Vintage guitar dating, Hamer guitars, Harana, Harden Engineering


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luthiers and guitar brands Ha | He | Hi-Hor | Hos-

Ha	made	info updated 25/1/2012
Ronald Hachez		Ronald Hachez, classical guitars, Newport Beach, Californian - at least in the 1970s Image Ron Hachez label 1976 eBay
Henner Hagenlocher	1992 to present	Started manufacture. "1992 in Hamburg Germany. Since 1996 in Spain Calle Guadarrama 1, 18009 Granada Dating Henner Hagenlocher guitars ". ..the date of manufacture for your guitars...is " Inside the guitar written on the label" [Source: Henna, Granada guitars, email 24/4/2008] Images courtesy of Guitar Salon International:
Hager Artist	1940s	Hager Artist from the 1940s [Source: Mugwumps] Appear to be a few Hager Artist lap steels around.
Hagstrom	1958-1983	Hagstrom was a musical instrument manufacturer in Älvdalen, Dalecarlia, Sweden. Their original products were accordions that they initially imported from Germany and then Italy before opening their own facility in 1932. During the sixties, the company started making electric guitars and later amplifiers. Hagström were the first company to mass produce 8 string bass guitars as well as the first to build a guitar/keyboard hybrid. In 2004 the brand was resurrected and is now in production in China. [Source: wikipedia ] Hagstrom reference sites Biggest http://www.hagstrom.org.uk/index.html http://www.albinhagstrom.se/ http://www.hagstrom-vintage-guitars.se/ The Hagstrom Pages http://www.algonet.se/~barke/hagstrom.htm http://hem.passagen.se/awe/hagstromenindex.htm Hagstrom Scandi Dating Goya Hagstom guitars http://goyaguitars.tripod.com/goya_serial_no.htm Hagstrom reference books Super Swede: Hagstrom Guitars 50 Years Hagstrom guitar catalogs 1952, 1966, 1967, 1971, 1977 and more http://www.hagstrom.org.uk/catalogues.htm 1968 http://www.carvinmuseum.com/guitarads.html 1966,68, 72, 75 http://www.vintageguitars.org.uk/hagstrom66.php 1966, 1975 http://www.21frets.com/catalogs.html Hagstrom guitar advertisements http://www.vintageguitars.org.uk/advertisements/hagstrom Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hagstrom Images - eBay. Albin Hagstrom - founder Hagstrom.org.uk
Hahl	1988 to present	"I started 1988 with my education at the workshop from a German master luthier. In 1989 I built my first own model . An acoustic Archtop witch now is called the "Jazz Supreme". I run my workshop in a small village called Mudershausen in Germany. I have a number code at the label inside of my guitars where you can find the year of building." [Source: Stefan Hahl, email 12/8/2008 ] Images courtesy of Stefan Hahl:
Hahn Guitars	2007 to present	Made since "2007, Garnerville, NY, Serial number code: Year, Month, #built that month." [Source: Chihoe Hahn, email 22/7/2008] Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hahn+Guitars
Haida Gwaii	1998 to 2002	Established by Greg Williams, (president) ,his brother Chris, Mark Vantaa, and Robert Bustos in 1998. http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/nr/ecd/ssd/col25_e.html see Paragon
Haight	1990 to present	Norman D Haight, " has been building since 1989. Our showroom and shop are at our home in Scottsdale, Arizona. His label in each guitar includes the year the guitar was finished, a brief description of wood used, etc. and his signature. Serial numbers are sequential by year." [Source and images courtesy of Sharon Haight, email 18/7/2008 ] Haight guitars at myspace
Halden		http://www.steinnes.net/gitar/index.html
Halfling		see Ribbecke
Hascal Haile	1960s-1986	Hascal Haile (1906-1986) made guitars from the late 1960s Tomkinsville, Kentucky, USA. http://www.wku.edu/library/kylm/exhibits/inhouse/ongoing/haile.html http://www.gruhn.com/features/Haileatkins/AC1683.html
Halifax		This example of a Made in Japan Halifax branded instrument is Made in Japan circa 1967. Images eBay:
C Hall		Forum http://theguitarwall.com/forum/index.php?board=22.0
John (Ben)Hall		HALL, John (Ben) Duncan (b.1935) Viola and cello maker, Newtown, NSW. [Source: ABC Violins]
William Hall and Sons		William Hall and Sons ran a piano factory in New York. Guitars were made for them by Ashborn. According to Mugwumps the firm ran from 1820-1875 Images (#3, 1853) eBay:
