Recording King Dirty 30’s Harmonella
Recording King releases guitars inspired by classic blues flattops.
Recording King is introducing a pair of guitars inspired by the inexpensive department-store guitars that have been popular with blues players ever since the 1930s. Part of the company’s Dirty 30’s series, the Harmonella models are available in 0 and 000 sizes and feature floating bridges with the strings anchored in a tailpiece. The 0-size model (pictured below) is built with a 12-fret neck, while the 000 has a 14-fret neck.
The guitars are built with solid spruce tops, “white wood” back and sides, and rosewood fingerboards. Similar to the instruments they’re styled after, the guitars feature minimal appointments and a sunburst finish. In a nod to more contemporary designs, the Harmonellas have X-braced tops and adjustable truss rods.
SPECS: 0/000 bodies. Solid spruce top. White wood back and sides. Rosewood fingerboard and bridge. X-bracing. Metal tailpiece. 25.5-inch scale. 1¹¹/₁₆-inch nut width. Vintage-style enclosed chrome tuning machines. $199 street. recordingking.com

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