National New Yorker Information

[bgwicks]

Hi,

I have this 1953 National New Yorker. Finding information on it is proving difficult. Can anyone help? Where does it fit in the scheme of things: were they budget, were they considered good instruments?

Thanks

http://i21.tinypic.com/2f03zw6.jpg

[snarkle]

Kind of mid-grade...better necks, in my opinion, than the standard Kays and Harmonys of the era, but less well-made than the Gibsons.

This particular model's body was probably made by Kay, with National contributing the neck and electronics. Some of the higher-end Nationals have Gibson-made bodies and National-made necks; I've seen some very high-end, set-neck National acoustic archtops that were all-Gibson made.

I got into collecting National archtops for a while and still have an Aristocrat, a Del-Mar, and a Belaire...with, respectively, Gibson ES-300, ES-350, and ES-175 bodies and National bolt-on necks. They look great and play well, but the National electronics don't quite cut it for much other than blues rhythm; is there anybody out there who can rewind National single-coil pickups to make them more comparable to, say, a P-90?

[TheRockDoc]

Call Mandolin Brothers in Staten Island NY (Stan) or Gruhn Guitars. Between those two, you'll have a definitive answer...

[snarkle]

Call Mandolin Brothers in Staten Island NY (Stan) or Gruhn Guitars. Between those two, you'll have a definitive answer...

Maybe not...a Gruhn staffer once sold me a Kay-made National after describing it as one of the Gibson-bodied ones...I had to put up quite a fight to return it. Mind you this was before it was possible to simply go online and see for yourself.

There's really not a lot of information available on National archtops. Even the original catalogues are less than enlightening on who made what. And, speaking of original catalogues, I went into my little stash and discovered that the OP's guitar is probably a Californian (16", natural-finished, single-pickup archtop), rather than a New Yorker...AFAIK, the New Yorker name was reserved for those beautiful black-and-white Art Deco lap steels.

[Loni Specter]

Kind of mid-grade...better necks, in my opinion, than the standard Kays and Harmonys of the era, but less well-made than the Gibsons.

is there anybody out there who can rewind National single-coil pickups to make them more comparable to, say, a P-90?

It's worth contacting Jason Lollar
www.lollarguitars.com

Good luck

[snarkle]

By the way, if anyone has any info on the Del-Mar, which is built around a Gibson ES-350 body, I'd like to see it. This model doesn't appear in any of the catalogues I have, and seems to have no internet presence whatsoever, but I've owned two, one of which used to belong to Elliott Ingber, a.k.a. Winged Eel Fingerling of Captain Beefheart fame.

It wasn't a particularly good guitar, but it looked amazing. And, if anyone is interested, whoever I sold it to now has it on consignment at Not Just Another Music Shop in Vancouver, B.C.

Just a heads' up...I have no financial interest in this sale.

[snarkle]

It's worth contacting Jason Lollar
www.lollarguitars.com

Good luck

Good point. I've actually spoken to Lollar on the phone and he expressed some interest in this...I don't live that far from him, so we might get together sometime and discuss it further.

[Walter Broes]

Snarkle, I've had Kent Armstrong rewinds in the UK rewind the pickups in my Supro Dual Tone, and they're certainly more P90 sounding than before, and more useable.

[bgwicks]

Thanks for your help everyone.

I have just cleaned this old guitar up, as it was filthy. After some naphtha and virtuoso it is now a wonderful honey blond. The gunk that came of it was incredible.

I also have a 1946 ES300 and interestingly the national build quality is pretty similar. Certainly the national is heavier, probably due to the neck joint.

The national has a huge d shaped neck which I don't really like, but the rosewood is very dark and pretty.

I have contacted Jason Lollar to see if I can get a pickup for it. I have ordered a repro white national headstock logo, and new knobs.

Once I am done it should be a pretty nice little jazz box.