Jinder Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 Hi all, I recently spotted a guitar on eBay for sale near me that I knew nothing about, but looked intriguing. Short scale, roughly the same size as an LG2 (15.5” lower bout, 12” upper), loads of lacquer checking and a kind of rudimentary ‘50s style sunburst. Bidding opened at £49.50, so I stuck a bid on at £55, expecting to hear nothing more about it. Two days later, to my delight I was notified that I had won the auction and there were no other bidders! It’s a Landola FL-55, according to the serial number it was made in 1953. I turned up to collect it, played a G chord and instantly fell in love with it. The neck is incredible, action just right, plenty of saddle height, no bellying or top distortion, one small repaired top crack but nothing to worry about. The sound of this thing is SO balanced and sweet, a dry and old tonality but with gorgeous harmonic overtones and intonation that is perfect right the way up the neck. It’s just right, and built amazingly well. Perfectly playable and useable at 69 years of age, with no work required! Has anyone else played one? They were made in Finland, or at least mine was. It appears to have an Engelmann Spruce top and what appears to be African mahogany back and sides. Looks and sounds all solid to me, but the thing sounds so good that I wouldn’t care if it was made of chewing gum and road dust. I genuinely feel immensely fortunate to have come across it and wangled such a lucky deal. Initially I planned to buy it as a fix’n’flip, but it doesn’t need fixing and I’ll definitely not be flipping it anytime soon! Pics soon…I have to put it down first 🤣 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuestionMark Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 I just looked up Landola Guitars on the internet and they and their history look very interesting. Prior to your mentioning their name I had not heard of the brand, with it being a Finland company. Sounds like you got a great find with the guitar. Very cool! QM aka “ Jazzman” Jeff 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 (edited) OOoooh yes - my first western was a Landola V-66 Buffalo, which like a blessing ran my way on X-mas evening 1973. I knew of and wished for it - blessed be my family. It was a cool guitar and nobody else around had steel - all except Nils far away played nylon. Gazed at it for hours - mesmerized : the chrome tuners, the fretboard dots, the bridge-pins, , , but most of all the jet-black teardrop guard. Wow - I was now in the league - ready to go. . . Tried one in a store a few years ago. Not a bad guitar at all. . Looks as if it could be a copy of the Harmony Sovereign, but no. Edited December 29, 2021 by E-minor7 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jricc Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 Congrats Jinder on what seems to be a killer deal! LG2 sized, very cool 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted December 29, 2021 Author Share Posted December 29, 2021 9 hours ago, E-minor7 said: OOoooh yes - my first western was a Landola V-66 Buffalo, which like a blessing ran my way on X-mas evening 1973. I knew of and wished for it - blessed be my family. It was a cool guitar and nobody else around had steel - all except Nils far away played nylon. Gazed at it for hours - mesmerized : the chrome tuners, the fretboard dots, the bridge-pins, , , but most of all the jet-black teardrop guard. Wow - I was now in the league - ready to go. . . Tried one in a store a few years ago. Not a bad guitar at all. . Looks as if it could be a copy of the Harmony Sovereign, but no. Ah superb! The V-66 looks very similar to mine shape wise, mine has a different bridge (different shape and non-adjustable saddle) and some more “old school” appointments but very similar otherwise. I’m surprised these aren’t considered more collectible, mine puts me in mind of a miniature version of a Levin Goliath, very similar feel and response, quick with a bloom of overtones and long sustain, not huge volume but not quiet either…balanced and sweet. I just know it will be a gem under a mic…already planning to make my next record with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 Congrats, Jinder! I often hear Landola being mentioned together with Levin and Hagstroem, as the best stuff coming out of Scandinavia. The first being Finnish and the second two being Swedish, of course. Lars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twang Gang Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 Well, Merry Christmas to Jinder indeed. Amazing to find such an old guitar with a perfectly straight neck that plays so nicely and at a ridiculously low price. I had never heard of Landola guitars until I saw this post. Their website shows a lot of guitars with birch backs and sides which we don't see, at least not on this side of the pond, and it seems they are into the heat treating of woods as well. Can't wait to see some photos and possibly a sound bite too. Congratulations on a great find and enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 Man oh man, what a difference a year makes. The battles you were in this time last year repaid in some small way with a find like this, this year. You deserve it, Jinder! I can't wait to see some pics. Maybe even hear a little bit of a quick recording. Congratulations! EM7, is yours still in your stable? