Here we have a 1930's Valencia Round Hole Archtop Guitar. This guitar has a classic depression era look from a classic depression era guitar maker. I love the old time smoky/tobacco colored sunburst as well as the original appointments - bridge, tailpiece and pickguard.
This guitar has seen its share of the road as it looks to have been banged around a bit. It is in need of a bit of work in order to be made an optimum player. Neck could be reset and some work to the fingerboard which has a number of cracks from drying out would help this guitar become a nice player. As it sits, it is a first position player or slide guitar as the action gets a little high after the fifth fret or so. Nonetheless, I still find myself grabbing this instrument now and again just because it looks so cool. I never really mind high action anyway - it's a character builder.
These round hole archtops are a curious bunch. They give off a nice old-timey sound and have some interesting construction characteristics, such as a lack of back bracing. The tone(somewhat obviously) falls in between that of an archtop and a flat top guitar, though on this one it is tough to describe because of a need for a neck reset. The string break angle is not forcing enough pressure down on the bridge to create the volume you would like to hear, which in turm muffles the tone a bit.
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| here is a shot showing the lack of back bracing |
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| some ugly repairs on the back |
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| side view gives a good look at the arched top |
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