Res-O-Glas Electric Guitar Kits

Back in the 1960s, between '62 and '67, an outfit called the Valco Guitar Company manufactured fiberglass guitars under various names including their own product lines Supro, National, Atlas and Valco as well as several house brand names including Airline (Montgomery Ward) and English Electronic's Tonemaster. These Res-O-Glass guitars have graced the hands of some of the greatest players of all time including Eric Clapton, J.B. Hutto, Jack White, Billy Gibbons, Lil' Ed, David Lindley, John Fogerty and John Entwistle.

Fast forward to the mid-2000s when two industry guitar veterans get together and decide to resurrect the Res-O-Glas guitar, making it available to players who want to build their own version of this classic instrument. Before we go further, give a listen to a Res-O-Glas guitar as played by Bob Pace:

As demonstrated in the video, these guitars can deliver some great tones in the twang, down-on-the-bayou and jazz veins, and probably many more. So what does it take to build one? The first thing to understand is that Res-O-Glas guitars do not come as complete kits.

The photo here shows what the partial kit from Res-O-Glas, which sells for about $200 on their eBay store. The kit includes the two part fiberglass body, white stripe binding, center maple block, foam, strap buttons, various screws and a 17-page assembly manual with pictures.

Next you'll need to purchase a pickguard, tailpiece and pickup rings. Res-O-Glas offers a variety of these to choose from, or you can use your own source. Finally, to finish the Res-O-Glas Guitar you will need to purchase a few items that Res-O-Glas does not sell: a neck, floating bridge, pickups and all electronics and strings. This may be a complication for beginners, but for more advanced builders and players, this gives you the opportunity to choose the components that fit your style and budget.

Once you've purchased everything you'll likely have spent $450 on up. Beyond securing all the parts, you'll need to do your own drilling and mounting of hardware, and wiring of pickups, switches and controls. The fun of a Res-O-Glas build is that you decide where everything goes, and drill your own holes to mount them. In terms of tools, you'll need a drill with various standard size drill bits, clamps, a straight edge or yard stick, diagonal pliers and various size screw drivers is all you need for a basic guitar build. A Dremel tool is also helpful, but not necessary. Various grits of sandpaper and epoxy are also needed. Because of the fiberglass bodies, painting is not required. So that's the story on Res-O-Glas guitars.

We're going to leave you with one more video: