This here’s a little ball of fun.
Purchased from Gryphon Guitars who described it thus:
“We’re not sure of the date, but Lyon & Healy’s “American Conservatory” brand tenor lutes like this one were early versions of the tenor guitar. Neck is quite straight, and original frets have only minor wear. Original “armrest” tailpiece is all there and works fine, but has some extra bends. New bridge constructed by Steve Morrill.
Body and neck have been refinished, and it wasn’t a professional job. There are matching minor cracks on each side of back. Original banjo tuners have been replaced with later right-angle tuners shown. Later pickguard looks like is screwed down but what looks like four screw heads are just decorative imprints in the celluloid (go figure, Frank Ford thinks these imprints were guides for where to screw it down….). All bracing is original and intact. Except for the refin and the funky tuners, this is a well-preserved early tenor guitar.”
Sold
