1930s Stella Lap Steel Guitar

Update October 2023: this guitar has returned here for resale as the owner is downsizing. I've updated the description where necessary...

This army-green-metallic Stella lap steel arrived at the shop in just-about perfect condition. The wiring harness was almost good but the old pot and jack were cranky so I replaced them and then gave it a light setup to get the strings closer to the poles. After that... ahhh, there's the sound! I love a horseshoe pickup!

It's got a pure, clean, bitey, but sweet voice. It's very much of its age -- and has a singing, clear quality to it that you only get from a good horseshoe-magnet pickup like this. Output is low -- but only around Danelectro levels -- and if you hit it with a medium dose of gain, it breaks-up just-so. At the end of the post you'll find some shots of the pickup itself before I put a new 500k pot and Switchcraft jack in.

This would've been made in the Schmidt factory in New Jersey and was probably a product from their "Fretted Musical Instruments Manufacturers" days in the mid-late '30s as the brand was sold-off to Harmony in '39 (at which point you see the Stella and Sovereign names on Harmony-made boxes). The finish is really hip -- the metallic green, hammered-looking finish is offset by cream and red accents and red dots in the board.

Setup notes: currently it's strung with 46w-10 gauges and tune to open E. Heavier strings would give it a fatter tone, for sure. The bridge is adjustable to allow the player to get a little more height over the pickup poles if desired.

Scale length: 22 3/8"

Nut width: 2"

String spacing at nut: 1 3/4"

String spacing at bridge: 2 1/8"

Body length: 13 1/2"

Top width: 9"

Side depth: 2 1/4"

Bridge: adjustable birch

Weight: 6 lbs 9 oz

Condition notes: it's all-original save jack and volume pot and in excellent condition, with only minor usewear throughout.

It comes with: its original hard case -- I repaired one hinge and it's working just fine, but it does have some wear and tear.