1930s National Trojan Woodbody Resonator Guitar

This is a customer's fun old Trojan. These Nationals had their bodies and necks made by Harmony (which is why it has the usual 25 1/8" Harmony scale length) but their cones, biscuits, and coverplates are pure National fare. I find the build quality can be hit or miss in how they hold-up depending on how hard they've been abused by time, but when you get a good one (like this one), it's pretty surprising how good they can sound. This particular Trojan practically roars when hit with a pick.

Work was the usual stuff for one of these, though of course the ebonized fretboard (which gets sort-of "mealy" over time) proved mildly-frustrating while resetting the neck and getting the frets in order. Post-work it's playing spot-on and is ready to roll.

Repairs included: a neck reset, fret seating and level/dress, cleaning, side dots, bridge modification (made adjustable saddle), setup, etc...

Weight: 5 lbs 10 oz

Scale length: 25 1/8"

Nut width: 1 11/16"

Neck shape: medium-bigger V

Board radius: flat

Body width: 14 1/4"

Body depth: 4 1/8"

Body: ply birch

Cone type: single cone

Bridge: maple biscuit w/adjustable rosewood bridge

Fretboard: ebonized maple

Neck wood: poplar

Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
String gauges: 54w, 40w, 30w, 22w, 16, 12

Truss rod: non-adjustable

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: medium-low

Condition notes: the guitar itself is somewhat dirty and worn in the finish but overall it's come through time decently. It's completely original save a modified saddle of my own improvisation and some side dots which I added.

For a last bit of fun -- here's the original bridge saddle which is a smidge too short after the reset... plus an old mandolin bridge...

...and here's how I fitted the mandolin bridge topper to the old biscuit bridge. It's on wheels to adjust up/down like an archtop on the fly and you can see that I've compensated each string slot for better intonation.

I like this solution because this cone is a little on the fragile side and I expect it to compress down a little as it settles-in under tension again. The extra adjustment room on the bridge saddle will give the owner ease-of-use in dialing in the action as it moves around.

Last but not least, here's a photo of the toneball found inside it...