Airline H78 Thinline (Harmony) Cherry, 1965

The Airline H78 Thinline was built for the Montgomery-Ward company by Harmony from 1965 to 1972, as a re-branded version of the Harmony H78. Indeed, it seems that the only difference is the head plate and logo!

Harmony, purchased by Sears-Roebuck in 1916 and owned by them until 1940, was at one point by volume the largest guitar maker in the USA, which also meant in the world. They produced a wide range of instruments under many brands, often specific to a customer. Their customers included Sears-Roebuck, Montgomery-Ward and countless smaller chains and distributors. Harmony guitars ranged from entry level to professional grade models, and were used by artists from Chicago Blues players to early-60’s English rockers to jazz players.

Here we’re looking at an Airline H78, a re-brand of the Harmony H78. This interesting guitar is in largely original and good working condition, with only light wear to the finish and frets.

Designed as a Maple laminate, hollow-body thinline, using a solid Maple neck with Indian Rosewood fingerboard and block markers and faux-tortoise head plate, the Airline H78 features three deArmond pickups with individual on/off toggle switches and individual volume and tone controls. The Bigsby is factory standard on the H78; the H77 did not have the Bigsby. The original bridge would have been a Rosewood floating model – Rosewood for both the base and saddle – and has been replaced with a Tune-O-Matic style adjustable bridge on a floating wooden base. The tuners are original and the B tuner has a slightly bent shaft. The Airline logo has gone missing over the years, though its mounting location is visible; reproduction replacements should be available online.

A non-original hard shell case is included.