Coral Longhorn L2N6 Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1968)
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Item #12647
Coral Longhorn L2N6 Model Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1968), made in Neptune, NJ, serial # 934102, sunburst finish, laminated maple body with laminated spruce top, poplar neck with rosewood fingerboard and headstock, black gig bag case.
This amazingly eccentric thinline hollowbody Longhorn L2N6 guitar is one of the last original Danelectro creations, perhaps the standout model from the hollowbody wing of the new upscale Coral line launched in 1967. These were intended as fancier -- and pricier -- models than the original Masonite-and-pine Danelectros and were launched in a blaze of publicity in mid-'67. Vincent Bell (Danelectro's pro-in-residence in the 1960s) was credited as the line's designer, and indeed does appear to have input on some of the series if not this model in particular. Media conglomerate MCA bought the Danelectro company in 1966, and soon made many changes including the introduction of these new supposedly more upscale hollowbody instruments.
The Coral trademark was already owned by MCA, from one of the record labels the company had acquired. A new "Prestige" line of Coral-branded guitars was launched in 1967 and filled out in '68, comprising a large selection of both solid and hollowbody models. The hollowbody Coral instruments were assembled using laminated maple-and-spruce bodies imported from Kawai in Japan mated to bolt-on Danelectro necks and the company's typical electronics. They were offered in a variety of shapes, this one being a mutant re-casting of Nathan Daniel's original 1958 Longhorn design. Other models included the more conventional Firefly in the Gibson ES-335 mode, a teardrop owing inspiration to Vox and a violin-shaped "Fiddle Bass" inspired by guess who.
This Longhorn's fully hollow body is 15" wide and just under 2" deep, with a 4-ply bound laminated spruce top with single-bound F-holes. The back and sides are laminated "English maple" with some flamey grain and single binding on the back. The neck is a standard poplar Danelectro blank with the dual steel bar reinforcement and a rosewood bound, rosewood fingerboard (which seems an odd almost invisible combination!). The headstock is a new-in-'68 double-sided design, adorned with a raised chrome Coral logo and made almost bizarrely from a solid slab of Brazilian rosewood spliced to the poplar neck. The tuners are individual Kluson Deluxe and the nut is brass, two features considered an upgrade for Coral models.
The two pickups are standard Danelectro "lipstick tube" models, mounted in thin metal rings. They are mated to a 5-knob, one switch wiring rig; the 5th knob is a handy master volume allowing the pickups to be effectively blended. The elevated pickguard is a splendid piece of luminous grey pearloid with black edge binding. The floating rosewood bridge is adjusted by three screws, an adapted holdover from the old Convertible model. A short "C" logo metal tailpiece completes the cosmetics.
The Longhorn is one of the rarer Coral models; it only appeared in 1968 and the company was closed down the next year. The original list price was $199; a matching bass model was offered at $215. As a player it is light and quite handy for a fully hollow 15" guitar; it balances and handles well. It is also a good-sounding guitar with the classic Danelectro "lipstick" pickups mated to a more resonant body, not a high-output instrument but a fairly versatile one. This is certainly one of the most distinctive original instruments to emerge from the Danelectro company's twilight, a cool piece guaranteed to turn heads with its own sound and vibe. Many of these Kawai bodies remained unused from the Danelectro factory after its sudden shuttering; beware hacked-together instruments built from leftover parts assembled in the years or even decades since. THIS is the real deal, a 100% original Longhorn guitar from Neptune!
Overall length is 37 7/8 in. (96.2 cm.), 15 in. (38.1 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is a superbly clean, all original example of this New Jersey/Japan hybrid rarity. It is a 100% all original Danelectro assembled guitar; many of the instruments found today built on this Kawai-made body are later assemblages of leftover parts and random components. The all-original finish shows some dings and scuffs but little actual play wear, and all the original hardware is intact and complete. This is a fine playing and sounding example as well (as much as these ever are anyway); really this is nice as we have ever found one of these late-stage Danelectro products. It currently lives in a later gig bag. Overall Excellent Condition.
