Silvertone with early Danelectro pickup Model Flat Top Acoustic-Electric Guitar, made by Harmony, c. 1953, made in Chicago, sunburst top, dark back and sides finish, laminated birch body, poplar neck with ebonized fingerboard.
This is a wonderfully quirky and apparently previously unknown Silvertone instrument which appears to be the earliest iteration of a Danelectro guitar supplied to Sears, Roebuck & Co. The pickup is the earliest style pre-lipstick tube unit seen on the first Danelectro guitars from 1954, mounted down by the fingerboard under a thin Vac-U-Formed plastic cover. There is a single volume control just beneath the pickup, and the cord appears to have originally been hard-wired into the guitar (it is currently equipped with a standard phone jack).
The body and neck are nearly identical to the period Harmony-made budget guitars Sears handled at the time, made of laminated birch with a flat top and back, and painted-on top trim. While made from the same patterns as the colorful "cowboy" guitars sold in quantity in the '40s and '50s, this body has specially built internal bracing unlike any other we have seen. While we don't know the exact story on this guitar, it is either a prototype or a very limited production item that is not mentioned in any known literature.
Overall length is 36 3/4 in. (93.3 cm.), 13 in. (33 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 5/8 in. (9.2 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 1/4 in. (616 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
Fully restored to good playing condition. There is moderate finish wear overall with several spots of moisture damage, mostly to the lower area of the back. The top has three repaired cracks to the veneer by the tailpiece, and a couple of smaller ones by the pickup, but everything is solidly sealed up. There is wear to the fingerboard finish in the "Cowboy Chord" first position; the board is dyed wood, so this is just into the finish. The pickup and thin plastic housing over it are original and the attached volume pot has been replaced as have the plate mounting screws. There is a repaired crack to this plastic plate, fully solid and re-inforced from beneath. Overall the instrument is fairly well-worn but still quite playable, and has a fantastic swampy sound. One of the most interesting Danelectro-related rarities we have ever had. Very Good + Condition.
