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Here's the story. About a decade ago a newcomer to the Heritage Owners Club Forum posted a Heritage Johnny Smith for sale. He was from Sandusky, OH and did not play guitar. I contact him and had a conversation the same morning of the post. He got the guitar around 1993 as an investment on advice of a relative, and it's not been played aside from showing others. I told him I was interested. We decided to meet in Toledo that day, halfway between us. He added that he also bought a Sweet 16 at the same time, and it was essentially new. I told him to bring it along.
His friend or cousin told him guitars are a great investment and the Heritage is rising as a company. He had them over a decade. He was a tobacco store owner, and business was slowly eroded. That was his motivation to sell. We had lunch and talked about various stuff. He then brought out the Johnny. I really liked it. The body width was 18", which was one of only two made in that size. The top is thinner than the usual Heritage. The finish is rose natural, a color Johnny Smith personally picked out while in Kalamazoo by pointing to a Playboy playmate's butt hanging on Marv Lamb's office wall. The term Rose is a tribute to Johnny's wife, not that her name was rose.
Then he got out the Sweet 16. It is stunning also. The maple is quilted, which may be unique for a Sweet 16. Also, the cutaway is Venetian, which is elegant. Like the Johnny, it is X-braced and has a thin top. I got both guitars, and we were both happy.
Time marched on. I sold both in a few years to friends. Now that I'm older and wiser, I was interested in getting them back. I posted about a month ago on the return of the Johnny. I brought it over last night to a Heritage guitar designer who is a friend. He's been a luthier for over 40 years. There is a small ding on the top from the case closing on it. I asked about touching it up. He advised against it and said matching the rose natural is very hard and may look worse. He examined the bracing and the top. This impressed him in that he felt the guitar was built for acoustic properties, unlike the large majority of commercial archtops. Hanging on the wall next to us were a bunch of guitars, most notably a Gibson Kalamazoo Award, also built for acoustic tone.
Yesterday I saw that Big Mike Hale's guitar collection is starting to appear from two different stores, one in Chicago and one near St. Louis. I called the Chicago store and asked if they had the Sweet 16, since that was part of Mike's collection. They did but hadn't looked at it. While on the phone the guy opened the case and went over it. He said it looks unplayed, which is what I expected. I made him an offer. He said they were not asking that much! So he threw in tax and shipping. It arrives today.
Here's the message for those who are looking for good guitars. Check out Big Mike's postings over the years. Call the store in the Chicago area and ask if they have it. If it's not yet listed on Reverb, they can discount it for you without violating any rules. Two brothers have the collection in two different stores, but they both are familiar with the guitars. I talked with both of them and liked them.
The Sweet 16 has made the rounds. I had it. 2bornot2bop and BigMike owned it. Now it is circling back.
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06-18-2024 07:51 AM
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the back wood is stunning
its almost a shame no-one will
see it when you’re playing it !
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I don't know his playing but that swirly-curly maple back might prove dangerous for the audience in the right hands!
Originally Posted by pingu
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Originally Posted by Marty Grass
Here's the story. About a decade ago a newcomer to the Heritage Owners Club Forum posted a Heritage Johnny Smith for sale. He was from Sandusky, OH and did not play guitar. I contact him and had a conversation the same morning of the post. He got the guitar around 1993 as an investment on advice of a relative, and it's not been played aside from showing others. I told him I was interested. We decided to meet in Toledo that day, halfway between us. He added that he also bought a Sweet 16 at the same time, and it was essentially new. I told him to bring it along.
His friend or cousin told him guitars are a great investment and the Heritage is rising as a company. He had them over a decade. He was a tobacco store owner, and business was slowly eroded. That was his motivation to sell. We had lunch and talked about various stuff. He then brought out the Johnny. I really liked it. The body width was 18", which was one of only two made in that size. The top is thinner than the usual Heritage. The finish is rose natural, a color Johnny Smith personally picked out while in Kalamazoo by pointing to a Playboy playmate's butt hanging on Marv Lamb's office wall. The term Rose is a tribute to Johnny's wife, not that her name was rose.
