1920s Oscar Schmidt Stella "Grand Concert" (Baritone) Guitar

Overview: This one was a trade-in and it sure is spectacularly well-preserved for an old Oscar Schmidt. These were popular guitars in their time and mostly owned by folks gigging hard with them and so they come down to use pretty beat-up for the most part. This one is gorgeous and all of its decalcomania factory trim is in good order and pretty. While I've worked on plenty of the smaller version of this guitar (0-sized), I've only worked on one or two of this "Grand Concert" version which has a larger body and a long, 26 3/4" scale length. That basically makes these baritone guitars, though most folks tune them down to C or C# range. I've got this strung with mediums and tuned down B to B at the moment.

Interesting features: The decals, of course, are excellent. It's also got a nice sunburst finish with a ruddy-brown color to it. The neck is surprisingly-comfortable despite its big old size and I love this thing tuned to low-pitched open tunings. Like most Schmidts, it's got ladder-bracing and this model has solid birch throughout the body. Its voice is big and warm and woody with decent sustain and a nice "watery warble" sound, in its way, due to the long sustain induced by the longer scale on the plain strings. I like it best fingerpicked but, with a light-medium touch, it sounds excellent as a flatpicker, too.

Repairs included: It arrived with a good neck angle so all I had to do, really, was level/dress the frets, add side dots, modify the bridge so it had a compensated 2nd string ("B" string) slot, and set it up. Because I didn't reset the neck, I hid a small bolt at the neckblock on the inside into the heel just for reassurance. The neck was stable but I do know what the inside of these joints look like (garbage) so it's added safety in my mind. It's playing spot-on and ready to go.

• Weight: 3 lbs 12 oz
• Scale length: 26 3/4"
• Nut width: 1 15/16"
• Neck shape: medium-big V
• Board radius: flat
• Depth at first fret: 63/64"
• Depth at seventh fret: 1 5/64"
• Body width: 14 5/8"
• Body depth: 3 1/2"
• Top wood: solid birch
• Back & sides wood: solid birch
• Bracing type: ladder
• Bridge: floating original maple
• Fretboard: stained maple
• Neck wood: poplar
• Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
• String gauges: 56w-13 tuned BEADF#B baritone
• Truss rod: adjustable
• Neck relief: straight
• Fret style: medium/low

Condition notes: While there are some surface nicks, dings, scratches, and whatnot, it's in much better shape overall than most of these. There are no cracks that I can find, too, and it's completely original throughout. I have under-strung the tailpiece for better downpressure on the saddle but it can be over-strung, too, though I think the better sound with it this way is an improvement over the visual improvement of it being strung "on top."

It comes with: I will include some sort of bag or case with it.

Consignor tag: JW