Recent B & D sightings

Rare. Very Rare. In the last 20 years we found about
40 Bacon & Day instruments among vintage sources.

One-third have a serial #, but we cannot verify dates. 

We should begin collecting and sharing their histories.

_______________________________________ 
        © 2020 Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved
       Sources and Resources at end of this article

See also: "Bringing Home the Bacon & Day" — posted Weds, July 15, 2020

Here we offer photographs, dealer listings, vendor notes, circa serial numbers, histories and commentary on about 40 vintage six-string guitars, tenor guitars and mandolins built in the 1920s and 1930s by Bacon Banjo Co. of Groton CT. Assembled during a 20-year survey of Bacon & Day products, these materials represent the first online record of these fine instruments.

Until we find a better way to present this information, the B & D products shown here are arrayed in the serial # formats published in 2003 by banjo researchers Ed Britt and Michael Holmes:
  

          •       Serial number  29, xxx to 36, xxx

                  may date from c. 1931 to c. 1938

          •       3-, 4- and 5-digit  serial numbers

                  may date from c. 1910 to c. 1940
 

          •       No serial # OR unknown serial #
                  date may rely on educated guess

_________________     sn  29,xxx  to  sn  36,xxx     _________________
 

 

SN 31341 — c. 1933 B & D Senorita S-1 Flat Top Tenor

In December 2007 Players Vintage Instruments of Inverness CA listed this B & D Senorita tenor guitar at $1695.

c. 1933 B & D Senorita Style S-1 Flat Top Tenor (sn 31341)

It was offered in excellent condition with fresh neck set and a strong sound. It has 1¼ in. nut width, 137/8 in. lower bout width, 231/8 in. scale length, mahogany body and neck, a shaded and X-braced top of spruce. The peghead has Grover banjo tuners, metal Bacon tag, serial number and silkscreen Senorita logo. It is similar to
another Regal-made tenor, the Washburn No. 5227.

SN 31570 — c. 1933 B & D Senorita S-2 Grand Concert Flat Top

The asking price on this grand concert Senorita tripled in 17 years. It started at $2500 in February 2003 with Bernunzio Vintage Instruments in Rochester NY. It listed for $5900 in September 2007 at Lark Street in Teaneck NJ and $7000 in March 2009, again at Lark Street. In February 2020 it was listed for $7,500 by RetroFret, then reduced to $7000.

c. 1933 B & D Senorita Style S-2 (sn 31570)

The sunburst-finished spruce top is X-braced and light, with four-ply top binding, multiple soundhole rings and odd-shaped celluloid pickguard. The back is a dark-shaded mahogany, while the neck is a soft V with fingerboard dots, the rosewood fretboard is unbound and ebony nut is 1¾-in. wide.

The slotted headstock is fitted with unplated Waverly brass strip tuners, ivoroid tuner buttons and arrow-shaped plate ends. A gold silkscreen Senorita logo tops the headstock face, while the back has a metal B&D tag. Above it serial number 31570 is stamped, indicating this guitar is an early Regal-built B & D.

This is an exquisitely made flat top. Its differs from later B & Ds in that the 12-fret, slothead neck would be replaced by a 14-fret solid head design.

SN 32284 — c. 1934 B & D Ne Plus Ultra Troubadour 2R Arch Top
In December 2010 Bernunzio Vintage Instruments sold this B & D Ne Plus Ultra Troubador 2R arch top at $6500, below its initial $7500.

c. 1934 B & D NePlusUltra
Troubadour 2R (sn 32284)

 
















 


It is a grand concert with an arched and darkly shaded spruce top, round sound hole, adjustable bridge and metal tailpiece. It has an arched rosewood back, bound pick- guard that is curved like a racetrack, serial number on the rear of the headstock, heel crack and modern reproduction tuners.

This brief video illustrates the unique sound of this B & D Ne Plus Ultra Troubador.

"This instrument has a sound like no other guitar," the Benunzio listing said in part. "Brings you to another time."

SN 32406 — c. 1934 B & D Senorita Special Arch Top

In June 2013 RetroFret listed this B & D Senorita Special and its original hard shell case for $3000. The website listing called this instrument an "excellent player with fairly bright but chunky tone."

c. 1934 B & D Senorita Special Arch Top (sn 32406)

Excited by its unusual design, I bought it and played for a week. But I returned it because I did not get excited about its airy and vacant sound. In Feb 2016 Lost Boy Guitars of Rowayton CT listed this round hole arch top at $3150.

An early Regal-Bacon collaboration, it has an arched X-braced top, bound sound hole with with multiple rings. The back is deeply arched, with a shape formed by heavy curved braces. The guitar's metal tail- piece and floating bridge are typical for the era, while the pickguard is heavy phenolic resin that was shaped to border the sound hole's edge.

It has a mahogany back, sides and neck, sunburst spruce top, rosewood finger- board and Grover Sta-Tite tuners with the “patent applied for” base mark.

Overall length is 393/8 in., lower bout width is 15 in., the body's side depth is 4¼-in., and scale length is 24½-in. The V-shaped neck has a 1¾-in. nut width. The headstock has a Senorita stencil on its face and stamped serial number on its rear.

An unusual feature that stands out is an interior paper label that reads: "SENORITA SPECIAL Made By The Bacon Banjo Company Groton Ct." Typed on a manual typewriter, this note may indicate this guitar was a prototype or early model, while the word "Special" may be a reference to its unusual round hole, arch top construction.

SN 32562 — c. 1934 Bacon Arch Top Tenor

In May 2015 Rochester VT luthier Jake Wildwood reviewed an arch top tenor he acquired in a trade with one of his customers. Snugly housed in its original soft case, this Bacon is finished in a dusky sunburst on both its arched spruce top and arched mahogany back. 

This is an X- braced tenor guitar with 14¼ in. lower bout, soft V neck, 11/8 in. bone nut and a non- adjust- able truss rod. The fingerboard is ebony with pearl dots and tall thin period frets.

 

 

The peghead face is rosewood veneer. Its rear has geared, banjo tuners and a stamped serial number.

The Bacon Banjo label is red with white letters. The bridge has a stained maple base and ebony top. The mahogany back has several hairline cracks that were repaired with wood cleats or cloth tape. None are open or funky, Wildwood said.

"The guitar is rare as heck," said the luthier, who set it in a G-D-A-E tuning with 42w, 30w, 18w and 12 strings. “With a light build and 23-in. scale length, this thing barks like crazy.”

Wildwood posted a sample of its rich tone on SoundCloud. “It's loud, warm and sustained," he said. "It has a rich voice for an arch top, with smooth mids and bottom, and a creamy top.”

 

SN 32686 — c. 1934 B & D Senorita Special Arch Top

c. 1934 B & D Senorita Special

Arch Top Guitar (sn 32686)

In July 2007 guitarist Zizala posted several photographs and her remarks about a Senorita Special to visitors at the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum, an online listserv.

"Craftsmanship on this guitar is excel- lent," she said. "It is X-braced, the top and back are pressed, arched and braced, and the back, sides and neck are mahogany.

"The body is 15-in. wide and 4¼-in. deep at the rims. However, the arch of the top and back is very pronounced, and combine to add another inch of depth. So the body at its deepest is 5¼-in.

"Its internal volume, when combined with the X brace, thin top and forward-set sound hole, make this a great sounding and lively instrument. It still has the arch top happening, but now the instrument has a deeper resonance. This is really nice.

"The label reads 'Senorita Special made by Bacon Banjo Co. Groton, Conn.' and the original tuners are telling me they're pre-1936. Can't you hear them?"

 

SN 32736 — c. 1934 B & D Dreadnought Flat Top

This is an example of what passed for flat top bling in the Depression. To catch a buyer's attention, the headstock on this shaded top, 12-fret dreadnought was graced with B & D in pearl and two dozen rhinestones around its perimeter. 

Its basic features include an X-braced spruce top, dark finish on mahogany back, sides and neck, straight rosewood bridge, unbound neck, plain dot inlays, multiple rings of binding on the sound hole, non-denominational strip tuners, grained ivoroid buttons and 1¾-in. wide ebony nut.

