Our Souls inc. Posted May 7, 2011 Report Share Posted May 7, 2011 Sometimes being a pool repairman pays off. ( only sometimes.... ) Today at work, I was given an old Harmony H954 as a tip ! This elderly gentleman who's pool we regularly service was outside making small talk and asked me what I liked to do for a hobby. I mentioned hunting and fishing, which led him to a few good stories, and I enjoyed listening to. I shared a fun story or two and the convo turned to music. He said he had an old guitar in his basement and asked me if I wanted it. Of course, I said I'd take it- site unseen, and was praying he was going to bring out a '59 Les Paul sunburst, but expecting a broken old 60's -sears-catalogue-special. He presented me with an old soft shell case and I opened it to reveal a nice-looking Harmony Broadway H954!! I dated it once I got home, and from what I can find, it was made in 1956. It has a DeArmond pup on it and still plays pretty good ! From what I've read, it's Birch, and it does have a nice, full tone. I can see it'll need some cracks repaired on the back, some Tuner refurbishing and some other love, but the little dings and crazing in the finish is going to be left alone. Anyone have any experience with these? The DeArmond has a 1/8" output jack, so I'll need an adapter to use it. The neck has 6 dots and no side markers. I'll post my specific questions in the proper section. This thread will be a resto-diary. pics in a bit- just wanted to share my good fortune with y'all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted May 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 so, here she is, just out of the bag after who-knows how long. I'll clean it all up and take some more... Headstock. ^^ I think its missing the tuner ferrules. Decent shot of the binding, which is cracked away from the wood in a couple of spots and will need addressing. and there's the DeArmond pup. It measures 7.65 and has a date of 1969 stamped on the back. According to the serial # look-up i found, the F56H stamp indicates a 1956 build. the serial # is 9548H954 and the F56H stamp is right near it. the pickguard is missing, but that's o.k. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted May 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 here's one of the tuner gears with a bent head. ^^ the back side ^^ Crack kills.....:/ Gotta address those too. and here's the ones on the bottom..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted May 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 so ...for a tip, I am thrilled to say the least. I'll clean it up and start fixing it as I get some spare time this summer. Pics as I go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 Score, better than a Les Paul, they are as common as muck, well maybe not '59s That's a piece of history and so unusual, have you plugged it in yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted May 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 Hi Muzz! It is a cool piece of Americana and I'm quite proud to be the new owner. I did plug it in today and the pup /electronics actually allow for a wide range of good tones. The volume knob itself is quite responsive, full on is brite and clear, 8 or 9 is loud still, but not as brite, and from 8 down it gets quieter/less sharp. The tone knob is useful too, on 10 it sounds almost like a bridge position pup, rolled down, it has a nice mellow tone and all the way down is quite bassy/muddy, but might make for a great studio layering effect on its own track......... Going through the stew-mac cat right now to find the right stuff for fix-up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 i dont think i would do much to it at all - new pickguard and some fret work and remove the tuners for a good soaking, but not much more than that do the cracks on the back go all the way through? most likely a Brazilian rosewood fretboard you have there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted May 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 Indeed they do. Well, the big one at least. and I have some binding seperation. Minimal, but I want to address it. I cannot tell a lie though - I am in untraveled waters and I am not going to experiment on her. I'm thinking of trying a laquer pen from SM to try and patch some of the smaller chips. Definitely no re-fin for her. I disassembled it today and was surprised at how well the pup and tailpiece shined up. The bridge allows no compensation for the intonation, just a straight line of hand carved wood, so I'll try to angle it a bit at least . I have some mahogany scrap, some purple heart, some ebony and some bloodwood. I might try carving a few bridges of my own to see if i can get it any better. The base and original bridge will always be there should I fail at improving on it. any tips on filling that crack? Gel CA or epoxy? I have both, just don't know which one will be best. I plan on taping off the areas around the binding sep, wicking in some thin CA and then tape-bracing it till dry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted May 8, 2011 Report Share Posted May 8, 2011 Cracks? What cracks? I don't see no steenkin' cracks! Hit this link and scroll down to the bottom, and learn what 'guitar character' really is. :D J.J.CALE Harmony Guitar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Hey OSi, You know I dig the retro stuff so much, and to me the cracks and scuffs are all now part of the guitar. If it was me I would get an insulin syringe and carefully put some glue in the cracks so they don't open up any more, they might not even need that I can't tell from the pics, but whatever you choose it would be nice to preserve the look of them. I think Wez is right, clean up the hardware a bit and that would be it apart for looking for a spot to hang the guitar in the den or bar. I can imagine warm nights out on the porch with a beer and the Harmony plugged into a nice little tube amp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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