Then he got out the Sweet 16. It is stunning also. The maple is quilted, which may be unique for a Sweet 16. Also, the cutaway is Venetian, which is elegant. Like the Johnny, it is X-braced and has a thin top. I got both guitars, and we were both happy.
Time marched on. I sold both in a few years to friends. Now that I'm older and wiser, I was interested in getting them back. I posted about a month ago on the return of the Johnny. I brought it over last night to a Heritage guitar designer who is a friend. He's been a luthier for over 40 years. There is a small ding on the top from the case closing on it. I asked about touching it up. He advised against it and said matching the rose natural is very hard and may look worse. He examined the bracing and the top. This impressed him in that he felt the guitar was built for acoustic properties, unlike the large majority of commercial archtops. Hanging on the wall next to us were a bunch of guitars, most notably a Gibson Kalamazoo Award, also built for acoustic tone.
Yesterday I saw that Big Mike Hale's guitar collection is starting to appear from two different stores, one in Chicago and one near St. Louis. I called the Chicago store and asked if they had the Sweet 16, since that was part of Mike's collection. They did but hadn't looked at it. While on the phone the guy opened the case and went over it. He said it looks unplayed, which is what I expected. I made him an offer. He said they were not asking that much! So he threw in tax and shipping. It arrives today.
Here's the message for those who are looking for good guitars. Check out Big Mike's postings over the years. Call the store in the Chicago area and ask if they have it. If it's not yet listed on Reverb, they can discount it for you without violating any rules. Two brothers have the collection in two different stores, but they both are familiar with the guitars. I talked with both of them and liked them.
The Sweet 16 has made the rounds. I had it. 2bornot2bop and BigMike owned it. Now it is circling back.
Mark that is a stunner guitar the woods are outstanding maybe the best I have seen on a Heritage. The real question though is do you want to part with the 18 inch Smith let me know that is a killer and maybe you need to make room.
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She’s truly a very special Heritage Sweet 16! Light as a feather and plays like butter! It’s great guitar karma that she ends up back with you Mark. Enjoy!
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Sweet 16s are sweet!
Congrats.
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Thanks Marty, I did exactly what you suggest and this one is shipping out this afternoon on its way to me. And I agree, both brothers were very nice and very easy to chat with. I'm happy to have gotten one of Big Mike's guitars, especially this one, just sad about the circumstances. But I'll think of him when I see it and play it! Originally Posted by Marty Grass
Incoming: 18 inch Campellone Special
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Outstanding news! She’s one of the last great 18’s built by the Master! Congratulations!!! Originally Posted by jim777
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It's drop dead gorgeous in person. I'm sure Mike's happy it's going to a good home.
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The Sweet 16 arrived in excellent shape. The wood inlay in the tailpiece has what I thought was a sticker emblem. It's not. It's a perfectly done MOP insert.
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I like that cutaway better than the Florentine.
It looks a lot like their old Roy Clark model.
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MG, that's nice. I'd fall in love with a guitar like that!
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That 16 is gorgeous! Is that one of the ones that J Wolfe had made with the venetian cutaway? He said after those they wouldnt do it anymore because of the difficulty in making that bend. Congratulations, I love "got back my old friend" stories
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I don't think Jay was involved in this one, but Jay is a hero of mine!
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Huh? LOTS of luthiers and companies make 16s with venetians. Both carved and lams. Originally Posted by Rickco
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Originally Posted by Woody Sound
Yes, my Guild Savoy has a deep Venetian cut in all laminate of course.
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The cutaway on that beautiful Sweet 16 is more the shape of what you see on a 335 - a tighter bend than the average L5 style cutaway, so I can see where it could a problem doing it with solid wood (I assume the Sweet 16 has solid bent rims) - getting that tight a bend using laminate construction is a different story. Originally Posted by Sleeko
Yes, my Guild Savoy has a deep Venetian cut in all laminate of course.
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That back quilt looks so 'deep'! It's spacey. A great piece~
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