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Kalamazoo KG11 c 1933 | $1450 | It’s pretty well known that the Great Depression caused Gibson to rethink its marketing strategy and create a ‘budget’ line of instruments. The line was called the Kalamazoo, named after the hometown of the venerable guitar factory. Included in the production were flat tops, arch tops and mandolins, among others. The earliest we’ve seen date to about 1933...

Gibson L-1 1931 | $3700 | At the close of the 1920s, Gibson was expanding its line from the so-called ‘peanut-shape’ flat tops that had been in production for a number of years, to include a larger-body flat top acoustic guitar. The result was a lightly-built instrument with a very comfortable neck profile and good tonal balance across the spectrum, and still favored by guitarists today. ...

C.F. Martin 0-18 1966 | $2599 | Nice example of a small-bodied Martin produced at the height of the folk boom in the 1960s. The 0-18 comes in a small package but delivers quite the sonic surprise. Hence, the 0-18 is preferred by fingerpickers and studio musicians for its balanced sound and playability. The 0-18 has a mahogany body and neck, spruce top, and Brazilian rosewood bridge and...

Harmony H78 Electric Guitar c. 1968 | $1495 | Even though Harmony priced its guitars at a point affordable to ‘the people’, the Chicago factory also produced some semi-pro level guitars. At the height of the guitar boom in the mid-sixties, Harmony launched a line of electric guitars, with the H78 as the flagship. It’s flashy .. bold, red ‘burst, block pearl inlay, and faux-tortoise overlay...

OAHU Jumbo Style 68B (Kay) | $795 | An argument can be made that The OAHU Publishing Co., Cleveland, Ohio, facilitated more acoustic guitars to be bought pre-WWII than any other company, and the company didn't even build guitars! With its origins in Michigan, and later moving to Cleveland, OAHU Publishing was essentially a music publishing company, selling sheet music, guitars and...

Harmony Bobkat H15 | $595 | A very clean example of one of the best vintage guitar bargains today. The Bobkat was one of Harmonys efforts to capture the market on budding guitarists influenced by rock and roll on the AM radio through the 60s. These are well built instruments and very light weight. This example is in excellent plus original condition, with the original soft case also in...

Gibson Style O Artist c. 1922 | $7350 | The Gibson Style O Artist had a run from 1908 to 1925. It was the most expensive of Gibson's offerings, and it was certainly a guitar that stood out from the crowd, especially in those early days! Many makers were still producing the parlor-type guitars, built lightly with a soft voice. But Orville Gibson and his cohorts had others ideas for the...

We quest for the odd and unusual vintage guitar. This singular example is one of the more peculiar we've owned. At first blush, it appears to be a 12-fret slot-head catalog guitar made in the thirties in one of the large Chicago factories. Upon closer inspection, a few details emerge that make you go 'hmmmm'. First, the body ..top, back, sides.. is solid birch, not unusual for a catalog...

Vega C-46 Archtop Acoustic c. 1940 | A nice example of a fairly rare and well made guitar. Made in Boston, likely during WWII, based on the riveted tuners and wood on the tailpiece. Although much better known for their banjos, the Vega company produced a line of quality guitars, too. Back and sides are maple. Top is carved spruce. The neck is mahogany, with a Brazilian rosewood...

OAHU Jumbo c. 1935 Style 68B (Kay) | $1950 | An argument can be made that The OAHU Publishing Co., Cleveland, Ohio, facilitated more acoustic guitars to be bought pre-WWII than any other company, and the company didn't even build guitars! With its origins in Michigan, and later moving to Cleveland, OAHU Publishing was essentially a music publishing company, selling sheet music, guitars and...

A Grand Concert-size Stella is automatically considered a pretty rare find; the addition of the deluxe fingerboard makes it rarer still. The Decalcomania ornamented instruments appeared in the 1920s, and were pretty typical on the Oscar Schmidt production line once the depression was in full swing. The ornamentation on cheaper birch was a more economical way to build a guitar than it was to use...

In the throes of the Great Depression, many guitar makers altered their manufacturing to weather the hard times, some more radically than others. The Oscar Schmidt Company, in Jersey City, NJ, introduced a line of guitars produced from less expensive materials, but gave them a glitzy look to attract buyers in these grim times. These instruments were cataloged as 'Decalcomania', and the guitars...

In the throes of the Great Depression, many guitar makers altered their manufacturing to weather the hard times, some more radically than others. The Oscar Schmidt Company, in Jersey City, NJ, introduced a line of guitars produced from less expensive materials, but gave them a glitzy look to attract buyers in these grim times. These instruments were cataloged as 'Decalcomania', and the guitars...

Open back five-string banjo in the Buckbee style. The neck is nicely carved into a soft 'V' and is made from walnut with a thin veneer fingerboard. The rim is spun over with 38 brackets. The four head stock friction tuners appear original, and the fifth string friction tuner is a replacement. The rim measures about 10 3/4" and the scale length is ~ 25 1/2". The fingerboard measures ~1 1/4"...