The Guitar Hunter

Pneumatic Guitar Hero

2011-09-28T20:06:00.002-04:00

You don't need all your friends to come over to play Guitar Hero anymore, just buy yourself one of these setups.

I bet a lot of design and programming hours went into making this thing work.

Product Review - Sanyo Eneloop Pedal Juice

2010-10-26T14:34:00.006-04:00

Why didn't I think of this? I was recently sent this device called the "Sanyo Eneloop Pedal Juice" to evaluate. It's a 9V rechargeable lithium-ion battery that can power several effect pedals. It comes encased in a pedalboard friendly enclosure that will fit most setups and it’s water resistant. I'll include some more of my own photos when I have a chance.

The Pedal Juice has a front-lit LED that indicates the power level of the battery. A red light means battery power is less than 30%, an orange light means battery power is between 30% – 60%, and a green light means battery power is above 60%. When I turned it on right out of the box, the battery was below 30%. I plugged it in to charge it and following the instructions left it alone for a few hours.

My first test was with my old Digitech RP200 unit and the plug won't work (I think the pin on the RP unit is larger than what the Sanyo Pedal Juice will accept). I pulled out some other units I don't use much anymore just for testing.

The Pedal Juice has two DC 9V outputs with a maximum output of 2,000mA with negative polarity. To hook up more than 2 pedals you will need to come up with some extra cables that are not included with the unit. The user guide stresses very clearly how important it is to make sure you are not plugging in pedals with positive polarity to the device. It does come with a polarization cable unit to use with any pedals you may have that require it.

I really like the size, convience, and noise reduction capabilities (AC electrical noises or hums) that this unit offers. I didn't test it fully to discharge, but it is supposed to last up to 50 hours with one effect pedal. I'd fully recommend this product to anyone that wants to get a cleaner setup and maybe save on battery cost.

You can find more information and where to buy information on their website. us.sanyo.com/Pedal-Juice

Product Review - Castiv Guitar Grip for Media Players

2010-10-03T16:01:00.005-04:00

I was recently sent this device called the "Sidekick" which is media player holder to evaluate. I tried it out with my Ipod Touch and an old smart phone for my test. Please forgive me for the poor pictures since I had some issues with my normal camera and had to use the camera on my phone to take these. I will try and replace these pictures soon so you can get a better idea how the device works.

I used several different styles of guitars and neck arrangements to see how the device might deal with various string arrangements and angles. It held on tight to all the guitars I tried and the only thing I noticed was with heavier gauge strings it didn't seem to be as tight. With all the guitar related apps available this thing could really come in handy during practice sessions.

Front of package

Back of package

6 on a side hockey stick style neck

6 on a side strat/tele style neck

3x3 style neck

You can find more information and ordering information on their website. www.castiv.com

Sorry for the lack of new guitars lately

2010-08-10T20:59:00.009-04:00

Sorry that I haven't posted much for a while. My wife just opened her own office and I've been busy helping with that. I even dusted off my website design skills and put together her website, www.periodayton.com, so check it out. If you're in the area call and make an appointment. If you're not in the area, you can make an appointment as well. I even placed a link on the page to help you out if you are from outside the general area. She's the first dentist in the area doing LANAP, a revolution in the treatment of gum disease.

Once things do settle down I'll be back to posting. I've been able to acquire some interesting models and I'll be getting those up soon.

United Airlines Breaks Guitars Part 3

2010-03-11T07:00:00.003-05:00

A while back I posted the story of United Airlines breaking the guitar of Canadian artist Dave Carroll. He has written 3 songs about the mishap and has just posted the final video of the trilogy. I like the line in this song where he sings "United broke my career". I would like to know how much this mishap has meant to Dave's overall career.

Here's a link to the first part of the story.

If you want the entire story, you can find it at Dave's Website.

1980's Kawai M-1000 Moonsault

2009-11-20T19:00:00.002-05:00

I don't own this guitar, but I've written about the Moonsault a few times in other postings so I thought I'd include some information and pictures of one.

The MoonSault became one of the most popular models in Japan marketed by Kawai. As far as I know, no significant attempt was ever made to market MoonSaults in the U.S. It's one of the more unique guitar shapes ever created! This is the ULTIMATE ART GUITAR and from its introduction the MOONSAULT became a benchmark for guitar styling. Once you see one, you never forget it and they play great too.

Many MoonSault models were produced after 1975. The MS-700 was produced from December of 1982 through April 1983. The tell-tale blue/silver burst finish clearly dates it to that time. This was when Gibson and other companies were producing similar metallic sunburst guitars.

This is a great-playing, comfortable guitar, extremely well-made, with premium materials. Standing, it gives you a great image, and if you like to play sitting down, the moon shape cradles nicely in your lap. Like many other Japanese guitars of this time, the electronics are designed to give you a great deal of tonal flexibility. The guitar has a master volume with individual tone controls for each pickup. Each tone pot is push/pull, yielding coil tapping on one and phase reversal on the other. The wide fine-tune bridge was very popular in the early 1980's, and provides easy, stable intonation.

The rage for silverburst guitars was pretty short-lived, lasting only a few years at best, and this MS-700 was soon replaced by other MoonSault models. Sales of MoonSaults, however, were brisk enough to keep the model in production through the 1990s. At the end of the run there was even a clear plexiglass tribute model. By the late 1980's, the dollar/yen conversion rate was so unfavorable that Japanese companies could not afford to export to the U.S. and the age of Korean guitars began. High-end guitarmakers continued to produce guitars in Japan, but for the most part they are for domestic consumption only while budget guitars hailed from Korea, China, or elsewhere.

How many MoonSaults were made is unknown. Because they weren't marketed in the U.S. export numbers would be small. If the few that show up on the market are any guide, they're rare.

ABOUT THE INSTRUMENT PICTURED:

As best I can determine, this guitar was made in 1982/1983 (making it one of the originals.

MODEL: MS-1000, MLY (Moon Light Yellow).

BODY: Solid mahogany painted in “yellow burst” finish.

BODY SHAPE: CRESCENT MOON

BODY FINISH: Has poly finish with few scratches, wear spots, and some broken finish marks and cracks which give it pure character. There is slight damage at the top of the body that seems to have come from the guitar hitting something.

NECK: Set one piece mahogany neck. There is a slight crack near the HEADSTOCK which has been professionally repaired.

FRETBOARD: The fretboard is made of Indian rosewood and is well dressed with jumbo frets that are well honed. It has 22 Frets with a Scale of 24 ¾”. Beautiful moonphase Mother of Pearl inlays.

HEADSTOCK: The heatstock is bound and has wonderful celestial mother of pearl inlays (the cresent moon inlay matches the body).

TUNERS: Grover 102N

BRIDGE: “Leo Quan badass” (Made in Germany)

PICKUPS: Two (2) original "Aluminum shielded Kawai DSU humbuckers”

CONTROLS/SWITCHES: Three knobs, one 3 way, and 4 other switches.

PICKGUARD: Crystal

BODY INLAY: Beautiful inlaid binding on top of the body.

1960's Kay Vanguard K102 Guitar

2009-11-13T20:00:00.006-05:00

This is probabaly a late 1960's Kay model based on the information I've found. It is a Vanguard model K102 with two DeArmond pickups (sometimes called the Vanguard 2) and they also came as the K100 with a single DeArmond pickup. Kay also produced these guitars for the Western Auto chain and badged them with the Truetone name and for Spiegel Catalog and badged them with the Old Kraftsman name.

Kay became the second-largest producer of inexpensive guitars and related instruments in Chicago behind Harmony. Both Harmony and Kay mass-produced many thousands of instruments under catalog brand names such as Silvertone (Sears), Airline (Montgomery Ward) and many others. The original Kay Musical Instrument Company in Chicago went out of business in 1968, but the name is still active, licensed to a line of cheap instruments from Asia.

You can find a lot of information on Kay guitars at the
King Of Kays

1960's Teisco Del Rey EP-8T Hollow Body

2009-10-23T19:00:00.001-04:00

This is a late 1960's Teisco thinline Hollowbody guitar in the Gibson ES style. The model number listed on the back nameplate is the EP-8T with the T in the model number for the tremolo. The guitar is in very good shape although it's missing the original nameplate and the bridge has been changed out for a modern style. The Tremolo bar is also missing and the spring itself is missing. With the hole in the trussrod pocket it seems this guitar has spent part of it's life as a wall hanger. It has the usual fussy switches and pots that you'll find on a 40 year old guitar that hasn't been restored.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Silvertone (Teisco) 1435 Two Pickup Guitar

2009-10-16T20:00:00.000-04:00

The Silvertone 1435 guitar was part of the mid 1960's offerings of Teisco by way of Sears. Since they were never listed in any major seasonal Sears catalogs from that era they must have been offered only in select stores. Being as there are no catalog references, the only other resource is Teisco info from that period of time which is scarce as well. It appears this guitar is based on the MJ-2L model that was available from Teisco under their name. Most Teiscos sported striped metal pickguards from 1965 on so we can use this as a general guide for dating these guitars. This one is complete except for the missing namebadge and even has the hard to find Tremolo bar.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1990's Tradition Guitars Michael Angelo Batio "No Boundaries" Guitar

2009-10-09T20:00:00.000-04:00

Very rare early Michael Angelo Batio signature guitar from Tradition Guitars "No Boundaries" series that is marked NB1M on the back sticker with an original price of $389.50. Although the "No Boundaries" CD was released in 1995 this guitar isn't that old since Tradition Guitars was founded in 1998. It is one the cleanest used guitars I've ever found. I think it was purchased and played just a few times and put away. My guess is that these are the original GHS strings that came on the guitar.

