Spot Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Wooow!!!! I played one of these today and was blown away!!! Anyone own one of these bad boys??? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GMhk-_fDLw&feature=related Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 A couple guys have Harmony guitars, not sure about the models. I think KSdaddy has one or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 A couple guys have Harmony guitars, not sure about the models. I think KSdaddy has one or two. ...I guess you have to be a fan if that distictive Ladder bracing sound, which I am, but, man...the bass on that this and the volume!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 http://www.guitarvillage.co.uk/product-detail_huge.asp?id=10336 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 I've got a wonderful Harmony Sovereign 1260, which is my "street" guitar, and gigging guitar. Can't be beat for the type of playing I do.......VERY heavy bass, and when palm muted for blues, is like a drum!!! I am a BIG fan of the ladder braced sound, but it does have some limitations. I have one, my friend has one, and I've played a few more, none of them were good for heavy strumming. Finger style, they can't be beat. Stairway to Heaven, was recorded with one. Tons of blues players used them.....they are actually GREAT guitars. All solid woods, hyde glue, the back is a SINGLE PIECE of mahogany, mine has Adirondack Spruce top, solid mahogany neck, Brazillian Rosewood fretboard and bridge. On the downside, almost all 1260's at this age, need neck resets, but this is a great guitar, I highly recommend it....this is the one I use for my cafe gigs....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grampa Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 I have a 12 string that started its life as a Harmony Sovereign in the mid 50's. The madman who made it widened the neck and remade the head to accomodate 12 strings. I kept it tuned to standard with silk and steels for many years until a few years ago when the top started to bow too much so I tuned it down. It still has a great sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 I've got a wonderful Harmony Sovereign 1260, which is my "street" guitar, and gigging guitar. Can't be beat for the type of playing I do.......VERY heavy bass, and when palm muted for blues, is like a drum!!! I am a BIG fan of the ladder braced sound, but it does have some limitations. I have one, my friend has one, and I've played a few more, none of them were good for heavy strumming. Finger style, they can't be beat. Stairway to Heaven, was recorded with one. Tons of blues players used them.....they are actually GREAT guitars. All solid woods, hyde glue, the back is a SINGLE PIECE of mahogany, mine has Adirondack Spruce top, solid mahogany neck, Brazillian Rosewood fretboard and bridge. On the downside, almost all 1260's at this age, need neck resets, but this is a great guitar, I highly recommend it....this is the one I use for my cafe gigs....... Great reading,..thnx Wilyfool! Do you know how to read the Serials on these H1260's ? This one was 2137 1060??? The shop claimed its from the '60's but I can't seem to find any credible information online to back this up.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Yes definitely from the 60's , those serial numbers are hard to read sometimes, seems Harmony didn't cover the sound hole when they sprayed finish, so often obscure. I'm willing to bet that yours actually says 2137 H1260 instead of 1060....again hard to read.....if you look in the soundhole you might find a number that has S, F, W, (summer fall winter) and a date, again usually covered by overspray. This is a WONDERFUL website for Harmony info: http://harmony.demont.net/guitars/H1260/44.htm Great reading,..thnx Wilyfool! Do you know how to read the Serials on these H1260's ? This one was 2137 1060??? The shop claimed its from the '60's but I can't seem to find any credible information online to back this up.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 13, 2011 Author Share Posted January 13, 2011 Yeah,..I know the site Wily..... It's a wealth of info on these guitars. Top Draw!!! FYI - I've heard the H 1260 has been referred to as a poor man's Martin D-18.... you've got a great value guitar in your arsenal!!! Any chance of a few photos? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 Any chance of a few photos? Compared to the one in the video (which looks brand new!) mine looks like it has been through the war....lol....but I love that old guit!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strat-o-steve Posted January 13, 2011 Share Posted January 13, 2011 I have one! It has the OM style body ( not the goofy looking later model style ). These are awesome guitars! They are USA built and use solid woods. They nearly all have to be set up if it hasn't been done in the past. Mine once belonged to my grandmother, and it was damaged with a large hole in it's side and the brideg pulled off :( it stayed in this shape for 30 years, and this last fall I refurbished it and it is a wonderful sounding guitar. Again, every one I have seen has needed work to play easily, but once set up, they rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicbyFirelight Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I have one too -- but it is unplayable as the neck is loose. You can actually wiggle it to and fro relative to the body! Anybody know a site where web images of the neck assembly could be viewed? I'm pretty handy and would like to try resetting and stabilizing it myself. Not sure whether it would be worth taking it to a pro for a proper neck reset... Thx in advance.