c.1930 Regal All-Mahogany "Parlor" Guitar

Well here's a curious guitar... and I haven't seen another one like it for a very long time. It's also replacing a guitar that I've put out to pasture in my own collection.

This is Regal-built probably in the late 1920s or early 1930s and sports entirely all-solid mahogany construction, except for the neck, which is some sort of ubiquitous hardwood. It's more than likely that this was played Hawaiian-style for its previous active life, as the frets were tarnished but untouched. I repaired seam separations on the top, repaired a few top cracks, two loose braces, reglued the bridge, and reset the neck, followed by cleaning, setup, etc.

The bracing is very light on these guitars and when I strung it up with pins at the bridge I decided that the top was just not enjoying it, hence my decision to fill the bridge pin holes, install a new bone saddle, and turn it into a tailpiece design. I've borrowed the tailpiece from my parts bin, so it's period... which gives this guitar an almost "factory" look. Check out that pickguard -- pretty cool, huh? -- it's ebony, too.

Headstock bearing the Regal crest.

MOP dots in a dyed (pearwood?) fretboard. Brass frets are like-new and with the neck set, this thing plays absolutely dead on. Sound is big, open, balanced, and sweet... with that typical mahogany mellowness that dampens down some of the harshness with spruce trebles and forces the bass to stay in line.

Soundhole Regal label.

Cool triple-bound soundhole gives a nice contrast, especially since there's no other binding anywhere. Which... I like! Simple and clean.

Previously this was a pin bridge.

Back.

Despite the glare... this has some nice mahogany all over it. This guitar has the almost bizarre addition of a back stripe of black inlaid into it.

Original bakelite-buttoned tuners.

Heel.


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...the color of this guitar is actually a lot more tobacco brown than the reddish tones you're getting here.

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