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This amazingly eccentric thinline hollowbody Longhorn L2N6 guitar is one of the last original Danelectro creations, perhaps the standout model from the hollowbody wing of the new upscale Coral line launched in 1967. These were intended as fancier -- and pricier -- models than the original Masonite-and-pine Danelectros and were launched in a blaze of publicity in mid-'67. Vincent Bell (Danelectro's pro-in-residence in the 1960s) was credited as the line's designer, and indeed does appear to have input on some of the series if not this model in particular. Media conglomerate MCA bought the Danelectro company in 1966, and soon made many changes including the introduction of these new supposedly more upscale hollowbody instruments.
The Coral trademark was already owned by MCA, from one of the record labels the company had acquired. A new "Prestige" line of Coral-branded guitars was launched in 1967 and filled out in '68, comprising a large selection of both solid and hollowbody models. The hollowbody Coral instruments were assembled using laminated maple-and-spruce bodies imported from Kawai in Japan mated to bolt-on Danelectro necks and the company's typical electronics. They were offered in a variety of shapes, this one being a mutant re-casting of Nathan Daniel's original 1958 Longhorn design. Other models included the more conventional Firefly in the Gibson ES-335 mode, a teardrop owing inspiration to Vox and a violin-shaped "Fiddle Bass" inspired by guess who.
This Longhorn's fully hollow body is 15" wide and just under 2" deep, with a 4-ply bound laminated spruce top with single-bound F-holes. The back and sides are laminated "English maple" with some flamey grain and single binding on the back. The neck is a standard poplar Danelectro blank with the dual steel bar reinforcement and a rosewood bound, rosewood fingerboard (which seems an odd almost invisible combination!). The headstock is a new-in-'68 double-sided design, adorned with a raised chrome Coral logo and made almost bizarrely from a solid slab of Brazilian rosewood spliced to the poplar neck. The tuners are individual Kluson Deluxe and the nut is brass, two features considered an upgrade for Coral models.
The two pickups are standard Danelectro "lipstick tube" models, mounted in thin metal rings. They are mated to a 5-knob, one switch wiring rig; the 5th knob is a handy master volume allowing the pickups to be effectively blended. The elevated pickguard is a splendid piece of luminous grey pearloid with black edge binding. The floating rosewood bridge is adjusted by three screws, an adapted holdover from the old Convertible model. A short "C" logo metal tailpiece completes the cosmetics.
The Longhorn is one of the rarer Coral models; it only appeared in 1968 and the company was closed down the next year. The original list price was $199; a matching bass model was offered at $215. As a player it is light and quite handy for a fully hollow 15" guitar; it balances and handles well. It is also a good-sounding guitar with the classic Danelectro "lipstick" pickups mated to a more resonant body, not a high-output instrument but a fairly versatile one. This is certainly one of the most distinctive original instruments to emerge from the Danelectro company's twilight, a cool piece guaranteed to turn heads with its own sound and vibe. Many of these Kawai bodies remained unused from the Danelectro factory after its sudden shuttering; beware hacked-together instruments built from leftover parts assembled in the years or even decades since. THIS is the real deal, a 100% original Longhorn guitar from Neptune!
Overall length is 37 7/8 in. (96.2 cm.), 15 in. (38.1 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is a superbly clean, all original example of this New Jersey/Japan hybrid rarity. It is a 100% all original Danelectro assembled guitar; many of the instruments found today built on this Kawai-made body are later assemblages of leftover parts and random components. The all-original finish shows some dings and scuffs but little actual play wear, and all the original hardware is intact and complete. This is a fine playing and sounding example as well (as much as these ever are anyway); really this is nice as we have ever found one of these late-stage Danelectro products. It currently lives in a later gig bag. Overall Excellent Condition.