The 26-in. scale, quite long for its day and similar to some Oscar Schmidt instruments, made it a powerful guitar. Also, the 16-in. body is slightly larger than a key competitor in the 1930s guitar market — the Martin dreadnought. 

The guitar has seen many repairs, including neck set, refret and addition finger braces beneath the fingerboard tongue. It's quite playable and has what one dealer called "a strong thudding tone."

c. 1934 B & D Dreadnought (SN 32736)

With a 16-in. body width and 43/8-in. depth, the design is equivalent to a Senorita Style S-4 Grand Auditorium. Though not listed in the CMI catalog page shown above, the appointments are the same as the S-1, S-2 or S-3 — slotted head, straight bridge, unbound neck, dot inlays, bound sound hole and eccentric shaped pickguard.

 

This guitar hit vintage guitar markets in 2007 and twice in 2008. The first time was at New Era Guitars of Chesterton IN, price n.a. Then, in May 2008, it reached Lark Street, which listed this behemoth at $5900.

Thinking bigger is better, so I bought it. But right after I got it home and began playing it in my concerts, I decided its "thudding sound" was a rather expensive disappointment. It never rang as crystalline or deep as other 1930s dreadnoughts I'd played.

So, two months later I sold it to RetroFret. There, it was listed at $7800, and a month later it was reduced to $7000.

  

SN 32023 — c. 1935 B & D Senorita S-1 Concert Flat Top

Citing a cool and bluesy tone, dressed frets, original tuners and recent neck-set, Guitar Gallery of New England in Amherst NH offered this concert-sized Senorita S-1 at $3495 in January 2014. I thought the price was 20 percent above market value, but the dealer, like many I've encountered in 25 years, insisted he had to make his number so he could recover his repair costs. Though barely able to get a better price, I bought this light and resonant flattop in June 2014 for $3300.

 

The guitar has a two-tone shaded spruce top, mahogany body and rosewood fingerboard. Atop its soft V shaped neck are a faded Senorita logo (see photo at right) and stamped serial number. The tortoise celluloid pickguard, though original, is cracking in places. The red label with white letters says: “Bacon Banjo Co. Groton Conn.” It has a 1315/16-in. wide lower bout, 41/8-in. body depth, 24¾-in. scale length and 113/16-in. nut width.

Guitar Gallery’s neck-set involved noticeable venting of steam near the heel joint, imposing unsightly checking and heel touch-up. The bridge was shaved, the frets were ground to match the lower string height and repairs made to a crack across the bridge pin holes. Last, because the original tuners worked poorly, I replaced them for modern repro tuners that cost me $175.

Dismayed by the need for additional repairs, I solicited restoration bids. The work included a new rosewood bridge, corrective neck-set, planing the fingerboard, replacement frets and my usual set-up work. I received three estimates from luthiers ranging from $900 to $1200.

c. 1935 B & D Senorita S-1 Concert Guitar (sn 33023)

But instead of spending more money on a guitar I'd already over-paid on, I opted to sell it. I got $1400 — a loss — from RetroFret in May 2015.

I used the proceeds of the sale of this Senorita, $2000 from the sale of a 1920s Galiano and $1350 in cash to acquire a 1945 LG-2 Bannerhead. It's in pristine conditon and a powerful instrument for its size. 

RetroFret sold the S-1 in two weeks for $2650. Given the guitar's worn condition and need for repairs, I felt this was a more appropriate price. Sadly, RetroFret reneged on its promise to re-mount the original tuner set and return the high-priced repros to me.

SN 33241 — c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra Troubadour Bacon 3R Arch Top

A private seller, claiming this fine guitar had been in his family for more than 80 years, sold it through a Reverb listing for $4,000 in February 2017. It resurfaced just two years later in a RetroFret listing at $11,500. It disappeared for two years only to show up in March 2021 at RetroFret, which listed the guitar at $11,500.

c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra Troubadour

Bacon 3R Arch Top Guitar (sn 33241)

In great shape today, this rare and ornate guitar has an arched and shaded spruce top with segmented f holes. The rosewood back, in a natural finish, is a 16-in. wide, 4½-in. deep grand auditorium model. The back is arched and held with transverse braces.

It has mahogany neck, ebony fingerboard and 25-in. scale length. The fretboard is festooned with multi-colored and engraved pearloid block inlays. The peghead is engraved and finished in a multi-colored pearloid veneer with a thousand rhinestones. Flamboyant decorative touches such as these remind us of the ornate and expensive banjos B & D successfully sold in the 1920s and early 1930s.

The beveled-edge black phenolic pickguard, shaped to follow the winding course of some imaginary racetrack set deep in the Neutral Zone, is screwed to the top. The bridge is an adjustable ebony unit typical of the mid-1930s. The neck has a soft V profile and 1¾-in. wide bone nut. 

The ornate headstock has gold-plated G-98 Grover tuning machines. Each button is a work of art with engraved floral designs surrounding the letter B. The trapeze tailpiece is engraved with the letters B & D.

In the 1930s this special arch top, with its curly maple body and spruce top, sold for $200. It competed with a Gibson L-5 and Epiphone DeLuxe (at $275 each) for its professional musician customers.

Today, the tone and feel of this NePlusUltra, per its RetroFret listing, can be described as “some- where between a rose- wood dreadnought and an L-5.”

SN 33271 — c. 1935 B & D Senorita S-5 Concert Flat Top

In June 2012 Lark Street offered this handsome concert-sized rosewood B & D Senorita guitar for $7000. Details in the listing were minimal, but nevertheless hinted at beauty lurking within.

c. 1935 B & D Senorita S-5 Concert Guitar (sn 33271)

These hidden details included a dark sunburst spruce top and its dark and bold and beautiful Brazilian rosewood back and sides (not African rosewood like some Gibsons and Bacon guitars). It has a 14-in. lower bout width, 24¾-in. scale length, 113/16-in. nut width, and three repaired cracks below the bridge.

Lark Street's listing also boasted: "This little beauty will hold it's own against any comparable Gibson or Martin."

SN 33582 — c. 1935 B & D Senorita Troubadour 3R Arch Top 

In October 2019 a guitarist using the online handle MondoJazzer posted several photographs and a few comments about a Senorita Troubador arch top guitar to members of the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum, an online listserv.

“This guitar is definitely a keeper for me,” the guitarist said. “It's unusual because it's a dreadnought size rosewood arch top, which I don't think ever became popular. 

1935 B&D Senorita Troubadour 3R Arch Top (33582)

“It has huge headroom and is very responsive to play.  It veers some towards the gypsy jazz sound. I've used it in that context. It definitely has more mid-range than a Selmer guitar and a much wetter sound than [most] maple body guitars.

“I love the MOTS [mother-of-toilet seat] headstock. It also has a fabulous 1¾-in. nut and playable neck. As it is a Bacon arch top, it isn't as desirable as a flat top, but still a very cool guitar. And since I mostly play arch top guitars, I'm keeping mine!"

SN 35052 — c. 1937 B & D Senorita  Auditorium Flat Top
This auditorium-sized Senorita was deemed a “000-28-type flat top in excellent plus condition” by Schoenberg Guitars, which listed it for $6350 in March 2002.

c. 1937 B & D Senorita Style S-6 (sn 35052)

It has a sunburst top, back and neck, 15-in. lower bout, 24¾-in. scale, rosewood body, spruce top, fingerboard inlays and engraved and painted pearloid headstock. Outfitted with Grover G-98 tuners, it was sold with a molded archtop-style case, purportedly original, and Bacon strings in envelopes in the pocket — a.k.a. case candy.

Its only repairs were a neck reset and fret level by California luthier Chris Berkov in 1998, according to Schoenberg, which said “it plays great with easy action and a nice full, bright sound.”

The guitar next appeared in May 2015 at an under-the-market and under-the-radar price of $4500 at Jet City Guitars, where its assets and faults were again compared with a Martin.

