What they are DiPinto guitars are retro-inspired electric guitars designed around mid-century American and European visual language, but built with modern consistency and usability in mind. The company’s core models over the years have included guitars like the: along with a rotating cast of more experimental or limited designs. While the shapes and aesthetics clearly … Read more
What they are The 1990s Telestar guitars are a short-lived line of Korean-made retro instruments, most commonly associated with the Mona and Lisa models. These should not be confused with the unrelated 1960s Tele-Star guitars. The later Telestar instruments were a different project entirely: modern Korean-built guitars with strong Danelectro and Silvertone influence, produced in … Read more
What it is The modern Harmony Juno is a compact offset-style solid body guitar built in the United States as part of Harmony’s revived lineup. It features a shorter scale length, lightweight body, set neck construction, nitrocellulose finish, and a pair of gold-foil style pickups. While visually connected to older Harmony instruments, the Juno is … Read more
What it is The modern Harmony Comet is a fully hollow electric guitar built in the United States as part of Harmony’s revived lineup. It features a thin hollow body with a single cutaway, set neck construction, nitrocellulose finish, and Harmony’s gold-foil style pickups. Visually, it draws from mid-century American hollow body design without trying … Read more
What they are Kay produced a wide range of hollow and semi-hollow electric guitars during the 1950s and 1960s, many of them sharing similar construction, pickups, and overall design language despite inconsistent naming and specifications. Models commonly grouped into this family include: Exact names and configurations vary, which is part of the reality of vintage … Read more
What they are The Silvertone 1448 and 1457 are among the most recognizable American department-store guitars of the 1960s. Sold through Sears and built by Danelectro, these instruments were packaged with small tube amplifiers mounted directly inside their cases. The idea was simple: open the case, plug in, and play. The 1448 was the more … Read more
What it is The Reverend Club King is a semi-hollow guitar built around a bolt-on neck, longer scale length, and a fully hollow or chambered body depending on the version. It features a single cutaway body with a distinctive, slightly retro outline, and typically comes equipped with humbuckers or mixed pickup configurations. Like other Reverend … Read more
What it is The Reverend Manta Ray is a semi-hollow guitar built around a set-neck construction with a shorter scale length and a center block. It features a double-cutaway body with a slightly offset outline, dual humbuckers, and Reverend’s standard electronics layout, including the bass contour control. While it draws loosely from traditional semi-hollow designs, … Read more
What it is The DeArmond Starfire is a semi-hollow electric produced just after Fender’s acquisition of the Guild/DeArmond brands, built in Korea and modeled after classic Guild Starfire designs. Most versions follow a double-cutaway, thinline-body format with a center block, placing them squarely in semi-hollow territory. They typically feature DeArmond-branded pickups and Guild-inspired styling rather … Read more
What it is The Guild Starfire is a long-running series of semi-hollow and hollow body electric guitars, originally introduced in the 1960s and still in production today in various forms. Most Starfire models follow a double-cutaway, thin-body design with a center block or fully hollow construction depending on the version, though some versions, such as … Read more