Vintage

C.F. Martin O-16 NY Acoustic Guitar, 1976

On May 30, 2018 /

The Martin O-16 NY appeared with the American Folk Boom, and references very early Martin guitars made before 1898 in New York, before the move to Nazareth, PA. The O body size is 13.5 inches wide, and the 12-fret neck has a slotted peg head. As a ’16’, binding only appears on the top.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Washburn Soprano Ukulele by Lyon and Healy, 1920s

On May 24, 2018 /

Here’s a treat – a Washburn Soprano Ukulele, built by Lyon & Healy during the 1920s in Chicago, Illinois and in very nice condition with the original canvas trap-door case. As to Lyon and Healy, towards the end of the 1970’s, the Steinway company purchased Lyon & Healy, spinning off their other efforts to focus on building quality harps. This Washburn Soprano ukulele is built with a mixture of Mahogany for the body and bridge, Spanish Cedar for the neck, Rosewood for the fingerboard and small pieces of Ebony for the nut and saddle. The top, back and soundhole are bound with a grained ivoroid celluloid.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Gibson SJ Square Shoulder Dreadnought Guitar, 1972

On May 17, 2018 /

Here we have a vintage Gibson SJ from 1972 at the historic plant in Kalamazoo, Michigan. It features a Spruce top with Mahogany for the back, sides and neck, with Rosewood for the fingerboard and bridge. The SJ is a somewhat more ornamented model, so the fingerboard is bound and has split-parallellogram position markers. It also features a standard adjustable saddle, in Rosewood; some earlier models used a ceramic saddle. The finish is the original sunburst executed in nitrocellulose lacquer. The scale length is longer than many other Gibson models at 25.5 inches. This brightens the tone slightly and brings the feel closer to Gibson’s main competitor, Martin.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Fender Precision Bass Black Refinish, 1959

On May 16, 2018 /

This vintage Fender Precision Bass built during 1959. It’s been used as intended and has played countless shows around Ontario, Canada – attested to by the stickers on the original tweed case. Somewhere in the dim and distant past, the alder body’s original finish was removed and a black finish was applied. The refinish itself has an amount of honest play wear. The neck is the standard one-piece Maple Fender design, and its finish is original, with the smooth wear and patina that only comes from decades of use.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Gibson ES-175 Archtop Electric Guitar Sunburst, 1962

On May 10, 2018 /

The Gibson ES-175 was immediately popular with jazz players. The body is constructed as a single florentine (sharp) cutaway, using maple laminates for feedback rejection. This was becoming increasingly important as audience sizes increased, requiring higher stage volumes that are seriously problematic for hollow body instruments. These work so well that eventually, an ES-175 built not long after this one wound up on some of the world’s largest rock stages in the hands of ‘Yes’ guitarist Steve Howe.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Supro Westwood Archtop by Valco, Sunburst 1956

On May 9, 2018 /

The Supro Westwood pickup looks like a humbucker, but it’s really a single coil in a large case. The tuners are original single line Kluson models with creme plastic tulip buttons. The nut, tailpiece and bridge are original. The creme plastic pickguard is intact with some of the painted-on striping worn, but is not cracked. The pickup surround has small cracks above the adjustment screw, but is otherwise intact. The original cases for these instruments was fibre (cardboard) with a light, brown cloth lining. That type of case does not usually age well and often disappears with time. A non-original hard shell case is included.

Vintage

This instrument has sold

Vintage

C.F. Martin O-16 NY Acoustic Guitar, 1976

Washburn Soprano Ukulele by Lyon and Healy, 1920s

Gibson SJ Square Shoulder Dreadnought Guitar, 1972

Fender Precision Bass Black Refinish, 1959

Gibson ES-175 Archtop Electric Guitar Sunburst, 1962

Supro Westwood Archtop by Valco, Sunburst 1956

THE TWELFTH FRET

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