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyK Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 Sovereign was Harmony's top of the line Flat top. I let one slip through my fingers for lack of $250.00. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyK Posted January 15, 2011 Share Posted January 15, 2011 I have one too -- but it is unplayable as the neck is loose. You can actually wiggle it to and fro relative to the body! Anybody know a site where web images of the neck assembly could be viewed? I'm pretty handy and would like to try resetting and stabilizing it myself. Not sure whether it would be worth taking it to a pro for a proper neck reset... Thx in advance.... Frets.com will show you the various ways guitar necks are attached. The Harmonies are likely a mortise and tennon, rather than a dove tail, but steaming it apart is the only way to know for sure. You may need to shim the joint if it's loose. If you're lucky you'll only have to re-glue it. Read Frets.com's three articles on Hide glue and how to buy small quantities of it at the grocery store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicbyFirelight Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 Thanks TommyK -- I checked out Frets for this awhile back but will revisit... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 In the 70's Harmony shifted their production to Japan. Those Sovereigns after 1971, the necks were put on with two dowels???!!! These are not so desireable, prior to that the necks were dovetail just like a martin......good construction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 16, 2011 Author Share Posted January 16, 2011 In the 70's Harmony shifted their production to Japan. Those Sovereigns after 1971, the necks were put on with two dowels???!!! These are not so desireable, prior to that the necks were dovetail just like a martin......good construction. Super interesting Wily,...and way of telling if a model is USA or Jap without taking the neck off? The serials on these guys are a ***** to figure out.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyK Posted January 16, 2011 Share Posted January 16, 2011 All the history of Harmony I've read says that Harmony never ventured into Japan or elsewhere to produce guitars. They thought about it during the folk music craze of the 60's. They even thought about expanding in the states. But, surmising that the boom was short lived, were content to build at capacity until things cooled down. Right or wrong, the Asian buildings filled in the difference between domestic production and domestic demand. This gave the Asian manufacturers of guitars, and other instruments, a toe hold on our shores, which they've never relinquished. In 1975, due to flagging demand (which they predicted), and increased competition from Asian sources (which they in part created), Harmony closed it's doors and sold off everything, except the Harmony name. Sometime around the turn of this century, someone either bought the rights to the name or exercised their right to use it and began making and selling guitars under the Harmony name. These are currently made in Asia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spot Posted January 17, 2011 Author Share Posted January 17, 2011 What strings are you guys using on your H1260's? I hear hear that one should NOT go above 11's due to ladder bracing and large size of the top... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 I HAVE ELIXIR 12'S.....AND THEY WORK FINE!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonguy Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 My 1260 was advertised as a "campfire guitar" online when I bought it.- the previous owner had practiced his guitar repair chops on it, but based on the quality of the work he was a quick study (who also used hide glue) and reasonably experienced. What a beauty!! There are some solidly repaired (and slightly visible) body cracks around the lower bouts, and the headstock lost its graphics. Other than that, it is extremely clean. The headstock has been tastefully refinned in gloss black and looks fine. There's no mistaking what this guitar is, so the headstock graphics are superfluous. Mine had its bridge reglued and had a neck reset (including a nicely-placed wedge under the fingerboard extension to minimize fingerboard drop-off), which gave it perfect action. I gave it a new bone saddle since the one it shipped with came up a hair short at the ends. It has a beautifully silked top and a fantastic neck profile. It is loud, but in a smooth and cohesive way - nothing raw or raucous. Ladder-braced guitars are their own special animals. If you want the snap and crisp attack of a pre-war dread, this is not your ride. Fingerstyle might be the H1260's strong suit, along with cross-picking. There's plenty of volume, but there's an airy and woody and open quality to the notes that I really like. I got this one without a case, and if you find one without a case you may learn a standard dreadnought case (especially a molded-plastic one) might not accommodate the Harmony's wider-than-standard lower bouts. Mine drops perfectly and snugly into a Hiscox Liteflite "Standard" case (model STD-AC). I was lucky to find one of those on my local Craig's List. Mine is strung with Martin SP Phosphor lights. Anyone have a pickup installed in theirs? Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spankytele Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Wonderful tone in the video. Thanks for sharing that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Wonderful tone in the video. Thanks for sharing that. What video? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Just went back in time 2 years and found it :-) Does sound great Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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