Description
What makes this guitar special: An incredibly rare Round Neck Style 4 Tricone featuring a 12-fret neck & German Silver body with Chrysanthemum etching throughout. There are plenty of square necks on the market, but how often do you come across a round neck in this condition. The serial number on on the bottom of the body reads S4858, which places the year of manufacture between 1930 & 1933. Carefully inspected inside & out by the vintage experts at Cream City Music, this gorgeous guitar is a true collector's piece & a definite must-have for any guitar aficionado.
Cosmetic Condition: Really nice shape for being nearly 90 years old - various nicks, dents & dings; scratches & some finish wear throughout. Overall the guitar has a wonderful, authentic vintage look with a gorgeous patina.
Neck: Perfectly rounded, one-piece mahogany neck with some beautiful variegation in the wood. Ebony fingerboard with nicely aged ivoroid binding & mother of pearl diamond inlays. Original frets show a tiny bit of wear, but have plenty of life in them. Slotted headstock with pearloid overlay. It looks as though the bass-side tuners may have been accidentally put on the treble side at one point as evidenced by the extra screw holes on that side of the headstock ( see photos). The tuners are in good working condition, however, the G tuner is slightly bent, but still functions properly. 1 7/8" nut width; 25" scale length. The neck has a bit of a bow on the bass side with a slight twist in the neck. The uneven relief in the neck is actually quite common for a guitar of this age. String height at the 12th fret is 8/64" on the bass side & 10/64" on the treble side. The guitar is very playable & offers a warm, rich tone that resonates well.
Body: German Silver body with Chrysanthemum etching on the top, back & sides. The trapeze tailpiece has some small remnants of black electrical tape underneath it, most likely added there many years ago to keep it from scratching the body. The inside of the body looks good with the wooden tension bars in great shape, along with the three individual cones & bridge. Guitar weighs 8 lbs 4.6 oz.
Case: Unoriginal hardshell case included. The case is from a much later period, but is in great shape & the guitar fits inside perfectly.
