tension was adopted and the K bar was history. I bid on the job but didn't get it. Oh well. |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15678
Location: SoCal | Now that was interesting. Thanks.... |
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Ovation Glen Campbell 1627 questions