Hallgren Guitars	1992 to present	"I started to build instruments on a hobby basis in 1986 but since 1992 I build on fulltime professional basis. While my early production was splitted between lutes, acoustic guitars and classical guitars, since 1990 I build only classical and flamenco guitars. The instruments are always signed on the inside with my name, number, location and year. Three different labels has been used. The first 1987 - 1992, the second 1992 - 2001 and the third since 2001. Every instrument is numbered on every label and on the present label I sign also with my name." [Source: Per Hallgren, email 30/3/2008] Image Fine and Rare Guitars
Hallmark	1960s again in 1995	Imported and US made. Bob Shade and Bill Gruggett California, USA. less than 1,00 original guitars built. [Source: Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide ] http://www.hallmarkguitars.com/about/history/default.htm Search at http://www.vintageguitar.com Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hallmark Images Hallmark Swept Wing made in USA 1960s ebay.
Halo		Halo Guitars Cupertino, California USA
Hamblin Guitars	1993 to present	Kent Hamblin learned how to make guitars and at the Roberto Venn school of luthiery. He makes about 12-15 guitars per year. "I started building guitars in 1993. I only produced 2 or 3 instruments a year until 2001 when I started making guitars full time. Dating Hamblin Guitars You can find the year the guitar was made by looking at the label on the inside of the guitar. the first 2 numbers are the year and the second set is the number of guitars made up to that point. So a serial # reading 0241 means that it was built in 2002 and is the 41st guitar made." [Source: Kent Hamblin, email 22/3/2008]
Hamer	1974 to present	Hamer Guitars is an American manufacturer founded by Jol Dantzig in Chicago with his business partner Paul Hamer in 1973 originating in the Chicago area. Hamer was acquired by Kaman Music in 1988. [Source: wikipedia] Rick Nielson article http://www.flyingvintage.com/gcmag/rnielsen.html Dating Hamer guitars https://store.bluebookinc.com/Info/PDF/Eguitar/ElectricSerialization.pdf http://www.hamerguitars.com/?fa=faq#serial http://www.tokairegistry.com/tokai-info/guitar-dating.html#hamer http://www.hamerfanclub.com/serial.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamer_Guitars History of Hamer guitars 4 part article- search at http://www.vintageguitar.com http://www.dantzig.com/pages/%20ToneQuest.pdf Hamer catalogs 2003 Hamer Catalog 2005 Hamer Catalog 2007 Hamer XT Catalog Hamer pricelists 2006 Hamer Pricelist Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hamer
Hammertone		Image Hammertone Mandoguitar ebay:
Dane Hancock		Dane Matthew Hancock is brother of Sean Hancock, and guitars are made at the same place, Mt Tamborine, near the Gold Coast, Australia. Image: Guitar Salon International
Kim Hancock		Kim Hancock is the father of this Australian guitar making family. Mt Tamborine, Queensland Image Great Guitars :
Hancock Guitars	1992 to present	Sean Hancock, luthier, Mt Tamborine, Queensland, Australia. "We have been building guitars since 1992. Our instruments have a paper label which is dated and signed. We have records of every guitar we have build so encourage potential buyers of second hand Hancock guitars to contact us by email with a photo for verification." [Source: Sean Hancock, email 31/3/2008] Image: Guitar Salon
Armin Hanika		Son of Helmut Hanika, guitars made Beiersdorf, Bavaria, Germany
Helmut Hanika		Guitars made in the Beiersdorf, Bavaria, Germany Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hanika Image 1981 Helmut Hanika Bruunari, 1995 label ebay:
Harana Guitars	1999 to present	Handmade guitars from the Philipines "I started building guitars here in my shop in Cebu City, Philippines in October of 1999. the date handwritten in the paper label glued to the inside back (visible through the soundhole) actually indicates when the guitar was finished /set up and not necessarily the date of manufacture. Other information on the label includes Model: this is usually composed of two letters to indicate body style, (i.e. GC for grand concert) followed by a 3 digit number to indicate model specs with regard to woods, decoration etc. (i.e. 100 indicates a very basic model while a 300 is a more ornate model using spruce and rosewood) a combination of letters and numbers at the end of the model series indicate additional info ( a C at the end indicates it is a cutaway a 12s means its a twelve string, an LH means its left handed etc.) A guitar with a model GC-100C would mean it is a basic grand concert with a cutaway. top is usually Agathis or kalantas while back and sides is mahogany, fret board bridge is merbau and finish is satin lacquer. Because of the custom order nature of my shop I do not necessarily follow the spec number coding and just put 100 series although it is a much more ornate instrument. The serial number is quite straight forward and is similar to martin, just a four digit number in sequence regardless of date of manufacture or model (i.e. a 0025 means its guitar number 25 that came out of the shop). an exception is my line of travel guitar which has a separate number series models included in this category are: BP, TG, TG-CL and TG-FL. Guitar number 0001 is not necessarily the first guitar because I had already made about 10 guitars before adopting a numbering system. All in all I have already built 90 full sized guitar, about 70 travel guitars and about 10 assorted instruments (ukuleles, mandolins etc.) which is about 21 instruments a year. Although we certainly can make ornate instruments with all those fancy shell inlays my design philosophy leans more toward simple elegant instrument with excellent tone and playability.' [Source: Efren Muana, Harana Guitars, email 28/3/2008] http://indiecultureonline.com/more.php?id=229_0_1_0_M11 Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Harana
Harden Engineering	1999 to present	William Harnden, builds electric guitars and effects pedals in Chicago. "I have been building guitars for about 10 years, but they were one off pieces. In the lat 2 years ago I settled on a standard design and we have had this model ,the "Switchblade" in production since then. All our guitars are handmade and so each one is unique. Our pickups are our own design and are handmade as well. At this point there have been 30 switchblades made and as of yet there is no serial #, however starting 2009 we will implement the numbering system as follows xxxI or 31 in roman numerals, We have received a great interest in our guitars which hearken back to the good old days when people actually made things in America!" [Source: Bill Harden, email 22/11/2008]
JT Hargreaves Basses and Guitars	1997 to present	Jay Hargreaves has been constructing bass guitars since 1974. 1980 Builder at Boogie Body Guitars, Puyallup, WA. Aapprentice and assistant of Richard Schneider's from 1987 to 1997. Acoustic bass guitars utilizing the Kasha/Schneider bracing. Seattle, Washington. Image JTH Web.
Harimu		Japanese guitars
Peter Harlan		"Peter Harlan Werkstätten" Peter Harlan (1889-1966) was a famous German musician and instrument builder. He worked at "Burg Sternberg" after the war. Images and info eBay:
Harmony	1892-1974 and current rebirth	In Chicago, 1892 Wilhelm J. F. Schultz and four employees began production on a modest scale. By 1915 Harmony had 125 employees. In 1916 Sears, Roebuck acquired Harmony in order to gain its substantial ukulele production. Harmony also made mandolins, banjo ukes, tenor banjos, and other instruments. In February 1928 Harmony introduced its Roy Smeck Vita series-Standard, tenor, and plectrum guitars. In January 1930 the Roy Smeck Grand Concert and Hawaiian models were unveiled. In March 1931 the Vagabond guitar line was first produced, and in the following September the Cremona professional guitar appeared. In May 1939 Harmony bought several brand names from the bankrupt Oscar Schmidt Company including La Scala, Stella and Sovereign. During this period Harmony substantially increased its trade names to include Valencia, Monterey, Harmony Deluxe, Johnny Marvin, Vogue, and many more. From 1961through 1969 Harmony continued to grow and as imported instruments began taking a larger share of the American market, the company was purchased by a conglomerate along with some other companies. There was heavy indebtedness, and the factory equipment