Close-up #35: 1932 DeLuxe SN 5794
Here a guitar that was sold by an auction house a while ago – pretty much in the condition it was found! As the photos taken from the auction listing show, this instrument has seen better days ...
The description mentions plenty of issues such as cracks, binding separations, etc. Not to mention the dust – and one single string left to hold the bridge in place ... Nevertheless, this is a "DeLuxe", Epiphone's top model of their early Masterbilt line, as proudly displayed in the fancy pearl banners on the headstock – although the "Masterbilt" banner got lost at some point of its long life: The serial number is quoted to be 5794 – suggesting the instrument was likely made in the year 1932.
Pictured below the DeLuxe in Epiphone's 1932 catalog. Apart from obvious later replacements such as the pickguard and bridge, the instrument's features seem to match the catalog image – with the prominent exception of the fretboard inlays: While pre-1934 DeLuxes typically have a mix of triangular and diamond shaped pearl markers, SN 5794 sports large pearloid blocks with floral engravings – a design reminding of some 1920s Epiphone Recording guitars, but never seen on any other Masterbilt example!
This raises the question: Is this fretboard original, or a later replacement? Well, it definitely looks pretty old ...
The headstock of the earliest DeLuxe had multiple plastic veneers on the front and rear, with a decorative "volute" or "hand-stop" – an exclusive feature of the DeLuxe top model which seems to have been carried over from earlier banjo lines. The tuners are no-name single units which look similar to Grover machines but believed to be made by Waverly – the standard model on higher Epis until 1934 (gold-plated on DeLuxe, nickel-plated on Broadway + Triumph); note that these have a 12:1 gear ratio, while early (pre-1938) Grovers are 6:1.
The "rope"-style purfling around the top edge is another fancy feature exclusive to the early Masterbilt DeLuxe (and its 4-string companion, the Empire).
Now, recently I was leafing through some original Epiphone catalogs again, looking at the small pictures of the featured musicians, trying to figure out the models in their hands. In the 1934 catalog, on page 23 (see picture below), I noticed a player named "Benny Jackson" – holding a DeLuxe with an unusual, but strangely familiar looking fretboard!
After I reported my discovery back to the present owner of DeLuxe SN 5794, he took a closer look at those mysterious inlays again. And noticed a name engraved on the pearl block at fret 15 – almost worn off, but still readable: "B. JACKSON". Bingo!
(Feb 11, 2017)