I found the following specifications for the guitar;
Solid Alder Body - A favorite choice of luthiers for many years. Alder is resonant, accepts laquer well and is less susceptible to cracking than many other hard woods.

North American Maple Necks - Used on all tradition guitars and basses, this choice wood has been favored by every great builder. No substitutes, no "mystery" wood, only the best possible neck wood available.

Indian Rosewood Fretboard - Why only Indian rosewood? The fingerboard represents up to 40% of the rigidity factor for a guitar neck. Indian rosewood can be dried efficiently and tends to be less susceptible to twisting. It also contains less moisture and oil resin that can compromise the ability to secure frets.

Die Cast Tuners - These tuners last longer and are smoother to the touch than open or covered gears. Ours cost more, but are worth the end result.

High Output Pickups - All pickups are potted for low noise. This potting process eliminates the "microphonic" tendencies you find in many other pickups. The single coil pickups have Alnico-5 magnets for higher output. The result is a pickup you can compare to any other on the market.

Dunlop Fret Wire - We use Dunlop fret wire to insure consistent quality and long life for our guitars and basses.

GHS Strings - All tradition guitars and basses come with first quality GHS strings.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

United Airlines Breaks Guitars Part 2

2009-09-08T07:00:00.003-04:00

A while back I posted the story of United Airlines breaking the guitar of Canadian artist Dave Carroll. He has written 3 songs about the mishap and has just posted the 2nd video. I liked the first one better than this, but it's still entertaining.

Here's a link to the first part of the story.

If you want the entire story, you can find it at Dave's Website.

1990's Squier Stratocaster by Fender

2009-09-01T07:00:00.001-04:00

This is a black Squier Stratocaster by Fender with white pickguard that was built in 1997 in China. Great entry level guitar in the style of the classic Strat.

1960's Audition (Kawai or Teisco) 2 Pickup Electric

2009-08-28T19:00:00.003-04:00

This is a 2nd unknown Audition model 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The first one I posted had a roller type of bridge and this one has a solid plastic type of bridge. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project. Audition guitars were distributed in the US and UK by the Woolworth chain. Many of the ones I've seen have the goldfoil pickups just like this one has. It's most likely that this guitar was built by Kawai seeing as how the quality appears to be higher than that seen in a typical Teisco.

Kawai was founded in 1927 by Koichi Kawai in Hamamatsu, Japan. Mr. Kawai's vision was to create top-quality pianos, a quest in which he certainly succeeded! Kawai added guitars to its line around 1954 and eventually became a player in the 1960s Guitar Boom. Like many Japanese electric guitars, most early Kawai guitars were slightly frumpy, although the impression is that their electronics were a little better than most. Often accused of supplying more flash than substance, there are Kawai guitars that are of high quality, playability and design.

Probably the most prominent brand names in the U.S. manufactured by Kawai were TeleStar, whose sparkle models have a small but devoted following, Kimberly, and Domino. Kawai also built guitars for Saint Lous music in the 1960's and 1970's under their brand name Apollo.

In January of 1967 Kawai purchased the Teisco guitar company, but they appear to have operated the two companies pretty much separately. Both lines featured exclusive designs and different pickups. Teisco continued the vector of evolution it had taken, ending up with the Spectrums and finally the mini-Strats, before become the Kay brand in the U.S.

In 1968 both Kawai and Teisco freaked out. Kawai produced models such as the axe-shaped Concert, plus a variety of unusual VS violin-bodied guitars (including one with 16 strings and its own pickup mounted parallel to the strings, whether sympathetic or strummed, who knows?), the Splender, shaped like a banjo, and another model shaped like a sitar. For Teisco, 1968 was the year that gave us the famous artist-palette-shaped May Queen, wildly flared, asymmetrical Fire Bird, and long-horn Phantom. One other company, Firstman (unrelated to Kawai), produced a model similar to the Concert called the Liverpool.

One of my blog readers sent me these two pictures of what we believe to be the rare Splender model (Thanks James!)

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Harmony Bobkat Bobcat H15

2009-08-25T07:00:00.004-04:00

It's a 1966 (from the pickguard date) Harmony Bobkat (Bobcat) electric with two DeArmond goldfoil pickups originally although the bridge pickup has been removed. The neck is straight with low action and a rosewood fretboard. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for the missing pickup and the modified pickguard. I previously owned a H15V model that also had the finish removed but hadn't received a urethane finish.

Harmony BobKat's were produced starting in 1966. There were many versions of the Bobkat including the H14 (single pickup sunburst) , H15 (double pickup sunburst), H15V (double pickup sunburst with vibrato), and H17(double pickup with red sunburst and vibrato) among other models.

Here's a site with a bit more information and pictures.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1970's Japanese Ranger Electric with Goldfoil pickup

2009-07-28T07:00:00.004-04:00

I acquired this guitar in July 2009 and it is a unknown Ranger model single pickup Electric Guitar from the 1970's I believe. The guitar is in nice condition and all original as far as I can tell except for the missing nut. Nice straight neck with a huge headstock that is seen on many guitars from the 1960's and 1970's. It reminds me a lot of the Telestar guitars from the 1960's which were made by Kawai. The great thing about this guitar is the goldfoil pickup which were found on some of the 1960's and 1970's Japanese guitars. I have also come across another almost identical model that was labeled Crestline but I'm sure they were made in the same Japanese factory.

Crestline guitars were built in Japan from the mid to late 1970s and distributed by the Grossman Music Corporation of Cleveland, OH. They are entry level to intermediate solid body guitars featured designs based on classic American favorites. Crestline offered a wide range of stringed instruments, including classical, folk, dreadnought, and twelve-string acoustics; solid body electric guitars and basses; amplifiers; banjos, mandolins, and ukuleles. Considering the amount of instruments available, the Crestline trademark was probably used on guitars built by one of the bigger Japanese guitar producers and rebranded for the U.S. market. One model reviewed at a vintage guitar show was based on Gibson's Les Paul design, and had Grover tuners, two Japanese covered humbuckers, and decent wood.

Guitar Lovers Beware of United Airlines

2009-07-09T07:54:00.008-04:00

While I'm taking a break from posting information about my guitar hunts I thought I'd share this story with you. Dave Carroll of the band Sons of Maxwell had his $3,500 Taylor acoustic destroyed by United Airlines baggage handlers. He's planning to write 3 songs and produce videos for them and here's the first.

If you want the entire story, you can find it at Dave's Website.

Teisco Tulip with Unique Pickups and Pickguard

2009-06-23T07:00:00.005-04:00

This is my third Teisco tulip style guitar and although it isn't marked I believe it to also be a ET-200 model from the 1960's with 2 pickups. Unlike the others I posted, it has a different style of pickups and pickguard than you typically see. It does have the tremelo arm which seems to be missing on most of these guitars you see up for sale. Other than that it appears to be mostly complete except for the missing knobs.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's TeleStar Kawai Single Pickup Guitar

2009-06-16T07:00:00.005-04:00

It is a unknown Telestar model single pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's. The guitar is in great condition and all original as far as I can tell. Nice straight neck with a huge headstock that is seen on many guitars from the 1960's.

Kawai was founded in 1927 by Koichi Kawai in Hamamatsu, Japan. Mr. Kawai's vision was to create top-quality pianos, a quest in which he certainly succeeded! Kawai added guitars to its line around 1954 and eventually became a player in the 1960s Guitar Boom. Like many Japanese electric guitars, most early Kawai guitars were slightly frumpy, although the impression is that their electronics were a little better than most. Often accused of supplying more flash than substance, there are Kawai guitars that are of high quality, playability and design.

Probably the most prominent brand names in the U.S. manufactured by Kawai were TeleStar, whose sparkle models have a small but devoted following, Kimberly, and Domino. Kawai also built guitars for Saint Lous music in the 1960's and 1970's under their brand name Apollo.

In January of 1967 Kawai purchased the Teisco guitar company, but they appear to have operated the two companies pretty much separately. Both lines featured exclusive designs and different pickups. Teisco continued the vector of evolution it had taken, ending up with the Spectrums and finally the mini-Strats, before become the Kay brand in the U.S.

In 1968 both Kawai and Teisco freaked out. Kawai produced models such as the axe-shaped Concert, plus a variety of unusual VS violin-bodied guitars (including one with 16 strings and its own pickup mounted parallel to the strings, whether sympathetic or strummed, who knows?), the Splender, shaped like a banjo, and another model shaped like a sitar. For Teisco, 1968 was the year that gave us the famous artist-palette-shaped May Queen, wildly flared, asymmetrical Fire Bird, and long-horn Phantom. One other company, Firstman (unrelated to Kawai), produced a model similar to the Concert called the Liverpool.

