NGD/OGD/WTF

[MartyGrass]

A friend of mine bought a natural 575 from a Guitar Center years ago.  When he got it, he found some neck issue that could not be corrected by adjustment.  He took it to the legendary Aaron Cowles, who was doing some upscale work for Heritage at the time.  Aaron told him the neck needs replacement.  I don't recall the details.  Aaron did the replacement.

Here's an interview with Aaron.  https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/gibson-guitar-oral-histories/1/

Aaron died quite a few years ago.  I ended up hanging on to the guitar for my friend but didn't play it.

Yesterday he sold it to me without ever taking it to his home.  If you are feeling sorry for him, consider he has more guitars than anyone else I know.

So this is has Schallers.  I scoped the innards.  It's parallel braced (not all are).

Aaron made the neck and but a plain ebony board on it.  It's a 3 piece maple.  The only piece he got from Heritage is the headstock overlay.  My friend requested a five piece neck but Aaron recommended a 3 piece.  Aaron fretted it.  There are no nibs.  That's true with other Aaron builds.

Aaron was one of the best of the Kalamazoo luthiers yet a simple man to understand.  He always had his pistol handy in shop.  He charged very little for his hard work.  His humble presentation contradicted his master skills at making guitars and mandolins.

The guitar plays well.  The neck is to me a medium C carve, maybe a medium plus.  It sounds good.

 

 

[Spectrum13]

LOVELY 

 

Some lumber on that 575!

[skydog52]

Flame everywhere! Nice

Dibbs

[Gitfiddler]

Outstanding 575!

Play it in good health.

[brentrocks]

Holy cow!!! 

[TalismanRich]

That's some lovely lumber.   I love the neck, but I would absolutely need inlays on the fretboard!    

 

[rockabilly69]

what a beauty!!!

[rwinking]

That gets into the territory of almost too nice to play!

[tsp17]

Gorgeous.  That neck is really special.  I like the plain ebony board too.  

 

Edited April 1 by tsp17

[MartyGrass]

I'm still setting it up.  It was down-tuned for a very long time and a string was missing.

I didn't see it before it was renecked, but the first neck was mahogany.

Few of us had the good fortune of meeting Aaron Cowles, a master craftsman of the highest order yet very pragmatic.  That was the description also of the original Heritage owners.

The H-575 is a jazz workhorse.  I took video lessons from Mimi Fox and Alex Skolnick years ago, two extraordinary players both using the H-575.  It does the job well and is sturdy.  Unlike thin topped spruce jazz boxes, this is built for amplification and to take it. (As an aside, here's a fabulous rock solo by Alex that brought tears to the audience.) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X07ssteuM8o&t=245s

Here's what I don't like: the tailpiece.  It functions, but you have to learn how to keep the string ball in it.  Previously I had the ball slots deepened in another guitar.  If someone knows an easy swap out for the tailpiece that is more solid and secure, please let me know.  Bigsbys need not apply.

[DetroitBlues]

That is a stunner.  Looks like a custom order from the factory.

[Gitfiddler]

Maybe a six finger tailpiece in chrome would work...?

[skydog52]

[ElNumero]

On 3/31/2026 at 8:19 PM, TalismanRich said:

That's some lovely lumber.   I love the neck, but I would absolutely need inlays on the fretboard!    

 

Well, that means you need to study the fretboard more if that’s your “crutch” 🤣

[ElNumero]

18 hours ago, Gitfiddler said:

Maybe a six finger tailpiece in chrome would work...?

I know you love those Tim, but I detest them!!

[ElNumero]

Great story about a well respected man and his craft. I’m curious about the loaded pistol in his shop. Do you think he would have ever hesitated to use it if in a precarious situation?

[TalismanRich]

4 hours ago, ElNumero said:

Well, that means you need to study the fretboard more if that’s your “crutch” 🤣

That's because I like to hit the right notes... .something a drummer don't need to worry about! 

