Harmony Supertone 1932 | $650 | (v2230) In the first part of the twentieth century, most guitar makers used the popularity of Hawaiian music to market their products, and Harmony was no exception. This example was made in 1932, pretty much at the tail end of the Hawaiian boom, and is a good example of the so-called 'catalog guitars' that were popular and affordable in the depression era. These 'catalog guitars' were mass produced in large factories and mass marketed through catalogs, music teachers/mail-order lessons, and various types of stores. The construction materials and the corresponding adornments were usually inexpensively done, trading mahogany and rosewood for birch and poplar, and inlaid marquetry for stencil and decal designs. There are usually a lot of thes type guitars on the market, and we often do a 'guitar rescue' when we find worthy examples, such as this tropical beauty.
The top, back and sides are solid birch. The neck appears to be poplar, topped with an ebonized maple fingerboard. The natural-finished top sports a fresh-looking tropical scene with palm trees and a sailboat. The body is finished in a mahogany shade, with a sunburst on the back. The tuners are original. The nut is the ebonized original; the bridge is new ebony flat pyramid-type replacement. S1932 is ink-stamped on the Supertone label.
The lower bout measures 12 7/8" which would have been a 'standard' size in many catalogs of the day. The scale length is a short scale 24 1/4". The neck measures 1 13/16" across at the nut, and string spacing is 2 3/16" across at the saddle. The neck is carved in a soft "V" typical of the era.
The guitar came to us in fairly decent shape, but the original bridge was cracked in half, and the fingerboard was off. We installed a replacement bridge; installed two carbon fiber rods in the neck and reglued the fingerboard; reset the neck. We also filled some shrinkage cracks in the fingerboard. There are only a few minor cracks in the back. One part of the back/side seam was reglued. Tuners were disassembled, cleaned and lubed, and retain some oxidation. Frets were leveled and dressed. There are various nicks and scratches from age, and some old initials in the finish from a previous owner, but a snappy-looking survivor nontheless, brought back to life!
With the fresh reset and carbon fiber rods, the Supertone plays easily. It produces the boxy, nasal, ladder-braced sound like the old blues boxes should. Great finger picking guitar!
Comes with its likely original soft case in decent condition.
Check out the sound clip!
The top, back and sides are solid birch. The neck appears to be poplar, topped with an ebonized maple fingerboard. The natural-finished top sports a fresh-looking tropical scene with palm trees and a sailboat. The body is finished in a mahogany shade, with a sunburst on the back. The tuners are original. The nut is the ebonized original; the bridge is new ebony flat pyramid-type replacement. S1932 is ink-stamped on the Supertone label.
The lower bout measures 12 7/8" which would have been a 'standard' size in many catalogs of the day. The scale length is a short scale 24 1/4". The neck measures 1 13/16" across at the nut, and string spacing is 2 3/16" across at the saddle. The neck is carved in a soft "V" typical of the era.
The guitar came to us in fairly decent shape, but the original bridge was cracked in half, and the fingerboard was off. We installed a replacement bridge; installed two carbon fiber rods in the neck and reglued the fingerboard; reset the neck. We also filled some shrinkage cracks in the fingerboard. There are only a few minor cracks in the back. One part of the back/side seam was reglued. Tuners were disassembled, cleaned and lubed, and retain some oxidation. Frets were leveled and dressed. There are various nicks and scratches from age, and some old initials in the finish from a previous owner, but a snappy-looking survivor nontheless, brought back to life!
With the fresh reset and carbon fiber rods, the Supertone plays easily. It produces the boxy, nasal, ladder-braced sound like the old blues boxes should. Great finger picking guitar!
Comes with its likely original soft case in decent condition.
Check out the sound clip!