One of my blog readers sent me these two pictures of what we believe to be the rare Splender model (Thanks James!)

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1970's Univox Gimme Les Paul Copy

2009-06-12T19:00:00.005-04:00

I acquired this guitar in April 2008 and it has a market value of $112. I was told it was a Univox with natural finish that had been painted because of the "ugly" color that the finish had yellowed to over time. I was also told that the pickups had been replaced and were thought to be Seymour Duncan pickups now. I replaced the missing knobs with generic speed knobs in black to match the pickups. It really sounds good now and you might even be able to remove the paint to get back to the original finish.

Univox is a defunct American musical instrument and amplifier manufacturer. In the early 1960s the Unicord Corporation, a manufacturer of electronic transformers purchased the Amplifier Corporation of America of Westbury, New York. They began marketing a line of amplifiers under the name of Univox. The company was purchased by Gulf + Western in 1967.

Guitar making operations moved to Japan in 1975 where they continued making guitars until 1982. Production under the Univox name was halted after a fire at the Matsumoku factory. After this time instruments were made in Korea under the name Westbury. The Unicord Corporation was purchased by Korg in 1985, effectively ending the line for good.

Univox was best known for making copies of instruments from better known companies such as Mosrite, Fender, Gibson, Rickenbacker, Ampeg/Dan Armstrong, Epiphone and others. These copies are often referred to as lawsuit copies among collectors. The Univox Hi-Flier was largely based on the Mosrite "Ventures" guitar; it was popularized in the early 1990s by Kurt Cobain, almost two decades after original production had stopped.

1960's Kawai Teisco Guitar Body with Goldfoil Pickups

2009-06-09T07:00:00.002-04:00

I belive this is a Kawai built Telestar or Kimberly guitar from the 1960's but since the neck is missint I can't confirm the manufacturer. It is surely a Japanese built guitar from the 1960's based on other clues such as the goldfoil pickups that were so common back then. Other than some chrome loss and the missing bridge it complete.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

Kawai was founded in 1927 by Koichi Kawai in Hamamatsu, Japan. Mr. Kawai's vision was to create top-quality pianos, a quest in which he certainly succeeded! Kawai added guitars to its line around 1954 and eventually became a player in the 1960s Guitar Boom. Like many Japanese electric guitars, most early Kawai guitars were slightly frumpy, although the impression is that their electronics were a little better than most. Often accused of supplying more flash than substance, there are Kawai guitars that are of high quality, playability and design.

Probably the most prominent brand names in the U.S. manufactured by Kawai were TeleStar, whose sparkle models have a small but devoted following, Kimberly, and Domino. Kawai also built guitars for Saint Lous music in the 1960's and 1970's under their brand name Apollo.

In January of 1967 Kawai purchased the Teisco guitar company, but they appear to have operated the two companies pretty much separately. Both lines featured exclusive designs and different pickups. Teisco continued the vector of evolution it had taken, ending up with the Spectrums and finally the mini-Strats, before become the Kay brand in the U.S.

In 1968 both Kawai and Teisco freaked out. Kawai produced models such as the axe-shaped Concert, plus a variety of unusual VS violin-bodied guitars (including one with 16 strings and its own pickup mounted parallel to the strings, whether sympathetic or strummed, who knows?), the Splender, shaped like a banjo, and another model shaped like a sitar. For Teisco, 1968 was the year that gave us the famous artist-palette-shaped May Queen, wildly flared, asymmetrical Fire Bird, and long-horn Phantom. One other company, Firstman (unrelated to Kawai), produced a model similar to the Concert called the Liverpool.

One of my blog readers sent me these two pictures of what we believe to be the rare Splender model (Thanks James!)

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Teisco Tulip 2 Pickup Electric

2009-06-05T19:00:00.004-04:00

This is my second Teisco tulip and although it isn't marked I believe it to also be a ET-200 model from the 1960's with 2 pickups. Unlike the one I posted a while back, it is missing the tremelo arm which seems to be missing on most of these guitars you see up for sale. Other than that it appears to be mostly complete except for the missing tone knob.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Teisco Solid Body Electric with Goldfoil Pickup

2009-06-02T07:00:00.004-04:00

It is an unknown Teisco model electric guitar from the 1960's with a single goldfoil pickup. The biggest negative on this guitar is that Brandons dad used his new fathers day or Christmas wood burning gift to carve out a personal message on the backside of the guitar..

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1920's - 1940's Vintage Strad-O-Lin (Stradolin) Mandolin

2009-05-29T19:00:00.002-04:00

I acquired this mandolin in the spring of 2009 and even with the water damage it still had a market value of $96. I would expect a similar mandolin in better condition would be 2-3 times more valuable.

This is an original Strad-O-Lin Mandolin from somewhere between 1920 and 1950. It's complete and except for the water damage on the end it's in great shape. Although it has the damage, it's still playable and has a great warm sound.

Strad-O-Lin was a company started in the 1920's that made cheap mandolins and was bought in the late 1950's by Multivox/Premier when they then expanded into guitars and other instruments.

1980's Memphis Strat - SG Copy

2009-05-26T07:00:00.004-04:00

this is a Memphis copy of the Fender Stratocaster with a little Gibson SG thrown in probably from the late 1980's. It is a very accurate Japanese copy and has a great sound from the vintage pickups.

I found some conflicting information on Memphis guitars in my research. One place mentionted that Memphis Guitars is a defunct subsidiary of Yamaha that produced guitars during the late 1970s and early 1980s. It said the company started when Yamaha saw an opportunity in the demand for Gibson style guitars. Yamaha formed Memphis Guitars to be a cheap affordable, guitar that had an in-demand style (much the same way Fender guitars make a cheaper version known as Squire and Gibson does with Epiphone). In the mid 1980's Gibson noticed that Memphis guitars where using their designs and sued. Memphis guitars then ceased production. Many people suggest that Yamaha foresaw the lawsuit and started Memphis Guitars as a way of avoiding a lawsuit against Yamaha while selling poorly-made guitars for a quick profit.

Other sources indicate that Memphis guitars were imported by the Kaman Music Corportation of Bloomfield CT which was sold to Fender in 2007. You can find information on warranty on the Kaman website so this does make some sense to me. Kaman owns Ovation Guitars, Hamer Guitars, Genz Benz Amplification, Gibraltar Hardware, LP Percussion and Toca Percussion. The company is also the exclusive U.S. sales representative for Sabian Cymbals and the exclusive worldwide distributor of Takamine Guitars and Gretsch Drums. Maybe the earlier Gibson copies were made by Yamaha and later sold the name to Kaman? If you know the entire history of this model, email me so I can make corrections.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Norma EG 408-2TK Electric Guitar

2009-05-22T19:00:00.005-04:00

This is a Norma model EG-405-2 Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

NORMA HISTORY: Normas were built in Japan between 1965 to 1970 by the Tombo Company and distributed in the U.S. by Strum´N Drum, Inc. of Chicago, Illinois. The company specialized in copying Italian guitars like EKO and Goya and sold them in the U.S.A as NORMA's. The most blatant EKO copy is the SDEG 490-4, a guitar that confused the heck out of MANY. The Tombo Company is still in business, but these days they specialize in harmonica production.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1970's Crestline Goldfoil MIJ

2009-05-19T07:00:00.005-04:00

It is a unknown Crestline model single pickup Electric Guitar from the 1970's with a single goldfoil pickup. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickup and I've already used it for another project.

Crestline guitars were built in Japan from the mid to late 1970s and distributed by the Grossman Music Corporation of Cleveland, OH. They are entry level to intermediate solid body guitars featured designs based on classic American favorites. Crestline offered a wide range of stringed instruments, including classical, folk, dreadnought, and twelve-string acoustics; solid body electric guitars and basses; amplifiers; banjos, mandolins, and ukuleles. Considering the amount of instruments available, the Crestline trademark was probably used on guitars built by one of the bigger Japanese guitar producers and rebranded for the U.S. market. One model reviewed at a vintage guitar show was based on Gibson's Les Paul design, and had Grover tuners, two Japanese covered humbuckers, and decent wood.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Audition (Kawai or Teisco) 2 Pickup Electric

2009-05-15T19:00:00.003-04:00

It is a unknown Audition model 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project. Audition guitars were distributed in the US and UK by the Woolworth chain. Many of the ones I've seen have the goldfoil pickups just like this one has. It's most likely that this guitar was built by Kawai seeing as how the quality appears to be higher than that seen in a typical Teisco.

Kawai was founded in 1927 by Koichi Kawai in Hamamatsu, Japan. Mr. Kawai's vision was to create top-quality pianos, a quest in which he certainly succeeded! Kawai added guitars to its line around 1954 and eventually became a player in the 1960s Guitar Boom. Like many Japanese electric guitars, most early Kawai guitars were slightly frumpy, although the impression is that their electronics were a little better than most. Often accused of supplying more flash than substance, there are Kawai guitars that are of high quality, playability and design.