and other assets were sold at auction to satisfy the creditors and they finally liquidated. The current day Harmony is owned by Charlie Subecz. [Source: Harmony] The best resources for vintage Harmony are http://www.rothguitar.com/ and http://harmony.demont.net/ Harmony guitar reference book Harmony, The People's Guitar see also http://www.broadwaymusicco.com/Harmony25.htm http://members.aol.com/warnold910/harmonythumb.html http://www.geocities.com/harmonyvintageguitars/ http://www.angelfire.com/trek/hillmans3/hillgt01.html Harmony Guitar reference books Harmony, The People's Guitar Harmony guitar catalogs 1959, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1973, 1974, and more awesome site!! http://harmony.demont.net/catalogs.php This guy will email you a photo http://members.aol.com/warnold909/harmony.html Examples http://www.wietsesguitars.nl/pagina9a.html http://www.vintagesilvertones.com/gallery.html 1962 Harmony Silvertone 1423L Jupiter http://www.myrareguitars.com/robergemay2007.html Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Harmony see Silvertone
Harp	1910s - 1915s	logo penny sized Harp on headstock. [Source: Bill Bauer, email 16/6/2011]
JC Harper		Great Falls, MT USA
Thomas Harper	1995-	Thos Harper - Classical guitars based on Torres and Hauser traditions, Boise, Idaho USA. " I started building in 1995, Almo, Idaho Dating Thos Harper guitars I typically date the label by hand. I also sign the top on the inside and include the date that I finish the bracing, which of course is not the completion date of the instrument. They can also contact me directly and provide me with the serial number on the label. [Source: Tom Harper, email 12/11/2010]
Harper's	-2002	Harper's guitars, hand made in the USA. Apple Valley, California. Harper's Guitars is a family owned and operated business that designs and builds high quality electric guitars. "We believe in building an instrument in the traditional manner, by hand. This method of construction gives our instruments a quality, personality and playability that cannot be obtained in a mass produced one. We cater to the needs of the musician that can appreciate this handcrafted philosophy and knows that they are getting an instrument that will be superior in tone and quality and give them years of dependable performance." Jon Harper - General Manager. [Source: Wayback Machine] According to Jemsite there appear to have been some problems towards the end around 2002.
Harptone	Guitars late 60s = 975	Harptone guitars were made in Newark, New Jersey. Harptone founded in 1886. "Harptone was ...a manufacturer of musical instrument cases, which they did for more than a century until being purchased and eventually shut down by TKL four or five years ago now. For a brief period in the late 1960's and early 1970's they did make guitars. Their production numbers were never high to begin with, and they weren't made for very long. One interesting side note is that Harptone made the first commercially available acoustic bass guitars...precede [ing] the Ernie Ball Earthwood acoustic bass guitars by a couple of years." [Source: Wade Hampton Miller, 2009 - Acoustic Guitar Forum] Harptone bought the blocking from Lifton when they went Lifton went out of business in 1973. [Source: Banjo Hangout] Reviews are at Harmony Central Images Sam Koontz Harptone guitar ebay:
Harrison		Douglas Harrison, Toronto Canada
Frank Hartung		Custom guitars Langewiesen, Germany
T Haruo	1970s to 1980s	Haruo Terada was the president of Terada Factory, Nagoya, Japan at the time of T.Haruo mfg. He tried to market their own model in the US, from Terada under the T.Haruo brand. We have since discovered all this. Read on and before on page 2 to find out how. But the mystery is solved. This is fact. Mr Terada never worked at Yamaha, but Terada was responsible for many MIJ models of Gibson, Gretsch, Fender and others in the 70s and 80s.. They still make Gretsch hollow body electrics there, among others. [Source: Richard Anderson Kritmon, email 3/3/2010] Distributed by Pennino Music Company in USA, (a small chain of music stores in Southern California in the 70's and 80s) [Source: smctek ] http://www.smctek.com/THaruoGuitarPage.html http://www.kritmon.com/T_Haruo_guitars.html see Terada