“This one has a lot in common with Washburns, although [Regal] was clearly trying to capture some Martin magic,” the listing opined.

“It is an X-braced guitar with two tapered tone bars and tapered X-brace. The nut is 1¾-in. wide and the neck is a modified V, very similar to Martin necks of the period. 

“While they did not achieve a Martin tone,” the listing said, “they did achieve something between Martin and Washburn that the combines the richness and articulation of the former with boxy qualities of the latter that will compliment many playing and singing styles. Offered in a good-fitting Martin case."

A month later Lark Street got it in an even-steven trade with Jet City for a 1929 Martin 

0-28K. Lark Street then advertised this Senorita in the July 2016 issue of Vintage Guitar Magazine for $7950. Then it disappeared for three years.

Its owner was unknown until October 2019, when it showed up at Julien’s Auctions of Hollywood CA in an estate sale for rock ‘n roller Walter Becker (1950 – 2017). The two-day event offered 1,085 items, including amps, synthesizers, loudspeakers, electronica, microphones, road cases, pedals, mixer boards, turntables, electric guitars, acoustic guitars and — five Bacon & Days.

The pre-auction estimate on this rare and fine acoustic guitar was $8000 to $10,000. The winning bidder paid $7500 plus a 25% buyer’s premium. Then, it disappeared again.

 

Two years later the Julien's buyer of this Senorita S-6 (sn 35052) decided it was time to recoup his or her investment. It was offered on Reverb for $10,000 by an otherwise unknown San Diego dealer called Strum. 

 

You'll be glad to know it's been in good hands in the interim. The Strum listing reported the guitar "is in very good shape and sounds amazing. Really nice action for quick finger-picking. Following purchase at the Walter Becker collection it was inspected and cleaned professionally and has been lightly used since."

 

SN 35236 — c. 1937 B & D NePlusUltra Troubadour 3M Arch Top 

This arched top instrument and its original hardshell case was listed by Vintage Gintage in February 2020 at $2950. It is 16 inches wide at the lower bout, and has a triple-bound carved spruce top and a bound and carved two-piece mahogany back.

In the typical flamboy- ant style of Bacon & Day, a pearloid peghead overlay is bound and sur- rounded by 34 ruby red rhine-stones. The B & D logo was engraved horizontally and NePlusUltra was engraved horizontally below that. Then, Troubadour was engraved vertically in the headstock's mid-section and, finally, Bacon was engraved horizontally below that. The bound rosewood fingerboard has pearl inlay designs as well.

A rarely seen arch top in fine condition, it sold for $100 in the 1930s. Today, it has a good action and ample set-up room on an adjustable bridge, according to the dealer. The frets show wear, but the body is devoid of cracks, blemishes or abrasions.

“The sound is full, robust and lively," the listing boasted, "with plenty of cut to penetrate the biggest of big bands!”
 

SN 35258 — c. 1937 B & D Bacon Auditorium Flat Top
They don't come any nicer than this — a 15-inch auditor- ium flat top with a dark sunburst on X-braced spruce top 
and maho- gany back and sides. Its oddly shaped celluloid pickguard has been designed to ripen your game soundly. Have you played one yet? 

This one sports a pearloid peghead overlay, 37/8-inch body depth at the bridge, 251/8-inch scale length, a minor pickguard crack and 14-fret mahogany neck with a burst finish.

Described as in all original condition with a fresh neck reset, this spectacular dark sunburst, mahogany-bodied guitar was listed by Lark Street in January 2011 at $6500.

SN 35433 — c. 1937 B & D Senorita Troubadour Arch Top 
This rare and fine B & D Senorita Troubadour was listed twice at $2500, first in May 2019 by Vintage Blues Guitars of Lititz PA, then 13 months later by Wilco Loft of Chicago IL.

With nearly identical listings, Vintage Blues and Wilco both said this mahogany auditorium guitar is “an intriguing if not spectacular example of a late 1930s acoustic arch top” as well as “the swan song of a dying banjo company.”

c. 1937 B & D Senorita Bacon

Troubadour Style 3 (sn 35433)

It is outfitted with a re-glued celluloid headstock overlay that  declares itself: Senorita B&D Troubadour Bacon. It has an ebony fingerboard with pearl inlays, adjustable bridge and Grover tuners. The back and sides are mahogany with 153/16-in. wide lower bout and 4¼-in. body depth. The spruce top, in dark sunburst finish, is ladder braced. The mahogany neck, with a 25-in. scale and 1¾-in. nut, is carved with a modern C shape. What's more, the pickguard was shaped and cut, Vintage Blues said, “to accommodate an add-on pick-up control knob.”

Vintage Blues said the guitar is well set and plays easily with a low action. It also has “a strong archtop snap, but is an effective fingerpicker for those seeking a slightly different tone.”

Unfortunately, in a brief trial in June 2019 at the Philadelphia Guitar Show in Audubon PA, I found the guitar’s sound heavy in the mid-range, but thin and lackluster. I had expected a more strident or robust tone.

Nevertheless, Wilco Loft got in the last word with a typical rock ‘n roller tidbit: “This fantastic guitar will come with a signed certificate of authenticity showing that yes, this belonged to Jeff Tweedy.” 


_________________     3-   4-   and   5-digit  sn     _________________ 

SN 00 36 — c. 1939-40 Bacon - Birch Body Concert Flat Top

This is a Bacon & Day guitar, according to Anthony Fiore, who posted remarks, photos and measurements to visitors at the Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum, an online listserv, in February 2010.

“BACON in pearl is set into the headstock, a 1936 B & D ink stamp is visible through the sound hole on the back, and 00 36 is set in white on the edge of the fretboard adja- cent to the soundhole.

“The pickguard is pretty cool and looks similar to ones found on other Bacon & Day guitars. My [online] research points to a Regal-made guitar, though it has simpler appointment in comparison to pictures of other Bacon & Day flat tops.”

 

Fiore provided measurements for his guitar: 36¾-in. length, 21/8-in. body depth, 13½-in. lower bout size, 93/8-in. upper bout width, and 17/8-in. nut. "Wood is possibly birch," he said. “Can anyone identify or shed some light on this guitar?" 

Luthier Steve Kovacik, Kovacik Guitars in Scotia NY replied: “While the tuners may appear high quality, they are actually rather cheap tuners."

“They have no cap screw to hold the crown gear to the post,” said Kovacik. “More importantly, the barrels are hollow rather than solid brass, a feature of less-costly hardware of the era.

c. 1939-40 Bacon (sn 00 36)

birch body and concert size

“As for attribution of the guitar,” Kovacik added, “it doesn't look like any of the B & D guitars I've ever seen.”

It may be the recipient of a Gretsch numbering plan in 1939 and 1940, when Gretsch took over Bacon production, according to research by Michael Holmes and Ed Britt about the final years of Bacon Banjo Co.

“It can be very difficult to separate Bacons and B & Ds made in the late 1930s from Gretsch-made ones because Gretsch carried on certain models and stylistic details,” Holmes and Britt said. “Due to the various numbering schemes, some Gretsch-made Bacons and B&Ds with 3-digit, 4-digit or 5-digit numbers can be mis- takenly dated to anytime from 1910 to 1940.”

Gretsch-built  Rex  No. 8

birch body + concert size

and retailed at $7 in 1936  

I would echo Kovacik’s cue Fiore's Bacon doesn't match any B & D in material, fit, size or finish. It was likely made with Gretsch parts and tagged with a Bacon logo and B & D serial number. The non-adjustable bridge and the trapeze tailpiece, in my view, indicate it's a low-cost department store or mail-order guitar.

Indeed, Gretch produced “Rex Guitars at Moderate Prices” (retailing at $7 to $9) as early as 1936. This budget line included several iterations of a standard size guitar made with selected hardwoods, an ebonized bridge, ebonized fingerboard with position markers, nickel-plated trapeze style tailpiece, top edge and sound hole in white, and distinctive finish.