Probably the most prominent brand names in the U.S. manufactured by Kawai were TeleStar, whose sparkle models have a small but devoted following, Kimberly, and Domino. Kawai also built guitars for Saint Lous music in the 1960's and 1970's under their brand name Apollo.

In January of 1967 Kawai purchased the Teisco guitar company, but they appear to have operated the two companies pretty much separately. Both lines featured exclusive designs and different pickups. Teisco continued the vector of evolution it had taken, ending up with the Spectrums and finally the mini-Strats, before become the Kay brand in the U.S.

In 1968 both Kawai and Teisco freaked out. Kawai produced models such as the axe-shaped Concert, plus a variety of unusual VS violin-bodied guitars (including one with 16 strings and its own pickup mounted parallel to the strings, whether sympathetic or strummed, who knows?), the Splender, shaped like a banjo, and another model shaped like a sitar. For Teisco, 1968 was the year that gave us the famous artist-palette-shaped May Queen, wildly flared, asymmetrical Fire Bird, and long-horn Phantom. One other company, Firstman (unrelated to Kawai), produced a model similar to the Concert called the Liverpool.

One of my blog readers sent me these two pictures of what we believe to be the rare Splender model (Thanks James!)

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Knox (Teisco) Small Pickguard 2 Pickup Electric

2009-05-12T07:00:00.005-04:00

It is a unknown Knox model 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. I have a second Knox guitar that is very similar to this one but with a much larger pickguard. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Teisco ET-200 2 Pickup Electric Tulip

2009-05-08T19:00:00.009-04:00

It is a Teisco ET-200 model 2 pickup electric guitar from the 1960's with 2 pickups. These guitars are also sometimes called a tulip guitar because fo the body shape. It still has the tremelo arm which seems to be missing on most of these guitars you see up for sale. The biggest negative on this guitar is that the original bridge is missing and someone has made a wooden one to replace the original metal bridge.

Here's a video of someone playing a rare red ET-200 Teisco.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

This guitar will be sold on ebay soon. Check my about me page for the ebay listing.

1960's Kimberly (Kawai) 2 Pickup Electric

2009-05-05T07:00:00.001-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $115. It's a Kimberly 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's and there's no model number to be found on it anywhere. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

Kawai was founded in 1927 by Koichi Kawai in Hamamatsu, Japan. Mr. Kawai's vision was to create top-quality pianos, a quest in which he certainly succeeded! Kawai added guitars to its line around 1954 and eventually became a player in the 1960s Guitar Boom. Like many Japanese electric guitars, most early Kawai guitars were slightly frumpy, although the impression is that their electronics were a little better than most. Often accused of supplying more flash than substance, there are Kawai guitars that are of high quality, playability and design.

Probably the most prominent brand names in the U.S. manufactured by Kawai were TeleStar, whose sparkle models have a small but devoted following, Kimberly, and Domino. Kawai also built guitars for Saint Lous music in the 1960's and 1970's under their brand name Apollo.

In January of 1967 Kawai purchased the Teisco guitar company, but they appear to have operated the two companies pretty much separately. Both lines featured exclusive designs and different pickups. Teisco continued the vector of evolution it had taken, ending up with the Spectrums and finally the mini-Strats, before become the Kay brand in the U.S.

In 1968 both Kawai and Teisco freaked out. Kawai produced models such as the axe-shaped Concert, plus a variety of unusual VS violin-bodied guitars (including one with 16 strings and its own pickup mounted parallel to the strings, whether sympathetic or strummed, who knows?), the Splender, shaped like a banjo, and another model shaped like a sitar. For Teisco, 1968 was the year that gave us the famous artist-palette-shaped May Queen, wildly flared, asymmetrical Fire Bird, and long-horn Phantom. One other company, Firstman (unrelated to Kawai), produced a model similar to the Concert called the Liverpool.

Silvertone 1448 Amp-in-Case Guitar (Sears)

2009-05-01T19:00:00.012-04:00

I acquired this set in March 2009 and it has a market value of $290 in it's current condition. It is an original Silvertone 1448 guitar with amp-in-case. This guitar has a 2-bolt neck attachment, which seems to indicate it is an early 1962 production model. The fretboard is approximately 15.75 inches long and has 18 frets. The guitar is complete, with the exception of a small screw missing from the pickguard and the rosewood bridge. The amp shows chassis number 185-10010 and appears to contain the original tubes. The Outer Case has been poorly repaired, with old tape on two corners and some small nails on one of those corners. One hinge has been replaced with a piece of leather screwed into the body. There are signs of corrosion on the Metal Parts of the case and one plastic foot is missing from the case.

The 1448 is considered by some to be the guitar of guitars. It has a single lipstick tube pickup with masonite/pine body and a swoopy headstock with vinyl sidewalls a metal nut, adjustable bridge, and the amplifier built into sturdy case. The 1448 is the one; the guitar that pretty much sums up the entire Dano/Silvertone philosophy in one package. It's the guitar you certainly see the most of and that's because Sears sold a boatload of them from 1962 until 1966 or so, when they were replaced by the 1451.

This package first appeared in the Sears catalog in the Fall/Winter 1962 edition. The following is straight from the catalog description: Electric Guitar and case with built-in amplifier. Imagine all this plus a 45-rpm how-to-play record at one low price. You get a fine quality single pickup guitar with tone and volume controls. Brazillian rosewood fingerboard. Solid center body. Handsome simulated leather covered hardboard case with its own built-in amplifier and big 5 inch speaker. 2 tubes plus rectifier for good tone plus plenty of volume. $67.95 cash!!!!

It is the preferred guitar of Dexter Romweber, Cat Power and Beck, and the secret weapon for guitarists the world over. Ladies and gentlemen, the elegant awesomeness of the Silvertone 1448. A true master stroke of genius from Nathan Daniel and Joe Fisher.

And here's a video to someone playing a Silvertone 1448.

1960's Melody (Teisco) 2 Pickup Electric

2009-04-28T07:00:00.001-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $85. It is a unknown Melody model 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

2004 Fender Toronado Deluxe

2009-04-24T19:00:00.002-04:00

I acquired this guitar in January 2009 and it has a market value of $475. It is a Fender Toronado Electric from 2004 that was made in Mexico. This thing plays well and sounds nice and everything works great. The Toronado features two humbucking pickups, alder body, maple bolt-on neck, and rosewood fretboard. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original. This guitar does have a few minor nicks and dings in the finish that are hard to show in photos with a black guitar.

The Toronado is an electric guitar made by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation produced from 1998-2006. Introduced at NAMM in 1998, it is a part of the "Deluxe Series" Fenders which are produced in Mexico, generally to higher specs than most "Standard" models. The Toronado features two humbucking pickups, alder body, maple bolt-on neck, rosewood fretboard, and four control knobs (x2 volume, x2 tone) with Adjusto-Matic Bridge with Anchored-Tailpiece. The headstock features the famous Fender "spaghetti" logo and sports vintage style Gotoh/Kluson tuners. The body shape shadows the older Jazzmaster and Jaguar guitars. It has a 24 3/4" scale length like most Gibson electrics.

1960's Knox (Teisco) 2 pickup electric

2009-04-21T07:00:00.002-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $75. It is a unknown Knox model 2 pickup Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

1980's Westone XA1630 Genesis II

2009-04-17T19:00:00.006-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $91. It's a Westone Genesis II XA1630 from the 1980's. This model was produced in the Matsumoku Factory for the 65th anniversary of St. Louis Music. This thing plays well and sounds great and everything seems to work. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original except I did replace a bad output jack. This guitar does have some nicks and dings in the finish as shown in the pictures. Note: Back cover plate, stringlock washers and bolts, whammy bar and Allen key holder from the headstock are all missing

Body is solid Poplar, Canadian Hard Rock Maple neck, Rosewood 350mm radius fingerboard (25.5 inch scale, 22 frets, 18% Nickel Silver), and graphite nut.

H/S/S pickups (All are Magnaflux V, 2 in the bridge position), 5 way switch, master volume and master tone controls, Mid/Shape control. Bendmaster Deluxe tremelo with fine tuners and locking nut.

Available in White Burgundy, Burgundy Pearl or Platinum Blue Burst

(Info from the 1987 'Limited Editions' catalogue) Appears in the april 1987 US pricelist at $499 and in the Sept 1987 and Jan 1988 US pricelists at $449

Electra guitars were imported from Japan by St. Louis Music from 1971-1984. Most of the instruments were made by Matsumoku in Matsumoto Japan. The Electra line replaces SLM's Japanese made Apollo and US made Custom Kraft lines. The first guitar, simply called The Electra, was a copy of the Ampeg Dan Armstrong lucite guitar and issued in 1971, followed quickly by a variety of bolt-neck copies of other brands. In 1975 the Tree-of-Life guitars debut with a leaf pattern carved into the top, and the Electra line expanded to 25 models. Open-book headstocks changed to wave or fan shape by 1978. By around 1981 ties with Matsumoku further solidified and decision eventually made to merge SLM's Electra brand with Matsumoku's Westone brand. Some Korean production began in the early 80's. In the fall of 1983, the Electra Brand becomes Electra Phoenix. By the beginning of 1984, the brand became Electra-Westone and by the end of 1984 just Westone. By 1987 or 1988 Singer Sewing Machines had bought Matsumoku and killed guitar production. SLM changed the brand to Alvarez (it's acoustic brand) and switched production to other plants, including Korea.

