Folkway Music -- Instrument Gallery




Last updated: July 4, 2008 Questions? Please email info@folkwaymusic.com. Please note: These are some of the more notable instruments that have recently been sold by Folkway Music. None of these instruments are for sale. Gallery Sections: Martin Gibson Other Acoustic Guitars Resonators Mandolins & Banjos Archtop Guitars Classical Guitars Electric Guitars Amplifiers Miscellaneous Lefty Instruments Repaired Instruments
Main Photo	1974 Fender Telecaster LEFTY Serial # 587764. Everyone knows how rare vintage Left Handed guitars are, so imagine our excitement when we first laid our eyes on this super-clean '74 lefty Tele! It's 100% original and untouched - minus the missing ashtray bridge cover and a new bone nut that we made (the original was cracked and too low). No modifications, original pickups, pots, switch, and solder joints. Original tuners, pickguard, bridge, saddles. And it weighs in at a light 7.3 pounds! Resonant ash body, nice original finish, perfect original frets, and well set-up in our shop. With new Fender Custom Shop black/red HSC SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail Neck Date detail Neck Pocket detail Pot detail Pot detail 2

Main Photo	1965 Fender Stratocaster LEFTY Serial # 125920. "F" neck plate; June 2 1965 neck date; pot codes (137 6514) date to April 1965; pickups dated June 11, 1965. Lefty vintage guitars do actually exist. We have proof right here in the form of the 1965 Fender Stratocaster shown in these photos... Ok, ok, we know there are others out there, but we so rarely come across them - we have to make a big splash when one comes our way! This one is an early CBS-era Strat, completed in June 1965 (CBS took ownership of Fender at the start of 1965). The guitar shows many transitional features: F-neck plate, Transition logo, Kluson double-line tuners, white pickguard, and pat. pend bridge saddles. The finish is three-tone sunburst nitrocellulose lacquer, and the fingerboard is Brazilian Rosewood. The guitar is in excellent condition and completely original, with the exception of a replacement 5-way switch (the original accompanies the guitar) and a newer bone nut (the cracked original nut also accompanies the instrument). The guitar has very little finish wear and has obviously been well cared for throughout its life. It was purchased by its most recent owner in the early 1970's from a right-handed player who owned the guitar for a week. In his quest to become Jimi Hendrix this righty strung it backwards and installed a strap button on the treble horn. It didn't take him long to learn that you've got to more than play an upside-down Strat to do what Henrix did! In any case, there remains a hole in the treble horn from that strap button. We've set the guitar up in shop with .010's, and from one lefty to another - it's a lot of fun. The neck feels great, and the guitar is springy and resonant. 8 pounds total weight. The pickups sound great - and have DC resistances of 5.8 kOhms (neck and middle) and 7.6 kOhms (bridge). The frets are original and show some wear, but the guitar doesn't buzz out anywhere and plays fast. With an original Lefty side-pocket hard case, there's not much more you can ask for. On Consignment SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail Bridge Pickup detail Middle Pickup detail Neck Pickup detail Wiring detail Pots detail Pickup Cavity detail Neck Stamp detail Neck Joint detail Case Open Case Closed

Main Photo	1968 (circa) Martin "Employee" 00-28 LEFTY Yes, it's factory left handed; yes it has Brazilian Rosewood back and sides; and - yes - it was built in the Martin factory, but like all "Employee-built" Martin guitars this instrument does not have a Martin serial number or bear the familiar C.F. Martin & Co. logo on its headstock. Back in the days of the 6-digit serial number, Martin employees were permitted to "build" instruments of their own design when off-shift. They would use Martin parts in the construction of these instruments, and the finished products would be - essentially - Martin guitars, but would generally differ from those instruments found in the Martin catalog. Such is the case with the particular lefty 00-sized guitar pictured here. It was built with three-piece back and sides of richly hued Brazilian rosewood; lefty-braced Sitka spruce top complete with small rosewood bridge-plate (a la 1968); a twelve-fret neck with 24.9" scale, chucky 1-7/8" width and slotted headstock, and Brazilian rosewood fingerboard and rectangular bridge. As far as appointments, this instrument is a hybrid of styles ranging from 16 to 45. The top's edge is bound with Style 21 5-ply purflings and black outer binding, and the abalone pearl rosette is Style 41 and higher. The three-piece back suggests Style 35, but its lack of binding is reminiscent of the Style 16 New Yorkers that were being built at the same time as this guitar. The fingerboard and dot pattern are Style 21, and the bridge was built for a Style 16 or 21 New Yorker. Finally, the bridge and end-pins are Style 21 (Black with white dots), and the end-graft is Style 28. So by now, I'm hoping that you're wondering why we've called the guitar a 00-28, if only the endgraft (that little wedge inlaid into the bottom of the guitar that the strap button sits in the center of) says Style 28. Well, it's because the fellow who built it wanted us to; he stamped the neck block 00-28! Inside, the guitar is initialed A.F.S. 6.2.71 and although we assume the guitar was completed June 2nd, 1971, we're still calling it a '68 as the materials used and the size/shape of the bridge plate are suggestive of that year. The headstock is inlaid with LMS in pearl, and we have been told these are the initials of the wife of the Martin Employee who built the instrument. The instrument is in excellent condition. There are no cracks and no scratches in the finish. We have fitted a replacement tortoise-shell celluloid pickguard to the top, re-fretted and set up the instrument, complete with a new bone saddle. The action is fingerstyle-low, with a full-height bridge and enough saddle to lower the strings well into the buzz-zone. Original Grover tuners and original ivory nut. It's a very loud guitar, with big full trebles and piano-like resonance. It is, after all, a Martin. With original chipboard case On Consignment SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail

Main Photo	1999 PRS Custom 22 Lefty Serial # 9 42740. This lefty Custom 22 was ordered in Black Cherry finish, with 10-top, abalone bird fingerboard inlays, gold hardware, and intonateable stop-tailpiece. It's a fabulously striking guitar, with deep flame in its maple top and nicely accentuated by a royal combination of ruby and gold. The instrument is in perfect condition - there is not a scratch on it - and its set-up is slinky fast. Mahogany body and neck, wide-fat neck carve, PRS Dragon II humbuckers with rotary 5-way switch. 7.3 pounds light and very resonant, this guitar sounds as good as it looks. With original hard shell case SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail

Main Photo	2006 Gibson Custom Shop Historic Les Paul R8 VOS Lefty Serial # 8 6432. It is a 2006 model from Gibson's Custom Shop. A faithful 1958 reissue, complete with VOS (Vintage Original Spec) components and design - from the long neck tenon, mildly aged looks, nitro finish, sexy plastic parts, bumble-bee capacitor, solid one piece mahogany back and mildly figured maple top. The neck is awesomely comfortable, and the guitar weighs in at a svelte 9.17 pounds total. Acoustically, it's an incredibly resonant instrument - which always translates to a killer amplified tone - especially when its voice is coming from a pair of Gibson Burstbucker pickups. This guitar does exactly what Les Pauls are supposed to do. And it's so much fun to play. It's sold with all its original documentation, hang tags, patch cord, and hard case. SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail Case Open Case Closed Extras

Main Photo	2000 Gibson Les Paul Classic "1960" Lefty Serial # 034322. The Classic combines vintage and modern features to give the Les Paul player an instrument that feels and looks like a 1960 Paul, but has the scream and articulation of modern high-output ceramic magnet humbuckers. 60's slim taper neck profile, 17 degree headstock pitch Kluson tuners with green keystone buttons, and nickel hardware. 496R neck pickup and 500T bridge pickup. Single piece mahogany body with maple cap. Vintage sunburst lacquer finish. Set up in our shop with 10's, it plays great. Frets and neck are in excellent shape. Some minor wear on the back, otherwise in excellent condition. Original hard shell case included SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail

Main Photo	2002 Gibson Historic 1958 TV Les Paul Jr. LEFTY! From the Gibson Custom Shop, Historic Division, comes this wonderfully recreated 1958 TV Les Paul Junior... in lefty! The Junior was introduced in 1954 with a price tag of $49.50, but original examples of these instruments are selling for more than 100 times that, TV yellow models twice as much still - and best of luck finding an original Lefty! The Gibson Custom shop has done a great job with this historically-accurate instrument. The single-piece mahogany body is a full 1-3/4" deep (just like the originals) with a long-tenon set-in Mahogany neck. The fingerboard is quartersawn Brazilian rosewood and is fretted with late 50's style wire. The neck, of course, is a perfect fit with its 1-11/16" nut width, 50's big chunky-round profile and 22 frets to move though. The hardware is all nickel-plated, and includes the lightweight aluminum wrap-around bridge/tailpiece made famous by the original Les Pauls, and a single P-90 pickup with tone and volume controls. The Nitrocellulose lacquer TV finish is incredible, with 100% vintage correct color and translucency. To top it all off, Gibson gives its Historic division guitars serial numbers akin to the originals, stamped in black ink on the back of the headstock; this one is #8 2538. Magically balanced, the guitar is a featherweight, too, weighing in at just 7.1 pounds. Sold with its original vintage-repro hang tags, certificate of authenticity, and custom hard shell case. SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail

Main Photo	NEW Hofner Jazzica LEFTY! We are not currently Hofner dealers, but we make every effort to have the finest selection of good lefties. A local dealer ordered this awesome jazz machine for a customer who never returned, and then brought it to us because, well, it's all backwards! Lucky us! Beyond cool, and one of the most fun-to-play lefties we have had. Featuring a hand-carved solid German spruce top, with nice contemporary f-holes, body of highly figured maple, unique wedge profile making it super comfy while retaining a full acoustic voice. Then there's that pickup... I don't know who makes these, but they are among the best sounding floating pickups I have heard, sweet and full for quiet passages, but gutsy when you need to dig in. Fingerboard, bridge, sculpted finger-rest and tailpiece all of black ebony. The nut measures 43mm, or a little more than 1 11/16". The body is 15 5/8" wide. This instrument is new, and is offered with full warranty, and in its super deluxe case with built-in humidity gauge and humidifier. A very exciting opportunity for us to offer a premium jazz box to our lefty customers. SOLD More photos: Full Front detail Full Back detail Side detail

Main Photo	1957 Gibson SJ LEFTY!! There will soon be a real lucky lefty somewhere out there... but just one, as vintage left-handed instruments are as easy to find as a needle in a haystack! This is a 100% original, factory left-handed 1957 Gibson Southern Jumbo! It's body is crack-free, with original finish, Brazilian rosewood bridge, and original nut and tuners. The tuner buttons have been replaced, as has the saddle (it's a bone one that we made for it). There's also an old repaired headstock crack, which is a bummer, but it's solid and not glaringly obvious. The neck feels glorious; and the tone is most likely something that you lefties have yet to really experience. We have trouble believing it too. With original hard-shell case. SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Headstock detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Tuners detail

Main Photo	1965 Gibson ES-330TD Factory Lefty Well... Yes, it is Factory left-handed. And yes, it is a 1965 Kalamazoo-built, Gibson ES-330TD. And yes, it is as rare as you think it is. We aim to please all of our lefty customers here at Folkway! Gorgeous sunburst top, Chrome-cover P-90's, 100 % original wire harness and all components. Original frets, tailpiece and pickguard. Original ABR-1 Bridge with plastic saddles has been replaced with a new ABR-1 with brass-saddles for increased sustain and better tone all-around; the original is in the case though. Two newer knobs, and proper replacement Kluson tuners with aged keystone buttons. Fast, slim neck - a breeze to play. Near-invisible and very professionally done headstock repair. Factory-installed neck-side dots on both righty and lefty sides are an interesting feature. Original hard-shell case included SOLD More photos: Front detail Back detail Tuners detail Full Front detail Full Back detail Headstock detail

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Contact Folkway Music --
Mail: 163 Suffolk Street West, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1H 2J7 Directions to Guelph/Folkway Music
Telephone: (877)763-5524 toll-free
e-mail: info@folkwaymusic.com

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