Silvertone Model 1446L Model Thinline Hollow Body Electric Guitar, made by Harmony, c. 1962, made in Chicago, black lacquer finish, laminated maple body, maple neck with rosewood fingerboard, original two-tone chipboard case.

This is a relatively clean and rather early original example of this unique model, one of the very best guitars ever sold through Sears-Roebuck & Co. The Silvertone 1446L is both a super sharp-looking and great-sounding instrument combining a sleek ebony finished Harmony thinline hollow body and deluxe pattern neck with a Bigsby vibrato tailpiece and unique mini-humbucking pickups. These were supplied by CMI/Gibson, essentially the same units used on the contemporary Kalamazoo-made Epiphone line. The only difference is a 3-and-3 staggered polepiece pattern as opposed to a straight line, probably to differentiate them visually rather than for any musical reason. This is the only '60s Harmony/Silvertone model sporting pickups with a Gibson lineage, the rest use DeArmonds. The odd-looking white plastic trapezoidal mounting bezels are also unique to this model.

This combination of features makes for a very professional instrument for a Silvertone, and a guitar that has a justifiable reputation as the finest Harmony-made electric guitar of the 1960s. This one has a visible factory date code from 1962 so is an earlier example; the model first appeared in Sears' catalogs in 1961. The 1446 is unofficially named the "Chris Isaak" model. Some time back he was seen with one quite a bit, before Harmony and Silvertone were considered "cool"! At any rate this IS one of the coolest of all; a classic in comparatively affordable vintage 1960s American guitars.

Overall length is 40 3/4 in. (103.5 cm.), 15 3/4 in. (40 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 7/8 in. (4.8 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 in. (610 mm.). Width of nut is 1 3/4 in. (44 mm.).

This is a relatively clean, fine-playing and sounding example of this snazzy Silvertone classic. It shows some minor wear and remains all original. There is some light finish wear overall with small dings, scrapes, and scuffs, for the most part the ebony lacquer still is intact. For some reason the most notable wear is to the headstock, which has dings, dents and scrapes along the face and edges and a few errant glue spots here and there. The fingerboard has been re-glued by the nut, which is a nice bone replacement. The inside edges of the F-holes are painted white, which was probably not stock (we have not seen it previously on these) but is cleanly done, so perhaps it is factory.

All the hardware is original, including the oft-lost or broken plastic pickguard. The somewhat brittle white plastic pickup and switch rings have survived with no damage, there is one small chip off the tip of the truss rod cover. The original Waverly tuners, Biggby tailpiece and nickel-plated pickup covers do show some light wear but nothing to serious. There is some noticeable fingerboard and fret wear but nothing that affects playability. Overall this is a nice example, a really fun guitar to play. These were sold in decent numbers 55+ years ago but many have not survived the ensuing decades; this one comes in the original two-tone chipboard case. Overall Excellent - Condition.

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Listeda year ago
ConditionExcellent (Used)
Excellent items are almost entirely free from blemishes and other visual defects and have been played or used with the utmost care.Learn more
Brand
Model
  • Silvertone Model 1446L
Finish
  • black lacquer
Categories
Year
  • 1962
Body Type
  • Hollow Body

Retrofret Vintage Guitars

Brooklyn, NY, United States
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