SLM was even competing with itself. Bernard Kornblum's Saint Louis Music (SLM) Electra brand competed with his own brother David Kornblum's California based Pacific Coast Music (PCM) Electra brand yet the two were not connected. Pacific Coast Music's Electra logo was nearly identical to the SLM Electra logo from 1972 to 1975 except instead of the SLM gold text, a black text on a white background was used. Both companies often imported from the same source. Pacific Coast often have an X on the headstock or the pickguard. In general, most favour the SLM versions to the PCM ones and the documentation and models are better represented by the SLM versions.

1960's Norma EG 405-2 (Teisco)

2009-04-14T07:00:00.005-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $135. It is a Norma model EG-405-2 Electric Guitar from the 1960's with 2 goldfoil pickups. The prize on this guitar is the goldfoil pickups and I've already used them for another project.

NORMA HISTORY: Normas were built in Japan between 1965 to 1970 by the Tombo Company and distributed in the U.S. by Strum´N Drum, Inc. of Chicago, Illinois. The company specialized in copying Italian guitars like EKO and Goya and sold them in the U.S.A as NORMA's. The most blatant EKO copy is the SDEG 490-4, a guitar that confused the heck out of MANY. The Tombo Company is still in business, but these days they specialize in harmonica production.

1960's Sears Silvertone Model 1406 Mosrite Copy

2009-04-10T19:00:00.006-04:00

I picked up this guitar in February 2009 and it has a market value of $80.99. This is a Sears Silvertone Electric Guitar Model 1406 from the late 1960's. The sticker on the back of the headstock was there when I found the guitar. Based on the headstock I believe this is actually a late 1960's model. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar does have some nicks and dings in the finish as well as some crazing that is common in a vintage guitar. The pots are a bit scratchy and the knobs have chips/cracks in them but everything seems to work.

This is a late 60's early 70's Silvertone made by Teisco of Japan. This is a similar to the Mosrite or maybe a bit of Stratocaster. It's a small student/child size guitar. Teisco made guitars for lots of department stores and Sears joined up with them in the late 1960's.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

Teisco Norma Goldfoil Guitar Pickups from the 1960's

2009-04-07T07:00:00.001-04:00

These are 1960's vintage Goldfoil guitar pickups similar to those used by Ry Cooder on his guitar. This was Teisco's version of the famous DeArmond Gold Foil pickups used on many Harmony guitars of the 1960's. These were pulled as a working matched set from a Norma branded Teisco guitar with other issues. The neck pickup measured 5.72K ohms and bridge pickup measured 5.74K ohms. The lead wires are about 4-5 inches long on both of the pickups. They have a value of $66 each.

Here's a earlier entry with a bit more information and pictures.

Yamaha 120SD Telecaster Copy

2009-04-03T19:00:00.002-04:00

I picked up this guitar in January 2009 and it has a market value of $80. It's a Yamaha Telecaster (Tele) copy from the 1990's. It may be the Yamaha 120SD based on what I found but there is no label that confirms this model. It has great versatility available from its dual humbucker pick-up configuration. It's an alder body with maple neck. Plays great and sounds great with low action. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for 1 missing/broken string. This guitar is in very good condition but it has several nicks and dings in the finish that are hard to photograph because of the black color. All I can find is information on the Pacifica and this isn't labeled as such. I think it may be the 120-SD model, but there isn't a tag or sticker that say so. This Tele copy is black and the guitar is setup with Yamaha pickups as follows:

Neck - Humbucker
Bridge - Humbucker
Construction:
* Alder Body
* Maple Neck
* 3 way Selector
* Side mount input jack

Hardshell SKB style ABS Guitar Case

2009-03-31T07:00:00.001-04:00

I acquired this case along with a guitar that didn't fit it very well back in October 2008. The market value of it is $50 which is pretty good for a non-name case. It's a hardshell plastic (ABS) case in very good condition. No name on the inside or outside so I can't tell you much about it. The latches all work and there is a lock, but I didn't have the keys.

Here are some of the other guitars I have either sold or coming up soon for sale shown in the case just to show how they fit.

Harmony Bobkat

Sears Silvertone 1406

Yamaha Tele Copy

Westone Genesis II

Yamaha RGX 312

Yamaha RGX-312 Guitar

2009-03-27T19:00:00.005-04:00

I picked up this guitar in February 2009 and it has a market value of $102.50. Yamaha RGX 312 models were produced from 1987 to 1993. Amazing versatility available from its single coil / single coil / humbucker pick-up configuration. The neck is straight with low action and a wide fretboard. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar is in very good condition but it does have some minor nicks and dings in the finish that don't photograph well.

The RGX312 (1987-1988) is a double cutaway rock style guitar available in Red, Black, or White finish. The guitar is setup with Yamaha pickups as follows:

Original List Price: $429.00
Neck - single coil
Middle - single coil
Bridge - Humbucker
Construction:
*Alder Body
*Maple Neck
*Bubinga Fretboard
String length: 628mm
Nut width: 41mm
*(1)Volume 250k
*(1)Tone 250k with coil splitter
* 5way Selector
* Top mount input jack

The RGX312II (1988-1993) is a double cutaway rock style guitar available in Red, Black, White , or Silver Pearl finish. The guitar is setup with Yamaha pickups as follows:

Original List Price: $449.00
Neck - single coil
Middle - single coil
Bridge - Humbucker
Construction:
*Alder Body
*Satin Finish Maple Neck
*Bubinga Fretboard
String length: 628mm
Nut width: 43mm
*(1)Volume 250k
*(1)Tone 250k with coil splitter
* 5way Selector
* Top mount input jack

Teisco Kimberly Gold Foil Pickups from the 60's

2009-03-24T07:00:00.002-04:00

I picked up the guitar these came from in late 2008 and the pickup pair has a market value of $100. These are 1960's vintage Goldfoil guitar pickups similar to those used by Ry Cooder on his guitar. This was Teisco's version of the famous DeArmond Gold Foil pickups used on many Harmony guitars of the 1960's. These were pulled as a working matched set from a Kimberly branded Teisco guitar with other issues. The neck pickup measured 4.70K ohms and bridge pickup measured 4.80K ohms. The lead wires are about 4-5 inches long on both of the pickups.

Here's a earlier entry with a bit more information and pictures.

1960's Harmony Bobkat Bobcat H15V

2009-03-20T19:00:00.003-04:00

I picked this guitar up in late 2008 and it has a market value of $228.50. It's a mid 1960's Harmony Bobkat (Bobcat) electric with two DeArmond goldfoil pickups. The bridge P/U is weak but the neck P/U is very strong! The finish is completely removed, sanded smooth and is ready to be repainted or sealed to bring out the natural beauty of the wood. The neck is straight with low action and a rosewood fretboard. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar is in very good condition and only minor corrosion on the metal parts.

Harmony BobKat's were produced starting in 1966. There were many versions of the Bobkat including the H14 (single pickup sunburst) , H15 (double pickup sunburst), H15V (double pickup sunburst with vibrato), and H17(double pickup with red sunburst and vibrato) among other models.

This one has the finish completely removed, sanded smooth and is ready to be repainted or sealed to bring out the natural beauty of the wood.

Here's a site with a bit more information and pictures.

Crate GX-15 Guitar Amplifier

2009-03-17T07:00:00.003-04:00

I picked this up in early 2009 and it has a market value of about $20.00. A great little practice amp with plenty of power.

CRATE GX-15 Guitar Amplifier
The GX-15 was designed to be the perfect practice/home studio amp. Light and powerful, this amp offers beginners all of the essential tone to begin their musical voyage.

Specifications:
Crate 8" speaker
15 watt RMS guitar amp
FlexWave Evolution Five preamp
15 watts
Clean/Overdrive switch
Gain
3 Channel EQ (Low, Mid, Hi)
Headphone jack
External speaker jack
Measurements: 13" x 13.5" x 8.25"
15 lbs.

1960's Kent Archtop with Goldfoil pickup

2009-03-13T19:00:00.004-04:00

I picked this guitar up in late 2008 and it has a market value of $160.50. It's an early 1960's Kent Hollowbody electric with single Teisco goldfoil pickup. Tobacco sunburst finish on body and neck with some crazing. Adjustable bridge and the neck is straight. There is fret and fretboard wear that has been touched up and one bent tuner (see pictures for items). As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar is in very good condition and only minor corrosion on the metal parts.

Kent was the brand name used by Buegeleisen & Jacobson (B&J), once a major music distributor in New York City. B&J was one of the early companies to begin importing musical goods from Japan in 1960, starting with microphones and aftermarket pickups, and adding guitars in 1962. Earlier Kents were made by Guyatone, but it's unknown who created this beauty.

