Cowboyoilman Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 My wife and I drove up to northwest Montana (Flathead valley) from Tulsa to get married last week. On our way to Colorado and Rocky Mountain National Park, we passed through Bozeman, MT where Gibson Acoustic is located. I knew that they don't do factory tours for the general public, but I searched for their location anyhow. So we stopped by there, and as luck would have it I showed up just 10 mins before a scheduled tour with a couple of engineers and they let me join in on the tour! How awesome is that! Valerie Bolitho gave the tour, and she was a great tour guide. We spent a lot of time in the custom shop that her and Ren worked in. She mentioned that with their current demand, she does not get to spend much time in there anymore, which is a shame. Some of her work is quite incredible. I have attached some pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboyoilman Posted July 18, 2014 Author Share Posted July 18, 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboyoilman Posted July 18, 2014 Author Share Posted July 18, 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modoc_333 Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 very cool man. it's a great place to visit. such a small shop and such amazing work! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flatbaroque Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 Cheers mate.Interesting stuff.Thanks for posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaiser Bill Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 Thanks for sharing you experience. I toured the Kalamazoo plant (alone) back in the 70s. Nice to see where my J200 came from. I sure could use a new pick guard for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 Glad you had a great time. Thanks for the photos. Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JuanCarlosVejar Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 So they are not doing custom guitars because the demand for gibson acoustics has increased ? Nice photos Btw I think the first set of double pickguards Valerie is holding arr from the Bob Dylan SJ 200 signature. JC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 Thank you for the insight - many good details - very exciting. I would like to know nuances of the flora-fauna p-guard decoration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorrisrownSal Posted July 19, 2014 Share Posted July 19, 2014 Thanks for the tour. I have done the Martin Tour half a dozen times, and I love it more each time I go. The smell of the wood.... It's almost as hood as the smell of two stroke outboards starting up in the morning. :) Wish I could swing Montana some day. It seems more intimate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortyearspickn Posted July 19, 2014 Share Posted July 19, 2014 Wow. Cool. Thanks Cowboy. I know I'll never get out there, so this was really appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hogeye Posted July 19, 2014 Share Posted July 19, 2014 Congrats on your recent marriage. You picked a wonderful location. I'm told the cherry harvest is just starting. Hope to get a big bag for the refrigerator as they are the very best. The Flathead is one of the finest places in the U.S. You were lucky to get into the plant. Val is the best guide you could possibly get. She and Jason Jones are the very best. Do you have family in the Flathead area? If you do maybe you could schedule a trip back to include the "Gibson Homecoming". It's a very entertaining event and you will get to visit other luthiers in the area. Thanks for the wonderful photos. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboyoilman Posted July 23, 2014 Author Share Posted July 23, 2014 Yes Hogeye, my wife's mother lives up there. I am excited that we will get to return there in the future because of that, plus I'm sure we will visit there for wedding anniversaries! Juan, Val mentioned that she has not been able to work on custom guitars in the custom shop in about 2 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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