So, let’s say you ran a mail-order catalog firm or managed a downtown department store in late 1940. The headstock logo on a dozen Rex guitars you ordered for Christmas sales might say anything you want, including "Bacon."

SN 123 — c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S-1 Concert Flat Top

This spunky six-string appeared in the vintage instrument market five times in the last seven years. Its price has almost doubled in that time.

c. 1939-40 B&D Senorita S-1 (sn 123)

It first showed up in June 2013 at the Philadelphia Guitar Show in Audubon PA in a booth run by Blue Moon Music of Fayetteville AR. Intrigued by its gutsy sound, I traded a 1935 KG-11 (fon 1495A) valued at $1500 and paid $1000 cash to acquire it.

I played it for five months until a rare 1929 Epiphone D at RetroFret called my name. I'd only owned the S-1 a short while, so it was not hard to trade it away with two other guitars and some cash to acquire the Epi.

Suffice it to say, the Epi was a sophisticated instrument but underwhelming in my concerts, and I quickly regretted selling the B & D at a loss. Sadly, I realized if wishes were horses, musicians would only play the guitars of their dreams.

In short order, RetroFret listed this B & D S-1 for $3650. Then, some time in 2014, Lost Boy Guitars of Rowayton CT was offering this very guitar at $3250. When I saw it, it had already sold.

Then, with no warning, in December 2016, I came upon this B & D at T. R. Crandall of New York NY for $3899. I had to re-acquire it. Lacking excuses, I knew I was obsessed with this B & D.

I ran into NY City to buy it, but Crandall partner Alex Whitman, would not part with it. This B & D, he said, was on "a verbal hold for a good customer." What bad luck! Then, it disappeared again.

Finally, in October 2019, it showed up in an estate sale by Julien’s Auctions of Hollywood CA, which had listed this and four other Bacon & Days and 1,080 pieces of musical equipment once owned by rock ‘n roller Walter Becker (1950 – 2017). In its pre-auction estimate Julien's pegged this Gretsch-era acoustic at $1000 to $2000. The winning bidder paid $3840 plus a 25% buyer’s premium.
 

Then, it disappeared again. Where it is now is not known. But if you come upon it, call me.

What is known is what a great sounding and playing instrument this guitar is. It features include a dark sunburst and X-braced spruce top, sunburst mahogany back, white ivoroid body binding, headstock serial number and good tuners. And eccentric B & D pickguard.

It also has a mahogany neck with 14 frets to the body, 247/8-in. scale length and fairly recent neck set. It has a red bean fingerboard with pearl dots and 113/16-in. nut width.

The headstock face on this concert-sized guitar (14-in. lower bout width) was given a full-featured Art Deco treatment. It has a black plastic faceplate with white cut-outs that reveal the B & D logo, Senorita model name, S-1 style number, the Bacon brand and a pastiche of floral designs. 

This guitar sold for $50 in 1939 or 1940. Well-used in its day, today this lightweight instrument has a woody tone, decent bottom end, nice mid-range honk and dry treble snap.

For auditory proof, here's a brief video of Brooklynite Jack Devine playing it at the RetroFret shop in late 2013. 
 

SN 135 — c. 1939-40 B & D Ramona No. 3 Arch Top
This is a mahogany-bodied Ramona No. 3 arch top built in the Super Auditorium size. Though it cost $65 between 1935 and 1940, in June 2020 it was listed at $3200 by JAMF Music in Los Angeles CA.

c. 1939-40 B&D Ramona No 3 (sn 135)

Its has an arched and dark-burst spruce top, carved mahogany back, three-piece neck with flat C profile, 1¾-in. wide nut, mother-of-toilet-seat headstock and good frets. It is 41½-in. over- all length, 153/16-in. lower bout and

43/8-in body depth.

The chrome tail- piece with B & D  and Ramona etchings is intact. It plays easily with the bridge adjusted down, JAMF said. It has no top cracks and retains both its original finish and original tuners.

This Ramona guitar is very responsive, with its thin top and extremely light weight, explained JAMF’s David Yorkin. “It is very loud and has held its own in jam sessions with other axes,” he said. “Kind of straddles the line between arch top and flat top, but has the attack of an arch top.”

As evidence he offered this short video of this B & D arch top guitar in action.

SN 136 — c. 1939-40 Bacon Princess Arch Top

c. 1939-40 Bacon Princess (sn 136)

Village Music in Stockton MO sold this player-grade arch top for $445 in June 2016. It dates to about 1940, has a spruce top in good condition, mahogany body and no visible structural issues.

The natural, or non-shadetop, finish may be original, since it is checked and orange-peeled in several spots, according to the dealer. Likely original are the black phenolic (Bakelite) pickguard and metal tuning machines.

The bridge, tailpiece bracket and tuner buttons, however, are replaced. What's more, although repaired some time ago, the heel is cracked.

It's a great player, though, the dealer said, with a nice tone for fingerstyle and punchy mid-range for swing chop chords.

In my view, this guitar was made by Gretsch, not Regal, and within one or two years of Bacon & Day's closing in late 1938.

The materials used, lack of shaded finish and low serial number hint to product- ion by Gretsch when the firm made the last few B & D and Bacon branded instruments with its own models, parts and serial numbers.

Though the typeface used for the Bacon headstock is similar to that on banjos of the 1920s and 1930s, its contours are thicker and awkward. It's not identical, it’s interpretative. Just look at the headstock logo on the Bacon mandolins from the 1920s and rthe 1924 Bacon concert-sized flat top shown below in the NO SN section.

Finally, to my knowledge, Princess was not a model name used by B & D for a banjo or guitar. Maybe this model name originated with the Gretsch Company.

SN 1019 — c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S-6 Super Auditorium Flat Top
In recent years only one B & D Senorita Style S-6 (sn 1019) has surfaced that is nearly the same — but not an exact copy — as the S-6 played by John Fahey in the 1960s and 1970s.

Described as a rosewood tone monster, it is fitted with a 15¾-in. lower bout, 14-fret neck, 25½-in. scale length, two-tone sunburst top, an X-braced spruce top and gaudy headstock festooned with a multi-colored pearloid overlay and 31 rhinestones.

The rosewood fretboard has eight pearloid blocks of inlaid floral emblems and diamond motifs. The neck has a C profile and 113/16-in. nut. The bridge was a straight rosewood rectangle with an offset saddle like those found on Gibson flat tops in the 1930s.

c. 1939-40 Senorita S-6 (sn 1019)

with its original bridge in July 2006

The guitar sold for $9500 at RetroFret in Brooklyn NY in July 2006, and then it disappeared for more than decade.

During the hiatus, someone reset the neck, repaired the heel crack, touched up the top near the pickguard and replaced the bridge plate. That same person replaced the original straight bridge with a replica of the Guild bridge installed on Fahey's guitar during the 1960s.

Today, this guitar (sn 1019) is nearly the same — but not an exact copy — as the S-6 guitar played by John Fahey in the 1960s and 1970s.

During this same hiatus, the guitar was acquired by rock ‘n roller Walter Becker (1950 – 2017), who liked B & Ds. This S-6 (sn 1019) was one of 1,085 pieces of instruments and musical gear listed for sale by Becker's estate through Julien’s Auctions of Hollywood CA in October 2019.

c.  1939-40 B & D Senorita S-6 (sn 1019)

with the Fahey-replica bridge in Feb 2020

Julien's pre-auction estimate pegged the Becker S-6 at $10,000 to $15,000. The winning bid was $12,800 plus a 25% buyer’s premium.

So, in February 2020, when someone decided they wanted a B & D that looked nearly the same as John Fahey's S-6, they paid RetroFret $18,000 for it. Luckily, the original label is intact and the lobster claw pickguard was not removed or replaced. 

In its website listing, RetroFret described this Senorita S-6 (sn 1019) as a great playing and sounding guitar with a deep and powerful tone. "The combination of the X-braced top, narrow- waisted rosewood body and long scale produce a unique sound, with depth, power and clarity in equal measure," it said.

