c.1940s Unmarked Archtop Guitar
Update 2014: Going through old posts... this is 100% a refinished Harmony Patrician or similar.
Wow! About two weeks have passed since my last post. Busy, busy, busy, busy. That's for sure. This is either a 1940s or 1950s archtop that's unmarked. It has rather more petite dimensions than a typical arch and the fretboard is not raised over the body but rather glued to it like a flattop. 25" scale, solid mahogany back, sides, neck, and a tight-grained spruce top add to the tone, which is great and loud. It has tone-bar construction (2 running down the length of the top) as opposed to X bracing, which gives it a very 1930s sound, direct and snappy.
When I got this guitar it had been refinished ho-hum... the top was a "sunburst" of black paint and sandpapered middle which looked a little glum. The back and sides were ok but had thick finish that detracted from the wood, The headstock was a thick black all over. I refinished this guy entirely and after stripping and sanding stained the top a red-brown as the wood underneath was a sort of grey-brown as opposed to a nice honey spruce.
The headplate actually turned out to be some nicely flamed maple under the black paint!
Rosewood fretboard.
Attractively figured (on the edges) bookmatched spruce top.
I used a satin finish to give this a smooth and more modern feel.
Side.
Top down.
Side again.
Action's about 1/8" at the 12th.
Headstock and mahogany neck. A hair of discoloration, but not noticeable.
Back.
Back is one-piece solid mahogany with some nice subtle curly figure in it. Likewise for the sides. Very attractive!
Tailpiece. Did I mention tortoise binding?
Overview.
Comments
http://archtopguitarsale.com
I keep thinking the same thing myself. No labels or names at all, but I'll have another check with my mirror again and a brighter light. It could always be hiding under the grime somewhere in the body.
The truth is that no matter what it is, it cuts like a knife, plays nice, and sounds great.
Liesbeth: I believe it's a carved top, but that the back is probably pressed.
The headstock shape seems different, but all in all: no labels/model numbers, no indication that there ever was any such information, even if just painted on, an obviously pressed back, the top looks too perfect to have been carved, very little evidence of any warping.
The pick-guard looks like it may have been glued at one time to the top and side with no screws used, but it is no longer there. And for the most part, the top and back look like they are flush with the body as if there wasn't any binding used to embellish it.
There are some signs of tack nails used on the back either in its initial build, or possibly a tact-less replacement of the back at some point, though the varnish used seems consistent.
Oy, I could go on about this, but I may just post some pics when I get the chance.