Vintage 1960's Airline Archtop Acoustic Guitar. A sweet vintage 1960's Airline archtop acoustic guitar. Plays and sounds great. Love the big white pickguard! Cool vintage archtop for a nice price! Neck is a nice thick V shape. Feels really comfortable under your grip. The action on this one is low and is easy to play all the way up and down. Here I have a vintage Airline archtop guitar that is in excellent condition. This is an acoustic and it is an N-5 model serial number L2190. I am not sure of the exact year but am guessing mid 1960s. It is in original and excellent condition. The only thing that was missing when I got it was the pickguard and a custom one was made for it. Vintage Airline 6-string Acoustic Guitar With Flat Top Wooden. $34.35 shipping. Ending Saturday at 10:45AM PST 3d 5h. Vintage 1964 Airline Small Practice Guitar Combo Amplifier GPL 3823A Grey Tolex. $50.00 shipping.
| Brand | |
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
|---|---|
Area served | North America |
| Parent | Montgomery Ward |
Airline was a store brand of consumer electronics and musical instruments originally marketed and sold by American retailer Montgomery Ward via their catalog and retail stores. Products included radios, televisions, record players, guitars and amplifiers. In the early 2000s, Eastwood Guitars acquired the rights to use the 'Airline' brand-name.
Musical equipment[edit]
Airline Acoustic Guitar Serial Numbers Number
The Airline brand was used by Montgomery Ward on a range of electric and acoustic guitars from 1958-68. These were made in Chicago, Illinois, by the Valco Manufacturing Co., Kay Musical Instrument Company, and Harmony Company.[1] Airline-branded amplifiers were manufactured by Valco and Danelectro.
Valco Airline guitars have been played by a wide array of bands and artists, including: Jack White,[2]J. B. Hutto, David Bowie, The Cure, PJ Harvey, Calexico, and Wooden Shjips.
Eastwood Guitars reissue[edit]
Airline Acoustic Guitar Serial Numbers Lookup
After Eastwood Guitars purchased rights to the 'Airline' trade name in the early 2000s, they reissued the early 1960s 'JB Hutto' Airline shape as the 'Airline DLX.' The new version set aside the defining hollow fiberglass body of the Valco-made original[3] in favor of the simpler and less-costly chambered mahogany body, giving it a more traditional electric guitar feel and tone, rather than the unique playing feel and response of the original.[4][5]
Eastwood Guitars later released the 'Airline '59 Custom' in two- and three-pickup models in December 2008, which come with striped pickguards and rubber-bound bodies, in the spirit of the originals.
See also[edit]
- Valco
- National String Instrument Corporation — origin of Valco, via National Dobro Corporation
References[edit]
- ^Electric Guitars: the Illustrated Encyclopedia Edited by Tony Bacon. San Diego: Thunder Bay, 2000. Pp. 18 & 242.
- ^Robinson, Mike (April 14, 2014). MyRareGuitars.com. Retrieved October 7, 2014
- ^Electric Guitars: the Illustrated Encyclopedia Edited by Tony Bacon. San Diego: Thunder Bay, 2000. Pp. 18 & 243.
- ^'White Heat: the White Stripes' 21st Century Blues' by Darrin Fox. Guitar Player Magazine, edited by Michael Molenda, June 2003, Pp.72.
- ^'The House That Jack Built' by Christopher Scapelliti. Guitar World Magazine, edited by Brad Tolinski, May 2004, Pp.150.
Airline Acoustic Guitars History
External links[edit]
Media related to Airline Guitars at Wikimedia Commons
- 'Eastwood Guitars'. — home of reissued Airline guitars.
- 'Guitar Kits USA'. — home of Res-O-Glas guitar kits.
Airline Acoustic Guitars History