1938 Epiphone Masterbuilt Olympic

From the era when Epiphone and Gibson were direct competitors - the Emperor fighting it out with the Super-400 - this rivalry would bring the best out of each other. This is a genuine 1938 Epiphone Masterbuilt Olympic, with unusual but original block inlays (5), full f-holes, the 15.25-inch body and original bridge piece. The pick-guard is a later replacement (most originals were replaced in the first few years), but everything else is original and in fantastic condition. The block inlays may suggest this is a Regal built Apollo or a Howard, but this is a bona fide Olympic; just an unusual specification.

The cherished life that this guitar has led is obvious as soon as you pick this up. There are polishing marks, a few swirls from a dirty duster, nothing else. There is none of the normal wear on the rear of the neck, and no cowboy chord frets. There are 5 or 6 parking knocks on the upper bout of the body, but nothing else other than the discolouration of the label, to suggest that this guitar is 85 years old.

These Masterbuilt Olympics have a well-deserved reputation of sounding amazing - this one doesn't disappoint. A full sound, slightly enhanced upper mids, and clarity from the lower register. It chords well at the upper end of the fretboard, and begs the question "should we put a pick-up on this?"; but realize that this is the spirit of the guitar, and we refrain from that. Although a K&K or a Benedetto would let this guitar reach the audience without needing to sit still by a mic.

This Olympic has mahogany back and sides with an Adirondack Spruce top. Adirondack matures famously and after 85 years, this guitar proves the point - I doubt it has ever sounded better. This is the wood that makes the early 30's CF Martins so revered.

Most Olympics, Triumphs, Spartans and Blackstones were busy instruments - bought my musicians who used them to earn a crust. Many were worked to death, most others are scarred battered survivors that have been under the knife, patched up and refuse to give up. They were made in quite large numbers and are not especially rare even today hence they remain fantastically accessible. This one must be one of the finest available today. It has been in hiding - a proud possession and safeguarded friend. It's not even on Wiedler, but we have submitted the details.

The opportunity offered here is to acquire one of the best possible examples of a guitar that has matured so gracefully that the first assumption is that it is a re-issue, and not 85 years old.

This guitar comes with a hard-shell case and will be restrung with either Light XL Chromes or GR-112s (or a specific type of your choice).