SN 1041 — c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S2 Super Auditorium Flat Top

Sylvan Music in Santa Cruz CA sold this Senorita S2 with period hardshell case for $1100 in June 2020.

 

                                          c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S2 (sn1041)

 

Listing details were minimal, but Sylvan Music cited Regal as the maker, a solid spruce top, mahogany back and sides, 113/16-in. wide bone nut and the 25½-in. scale length.

Repairs included an old but stable headstock fix of an unknown pedigree, neck reset and refret. The listing did not mention the ornate black and white cut-out headstock, a fixture of B & D guitars from 1939 and 1940, the eccentric-shaped tortoise pickguard or the hourglass profile of the large body.

The shape of this Senorita S2 merits our attention. As a super auditorium guitar it has a 15¾-in. lower bout width and hourglass shape similar to a Senorita S6. When configured as a Hawaiian model (S2H), this same model lost an inch of its scale length as well as the comfortable pinched waist.

The neck is three-piece laminated mahogany that has been reinforced with a steel rod. The top and back edge are inlaid with celluloid in white. The sound hole has a white edge binding and a pair of rosette rings.

In addition, the guitar exhibits dirt and wear on the fingerboard, neck wear into the finish behind the first five frets, scratches and marks on the back and top, especially on either side of the fretboard, and deep pick wear into the top near the lobster claw pickguard. It apparently has no other cracks or body damage.

However, lest it go unsaid, the headstock repair is, well, a nasty looking thing.

SN 1078 and 1040 — c. 1939 - 40 Bacon Espana Auditorium Arch Tops

"The Depression was in full swing and the market for new, expensive banjos was shrinking fast,” said luthier Elisha Wiesner of Musician’s Enemy in Chilmark MA. “As a last ditch effort, B & D began offering a line of guitars in early 1930s."

c.1939-40 Bacon Espana (sn 1078)

One product of this effort was this Bacon-branded Espana arch top guitar, which Musician’s Enemy listed at $1895 in 2013. It has a 15½-in. wide body, brown-burst spruce top and mahogany body, and mahogany neck with a slight V carve.

"I'm of the belief it was manufactured by Regal in Chicago and sent to Connecticut where it was finished and embellished with their trademark rhinestones," Wiesner said. "It's a wonderful arch top. The sound is fantastic, similar to a 1929 Gibson L-5."

In my view this guitar, like the 1940 Bacon Princess (sn 136) above, was assembled by Gretsch, perhaps with Regal parts, a year or two years after Bacon & Day closed in 1938.

Even with bindings on the body, fingerboard and pickguard, the serial number hints to a Gretsch build with B & D leftovers. It may be a Bacon-branded arch top with that cheesy vertical Espana model and other Gretsch items slapped on during production.

The typeface in the Bacon headstock is similar to Bacon banjos, but the shape is not identical. It's thicker, interpretative. I doubt Espana was ever used as a model name on a B & D banjo or guitar.

Still, this guitar is in good shape, without cracks or repairs. “It's all original with the exception of one pickguard screw and tuners, which are Kluson Deluxe,” Wiesner said.

“There's some obvious play wear, dings and finish checking, but nothing out of line with a guitar this age,” he said. “I don't know if the Geib case is original or not, but I know it's period correct.”

The action is good and the intonation is fine, Wiesner said. “When it's played above the 14th fret the lower strings do buzz,” he admitted, “but I've never found this an issue as I don't do much playing up there. I'm sure it could be addressed easily if you wanted.”

In May 2020 an identical Espana model (sn 1040) was listed by Music Gear of Solcom AL at $775.

The guitar's torso was in decent condition and offered as "a wonderful guitar for its age."

But the instrument was found in rough shape, with evidence of issues These included scratches and wear, heel crack, buzzing frets, non-original bridge, and decent tuning machines with broken buttons. Even the case was beat up and its top unattached.

Worse of all, some rhinestones on the headstock had fallen out and gone missing. Clearly, this is a guitar that has seen better days, so the dealer invited offers on the Reverb listing.

SN 1111 — c. 1939-40 B & D Groton No. 2 Auditorium Arch Top

Ithaca Guitar Works of Ithaca NY listed this 15¾-in. wide arch top guitar at $595 in December 2009.

c. 1939-40 B & D Groton

No. 2 arch top  (sn 1111)

The guitar’s back and sides are mahogany with white celluloid binding along its edges. The sunburst spruce top is missing its pickguard. It has a 25½-in. scale length, 3¼-in. body depth and 1-7/8-in. nut width.

It has an unbound rosewood fingerboard, extra large frets, trapeze tail piece, period tuners and adjustable rosewood bridge with saddle. IGW performed a neck reset and set-up in early 2010.

Late 1930s B&D Catalog Page

Groton No. 1 flat top  -  upper

Groton No. 2 arch top – lower

The headstock face has an Art Deco overlay. The black plastic face has been cut to reveal the headstock edge, Groton model name, 2 model number and the B & D brand. The reverse side of the headstock was impressed on the top with an early Gretsch era serial number 1111.

I owned this Gronton No. 2 for about a year and during that time I spent a few hundred dollars to plane the fingerboard, replace the frets and custom-intonate the saddle. Still, the guitar’s playability remained awkward and its sound was washed out and unappealing.

The Groton No. 2 arch top (sn 1111) shown here is sibling to Groton No. 1 flat top. Both B & D guitars were described in the catalog issued by wholesaler Chicago Musical Instruments in the late 1930s.

The super-auditorium-sized arch top was priced $25 and the auditorium-sized flat top was priced $15. An Arch-Kraft keratol case designed for No. 2 was priced $9.50, while a Challenge keratol case designed for No. 1 was priced $5.50.

SN 1147 — c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S-6 Super Auditorium Flat Top

Made between 1935 and 1940, this super auditorium-sized, wide-waisted, rosewood guitar was part of an estate sale conducted by Julien’s Auctions of Hollywood CA in October 2019. The auctioneer listed this guitar, four other Bacon & Days and 1,085 pieces of musical gear once owned by rock ‘n roller Walter Becker (1950 – 2017).

c. 1939-40 B & D Senorita S-6 (sn 1147)

In a pre-auction estimate Julien's set this late 1930s acoustic (sn 1147) at $10,000 to $15,000. The winning bid was $18,750 plus a 25% buyer’s premium.

By all accounts, this instrument was sold in excellent condition. What's more, the combination of the X-braced top, wide-waisted rosewood body and long scale give it an enormous sound.

It is one of three B & D Senorita S-6 models — and the only one with a wide waist — formerly owned by Becker. This was sold by Julien’s for $18,750.

The other S-6 models have tight-waisted bodies and resemble the profile of Fahey’s S-6. One of Becker's tight-waisted S-6 (sn 1019) guitars sold at $12,800. The other tight-waisted S-6 (sn 35052) guitar, a less ornate version, sold at $7500.

In 1938, 1939 and 1940, the B & D Senorita S-6, whether wide-waisted or tight-waisted, sold for $80. Competition in the market for 15-inch rosewood guitars included Washburn Solo De Luxe at $62.50 and Martin's 000-28 at $90.

Whatever the brand, at these prices sales were probably modest. We know from company records that Martin’s 000-28 sold a total of 230 guitars in this three-year period. After that, guitar production and sales dropped off for everyone.

_____________      no sn, unknown sn OR other sn      _____________

Four c. 1923 - 1924 Bacon Flat Tops made by C. F. Martin Co.

"A few guitars without Martin stamps were made for the Bacon Banjo Co. about 1924," said Mike Longworth, former C. F. Martin Co. historian and author of Martin Guitars, A History (© 1994).

c. 1924 Martin-made Bacon (no sn)

with S on surface of dovetail joint

Four Bacon acoustic guitars produced by C.F. Martin Co. in the early 1920s have surfaced in vintage markets in recent years. All are uniquely stamped: "Made by the Bacon Banjo Co. Inc., Groton, Conn, U.S.A." on the reverse face of the headstock.