Harwood		Harwood brand was introduced in 1885 by instrument wholesalers J.W. Jenkins and Sons of Kansas City, Missouri. Some guitars are marked Harwood, New York. Possibly built by Jenkins until 1905, then by Harmony. [Source: Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide ] http://www.harpguitars.net/history/harwood.htm http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Museum/Guitar/Antique/Harwood/harwood.html http://www.minermusic.com/cc/grinch.htm Inlaid engraved bone fret marker harpguitars: see Clifford, Washington
Kazuo Hashimoto		The following text is a direct quote from eBay: " Kazuo Hashimoto Classical Guitar. Made in Japan in 1961, this is a lovely guitar! Hashimoto is one of a number of luthiers who made small numbers of classical guitars in the 50s and 60s under their own brand. It looks to be handmade, and I can't imagine a small maker from this era mass producing from a factory line. REALLY hard to find info on this maker, and I have no idea where this model sits in Hashimoto's repertoire. He certainly isn't making guitars now, hasn't for decades and I'd be surprised if he was making under this label even into the 70s." The label text, "This is a preparation under my supervision and guidance" is interesting. Image eBay:
Paul Hathway	1987 to present	Wanstead, East London
Hauser Guitars Herman Hauser I II, III	1910s to present	The Hauser tradition commenced with Josef Hauser (1854 - 1939). Herman Hasuer I (1882 - 1952), son of Josef, became a legendary luthier. Biography of Herman Hauser I Historical documents Guitar Salon Bio Herman Hauser Labels as far back as 1913 have dates on them. Images of Hermann Hauser guitar, head and label 1926 from ebay: Image of Herman Hauser I courtesy of Guitar Salon International Image courtesy of Classic Guitar:
Benjamin Havilah		Born in Poole Dorset in 1979, son of a master shipwright in the Royal Navy, Benjamin Havilah studied classical Music at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and later moved to Lincoln where he was trained by Master Lutiers', Roy Courtnall and James Lister. Winner of the Lucas prize for most innovative Guitar design in 2008. [Source: eBay]
Hawaiian Club	1930s	I first came across the Hawaiian Club brand on ebay with the guitar pictured being auctioned from Brisbane - my home town. The seller claimed to be the original owner from 1937. Serial number inside guitar reads - 3634 10321 When I searched for the brand on Google the next guitar with the same name I found was also in Brisbane. Another mention of the name was a 1930s reference to the Hawaiian Club in Sydney. [Source: Powerhouse Museum]
Hawk		Hawk brand guitars ? by Aria Japan or German. 1960/70s according to the eBay post for this acoustic guitar. According to MusicRadar forum this may be a brand of Boosey and Hawkes, UK. An electric guitar with the Hawk brand Les Paul copy on ebay suggested by Matsumoku...
Hawkes Guitars	1994 to present	Made since 1994 in Woodbridge, Western Australia. Date is on label inside." [Source: Graham Hawkes & Maggie Aggett, email 5/4/2008] Image courtesy: Graham Hawkes
David Haxton	1994 to present	Seattle Washington
Haxty		Handmade guitars, USA
Hayakawa		Hayakawa guitars. From Japan ? 1970s [Source and image courtesy Rod Allsopp, email 9/9/2011]
Hayden		Guitars made by Gibson I came across this guitar at the Chicago Music Exchange in 2008. Images Chicago Music Exchange:
Hayes	1993 to present	Fine custom guitars handcrafted by luthier Louis G Hayes in Paonia, Colorado
Hayman	1970-1973	Hayman brand were electric guitars developed by Jim Burns and Bob Pearson for Dallas Arbiter, built by Shergold, England [Source: Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide] http://www.shergold.co.uk/hayman.html Reviews http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/brand/Hayman see Shergold Images eBay: Images Hayman 30 30 left and below kijiji
Haynes	1865-early 1900s	John C Haynes Co Boston, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_C._Haynes_&_Co. Guitars and banjos Also made Bay State brand guitars. [Source: Vintage Guitar Magazine Price Guide]
Hayotuk		Bernard Vachon, Montreal Canada
Haywire		http://www.haywirecustomguitars.com/28.html
Ha \| He \| Hi-Hor \| Hos-