1960's Airline Acoustic Model 7078 (Harmony, Kay, Valco)

2009-03-10T06:55:00.002-04:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $36.37. This appears to be the 7078 Model which was based on the Harmony H942 Stella Grand Concert size flat top acoustic from about 1969. Red toned mahogany shadded back with natural finish top. The frets are in good shape and the neck is straight. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar is in very good condition, just a little dirty and only minor corrosion on the metal parts.

Montgomery Wards brand of instruments were made by Kay, Harmony and Valco. Montgomery Wards began to use the Airline brand in about 1958-60. Before that date, Harmony made guitars sold through the Wards catalog had a generic logo without any brand marking. Some "Roy Smeck" signature models were sold as Harmony branded guitars (H58, H73), but most of "Roy Smeck" guitars were sold only through the Montgomery Wards catalog, wearing only the "Roy Smeck" logo. This includes many acoustics and electrics, among them the famous Stratotone Roy Smeck H7208.

Sears Silvertone 1440 Mosrite Copy

2009-03-06T20:55:00.007-05:00

I picked this guitar up in late 2008 and it has a market value of $212.50. It's a late 1960's (probably 1968) Silvertone Model 1440 two pickup electric guitar. The body is a great copy of the style of the Mosrite Venture or Univox Hi-Flyer (or Hi-Flier). It was made in Japan, probably by the Teisco Company for Sears. Here's where you can get a copy for a fraction of the cost of the real thing played by the Ramones and Nirvana. This thing looks like it's been in a closet for years without being touched. Great shape and it has plenty of fret life and nice action with adjustable bridge and a straight neck. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for the mis-matched knobs.

Vintage 1970's Sears Harmony Acoustic Guitar Model 1294

2009-03-03T06:55:00.001-05:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $90.00. It's a near Mint 1970-1972 Sears Harmony Acoustic Model 1294. Red toned mahogany shadded top and back with sunburst finish. Frets are in good shape and the neck is straight. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete. This guitar has almost no scratches and only minor corrosion on the metal parts.

I always wanted to point this out on the later Sears Harmony or Silvertone Guitars. You'll see lots of people refer to these as "spacedot" or "atom" or even "atomic" because of the headstock logo. What I want to show you is it's actually just the letter S for Sears

and the letter R for Roebuck.

So you see, the spacedot or atomic is just a fancy graphic for Sears and Roebuck. This symbol was used on many of the acoustic and electric guitars sold at Sears starting around the early 1970's.

Vintage Estrada Classical Style Acoustic Guitar

2009-02-27T20:55:00.000-05:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $158.50. It's a vintage Mexican (Mexico) Estrada Classical style guitar. Looks to be a spruce or cyprus top with Braziallian Rosewood back and sides. Good frets, nice action, and no major structural damage that I can see. I didn't detect any fret buzz anywhere along the neck.

Dimensions: Lower Bout = 12 3/8 inches, Waist = 8 inches, Upper Bout = 9 inches, Thickness = 3 3/8 inches

Typical for a guitar of this vintage includes some dings in the front, scratches front and back and some minor corrosion on the metal parts.

1960's Winston Guyatone Goya Silvertone

2009-02-24T06:55:00.004-05:00

I acquired this guitar in the fall of 2008 and it has a market value of $51.00. It's a 1960's vintage guitar that I believe is a Winston model made by Teisco although it could be a Guyatone, Goya, or Silvertone guitar. It has one bent tuning key and a missing whammy bar and cover. The frets are good and it has nice action with an adjustable bridge. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for the pickup selector knob which I installed.

The Winston brand appeared on a full range of acoustic guitars, thinline acoustic/electric archtops, and solid body electric guitars and basses. Winston instruments are generally the shorter scale beginner's type guitar. Winston guitars were Japanese guitars imported by Buegeleisen and Jacobson from the early 1960's to the late 1960's although some were made by Guyatone.

1980's Westone Spectrum ST X135

2009-02-20T20:55:00.004-05:00

I picked up this guitar in January of 2009 and it has a market value of $78.00. I found out it was made in 1985-1987 by the Matsumoku plant in Japan. It's a great sounding guitar and has plenty of tonal options with the coil tap switch. These Westone guitars are a great deal for the price and if you come across one, pick it up!

1985-1987 Matsumoku built Westone Spectrum ST X135

Standard X135 description;
Body and neck are maple
Fingerboard is Rosewood
22 nickel silver frets
25.5 inch scale, with graphite nut
Machine heads - Gotoh TSA (Tremolo System Approved)
Pickups - Magnaflux I UBC (Unbalanced coil)
Controls - volume, tone (Push/pull switch for coil tap)
3 way pickup selector
Control knobs - Switchmaster
Bridge - Tekglide II trem
Hardware - Chrome

Here's a site with a bit more information and pictures.

Electra guitars were imported from Japan by St. Louis Music from 1971-1984. Most of the instruments were made by Matsumoku in Matsumoto Japan. The Electra line replaces SLM's Japanese made Apollo and US made Custom Kraft lines. The first guitar, simply called The Electra, was a copy of the Ampeg Dan Armstrong lucite guitar and issued in 1971, followed quickly by a variety of bolt-neck copies of other brands. In 1975 the Tree-of-Life guitars debut with a leaf pattern carved into the top, and the Electra line expanded to 25 models. Open-book headstocks changed to wave or fan shape by 1978. By around 1981 ties with Matsumoku further solidified and decision eventually made to merge SLM's Electra brand with Matsumoku's Westone brand. Some Korean production began in the early 80's. In the fall of 1983, the Electra Brand becomes Electra Phoenix. By the beginning of 1984, the brand became Electra-Westone and by the end of 1984 just Westone. By 1987 or 1988 Singer Sewing Machines had bought Matsumoku and killed guitar production. SLM changed the brand to Alvarez (it's acoustic brand) and switched production to other plants, including Korea.

SLM was even competing with itself. Bernard Kornblum's Saint Louis Music (SLM) Electra brand competed with his own brother David Kornblum's California based Pacific Coast Music (PCM) Electra brand yet the two were not connected. Pacific Coast Music's Electra logo was nearly identical to the SLM Electra logo from 1972 to 1975 except instead of the SLM gold text, a black text on a white background was used. Both companies often imported from the same source. Pacific Coast often have an X on the headstock or the pickguard. In general, most favour the SLM versions to the PCM ones and the documentation and models are better represented by the SLM versions.

Vintage Strap - Ace Style

2009-02-17T06:55:00.000-05:00

This strap came with the Kay Value Leader that I found and it has a $26.00 market value. Not a true Ace strap, but similar in construction and from the 1960's - 1970's era and used by all the big rock stars of the time.

How to become a Guitar Hunter

2009-02-14T17:55:00.003-05:00

I've been asked by a lot of people where I find all these guitars. Just think of the obvious places you can buy used guitars and that's where you'll find me. I get my guitars at pawn shops and garage sales most of the time. It does take hard work, dedication, and a great deal of luck to find the better ones at a decent price.

After finding a promising guitar, I like to do research to find out as much as I can about it. Along the way, I'm learning a lot of the history of early guitar manufacturers. I hope my research will help the guitar hunters to come.

You do have to watch out for traps when you're guitar hunting. I'm not talking about the one below -

but the ones like buying a guitar that might have some hidden damage. Cracks, hidden repairs, and electronics that don't work. I'm not sure why people that have no idea how a guitar works go and take the backs off their guitars and even unsolding the connections.

Another big thing you do have to watch out for specially with higher end guitars is a counterfeit. I'm not talking about copies like the strat copies that several companies make, but the ones that try to fool you into thinking they are orignials. These are getting so good that even some experts are being fooled. If you're buying an early Fender or Gibson be very careful.

The chinese fakers are getting really good at this and not only counterfeiting early guitars, but new ones as well. Just last year there were at least 3 websites (such as paylessguitars, samin, musoland) set up to sell the guitars which are offline now. There have also been many ebay sellers offering these chinese guitars. Be careful in what you buy because lots of these guitars are now on the secondary market. I did a quick search and I found a site still operating with counterfeit Les Pauls going for around $200.

In my opinion, there's nothing wrong with tributes to iconic guitars made by companies other than Fender, Gibson or Ibanez - as long as they don't slap Fender, Gibson, or Ibanez logos on them and try to pass them off as the real thing.

Here's a great article on how to spot Counterfeit Guitars.

Here's a nice article on how to spot fake Gibsons.

Here's a article on how to spot fake Fenders.

And the third most counterfeited guitar is the Mosrite.

There is even a coalition of four of the best known guitar manufacturers in the world to fight counterfeiters.

Now that you know the basics of guitar hunting, I hope you have a lot of fun. Some people will even say you've developed GAS (guitar aquisition sydrome) but there's nothing wrong with that. If you'd like to share your experiences and finds with the rest of the readers of this blog, send them to me and I'll get them posted.