 

Three of these Bacon guitars are concert-sized instruments similar to a Martin 0-21. They all have a 131/2-inch lower bout width, slotted headstock, neck with 12 frets to the body, an ebony fingerboard, bar frets and pearl dots at the 5th, 7th and 9th fret. Each has a rosewood body, spruce top and ebony pyramid bridge.

 

A fourth Bacon guitar resembles a Martin 2-17 model. The back, sides and top of this guitar are made with solid mahogany. It has a lower bout width of 12 inches and neck with 12 frets to the body and bar frets.

The first Bacon has a spruce top with a dark and glowing finish. It also has a Bacon headplate logo similar to those on Bacon banjos in the 1920s and 1930s, and no serial number on the neck block. Instead, the dovetail neck joint, which was open during a recent reset, revealed the presence of the letter S, the mark Martin used to note its special editions.

Found on a Connecticut farm by a client of Bernunzio Vintage Instruments of Rochester, this guitar was initially listed in June 2005 at $6500. Bernunzio later reduced it price to $5000. Pretty and delicate, this precious instrument was built by Martin prior to installation of top bracing of sufficient strength for use with steel strings.

c. 1923 Bacon (Martin sn 18909)

A second concert-sized Bacon guitar contains the Martin serial number 18909 on its neck block. This would fix its production to 1923, when Martin built 100 of its own 0-21 guitars, which it sold for $50.

 

Identical to a Martin 0-21 guitar of the 1920s, the spruce top on this second guitar has a natural finish — not a shaded top like the Bacon shown above. In addition, this Bacon has a herringbone rosette and herringbone backstripe as found on a Martin 0-21.

This rare bird does not contain Martin indicia, Bacon headstock logo or branding on the face of the headplate. Instead, the headstock's reverse side is stamped: "Made by the Bacon Banjo Co. Inc., Groton, Conn, U.S.A."

 

The third Bacon guitar is identical to a Martin 0-21. It has a concert-sized rosewood body, spruce top and 12-fret neck. Produced with no Martin branding or serial number, "Made by the Bacon Banjo Co. Inc., Groton, Conn, U.S.A." is stamped across the rear of the headstock. 

Tuning machines on 1923 Bacon concert-sized guitar built by C. F. Martin Co. PHOTO: Robert Corwin

 

 

This third Bacon guitar is one of numerous vintage Martin acoustics described and displayed with images taken by photographer and guitar collector Robert Corwin of Philadelphia on his website www.vintagemartin.com.

 

1924 Bacon 2-17 made by Martin

without a Martin brand. However,

serial number 20956 is stamped

on its neck block.

According to Corwin, Bacon Co. ordered four guitars from Martin in 1922 "as samples, with the intention of selling a line of Martin made instruments with the Bacon [brand]. The guitars were stamped [with Bacon Co. indicia on the rear of the headstock] in mid-1923, one shipped on September 7, and remaining three shipped on November 23rd."

 

Corwin also said Bacon originally requested the guitars delivered "in the white," or unfinished. However, he said, managers of the Groton CT firm "changed their minds and sent the first of them back to Martin to be finished."

 

Martin also produced a small parlor-sized mahogany guitar for Bacon. It is stamped Bacon Banjo Co. on the rear of the headstock. The present owner said he didn't realize it was made by Martin until recently, "after doing some deep dives on the Internet."

 

This dimunitive guitar has serial number 20956 on its neck block. This dates its production to 1924. That year Martin built 500 of its 2-17 models, which sold at retail for $27.50. It is among the first guitars Martin braced sufficient for use with steel strings.

 

The owner also said the guitar belonged to his father. "He bought it second-hand sometime in the mid-1930s. It has been in the family ever since, though played very little."

 

NO SN — c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra Troubadour Bacon Arch Top
This c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra Troubadour Bacon was listed sometime between 2015 and 2017 by Lark Street Music in Teaneck NJ. Listing price is not available.

 

c. 1935 B & D NePlusUltra Troubadour Bacon (no sn)

We do not know if the body is rosewood or mahogany since we only have these two photos. One shows the front of the body with its metal tailpiece, adjustable bridge, fingerboard with multi-colored pearloid block inlays, and wear spot on a bound pickguard. The other shows the headstock overlay, which has a multi-colored pearloid veneer and 36 rhinestones.

Despite a paucity of details, it's worthwhile to compare and contrast the body finish, pickguard, fretboard and headstock on  grand auditorioum rosewood NePlus Ultra Toubadour 3R (sn 32241), shown above, and the grand auditorioum mahogany NePlus Ultra Toubadour (no sn.), shown below.

NO SN — c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra Troubadour Bacon 3M Arch Top

This c. 1935 NePlus Ultra arch top was listed in January 2009 by Cotton Music (now dba North American Guitar) in Nashville TN for $2696. Three months later a guitarist using the handle MSWILKS offered this guitar to the online Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum. Initially priced at $1950, this fell to $1850, with the seller covering PayPal, shipping and insurance expenses.

c. 1935 B & D NePlus Ultra

Troubadour Bacon 3M (no sn)

Back in the day this B & D NePlus Ultra Style 3M guitar sold for $100. It was made with arched mahogany body, elevated and bound fretboard, arched spruce top, unbound f-holes and two-tone dark shaded finish.

The guitar's key feature, according to a 1930s wholesaler's catalog, is its "yellow pearloid peghead that has been enamelled and engraved in beautiful colors and edged in colored rhinestones."

Cotton Music and MSWILKS called the guitar a big box with big sound. It has a 16-in. lower bout width (B & D's grand auditorium size) and 5-in. body depth. MSWILKS said it has a 113/16-in. wide nut and Cotton Music said the nut is 1¾-in. wide.

Both sellers said the guitar was without structural problems. Both also said it has some finish crazing, one repaired back crack, one finish crack on the back, and one cleated hairline crack on the center seam under the fingerboard extension.

It has a V-shaped mahogany neck with a C profile. The frets are new. The nickel Grover tuning machines, ebony adjustable bridge, trapeze tailpiece, and a bound serpentine- shaped pickguard are all original.

The spruce top and mahogany back are arched. MSWILKS found the interior bracing “unusual,” with half of an X (i.e., a V) under the lower bouts and a few ladder braces under the upper bouts.

“This guitar is a different and unusual sounding arch top,” MSWILKS said. “The extra depth does not make it bassier as with a flat top. It puts more air around the sound, full and cavernous. Yet it still has as good an edge as most archtops. The sustain is very good.”

MSWILKS called this NePlus Ultra guitar a rare and collectible arch top. “It is an interesting and different player for those who like tonal variety. It's certainly an attention getter. Nobody else on your block (or your state) is likely to have one!”
 

NO SN — c. 1935 B & D Ramona 3R Arch Top

Archtop.com of Seattle WA listed this Bacon and Day Ramona 3R in July 2006. The listing price is not available.

c. 1935 B & D Ramona 3R Arch Top (no sn)

The dealer said this guitar has it all: handcarved rosewood back and sides, hand- carved spruce top with sunburst finish, bound rose-wood fingerboard with pearl inlays, back and top checkerboard bind- ing, engraved tortoise Art Deco headplate, and original plush-lined hard-shell case.

The guitar has its original hardware, including Grover tuning machines, engraved nickel trapeze tailpiece, bound translucent tortoise pickguard and adjustable rosewood bridge.

The lower bout width is 16¾-in. (B & D’s super auditorium size), body depth is 4-in., scale length is 25.4-in. and nut width is 1¾-in.

Rosewood was the choice tonewood for many years on premium guitars, said Joe Vinikow of Archtop.com. "It was an truly expensive choice for production of a large-body arch top" like the Ramona, which cost $100 retail in the 1930s.

“It’s notoriously hard and brittle, so carving a guitar's arched back is laborious and hard on the tools,” he said. “Carving an arched back demands a rough plank at least a full inch deep. As several flat backs could be sawn from such a slab, carving an arched back of rosewood would have been absurdly expensive.

“But the folks at Bacon and Day apparently didn't care,” he said. “They'd been making the world's most expensive banjos for decades, so cost was evidently no object, at least for a while."

