Regal Jr. Jumbo 1940-41 / Appearances Can Be Deceiving!

Here is a sweet little acoustic from a bygone era, a Regal Jr. Jumbo, made somewhere between 1940 and 1941.  It is in Good cosmetic condition and Excellent playing shape, so we’re calling it Very Good condition, overall.  It is a Spruce top over Mahogany back and sides, and plays with an open warmth that balances a clear treble against a round and pronounced bass.  Fingerstyle or flat picked, this is a very nice guitar with a sound much larger than you’d expect out of a smaller body.

Regal made the Jr. Jumbo models from about 1935 into the early 1950’s, inspired by the Gibson Kalamazoo KG-11 guitars.  It can be difficult to pinpoint the age of these Regals, but the combination of the D-Profile neck, Mahogany Back and Sides, specific headstock decal, and use of real Pearl dot markers place it in the 1940-41 window (Pearl was unavailable during the War).  

What makes this guitar distinctive its that it utilizes a Transverse ladder bracing.  Typically, ladder braced guitars feature braces that are parallel to each other, spaced top to bottom across the guitar top.  A Transverse Braced guitar has the main ladder, the one between the bridge and the soundhole, on a diagonal.  This opens up the lower bout on the bass side and the upper bout on the treble and allows for a richer tone across the two.  Bass notes are warmer and rounder, while treble notes have more volume and clarity.  

Here are the Specs:

Scale: 25 7/16”

Top: Solid Spruce

Back and Sides: Mahogany

Neck: Poplar - D profile

Fretboard & Bridge: Rosewood / Brass frets / 14” Radius

Nut and Saddle: Bone

Bracing: Transverse Ladder - Angled top brace opens up the bass for a richer tone while controlling the treble for a tighter, brighter bite

Lower Bout:  15”

Upper Bout:  10 3/16”

Body Depth: 3 5/8”

Nut Width: 1 3/4”

String Spacing at Bridge: 2 3/16”

Action at 12th fret: 4.5/64ths, both sides.

The guitar came into the shop needing quite a lot of work.  After cleaning the body and fretboard, we reset the neck, leveled and crowned the frets, made a new bone saddle, adjusted the fit of the bridge pins and adjusted the nut slot depths.  We had also reattached the edge of the pickguard, cleated and glued a long back crack, reattached one of the back braces and lemon oiled the fretboard and bridge.  The tuners (which are replacements) have been cleaned and lubricated.  We’ve set her up with a fresh set of Ernie Ball Earthwood Extra Lights (.010-.050) and procured an On-Stage Hybrid Case to keep her safe.

This is a great little guitar for old-timey music, blues, jazz or folk.  The body is small, though a little larger than normal for its time (hence, Jr. Jumbo), but the scale is long at 25 7/16 and she resonates beautifully. There is a life well lived, written all over the body of this guitar, to be sure, but no signs of abuse or neglect.  Just a lot of honest experience.

Please be sure to check out and zoom n not he photographs as we have tried to capture this Regal from al angles.

This Regal Jr. Jumbo is sold AS IS and is not returnable unless it arrives in a condition other than as described or photographed, here.

Price: $1500.00 plus $145 shipping (Lower 48 USA, only)