1960's Teisco Kay Silvertone Guitar

2009-02-13T20:55:00.000-05:00

I acquired this guitar in September of 2008 and it has a market value of about $36.00. This is a 1960's vintage single pickup electric guitar that looks similar to some Silvertone, Kay, Airline, Teisco guitars from the era but it has no markings indicating USA or Japan build. The original gold color was removed from the front and back but it does remain on the edges and a bit on the headstock. The wood underneath looks almost like a mahagony and maybe that's what it is. The neck was straight and had good fret life and nice action with adjustable bridge. As far as I can tell, this guitar was all original and complete except for the finish being removed.

Johnson RepTone Amp

2009-02-10T06:55:00.004-05:00

I picked this up in September 2008 and it has a market value of about $10.00. Not a great amp at all and I hated the ugly green fabric case cover. I believe they are still made by Johnson and primarily come with starter guitar packages.

Kay Value Leader

2009-02-06T20:55:00.001-05:00

I acquired this guitar in September 2008 and because of the modifications it only has a market value of $100.00. It's a 1960-1961 vintage single pickup Kay Value Leader electric guitar. Looks similar to some Kay, Airline, Old Craftsman guitars from the era. The original finish has been removed from the front and back and neck. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for the finish and pickguard.

The Kay Value Leader thinline guitars are from the late 1950s/early 1960s. This guitar features a metal "checkerboard" style pickguard and a sunburst finish. It has a 15' wide single cutaway, flat top semi hollow maple body with 2 pickups. It has a laminated maple top and maple fingerboard

This guitar is one of the "Thin Lone" family of guitars produced by Kay based around the same basic body style, that includes the Style Leader range and the famous K-161 Thin Twin Jimmy Reed or Howlin Wolf model. The pick ups on this guitar are single coil De Armond "hot" pickups, with the coil wound directly onto the magnet and in fact are a bar magnet under the strings.

This guitar is a good player and a cousin to the classic Kay K-161 that features in many photos in the hands of the legendary Jimmy Reed.

Here's what a Kay Value Leader should look with the original pickguard and finish.

And here's a video to someone playing a single pickup version.

Estaban Guitar Amp

2009-02-03T06:55:00.002-05:00

I picked this up in September 2008 and it has a market value of about $11.00. Not a great amp, but not terrible either. I think these were part of a package along with an electic/acoustic guitar offered on HSN as well as some other outlets. It actually performed pretty well with a couple of the electric guitars I have. I couldn't find much information on them in my searches. If you know something about Estaban Amplifiers, let me know.

1970's Electra Model X630N Fender P-Bass copy

2009-01-30T20:55:00.001-05:00

I picked up this guitar in August of 2008 and it has a market value of $204.50. It is a 1980's vintage Electra Phoenix P bass style electric bass guitar. I believe this to be the X630N model from 1980 based on the serial number.

Here are the features of the X630 series:

Maple "C" type bolt on neck & Fingerboard
Solid "Ash" body~Satin Natural Poly finished
Black pickguard
Neck plate with the Electra inverted "Peace" style logo
1.5" @ nut
Weight: 7.5 lbs.
20 Fret~ 34" Scale
Single "Magnaflux" P style pickup with adjustable poles

The bass included an original case as shown in the pictures.

Electra guitars were imported from Japan by St. Louis Music from 1971-1984. Most of the instruments were made by Matsumoku in Matsumoto Japan. The Electra line replaces SLM's Japanese made Apollo and US made Custom Kraft lines. The first guitar, simply called The Electra, was a copy of the Ampeg Dan Armstrong lucite guitar and issued in 1971, followed quickly by a variety of bolt-neck copies of other brands. In 1975 the Tree-of-Life guitars debut with a leaf pattern carved into the top, and the Electra line expanded to 25 models. Open-book headstocks changed to wave or fan shape by 1978. By around 1981 ties with Matsumoku further solidified and decision eventually made to merge SLM's Electra brand with Matsumoku's Westone brand. Some Korean production began in the early 80's. In the fall of 1983, the Electra Brand becomes Electra Phoenix. By the beginning of 1984, the brand became Electra-Westone and by the end of 1984 just Westone. By 1987 or 1988 Singer Sewing Machines had bought Matsumoku and killed guitar production. SLM changed the brand to Alvarez (it's acoustic brand) and switched production to other plants, including Korea.

SLM was even competing with itself. Bernard Kornblum's Saint Louis Music (SLM) Electra brand competed with his own brother David Kornblum's California based Pacific Coast Music (PCM) Electra brand yet the two were not connected. Pacific Coast Music's Electra logo was nearly identical to the SLM Electra logo from 1972 to 1975 except instead of the SLM gold text, a black text on a white background was used. Both companies often imported from the same source. Pacific Coast often have an X on the headstock or the pickguard. In general, most favour the SLM versions to the PCM ones and the documentation and models are better represented by the SLM versions.

1960's Teisco Gold Foil Guitar Pickups

2009-01-26T20:55:00.000-05:00

I acquired up these pickups in September of 2008 and they have market value of $100.00. They are 1960's vintage Goldfoil guitar pickups similar to those used by Ry Cooder on his guitar. This was Teisco's version of the famous DeArmond Gold Foil pickups used on many Harmony guitars of the 1960's.

These were pulled as a working matched set from a Melody branded Teisco guitar with other issues. I marked the N and B on the backs to track their original position on the guitar. The neck pickup measured 5.49K ohms and bridge pickup measured 5.43K ohms. The lead wires are over 8 inches long on both of the pickups.

The most popular way of using these pickups is the "CooderCaster", a custom guitar originally built for Ry Cooder. A lapsteel bridge pickup and the old Teisco Del Ray neck pickup is mounted to a Fender Stratocaster.

Here are some examples of guitars modified with the addition of a Teisco Goldfoil.

I have about 3 more sets of these pickups so if you're looking for a set, send me an email.

1830's Jens Nielsen Gade Danish Parlor Guitar

2009-01-23T20:21:00.000-05:00

I picked up this guitar in August of 2008 and it has a market value of $1,137.00. It's a parlor sized guitar built somewhere around 1830-1840 by Jens Nielsen Gade (1788-1854) in Denmark. There are 2 labels inside that indicate restoration work in 1854 and 1871. There is a pencil inscription inside that I believe reads JE Sorensen April 1870. There has been some more modern restoration work done with modern glues. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except one bridge pin has been replaced. This is a beautifully built guitar that in the hands of a good restorer will be worth thousands. Dimensions of the guitar: Length is 36 inches, lower bout is upper bout is 11 1/4 inches, upper bout is 8 3/4 inches, and thickness is 3 1/4 inches.

Website with history of Danish guitar builders including Jens Nielsen Gade (see chapter 13). http://home10.inet.tele.dk/erlmol/bogg_uk.html

Website with pictures of a restored Gade guitar http://www.guitarbygger.dk/english/reparation.htm

This is an interesting book on Danish guitars. http://www.elderly.com/books/items/570-1.htm

I was told this guitar came out of an estate in New York and in fact there are storage tags for Rochester NY and one for an Amelia L Harris in Salisbury PA included in the guitar.

1970's Electra Gibson ES-335 Copy

2009-01-20T20:03:00.000-05:00

I picked up this guitar in August of 2008 and it has a market value of $111.50. It's a 1960's or 1970's vintage Gibson ES-335 style hollowbody Electra guitar. Could be a Kawai, Tokai or Matsumoku built guitar for either SLM or PCM (not sure since it has features that are similar to both but I do believe it to be the PCM Electra). Nice red sunburst color and as far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for the missing bridge. I didn't have a bridge for an archtop and didn't want to buy one to restore the guitar. I did plug it into an amp and didn't hear anything "strange" out of the pickups.

Electra guitars were imported from Japan by St. Louis Music from 1971-1984. Most of the instruments were made by Matsumoku in Matsumoto Japan. The Electra line replaces SLM's Japanese made Apollo and US made Custom Kraft lines. The first guitar, simply called The Electra, was a copy of the Ampeg Dan Armstrong lucite guitar and issued in 1971, followed quickly by a variety of bolt-neck copies of other brands. In 1975 the Tree-of-Life guitars debut with a leaf pattern carved into the top, and the Electra line expanded to 25 models. Open-book headstocks changed to wave or fan shape by 1978. By around 1981 ties with Matsumoku further solidified and decision eventually made to merge SLM's Electra brand with Matsumoku's Westone brand. Some Korean production began in the early 80's. In the fall of 1983, the Electra Brand becomes Electra Phoenix. By the beginning of 1984, the brand became Electra-Westone and by the end of 1984 just Westone. By 1987 or 1988 Singer Sewing Machines had bought Matsumoku and killed guitar production. SLM changed the brand to Alvarez (it's acoustic brand) and switched production to other plants, including Korea.

SLM was even competing with itself. Bernard Kornblum's Saint Louis Music (SLM) Electra brand competed with his own brother David Kornblum's California based Pacific Coast Music (PCM) Electra brand yet the two were not connected. Pacific Coast Music's Electra logo was nearly identical to the SLM Electra logo from 1972 to 1975 except instead of the SLM gold text, a black text on a white background was used. Both companies often imported from the same source. Pacific Coast often have an X on the headstock or the pickguard. In general, most favour the SLM versions to the PCM ones and the documentation and models are better represented by the SLM versions.