Fortunately, all this labor and expense produced a guitar with a remarkable voice, added Vinikow. The arched rose- wood body, arched spruce top and the instrument's depth all combined to produce a resonant arch top guitar.

"It offers powerful arch top projection with added bass response and sustain reminiscent of a dreadnought,” he said. “A unique and finely crafted instrument, this B&D Ramona is a rare find for player and collector alike.”

NO SN — c. 1935 Senorita Troubadour Bacon
This B & D Senorita Troubadour  arch top from the early 1930s was listed at $800 by McKenzie River Music of Eugene OR in December 2005.
 

c.  1935  B & D  Senorita

Troubadour Bacon (no sn)

It’s missing its bound black pick-guard, but it still has its function- ing adjust- able bridge, trapeze tail- piece and Grover tuning machines.

A serial number was stamped into the back of the headstock near the tuning machines, but it can't be deciphered in the photos.

The body is beat to hell, with lots of wear and tear. It has damaged back binding, finish wear on the top and back edges, a center seam crack below the bridge and tailpiece, multiple fissures, cracks and wear on the flat mahogany back, and a pair of f-hole cracks that run parallel to the fingerboard for half the length of the sunburst spruce top.

Ninety years ago this auditorium arch top, with 15-in. lower bout, cost $70. A wholesaler’s catalog in the 1930s described this handsome guitar as follows:

                                                         Senorita-Troubadour

                                          Arched top (only) for orchestra use

                            Mahogany neck, 14^th fret at body, mahogany body, arched

                            spruce top, black and white in lay edges, adjustable bridge,

                            raised guard plate, raised extension rosewood fingerboard,

                            bound edges, nickel plated double rod tail piece,  all metal

                            upright gear single type machines, B&D heavy gauge brass

                            spun strings. Two tone dark shaded finish.

                                 Tool steel bars inserted in all Bacon and Day guitar necks to prevent warping.

                            Style 3, Mahogany Body, Auditorium  ………………   $70.00

 

It won’t win any beauty contests today, but I bet it sure sounds nice.

NO SN — c. 1937 B & D Sultana Grand Bacon Arch Top
This enormous and finely finished Bacon & Day arch top was probably made only a short time before Fred Bacon sold his hurricane-ravaged factory to his brother-in-law, Fred Gretsch, and Gretsch Co. of Brooklyn NY in 1938 or 1939.
 

1937 Bacon Sultana

Grand (no sn)

Featured in the late-1930s instrument catalog of Chicago Musical Instruments, this rhythm and jazz arch top was B & D's premier orchestral achievement. A quality instrument then, a quality instrument now. "Its sheen and brilliance will increase with age and use," asserted CMI's copywriter.

This spectac- ular 18-inch jumbo has striped maple back and sides, pearl fingerboard inlays and Art Deco peghead with pearl in- lays that spell B&D, Sultana Grand and Bacon. 

The tuning machines are gold Klusons with pearl buttons. The guitar’s top is bordered in abalone inlay. It has a huge engraved and gold-plated tailpiece.

Few of these remarkable instruments were made, perhaps a half dozen, said Portman, who has seen only one — his. He sold it for $4250 in May 2016, he said, along with several fine instruments by C.F. Martin and the Larsons.

Ninety years ago this coliseum-sized arch top, with its 18-in. lower bout, was made in three models of increasing embellishments and finish details: Sultana No. 1 (or I) with mahogany body at $150, Sultana No. 2 (or II) with curly maple body at $250 and this one, the Sultana Grand with striped maple body at $325.

In its 1930s catalog, wholesaler CMI described the Sultana Grand as follows:

                                                           Sultana Grand Model

                            Coliseum size — Carved top and back — Artist Grade

                            Lavish expenditure of time, skills and materials are required

                            to produce an instrument of the quality of the Bacon Sultana
                            Grand Guitar. The top is carved from selected eastern moun-
                            tain spruce and the back is carved of beautiful striped maple. 

                            Sides of maple, reinforced along the top and back edges with 

                            band of overlaid maple; beautifully cut block inlay of genuine

                            mother-of-pearl, fine polished ebony fingerboard, individual 

                            gold plated tuning keys with pearl button. The neck is beauti- 

                            fully made of 7-ply laminated mahogany, reinforced by steel 

                            rod and is extra slender, facilitating difficult technique.  The

                            genuine French polish brings out the beauty and luster of the

                            wood. Its sheen and brilliance will increase with age and use. 
                            Price  ………………   $325.00

NO SN — c. 1937 B & D Sultana I Bacon Arch Top 

In case you thought there was only one of these 18-in. acoustic monsters in the world, here is another Sultana I Bacon arch top guitar for your review.

1937 Bacon Sultana I Bacon (no sn)

The instrument was listed by Emerald City Guitars of Seattle WA for $2895 in June 2010. 

Due to an unexpected and sudden loss for words, the dealer didn't have much to say about this guitar other than call it a "super cool rare vintage piece."

Ninety years ago this coli- seum-sized arch top was offered with a close grained spruce top that was carved to a handsome arch with hand-cut slender f holes. The guitar's back is striped fiddle back mahogany, carved with an arch, and matching mahogany sides.

An 18-in. wide rhythmic beast, this guitar cost $150, while its silk plush-lined case cost another $27.50.
 

NO SN — c. 1937 B & D Senorita S2H Bacon Flat Top
RetroFret listed this c. 1937 B & D Senorita S2H Bacon at $6200 in April 2008.

c. 1937 B & D Senorita S2H Bacon (no sn)

This is a great example of a rare flat top. I was lucky to find it, since it was in such good shape. 

I acquired it by trading another Regal-made guitar, a Bronson Hono- lulu Deluxe, a 14-fret rosewood grand concert valued at $3000, and paying $3000 in cash. In no time RetroFret sold the Bronson for $5500.

Originally retailing for $50, this Regal-made guitar features a sun-burst finish, mahogany body and neck, ladder-braced spruce top, 12-fret neck, engraved head- stock overlay and B & D “tortoise guardplate.” It has a 15¼-in. lower bout, 1-13/16 in. nut, 24¼ in. scale, 4¼-in. wide body and recent repro tuners.

The neck has a hefty, rounded V shape, since it was shaved (and refinished) from a Hawaiian-style square neck. It also has a replaced saddle and multiple repairs to a pickguard crack, side crack, top crack, fretboard's lower edge and on a badly worked center-seam glue job.

Converting from Hawaiian to Standard or Spanish-style play meant an ordinary guitarist like me could capitalize on the bridge’s central location and endow this 12-fret auditorium guitar with a clean and powerful tone. Sadly, the Great Recession intruded and I sold it to pay off some pre-Recession debts.

NO SN — c. 1938 B & D Jumbo Flat Top
This c. 1938 B & D Jumbo flat top was made by Regal with mahogany back and sides and ladder-braded spruce top in a natural finish.

c. 1938 B & D Jumbo (no sn)

It was listed for a couple years with Players Vintage Instrumentas of Inverness CA. Then, in December 2007, it showed up at RetroFret of Brooklyn. Neither listing price is available.

The instrument is typical of the last guitars Regal built for B & D before the banjo firm closed in late 1938. Upper and lower bouts have ample proportions and shallow waist, with 15-7/8 in. lower bout, 4-15/16 in. body depth and 25½-in. scale.

The neck has a shallow C profile with 1¾-in. nut width. The rosewood fingerboard is bound and inlaid with a celluloid trapezoid-and-triangle pattern, a familiar Regal motif.

Offered without major cracks or repairs, the guitar is refinished except for back of the neck. Neck angle is excellent from a recent reset. The solid headplate is rosewood-faced and sports a B & D logo pearl inlay with a somewhat rustic or handmade design.
 
The top is ladder braced, with multiple bindings and colored wood inlays on the soundhole. A strap button was added to the heel and the rosewood bridge is a bottom-belly repro. The tuners are individual flat plate Klusons, though the headstock has evidence of previous tuner sets.