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 Cool! At least I guess it is cool as my experience with Landola guitars is pretty flipping limited. At one time though Landola made acoustic guitars for Peavey which unlike earlier guitars were easy to find in the States. While I do not recall much about Landola guitars I assume they they would have had to go toe to toe with Harmony in the Eurppean market so color me surprised that they came out with a model which bore a striking resemblance to a Sovereign H1260. Landola guitars (at least those made in what was probably the 1960s into the 1970s) though had painfully skinny necks. Similar to 1960s Hagstrom necks. So not a guitar I would seek out, But I would think the neck on a 1950s guitar would be more substantial. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted December 30, 2021 Share Posted December 30, 2021 5 hours ago, BoSoxBiker said: EM7, is yours still in your stable? No - only a year later it got replaced by this very Morris dread - a mix between a 28 and a 35. Now living with my old friend and recently heard in action during a reunion jam with 3 good pals from the late 70s. The then bass-man not seen in 3 decades played it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted December 31, 2021 Author Share Posted December 31, 2021 10 hours ago, zombywoof said: Cool! At least I guess it is cool as my experience with Landola guitars is pretty flipping limited. At one time though Landola made acoustic guitars for Peavey which unlike earlier guitars were easy to find in the States. While I do not recall much about Landola guitars I assume they they would have had to go toe to toe with Harmony in the Eurppean market so color me surprised that they came out with a model which bore a striking resemblance to a Sovereign H1260. Landola guitars (at least those made in what was probably the 1960s into the 1970s) though had painfully skinny necks. Similar to 1960s Hagstrom necks. So not a guitar I would seek out, But I would think the neck on a 1950s guitar would be more substantial. Zomb, you’re not wrong on the neck-this one is 1 3/4” at the nut, a comfortable C profile which just fell into my hand when I picked it up for the first time. One of those instant connection moments that happens once in a blue moon, lovely! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted December 31, 2021 Author Share Posted December 31, 2021 11 hours ago, BoSoxBiker said: Man oh man, what a difference a year makes. The battles you were in this time last year repaid in some small way with a find like this, this year. You deserve it, Jinder! I can't wait to see some pics. Maybe even hear a little bit of a quick recording. Congratulations! EM7, is yours still in your stable? Thankyou BSB! I hadn’t thought of it like that, but you’re right-a year ago right about now I was freshly home from hospital, and so weak I had to crawl up the stairs on all fours. Unbearable pain in all my joints due to connective tissue damage, couldn’t even hold a guitar for more than a minute or two, let alone play. Now I’m back to gigging regularly, recording again and life is pretty much back to whatever “normal” is these days!! I will never take a moment’s playing, writing or anything else in life for granted ever again…I’m immensely grateful to be here at all, let alone be able to go back to the life and work that I enjoyed so much prior to being unwell. I honestly didn’t expect to make such a relatively full recovery. There are some residual aspects which I have to accept and learn to live with, but that’s a very small price to pay for a second bite of the cherry in my opinion. Weirdly, one thing that being unwell cured me of is GAS-for decades I’ve been chasing a particular tone in my head, but I have come to realise that it’s right there in my SJ200, Dove and AJ, and has been all along. Other than picking up a short scale Sigma copy of a CF100 when I needed something small and comfortable to get my fingers working again, I’ve not bought anything guitar wise for my own use at all in the last year until the Landola came (along almost by accident)… I’ve mainly been helping my stepson get kitted up as he’s a really gifted player, mainly electric in the classic rock vein, but I’ve been playing him all manner of old Blues stuff like Lightnin’ Hopkins, Charley Patton and Jack Teagarden, and he’s adapted to twelve bar stuff on his little Fender Sonoran parlour superbly. He and I have built a Strat copy together and have rebuilt my old Hohner ST59 for him, which was my first guitar some 30+yrs ago. He plays it daily, and is far better at 14yrs of age than I was at 20! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 22 hours ago, Jinder said: I will never take a moment’s playing, writing or anything else in life for granted ever again…I’m immensely grateful to be here at all, let alone be able to go back to the life and work that I enjoyed so much prior to being unwell. I honestly didn’t expect to make such a relatively full recovery. There are some residual aspects which I have to accept and learn to live with, but that’s a very small price to pay for a second bite of the cherry in my opinion. It really is a gift. You know it all changed when you get angry at yourself for sleeping in past 7:30. Such a waste. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWG4927 Posted January 1, 2022 Share Posted January 1, 2022 1 hour ago, BoSoxBiker said: It really is a gift. You know it all changed when you get angry at yourself for sleeping in past 7:30. Such a waste. But “The people on the hill, they say I’m lazy, but when they sleep, I sing and dance.” — Pete Townshend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted January 2, 2022 Share Posted January 2, 2022 On 12/31/2021 at 8:32 PM, JWG4927 said: But “The people on the hill, they say I’m lazy, but when they sleep, I sing and dance.” — Pete Townshend The point was not early to bed, early to rise. Early to bed defeats the purpose. 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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