1960s Regal 235 (Harmony Sovereign H1260) Jumbo Guitar

I sold this a couple weeks ago and forgot to post on it! That's the rate biz has been going at, I suppose. This "Regal" is yet another iteration of the venerable Harmony H1260 Sovereign jumbo flattop, which can be found under at least a dozen or so brands through the '60s and early '70s.

A customer hand-picked this "as-is" from my racks of instruments in storage after we discussed what might be in his price range and what sound he was looking for. A few weeks after that (as I owed the consignor a "slot" in the repair line) he picked it up all done-up and ready to go. If you've owned one of these fixed-up and playing as they should, you'll know that he had a smile on his face when he was playing it -- these sound full, woody, open, and loud.

The top is solid spruce with ladder bracing and the back and sides are solid mahogany. It has a mahogany neck, ebonized maple (or pearwood?) fretboard, and new rosewood bridge. The mahogany on the back has some nice, light figuring throughout.

Repairs included: a neck reset, new custom bridge (same shape as the original, but with pins and a bone saddle), replacement pickguard, fret level/dress, new saddle, strap button at the heel, and setup.

Setup notes: it plays on-the-dot at 3/32" EA and 1/16" DGBE at the 12th fret. I strung it with normal lights. The neck is straight and the truss rod had a good amount of adjustment room left in it.

Condition notes: general finish-checking and finish-cracking throughout, replacement bridge, pins, saddle, and pickguard...









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Comments

Rick VK said…
I have one of these awaiting repairs. I’ve been working on fretted instruments for the past 55+ years, and the Regal Sovereign I have is the only one I’ve seen, and I’ve seen hundreds of the other Harmony branded ones, which have Brazilian rosewood bridges and fingerboards, so I can assume the Regal was a little cheaper, but the guitar is functionally otherwise totally identical. One thing wrong with mine is the ebonized maple bridge self destructed, I think because it was a bad idea using that material for the specific uniquely designed bridges on these things. I like the pin bridge setup you did here. For some weird reason I have a new old stock Brazilian rosewood Harmony Sovereign replacement bridge that’s been in my parts stash since the seventies, and I’m probably going to stick it on my Regal. If I get it right, someone fifty years from now will just think it’s an original wood mismatch from a legendary Chicago sweatshop! I’d love to know how rare this model is, since I’m now looking at only the second one I’ve seen.
February 7, 2026 at 11:34 AM
Jay Feenix said…
I have one of these! Unfortunately the bridge self destructed and I'm in the process of finding a suitable replacement. I absolutely love this guitar. I've used it for busking for years. I busk the old fashioned way, no mics, no amps so both the singer and the guitar need to really belt 'em out! The action on this guitar is super sweet (although the neck width takes a bit of getting used to) and the sound is nothing short of amazing. Although I own more expensive guitars I'll always have a special place in my heart for this one. Is this guitar rare? Is it valuable? Just curious, I have no desire to part with it.

With lots of love, light and positive energy,

Jay (www.feenixmusic.com)
August 27, 2026 at 2:33 PM
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