-made in Chicago, Illinois, USA - ink stamped 2695 on the inside of the back
-I believe this guitar to be the only surviving documented guitar of it's kind. It is the highest model ever produced by Harmony. There are no other images of a guitar like this anywhere on the internet, and I've been looking for years. There are plenty of images on various sites, but they are all this very guitar. It is beyond just "rare".
-I've owned it 4 times over the years, originally purchasing it from an older gentleman in Prescott, ON in 1997.
-The gold plated Grover tailpiece (with Harmony script) was broken at the hinge at that time and the old fellow who owned it tried to repair it with globs of solder, then he filed down the repair and carelessly scratched the tailpiece with a file. I removed all the solder and repaired the broken hinge with 2 steel pins. It no longer hinges, but the repair has lasted until present day and I'm confident it'll last forever. The playability is not affected.
-15 5/8" lower bout, 25" scale and 1 3/4" nut width
-Carved spruce top with two "integral" tone bars that are carved into, and part of, the carved spruce top, not glued in place from separate pieces of spruce like most guitars.
-The top perimeter has bold herringbone trim.
-The upper and lower sections of the high grade Brazilian rosewood bridge are cut from the same piece of wood.
-It has a one piece, flame maple back with a decorative strip down the middle.
-The maple neck has a V profile and a bound Brazilian rosewood fingerboard
-The fret position markers are mother of pearl and there is a 7 piece marquetry strip down the length of the middle of the fingerboard.
-The original frets are in nice shape and the bone nut is original.
-The headstock has a tapered profile and features a Brazilian rosewood headstock overlay with inlaid "Harmony Cremona" masterfully cut from mother of pearl.
-The rear of the headstock has several thin veneers and a "52" stamped in it. There is a decal on the rear of the headstock from the original music store in Montreal that it was first shipped to and sold by.
-When I first got the guitar, it had non original tuners. At that time I installed a set of 1950's tuners and when I most recently got the guitar back, from Nova Scotia, it had Kluson style modern tuners. I removed them and installed a set of tuners from a 1935 Regal that are in excellent condition and match the original tuner's footprint.
-There are no cracks or structural issues whatsoever.
-The neck is straight and true.
-The original finish is fantastic.
-The original pick guard is in the case and is disintegrating due to a very slow, self destructive chemical reaction. I made a replacement bound tortoise pick guard for the guitar ages ago with the same dimensions as the original and using the original mounting hardware.
-This guitar was featured in the Fretboard Journal Magazine in 2014 while it was for sale at Folkway Music in Waterloo, ON - at that time it was selling for $2200 USD.
-The set up and playability is fantastic and the sound it produces is heavenly.
-Modern hard shell arched top case.