Dogwood Guitars

  • Home
  • About
  • Guitars
    • Dogwood Models
    • Guitar Galleries
    • Ordering your Dogwood Guitar
    • FAQ’s
  • Services
  • Lutherie Classes
  • Pictorials
    • Repairs
    • How to Correctly String a Guitar
    • Building A Monarch
    • Making a Spalted Maple Rosette
    • Pearl and Abalone Inlay
  • Articles
    • Technical
    • Viewpoint
  • Testimonials
  • YouTube
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Pictorials / Repairs / 1975 Gibson Hummingbird Restoration

1975 Gibson Hummingbird Restoration

While meeting with a customer and his daughter about designing a guitar for her, he showed me his Gibson Hummingbird that his daughter had been playing.

Using the serial number and other identifying characteristics, I was able to date the guitar as a 1975. This confirmed the owner’s recollection that the Hummingbird was a mid-70’s instrument which he had purchased used after graduating from high school in the early 1980’s.

The guitar was in pretty rough condition, mostly due to some poorly done older repairs. The bridge was not original and had been glued on in the wrong location causing the guitar to play out of tune. The bridge plate inside the guitar was damaged and the replacement bridge was shaved too thin and had cracked. The guitar also needed a neck reset and some cracks in the top repaired. I agreed to take on these repairs and to make the guitar playable for the daughter while her Dogwood Guitar was being made. Click the thumbnail image below for a photo essay detailing the repairs made to the guitar.

dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_01 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_02 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_03 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_04 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_05 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_06 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_07 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_08 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_09 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_10 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_11 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_12 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_13 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_14 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_15 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_16 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_17 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_18 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_19 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_20 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_21 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_22 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_23 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_24 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_25 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_27 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_29 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_30 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_31 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_32 dogwoodguitars_gibsonrepair_33
[Show picture list]
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • YouTube

Location

Dogwood Guitars is located in beautiful rural Knox County Ohio, on state route 3 between Centerburg and Mount Vernon. Less than an hour from Columbus, Delaware, and Mansfield, we serve the entire central Ohio area with full-service setup and repairs. … [Read More...]

Luthier Services & Labor Estimates for 2021

Dogwood Guitars is a full-service setup and repair shop. We are equipped to handle all of your acoustic and electric guitar adjustment and repair needs. The prices listed below are labor estimates and do not include parts such as new strings, bone … [Read More...]

Fine Handmade Guitars

  Hi, and welcome to Dogwood Guitars of Kansas City, MO. My goal is to provide you with the best sounding and playing guitar possible. Whether this means setting up your current guitars to play their best, or working with you to build your … [Read More...]

Customer Testimonials: Strat and Tele Setups

"I have 2 guitars and have been playing for over 20 years.  In that time I have had my instruments set-up by several different companies, some that have been in the business for longer than I have been playing.  I can honestly say that no one has … [Read More...]

Exceptional Tonewoods

Fine wood is the heart of every Dogwood guitar. Greg has been collecting rare and highly figured wood for over three decades, and he is always on the lookout for the best sets of both top and back/side wood for his custom guitars. Exotic wood of the … [Read More...]

Shop Tour

The original Dogwood Guitars shop, located in rural central Ohio. The Dogwood Guitars shop is located in Mount Vernon, OH, having relocated back to central Ohio in August of 2017 after operating for five years in Kansas City. The shop is fully … [Read More...]

Visit us on YouTube…

Follow Dogwood Guitars

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Technical Articles

Why do old guitars sound better?

Why do some old guitars sound so good? Even inexpensive guitars can age into really good sounding instruments, and some old guitars attain legendary tone. Why is this? The answer can be found in one of three factors and the best … [Read More...]

More Technical Articles

Viewpoint Articles

The Three Elements of a Great Guitar

Guitar players and collectors have so many choices available to them. New, used, factory brands, custom hand built...how do you narrow down the choices to the best option for you? In my opinion, any guitar should be measured by three … [Read More...]

More Viewpoint Articles

Copyright © 2025 Dogwood Guitars