Description

Oscar Schmidt Auditorium 'Jumbo' Six c. 1925 | $3875 | (v2202) We handled a number of Schmidt-made six-string 'jumbos' and they seem to be consistent in both tone quality and power. And for these two qualities, we consider them to be among the best of the pre-war vintage flat tops, including the X-braced examples. The jumbo, listed in the catalog as 'Auditorium', appears in sales catalogs at least as early as 1915-16 and were produced until the factory sold out in the mid-thirties. Featuring a large body and long scale these jumbos can be tuned down a step and strung with heavy strings to produce a thunderous tone .. and they were probably the power kings back in their day!

This particular example features the deluxe 'Leadbelly' purfling, so-called because of the jumbo 12-string he ordered from the factory in the 1930 which featured the same marquetry. The ladder-braced top is spruce, edged in white celluloid. Back and sides are mahogany, with the back featuring an inlaid marquetry strip and white celluloid edge binding. The neck is mahogany, features 12-frets to the body and is carved in a soft 'V' typical of the period. The headstock in overlaid with Brazilian rosewood veneer. The fingerboard is maple (replaced) dyed black. The replica bridge is ebony. The tuners are replacements.

The body measures 15 3/4" across at the lower bout. Scale length is 26 3/4". The fingerboard is 1 7/8" across at the nut, string spacing is 2 5/16" across at the saddle.

The guitar has some repair history including an old "Wm. Rollman" label pasted inside and repairs at the Tom Crandall shop in NYC. It appears Rollman repaired a long side crack through the upper bouts which includes cleats along the crack and two long screws that go through the neck block to secure the repair (the screw heads are hidden under wooden plugs, see photos). Tom Crandall replaced the fretboard with a new maple board, new frets, inlaid an aluminum tube in the neck for stiffness, compensated the saddle for better intonation, filled some screw holes in the bridge, and filled some chipout in the bridge plate/brace. The finish is original showing some typical 'alligatoring', play wear and nicks and dings from use and time. Overall, the guitar exudes a classic 'vintage' look.

The action is set at 5 & 6/64" and the guitar plays really well with a full but well balanced tone. Tuned a step low with 11-52s the jumbo is a great guitar for fingerpicking blues, but can easily hold its own among other instruments when played with a plectrum. These are quite rare instruments .. probably more so than the 12-strings .. especially with the fancy purfling and spruce/mahogany body!

Comes with a hard gig-bag type case.

Check the sound clip!

Vintage Blues Guitars

Vintage Blues Guitars

~1925
Oscar Schmidt
Very Good
Natural
Hard
17 Years
Vintage Blues Guitars
Tom Wentzel and Bruce Roth
717.917.3738
Lancaster, PA
5:44 AM
phone calls accepted 8 a.m. through 8 p.m. eastern time .. text or email anytime

Cash, checks, PayPal, money orders or bank wire. We don't accept credit cards at this point.

We ship usually within a day of payment. International customers, we are not CITES certified. Any guitar with CITES-protected materials (Brazilian rosewood, ivory et al) shipped outside the US will be shipped at the risk of the buyer.

Forty-eight hour test drive on all instruments..if not to your liking, return for refund minus shipping costs.