Grover Musical Products: The Cleveland Company Whose Tuners Are on Guitars Worldwide

Since 1922, a Cleveland company has made the tuners on guitars played around the world. Edgewater Guitars (Valley City, OH) buys vintage instruments from across Ohio, and original hardware like a guitar’s tuners is one of the things we check when we appraise one. Call or text (440) 219-3607 for a free appraisal.

A Cleveland Music Wholesaler Becomes a Tuner Maker

In 1922, brothers Henry and Julius Grossman founded the Grossman Brothers Music Company in Cleveland, wholesaling instruments and accessories. Their brother-in-law Max Berger joined the sales side, followed later by his son Joseph Berger as a traveling salesman. The company took its familiar name three decades later: in 1952, following the death of Walter Grover, it acquired Grover Accessories Co. (formerly A. D. Grover & Son, a maker of machine heads for fretted instruments and violins dating back to the late 1800s) and became Grover Musical Products.

The Rotomatic and an Industry Standard

Grover’s early products included guitar and banjo machine heads, followed by tuners for other fretted instruments and violin pegs. Its enclosed Rotomatic tuners, sealed and self-lubricating rather than the open-gear style common before them, quickly became an industry standard. Gibson used Grover Rotomatics as factory equipment on many models from the 1960s on, and Gretsch guitars have long carried Grover or Grover-style tuners as well, which is part of why the name shows up so often when collectors talk about originality on a vintage instrument.

Growth Through Acquisition

Grover expanded through the 1960s: in September 1965 it acquired the Oliver T. Knode Co. of Richmond, Indiana, and that December it picked up the Nick Lucas guitar pick line from Mills Music. The company now operates four divisions built from past acquisitions: Trophy Music Co., Duplex Percussion Accessories, Grossman Music Corporation (the original family name, still part of the business), and The Clevelander Drum Company.

Still Cleveland, Still Running

Unlike most of the Ohio instrument makers from this era, Grover never closed. The company remains privately held and Cleveland-based more than a century after Henry and Julius Grossman started it, run today by president Richard I. Berger and vice president Dann William Skutt. It marked its 100th anniversary in 2022.

What Original Grover Tuners Mean for Your Guitar’s Value

A set of Grover tuners is not, by itself, a collectible. What it can tell you is something about a guitar’s history. If a vintage Gibson, Gretsch, or other electric carries its original-era hardware, including its tuners, that originality is part of what a specialist looks at when putting together a fair number. Replaced tuners are not a dealbreaker; most vintage guitars have had some hardware swapped over 50 or 60 years. But original hardware is one more data point toward an honest appraisal, not a guess.

Selling a Vintage Guitar, Original Hardware or Not

Edgewater Guitars buys vintage instruments from across Ohio, and we look at the whole guitar, tuners included, when we put together an offer. Start at edgewaterguitars.com/get-a-free-estimate or call or text (440) 219-3607 for a free appraisal.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Grover Musical Products?

Grover Musical Products is a Cleveland, Ohio company that has made stringed-instrument tuners (machine heads) since 1922, when it started as Grossman Brothers Music Company. It took the Grover name in 1952 after acquiring Grover Accessories Co. Its enclosed Rotomatic tuners became an industry standard, and the company still operates in Cleveland today.

Are Grover tuners themselves valuable?

Grover tuners are not collectible on their own. What matters is whether they are original to a specific vintage guitar: original hardware, including tuners, supports a guitar’s overall authenticity and value. Call Edgewater at (440) 219-3607 for a free appraisal of the guitar itself.

Where can I sell a vintage guitar with original Grover tuners?

Edgewater Guitars buys vintage guitars from across Ohio and nationwide. Start at edgewaterguitars.com/get-a-free-estimate or call or text (440) 219-3607.

More Ohio Guitar History

Grover is not the only Ohio company with a real guitar story. Columbus’s Jackson-Guldan built violins and guitars from 1915 to 1971, becoming America’s last violin manufacturer before it closed.

About This Guide

Written by Stephen Pedone, co-owner of Edgewater Guitars, a vintage guitar buyer based in Valley City, Ohio. We buy vintage guitars from across Ohio and nationwide. Last updated: August 2026.