[Millennium Maestro]

A common sight for the hot chicks... Missing the G-String
 

[Gitfiddler]

6 hours ago, ElNumero said:

I know you love those Tim, but I detest them!!

Yep, Will, I do love a precision-made and tension-adjustable 'Six-finger tailpiece'.  

I put one on the BlueBurst H575 you sold me many years ago...😉

[ElNumero]

3 hours ago, TalismanRich said:

That's because I like to hit the right notes... .something a drummer don't need to worry about! 

😂

[ElNumero]

41 minutes ago, Gitfiddler said:

Yep, Will, I do love a precision-made and tension-adjustable 'Six-finger tailpiece'.  

I put one on the BlueBurst H575 you sold me many years ago...😉

I know.  Why the heck did I part with that beautiful geetar!

[Steiner]

2 hours ago, Gitfiddler said:

Yep, Will, I do love a precision-made and tension-adjustable 'Six-finger tailpiece'.  

I put one on the BlueBurst H575 you sold me many years ago...😉

Love it!

[MartyGrass]

My 13 year old grandson now owns it.  He is a dedicated guitarist.  He's likely going to be 5'5" as an adult.  He currently has a large guitar, which is hard for him to play.  I gave it to him last year.  He's swapping an 18" Gretsch for the 575.

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/151972168@N02/albums/72157718796977248/

[BillyTwang]

On 4/3/2026 at 7:33 AM, MartyGrass said:

My 13 year old grandson now owns it.  He is a dedicated guitarist.  He's likely going to be 5'5" as an adult.  He currently has a large guitar, which is hard for him to play.  I gave it to him last year.  He's swapping an 18" Gretsch for the 575.

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/151972168@N02/albums/72157718796977248/

That's a beautiful Gretsch.

[MartyGrass]

On 4/2/2026 at 8:07 AM, ElNumero said:

Great story about a well respected man and his craft. I’m curious about the loaded pistol in his shop. Do you think he would have ever hesitated to use it if in a precarious situation?

Neither Aaron nor his wife would have hesitated.  I didn't know his son as well, but I know he was well trained with firearms and was an electronic warfare specialist in the Air Force.  They were all very nice people with even tempers and a sense of humor.

Aaron's shop was in a very small town.  He had some expensive equipment and instruments.  I'll bet many shop owners in that circumstance kept a gun nearby.  My father owned a party store, where I also put a lot of work hours.  There was a loaded revolver in the safe in back.  We all knew how to pull it out and shoot to kill.  Why, you ask?  Because it often happens that once the thieves get the money, they kill the witnesses.  I know of one time my dad held two at gunpoint until the police arrived.

I understand the idea that merchandise and money can be replaced if insured.  I also get that these were desperate men who robbed.  The owners also had families to feed.  Even if insured, the payouts would take a long time and would depend on the investigation outcome and whether they could prove the amount stolen.  The best insurance at the time was to have it known that if you rob a small store, you can be shot as a means to prevent the robbery.

Back in the day, I was quite a liberal polically.  I met Bobby Kennedy about two weeks before his death.  That was soon after the Martin Luther King shooting.  There were also murders in our city, also.  In our part of Michigan many boys learned to shoot and hunt.  I did so since I was 5.  There were strict rules about safety that were always primary.  My grandfather and grandmother lived in very rural Minnesota.  They lived off the land and hunted routinely.  So it was a very different culture then in which guys, like fishing poles, were simply tools.

I don't know that we will ever get that sense of respect for life back again, which is absolutely necessary for those who own any deadly weapon.  But returning to the question, Aaron would have shot a robber with his .380.  He was deeply Christian.  That may be a paradox to many.  And even beyond that, I'll bet he would have prayed for his soul.

Our world is different now.  It may be better-IDK.  But here are recent statistics on home break ins and violence.

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/URLs_Cited/OT2017/15-1498/15-1498-1.pdf

Here are some data from the Department of Justice as to where robberies occur.

 

 

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