General Information On Harmony Guitar Finish

by Jim Calhoun

Harmony, as a general rule, was a high volume maker, and operated as such. Management had a good handle on the demographics of the average Harmony customer.

The company stressed value for the dollar spent, this dictated that the bottom line cost of the each instrument be held to a minimum. This alone kept the choice of color and finish to a limited number. Often times, a Harmony model would be offered in a single color.

As far as the quality of the finish, the passage of time has told us that Harmony used good quality finish materials that have held up through the years very well. Although not as flashy as it's higher priced competitors, the finishes were high quality with a minimum of blems. I would conclude that the quality of the finish was well above average for its price point.

Most bindings were celluloid and position markers were either painted or inlaid imitation mother of pearl.

Harmony used the terms "Gleaming polished finishes" and "Handsomely shaded and polished" among their descriptions. Here is a fairly good list of Harmony guitar finishes.

Hollow Body Electric Models

H79 - Warm Shaded Cherry Red Tone (12 String)

H77 - Warm Shaded Cherry Red Tone

H75 - Rich Brown Mahogany Sunburst or Golden Oak Sunburst

H72 - Burgundy Shaded

H68 - Sunburst (Artist Jazz Model)

H64 - Sunburst

H60 - Sunburst (Meteor)

Rocket Models

H53/1 - Walnut Sunburst or Shaded Cherry

H54/1 - Walnut Sunburst or Shaded Cherry

H56/1 - Walnut Sunburst or Shaded Cherry

H59/1 - Walnut Sunburst or Shaded Cherry

Solid Body Silhouette Models

H14 - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

H14V - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

H15 - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

H15V - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

H16B - Polished Metallic Blue

H16R - Candy Apple Red

H16W - Gleaming White

H19 - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

Bass Guitar Models

H22/1 - Sunburst

H25 - Shaded Walnut or Cherry

H27 - Sunburst

Sovereign Models

H1270 - Natural (12 String)

H1266 - Sunburst

H1260 - Natural

H1230 - Natural

H1203 - Natural

H55 - Natural (Acoustic Electric)

Classic Guitars

910 - Natural

177 - Natural

175 - Natural

173 - Natural

171 - Natural

Tenor Guitars

TR1201 - Natural (Flattop)

TG950 - Reddish Mahogany Shaded (Monterey Archtop)

Folk Guitars

937 - Sunburst

165 - Natural (Mahogany Top)

162 - Natural

162 3/4 - Natural

150 - Natural

Arch Top Guitars

1407 - Natural (Patrician)

1310 - Sunburst (Cut Away Patrician)

1215 - Reddish Mahogany Shaded

1213 - Reddish Mahogany Shaded

954 - Sunburst (Broadway)

950 - Reddish Mahogany Shaded (Monterey)

945 - Sunburst (Master)

950 - Reddish Mahogany Shaded

I am still gathering information on Hollywood models but two colors are, Two Tone Blue, Sunburst

I am still gathering information on Stratotone models but most I have seen are Sunburst

Stella Flat Top Guitars

943 - Shaded Sunburst

942 - Natural

933 - Cherry

929 - Mahogany Shaded

939 3/4- Mahogany Shaded

927 - Fruitwood Natural

913 - Pumpkin

Most Banjos were painted Medium Brown

Most Mandolins were Natural or Sunburst

I will be adding more information as I do more research.