1990's Johnson Fender Stratocaster Copy

2009-01-17T19:10:00.000-05:00

I picked up this guitar in August of 2008 and it has a market value of $40.00. It's a newer Johnson Stratocaster (Strat) electric guitar with beautiful deep red or maroon transparent finish. The finish on this guitar has to be one of the best I've ever seen. The pickup configuration is S-S-S (single, single, single) with 1 volume and 2 tone controls. It came with it's original tremelo with whammy bar, which seems to be rare for any guitar. I'm not sure what wood is used for the body of this Johnson guitar, but this is by far the heaviest Strat I've ever played. As far as I can tell, this guitar is all original and complete except for having the neck painted white. Just a few nicks and scratches and the guitar sounds great. Only negative is the mark at the first fret which I think was used to hold the guitar while the neck was painted (now why anyone would drill a hole in the fretboard to paint the neck is beyond me).

Johnson guitars were founded in 1993 so we know this guitar was built sometime after that date. Based on what I know of the headstock design, they used something different on their earlier models, this matches what they use today. You can find out more about Johnson Guitars at their website; http://www.johnsongtr.com/ I don't think they build this model today, but they can still be readily found.

1980's Electra Phoenix X-145VS

2009-01-14T09:07:00.000-05:00

I picked up this guitar in August of 2008 and it has a market value of $102.50. I found out it was made in 1982 by the Matsumoku plant in Japan. It's a modified version of the X-145 (vintage sunburst color, X-145VS) guitar they produced. This one had the H-S-S (humbucker, single, single) configuration on the pickups while it originally had a S-S-S set up.

This guitar was a bolt neck double cutaway with ash body, maple neck, chrome hardware, and three single coil pickups with 3-way selector and fat switch (middle on), and brass knobs.

First Series Configuration:

X145R (S-S-S)(red metalflake)
X145B (S-S-S)(blue metalflake)

Second series Configuration:

X145VS (S-S-S)(vintage sunburst)

The first series was a deluxe version of the X130 model with special metallic paint and black pickguard like the X130, brass nut, trem bridge, brass knobs. Most had a brass '1982 commemorative anniversary' plate on the back of the headstock with an additional serial number.

The second series was almost a different model entirely- no pickguard, it had pickups mounted flush against the body, like all Phoenix models to follow. It was the only model in all the Electra Phoenix/ Westone Spectrum series to be available in a sunburst finish.

Electra guitars were imported from Japan by St. Louis Music from 1971-1984. Most of the instruments were made by Matsumoku in Matsumoto Japan. The Electra line replaces SLM's Japanese made Apollo and US made Custom Kraft lines. The first guitar, simply called The Electra, was a copy of the Ampeg Dan Armstrong lucite guitar and issued in 1971, followed quickly by a variety of bolt-neck copies of other brands. In 1975 the Tree-of-Life guitars debut with a leaf pattern carved into the top, and the Electra line expanded to 25 models. Open-book headstocks changed to wave or fan shape by 1978. By around 1981 ties with Matsumoku further solidified and decision eventually made to merge SLM's Electra brand with Matsumoku's Westone brand. Some Korean production began in the early 80's. In the fall of 1983, the Electra Brand becomes Electra Phoenix. By the beginning of 1984, the brand became Electra-Westone and by the end of 1984 just Westone. By 1987 or 1988 Singer Sewing Machines had bought Matsumoku and killed guitar production. SLM changed the brand to Alvarez (it's acoustic brand) and switched production to other plants, including Korea.

SLM was even competing with itself. Bernard Kornblum's Saint Louis Music (SLM) Electra brand competed with his own brother David Kornblum's California based Pacific Coast Music (PCM) Electra brand yet the two were not connected. Pacific Coast Music's Electra logo was nearly identical to the SLM Electra logo from 1972 to 1975 except instead of the SLM gold text, a black text on a white background was used. Both companies often imported from the same source. Pacific Coast often have an X on the headstock or the pickguard. In general, most favour the SLM versions to the PCM ones and the documentation and models are better represented by the SLM versions.

1960's Gibson ES-175 Copy Aria? Ibanez? Tokia?

2009-01-13T20:05:00.000-05:00

I picked this up in August of 2008 and it has a $205.50 market value. It's a 1960's or 1970's vintage ES-175 Gibson style archtop guitar that was made in Japan. Looks similar to some Aria, Ibanez, and Tokia models from the era with the lawsuit style headstock. Rare solid red color with all gold plated hardware. It included an original case although it did have one detached hinge and wasn't in great condition. I was never find information on a similar model and nobody that saw it had seen one like it before either.

1960's Prestige (Mosrite - Univox copy)

2009-01-12T09:15:00.000-05:00

I picked this up in August of 2008 and it has a $152.50 market value. It is a rare 4 pickup Prestige guitar likely made by Teisco or Kawai. The guitar is copy of the Mosrite Ventures or Univox Hi-Flyer body style with a bright red sunburst finish with tortose shell pickguard.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

The Kawai company was best known for its keyboards and pianos once made one of Japan’s most interesting and cool guitars of all-time: the Kawai Moon Sault. Shaped like a crescent moon, it was loaded with active EMG pickups and was adorned with green abalone inlays and sparkle finishes. They were made in the early 1980’s, and have been recently (and pathetically) reintroduced in bolt-on neck form. Kawai also made copies of Alembic guitars of exceptionally high quality and those are somewhat popular to collectors as well. No model can compare to the popularity of the MoonSault.

1960's Teisco Del Rey ET-220 Spectrum

2009-01-11T15:46:00.000-05:00

I found this in August of 2008 at a garage sale and it has a $106.49 market value. It was in great shape except for the missing whammy bar.

The Teisco brand name stands for 'Tokyo Electric Instrument and Sound Company'. Teisco was founded in 1946 by renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist Atswo Kaneko, and electrical engineer Doryu Matsuda. Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable.

Vintage Strap - Ace

2009-01-10T20:03:00.001-05:00

This strap came with the Kay Sizzler that I found and it has a $76.00 market value. Ace straps from the 1960's - 1970's are highly desirable and hard to come by in this condition. The colors are bright and the leather was in great shape.

Vintage Case - VOX?

2009-01-10T20:00:00.000-05:00

I found this case at a garage sale with an old Kay guitar and it has a $26.52 market value. I looked for information on the case, but I came up emptyhanded.

1950's Kay Sizzler K4144

2009-01-10T19:47:00.001-05:00

I found this in July 2008 and it has a $486.99 market value.

Here's a link to a single pickup version of a Kay Sizzler although the publisher mistakenly calls it a Star King. http://seawebmedia.com/html/kay_star_king.html

I did a little more research and the Kay Sizzler was produced from 1956-1958 (which matches the Kluson tuner dates) in a brown or black Zolotone finish. The single pickup model was the K4140 and the dual pickup model was the K4144.

Here's a video of Tony Gilkyson who used to be in the Los Angeles band X playing a vintage Kay Sizzler.

Paul, a reader of this blog, sent me this picture of his single pickup Kay Sizzler. He picked it up in Abilene TX for only $60.00 in the mid to late 80's.

Vintage Strap - Ace style

2009-01-10T19:42:00.001-05:00

This strap came with the Norma Hollowbody that I found and it has a $13.49 market value. Not a true Ace strap, but similar in construction and from the 1960's - 1970's era.

1960's Norma Hollowbody Gibson ES-330 Copy

2009-01-10T19:12:00.000-05:00

This is the guitar that got it all started. I found this guitar back in June 2008 and it has a $183.50 market value. Model: Could be the EG 671-2-HT, the ES-330 style knockoff. There's not a lot of information on Norma guitars that I can find as to the models they made and when each was made. I've seen several models and still own a few of them.

NORMA HISTORY: Normas were built in Japan between 1965 to 1970 by the Tombo Company and distributed in the U.S. by Strum´N Drum, Inc. of Chicago, Illinois. The company specialized in copying Italian guitars like EKO and Goya and sold them in the U.S.A as NORMA's. The most blatant EKO copy is the SDEG 490-4, a guitar that confused the heck out of MANY. The Tombo Company is still in business, but these days they specialize in harmonica production.

Blog purpose

2009-01-10T18:46:00.001-05:00

I was thinking of ways I could earn some extra money and have fun at the same time. I knew to do that I'd have to find something I enjoyed and something that I knew a little about already. I used to play guitar and already had 3 of my own so I thought I would enjoy looking for them, playing them, and then selling them. I'll post some pictures, the information I find out about the guitars, and how much they might be worth. I'm a long way from getting caught up and I have at least 15 guitars that I want to sell now as soon as I get them cleaned up and repaired. Check out my profile page for my homepage to find a link to my ebay listings.

I might also be selling ad space on here. I've already had lots of positive feedback on the site and the information I'm providing. If you're interested in advertising on here, let me know.