Harmony 1270 Tag sale special

Recoil Rob · #1 07-12-2015, 04:12 PM

Always wanted a 12 string but don't play enough to warrant laying out the $$.

However yesterday afternoon I think I did well, I purchased a Made in USA Harmony 1270 for $5.00.

it's all solid wood spruce top and mahogany back & sides, looks to be on remarkably good condition for sitting around a garage for years.

The action is very high, string height at the 12th fret is over 1/4". The neck does not seem to have pulled away from the body, is this something that can adjusted with the truss rod?

Also, where would the serial number for this be located?

thanks,

Rob

Judson · #2 07-12-2015, 05:14 PM

If it's anything like the 1220 six-string dread that I reconditioned, the ladder-braced top has probably sunk in where the fingerboard meets the sound hole and has also bellied up under the bridge causing the high action.

Adjusting the truss rod will do next to nothing to remedy the issue(s). IMHO, to make it really play-able, there is nothing you can do short of a total neck re-set.

Given the value of the guitar, unless you can find a competent person (as I did) who is new to lutherie and needs the practice, the cost will probably be prohibitive. I got mine done for $140, but most established luthiers will want 2-3 times that much for the job.

All in all though, even if you do nothing, the high action will still make it a nice slide guitar.

zombywoof · #3 07-12-2015, 06:15 PM

The serial number will be the digits before the model number which in your case is H1270. It won't tell you much but Harmonys often have a smaller date stamp on the inside back or sometimes on the inside of the top (which takes a mirror to see). There will be an "F" or an "S" for Fall or Summer followed by the year.

As to the neck - neck resets are way of life with Harmonys. Your $5 guitar can end up costing you $350 to $400 or more very quickly.

Another option is a kamikaze bolt-on neck conversion. Cheap and you can do it on your kitchen table.

jemartin · #4 07-12-2015, 09:07 PM

Good score on that guitar! Welcome to the forum also!

I lost out on a good sale for one of these. I would check into the JLD Bridge Doctor. It is a relatively cheap gadget used to bring the bridge back into the normal position on guitars that have become unplayable... as well as Breedlove Guitars using them in their design to bring out their signature sound... and counteract the string pull ( https://youtu.be/4tWo_KihoaA). It might be something to consider for your guitar.... may or may not work... but if you can find someone locally who knows about the JLD system, they should be able to tell you if it would help.

Also, here is a Harmony Central conversation about such issues, and some good pointers to try before doing anything radical (read down through the different answers to find some good tips).
http://www.harmonycentral.com/forum/...la-42/1345246-
Much discussion here on the AGF about this guitar... here is one search just typing Harmony Sovereign H1270 http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...overeign+h1270

Recoil Rob · #5 07-14-2015, 08:54 PM

It does seem to have sunk in a bit at the end of the fingerboard bu actually looks OK under the bridge.

Right now I'm recovering from hand surgery and have a cast on my right hand but as soon as I am able I'll remove the strings and get a straight edge on it to see where I'm at. I'll report back with some pics too.

The serial number's faded in there, perhaps I can see that when I remove the strings.

thanks,

Rob

mstuartev · #6 07-15-2015, 06:32 AM

Agree with Judson. Get a couple bottleneck slides (cheap), drop it into open G or open D (cheaper) and turn it into your dedicated slide axe. These ladderbraced Harmonys make killer slide boxes. Turn a lemon into delicious lemonade. Save your $ for a ready to go 12 string later. Then score an inexpensive sound hole pick up and get all Lightnin' Hopkins on it. Boom boom boom!

zombywoof · #7 07-15-2015, 07:16 AM

If the sinking top was caused by being overly dry you might be able to correct it fairly easily by humidifying the guitar. But I am guessing in this case it was not. What I would do is lower the saddle (if it is not as low as it can go already), loosen up your right hand and launch into "Statesboro Blues" or something else you can bang away at with cowboy chords.

If not, as has been suggested, grab a bottleneck.

Recoil Rob · #8 12-19-2015, 12:22 PM

Revisiting this after my hand surgery has healed and I'm back to attempting to play. I didn't mention that this guitar has the metal tailpiece so the lower bout is still perfectly flat, no bulge behind the bridge, just the sinking around the neck/soundhole.

I'm going to re-humidify it, see what happens and go from there. I can probably lower the bridge somewhat with some judicious sanding of the bridge bottom. At the very least I can still play it in position 1 with some extra lights.

Thanks for the help.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judson

If it's anything like the 1220 six-string dread that I reconditioned, the ladder-braced top has probably sunk in where the fingerboard meets the sound hole and has also bellied up under the bridge causing the high action.

Adjusting the truss rod will do next to nothing to remedy the issue(s). IMHO, to make it really play-able, there is nothing you can do short of a total neck re-set.

Given the value of the guitar, unless you can find a competent person (as I did) who is new to lutherie and needs the practice, the cost will probably be prohibitive. I got mine done for $140, but most established luthiers will want 2-3 times that much for the job.

All in all though, even if you do nothing, the high action will still make it a nice slide guitar.

bbarkow · #9 12-19-2015, 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Recoil Rob

Revisiting this after my hand surgery has healed and I'm back to attempting to play. I didn't mention that this guitar has the metal tailpiece so the lower bout is still perfectly flat, no bulge behind the bridge, just the sinking around the neck/soundhole.

I'm going to re-humidify it, see what happens and go from there. I can probably lower the bridge somewhat with some judicious sanding of the bridge bottom. At the very least I can still play it in position 1 with some extra lights.

Thanks for the help.

You can always downtune it and use a capo to make it play easier as well.