National New Yorker Arch Top Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1941)
1
/
of
13
Regular price
$2,950.00
Regular price
$2,950.00
Sale price
$2,950.00
Unit price
/
per
Item #14044
National New Yorker Model Arch Top Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1941), made in Chicago, serial # 993G, natural lacquer finish, Laminated flamed maple body with spruce top, mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, period brown hard shell case.
This is a good playing example of a very attractive and interesting National New Yorker archtop electric from 1941. this blonde beauty was built fairly early into National/Dobro's (or for that matter any guitar company's) foray into the world of dedicated electrified Spanish guitars. The spruce top over the laminated flamed maple back and sides has one quietly interesting feature that sets it apart from the small flock of other 1941-2 electric archtop offerings: there are no soundholes. This detail shows National/Dobro as somewhat ahead of the curve on purely electric design; comparable Gibson and Epiphone instruments by comparison still look more like adapted acoustic instruments. The New Yorker still produces a decent acoustic sound despite its sealed body, but is less prone to feedback than most competitors.
The double bound body has a smaller footprint than some other period electrics at just 15 1/2" across the lower bout. The rather svelte round-backed mahogany neck has a very soft "V" 'feel and a 1 3/4" nut. The bound rosewood fingerboard is peppered with parallelogram inlays and domino-like dots past the twelfth fret; this is the same piece used on resonator guitars where the dots were used to hide screws bolting the neck to the body! The headstock has a plastic overlay with a raised "National" shield logo, the tuners are 1940s Kluson-made National-specific style with a pressed metal back coverplate bearing the company logo. The bridge on this guitar is interesting; it is an adjustable molded Bakelite piece usually seen on early 1930s Kay Kraft archtops; the saddle can be turned over for Hawaiian play! While almost certainly not original to this guitar is a cool rare piece in itself and brightens up the tone a bit compared to the wooden bridge fitted to these as stock.
Despite National being known for having spiffy names for their electronics, we cannot seem to find one for this metal-covered pickup controlled by a simple tone and volume circuit. It is mounted directly onto the top with screws on either side; the coil is not adjustable but the screw poles are. National changed their pickups regularly in the 1930's-40s and this is their final pre-war design. Sonically, it has a wonderfully mellow sound and less noise than the majority of pickups offered in its day; it is humbucking in operation although that word had not been coined yet! The same pickup can also be found on National's Sonora model.
This is a really cool and very playable guitar, one of the more attractive and functional electrics from this period. Blues legend Memphis Minnie famously played a slightly different sunburst-finished version of this model in the 1940s, and by extension the New Yorker is often referred to as the "Memphis Minnie" model. We are amused that even though based in Chicago National officially used the name "New Yorker" for this classy machine!
Overall length is 40 1/2 in. (102.9 cm.), 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 25 in. (635 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is solidly well preserved example overall, with some general wear and minor hardware alterations but overall one of the nicer playing and sounding pre-war National Electric Spanish guitar we have had. It shows some general wear to the clear lacquer finish overall with checking (mostly to the top and back) chips, scratches and dings here and there. The back of the neck has feelable dings and scrapes, most notably in the first position.
The unique pickup remains original, the knobs and pickguard are original as well. The jack has been changed from the original Amphenol screw-on connector mounted in the upper side to standard phone jack in lower side; the hole was plugged solidly but not particularly artfully. This does make the guitar much more convenient to play; the original hookup with the cord permanently attached to the top edge was awkward at best.
As noted the unusual adjustable Bakelite bridge is period (actually older than the guitar), not an original National fitting but cool and fully functional. The plating on the tailpiece has some moderate wear. The tuners are later strips with the original covers mounted over them, so the change is fairly well hidden. The original frets have been crowned down a bit but the fingerboard has little wear.
Overall this is a nice example of this fairly rare pre-WWII electric, not absolutely original but a better player than many and with a great mellow purr at low volume and a very aggressive sound when cranked. It lives in a battered-looking but functional period brown HSC adding to the very cool vibe. Excellent - Condition.
View full details
This is a good playing example of a very attractive and interesting National New Yorker archtop electric from 1941. this blonde beauty was built fairly early into National/Dobro's (or for that matter any guitar company's) foray into the world of dedicated electrified Spanish guitars. The spruce top over the laminated flamed maple back and sides has one quietly interesting feature that sets it apart from the small flock of other 1941-2 electric archtop offerings: there are no soundholes. This detail shows National/Dobro as somewhat ahead of the curve on purely electric design; comparable Gibson and Epiphone instruments by comparison still look more like adapted acoustic instruments. The New Yorker still produces a decent acoustic sound despite its sealed body, but is less prone to feedback than most competitors.
The double bound body has a smaller footprint than some other period electrics at just 15 1/2" across the lower bout. The rather svelte round-backed mahogany neck has a very soft "V" 'feel and a 1 3/4" nut. The bound rosewood fingerboard is peppered with parallelogram inlays and domino-like dots past the twelfth fret; this is the same piece used on resonator guitars where the dots were used to hide screws bolting the neck to the body! The headstock has a plastic overlay with a raised "National" shield logo, the tuners are 1940s Kluson-made National-specific style with a pressed metal back coverplate bearing the company logo. The bridge on this guitar is interesting; it is an adjustable molded Bakelite piece usually seen on early 1930s Kay Kraft archtops; the saddle can be turned over for Hawaiian play! While almost certainly not original to this guitar is a cool rare piece in itself and brightens up the tone a bit compared to the wooden bridge fitted to these as stock.
Despite National being known for having spiffy names for their electronics, we cannot seem to find one for this metal-covered pickup controlled by a simple tone and volume circuit. It is mounted directly onto the top with screws on either side; the coil is not adjustable but the screw poles are. National changed their pickups regularly in the 1930's-40s and this is their final pre-war design. Sonically, it has a wonderfully mellow sound and less noise than the majority of pickups offered in its day; it is humbucking in operation although that word had not been coined yet! The same pickup can also be found on National's Sonora model.
This is a really cool and very playable guitar, one of the more attractive and functional electrics from this period. Blues legend Memphis Minnie famously played a slightly different sunburst-finished version of this model in the 1940s, and by extension the New Yorker is often referred to as the "Memphis Minnie" model. We are amused that even though based in Chicago National officially used the name "New Yorker" for this classy machine!
Overall length is 40 1/2 in. (102.9 cm.), 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 25 in. (635 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).
This is solidly well preserved example overall, with some general wear and minor hardware alterations but overall one of the nicer playing and sounding pre-war National Electric Spanish guitar we have had. It shows some general wear to the clear lacquer finish overall with checking (mostly to the top and back) chips, scratches and dings here and there. The back of the neck has feelable dings and scrapes, most notably in the first position.
The unique pickup remains original, the knobs and pickguard are original as well. The jack has been changed from the original Amphenol screw-on connector mounted in the upper side to standard phone jack in lower side; the hole was plugged solidly but not particularly artfully. This does make the guitar much more convenient to play; the original hookup with the cord permanently attached to the top edge was awkward at best.
As noted the unusual adjustable Bakelite bridge is period (actually older than the guitar), not an original National fitting but cool and fully functional. The plating on the tailpiece has some moderate wear. The tuners are later strips with the original covers mounted over them, so the change is fairly well hidden. The original frets have been crowned down a bit but the fingerboard has little wear.
Overall this is a nice example of this fairly rare pre-WWII electric, not absolutely original but a better player than many and with a great mellow purr at low volume and a very aggressive sound when cranked. It lives in a battered-looking but functional period brown HSC adding to the very cool vibe. Excellent - Condition.