Though the appearance is no longer original, it was offered in good condition by RetroFret, which called it “a great-playing and sounding guitar with a deep, powerful tone.”

I found the sound disappointing, shallow and thin, however, for such a large thing. Though of nearly identical size and scale, it didn't approach the sonic heft of Regal’s double-X Recording King dreadnoughts built in the late 1930s and early 1940s.  

NO SN — c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 Flat Top

In May 1997, when I first saw this unusual flat top with an Art Deco headstock at J.B. Kline & Son, a hole-in-the-wall guitar shop near the Delaware River in Lambertville NJ, it cost $425, excluding capo, strings and tax.

Who knew I'd have a history with this guitar. Two decades later, in April 2016, when I needed money for debts and expenses, Lark Street listed this B&D Groton 1 for me at $3000 by touting its “huge rhythm sound.”

And who knew my first vintage guitar would be this homely looking B & D? It's my keeper, the one I've had the longest, sold and re-purchased four times, and played the most in 23 years.

c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 (no sn)

This auditorium-sized guitar has a 15¼-in. lower bout, 4-in. body depth, 14-fret neck with buried steel rod, rosewood bridge, red bean fretboard, engraved head- stock overlay and no serial number.

It was reportedly built "in the white," or unfinished, by Regal in Chicago IL and sent to Bacon in Groton CT for finishing. It has a dark two-tone finish on mahog-any back and sides and on its ladder-braced spruce top.

1939 B&D Groton 1 - upper

1939 B&D Groton 2 – lower

  A jobber's catalog for B & D in the late-1930s listed 
  Groton 1 at $15 and the arch top Groton No. 2 at
  $25. The flat top was called “Low in price, plain but
  beautiful in its velvety rubbed finish. Extra large
  frets, rich tone quality.” A suitable case was $5.50.

  Between the late 1930s and 1950s, Regal made
  several iterations of this guitar with its faux-KG-1
  shape for jobbers and retailers . An identical Regal
known as Washburn No. 5240 Junior was sold by the Chicago-based jobber
Tonk Bros. for $17.50 in 1939.

When the neck was reset in 2004, the luthier found popsicle sticks securing the neck joint. So, we know the guitar was made sometime in 1939 while a busy woodworker ate his lunch. Today, it suits hokum, swing or jazz with snappy-bright trebles, enormous midrange, surprising bass and unstinting sustain.

NO SN — c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 Flat Top
The owner of this 1939 B & D Groton 1 said it originally belonged to her grandfather. About 50 years ago her father refinished the guitar, installing a weird bridge, quirky paint job and strung it with classical strings.

Before 2019 refinish — paint leached into old varnish,
custom paint on bridge, shadow of removed pickguard,
and old finish revealed under the fingerboard tongue.

The current owner wanted a more "normal" guitar, so it was refinished by Jake Wildwood of Rochester VT in January 2019. He removed the pickguard and 1940s–era rosewood bridge, then sanded and refinished the solid spruce top with sealer coats of super-thin polygel varnish.

He also reset the neck, re-installed pickguard, installed new rosewood bridge and rosewood bridge pins, installed new bone nut, leveled and dressed the frets, and repaired several hairline top cracks, cleaned and set up to play.

After 2019 refinish — c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 (no sn)

Wildwood took notes on the measurements, materials and finishes of this B & D:

25-3/8-in. scale length; 1-13/16-in. nut width; 17½-in. body length; 15-1/8-in. wide lower bout;

10-in. upper bout width; 3¾-in. body depth;
solid mahogany body;

poplar neck;
rosewood fingerboard;
medium C neck shape;
12-in. fingerboard radius;

1960s-era jumbo frets;
3 lb 4 oz. weight.

c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 (no sn) — original engraved tuners

Considering the work it took to perform a respectable re-finish and update the guitar’s playability, Wildwood was pleased. “When it's warmer out, I'll have them come back and give it a couple coats of gloss nitro to get the look right,” he said.

 

NO SN — c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 Flat Top
Here's another refinished B & D Groton 1, which was offered for $700 by Subway Guitars of Berkeley CA with a Reverb listing in the summer of 2020.

 

Refinished c. 1939 B & D Groton 1 (no sn) with original

bridge, Grover tuning machines and missing pickguard.

The lister said it "plays great with low action," as if that made up for its sad look and muted demeanor.

 

Where's the B & D pickguard? What genius desecrated a Martin dreadnought so they could install a set of over-sized Grover tuners and bushings on an Art Deco headstock? Strangely enough, the original rosewood bridge escaped the maw of the refinish job.

 

Nevertheless, it's a $700 beater, a player's axe. In years to come folks will smile politely when they say it sounds nice, but what's that obscure logo on the crowded headstock?

 

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See also — "Bringing Home a B & D" — posted July 16, 2020

Sources and Resources

_________________________________________________________

Archtop.com                                  Seattle WA                   www.archtop.com
Bernunzio Uptown Music              Rochester NY              https://bernunzio.com
Cotton Music—NoAmerGuitar      Nashville TN                https://thenorthamericanguitar.com
Emerald City Guitars                    Seattle WA                   www.emeraldcityguitars.com/
Folkway Music                              Waterloo ON                https://folkwaymusic.com
Guitar Gallery of New England     Amherst NH                 http://guitargallery.com

Ithaca Guitar Works                      Ithaca NY                     www.guitarworks.com
J.B. Kline & Son                            Lambetville NJ             www.jbkline.com
Jet City Guitars                             Seattle WA                   http://www.jetcityguitars.com
Julien’s Auctions                           Hollywood CA              www.julienslive.com
Kovacik Guitars                             Scotia NY                    https://guitar-repair.com

Lark Street Music                          Teaneck NJ                  www.larkstreetmusic.com 

Lost Boy Guitars                            Rowayton CT              www.lostboyguitars.com
Mandolin World HQ                        Brandon FL                  www.vintagemandolin.com
McKenzie River Music                   Eugene OR                  www.mckenzierivermusic.com
Musician's Enemy                          Chilmark MA                https://reverb.com/item/25559804

New Era Guitars                            Chesterton IN               www.arkneweraguitars.com

Players Vintage Instruments          Inverness CA               www.vintageinstruments.com

RetroFret Vintage Guitars              Brooklyn NY                 https://retrofret.com/default.asp

Subway Guitars                             Berkeley CA                 www.fatdogs-subwayguitars.com
Sylvan Music                                  Santa Cruz CA             www.sylvanmusic.com
T.R. Crandall Guitars                      New York NY               https://trcrandall.com/         

Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum       Nazareth PA                https://umgf.com
Vintage Blues Guitars                    Lititz PA                        www.vintagebluesguitars.com
Wildwood                                       Rochester VT               https://jakewildwood.blogspot.com

Wilco Loft                                       Chicago IL                    https://reverb.com/item/25451736

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Holmes & Britt              Bacon serial #s   www.mugwumps.com/BaconSerialNumbers.html 

Flaunoe Polle               Bacon serial #s   www.acoustudio.dk/BD_and_Bacon_database.html

________________________________________________________

Fred Bacon                          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_J._Bacon 

Bacon & Day History           https://acousticmusic.org/research/guitar-information/large-shop-guitar-builders 
Vtg Guitar Catalogs             https://acousticmusic.org/research/guitar-information/catalogs

John Fahey                          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Fahey_(musician)

John Fahey's guitars            https://umgf.com/john-fahey-s-first-martin-t161688.html

                                             https://gimmeanf.blogspot.com/2010/10/bacon-and-day-senorita-guitar.html

Jon Lundburg                       https://umgf.com/jon-lundberg-t121609.html#.Tm0qea46Pzw

                                             https://umgf.com/neck-reset-by-slipping-the-block-t1368.html

                                             http://libertyship.com/lundberg/lundberg_cctimes.htm

                                             www.fretboardjournal.com/features/obituary-guitar-dealer-jon-lundberg

Joe McDonald                      www.countryjoe.com/cjmbio.htm
David Portman                     www.portmanguitars.com

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                              ©  2020 — Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved