I love the sound of those guitars! I wouldn’t have given it a second look back in the 70’s. I’ve gotten into the 50’s-60’s Folk music thing more and more since then. Checkout this video from Jake Wildwood: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-I6qmpQKlfuI.html. Thanks! ✌️😎🌞🎻🪕🎸
Hi, I bought my Harmony 12 string on spec from a guy who obviously knew little about it, and it arrived in a poor condition, but later discovered that an enthusiastic Amateur Luthier had rebuilt /reset it and is performs perfectly. If search on RU-vid for H1270 you will find quite a lot of players of these guitars especially Daddy Stovepipe and two or tree videos by Mike Russo. They ARE beasts -very large and deep bodies and a 2" nut width.
I'm new to guitars and currently strumming on a Fender 12 string. I'm curious, you said that "action" is a typical problem with a 12 string. What is "action" that you are speaking of?
Hello James You know that the strings are under quite a lot of tension, and are, effectively pulling the headstock and the bridge up. At its worst, the neck may bend so that fretting the notes becomes too difficult to play. That would be a high action. If the neck is too flat, so the strings touch the frets , then that would be too low to play without buzzing - so an ideal action is where the strings are just at a convenient height over the rets to play. Old guitars that haven't been maintained - especially old 12 string guitars can have too high an This can be usually beadjusted or repaired action. I hope that helps.
@@SillyMoustache Thank You! I'm a mechanically inclined person that likes new challenges. Without a doubt in the future I'd try replacing the strings myself. You just kept that ship from wrecking. I'll make sure that I'll have it done by a pro. I'll ask questions like, "what do you think about the action"... when I drop it off. I like the guitar, I appreciate you explaining how to take care of it!
I remember these. They were the only reliable 12 string available before Martin came out with theirs. I think these were stronger than Martins. The necks seemed to be more stable.
Hi Joel, I love my Martin D12-20, but they were/are pretty notorious. Probably because players strung them with heavy strings and tuned them to E-e. Yes, I think you are right abought the strength and the ladder bracing and floating bridge compared to the Martin design. \the necks Are like tree trunks and they had adjustable truss frods way before Martin.
I'd say your description of the sound is accurate, Andy. It does have a lovely bell like ring to it. I wouldn't mind one of these babies myself. I have very little experience of 12 strings... one very nice Yamaha I borrowed back in around 1975 for a year or so. I also used to play a friends Guild back in the early 80's on a few gigs, and I did manage to blag a Gibson twin neck 'page style' for a weekend many moons ago and didn't like it much, tuners were dreadful and was nowhere near as nice as the 1969 SG I had for a short time but had to sell because i was skint. I wonder if I'll ever own one?
Yes, He was quite well known in the Portland area (not sure which Portland) but seemingly didn't do much performing after the '80s changed to piano, but returned to his "day job" as a signwriter.Died aged 95.
Great video, Andy! It sounds an awful lot like my 1976 Epiphone Texan 12 string (Sitka top / Mahogany back and sides). It has that mellow woody bass sound you get with mahogany. My 1981 Ovation Custom Balladeer 12 string is an altogether different animal with it's fiberglass bowl back. It's all trebles and sparkle. But it can get loud if I need it to be. These are the two 12 strings that I kept, and they've never needed a neck reset. I got rid of my Yamaha 12 strings, they turned into bananas like your did.
When I bought my 1270 in 1968 the action was so high that it was a real finger buster. I kept sanding that bridge down until it was where it was supposed to be. The action at the nut was fine, just the bridge was too thick. It was based on the Stella 12 string like the one Leadbelly played.. At that time( the 60's) Harmony had bought out Stella and based some of their guitars on the Stella models.That guitar traveled all over the world with me, including Viet Nam and I still have it but I usually play my Martin.
hi, I'm convinced that sooner or later, these old 12 string jumbos will come back into fashion when some pop star poses with one, and they'll leap up in price. I woder what Baxendale could do with one?
So these were based on what Bind Willie Mctell played I presume? How cool is that to find out, who had it before, just shows what a great community this is.
For me, one of the all-time great 12 string recordings - which was also a 45rpm release in the UK - was played on a Harmony 12 by Bert Weedon. This was in the days when you could buy the sheet music - which is what I used in my own tribute to the great man. The stills of a Fender 12 were of the 12 that I owned at that time. He so rarely recorded acoustic guitar apart from some romantic tracks using a nylon-strung instrument. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LwobTW8SI08.html It's a great tune to play with surprisingly easy chord sequences for that great, thundering opening which always reminded me of 'Shazam'. The fast run isn't too hard either but is a real exercise for neat picking on a 12. Like you, Andy, I've had a lot of 12's, starting in 1963 (A brutal Levin) when I bought Billy Strange's LP of instrumental 12-string recordings. (Even found a book of transcriptions for that LP as well which I still have . . . THOSE were the days!) Until recently I had a Taylor 562ce but now play a Paul Brett signature VE880-PB12 by 'Vintage' (slotted headstock, parlour sized !!) which is miles better than their first PB12 VE-8000 because it now has an uprated electro system. Soundwise, played acoustically, it still has the same essential jangle of a classic 12 . . . which is what the Harmony clearly also has. This was my demo of the original PB12. I have also always tuned down 1 whole tone on 12's except for the the Taylor which was built for standard and didn't like downtuning. I play the PB 1 or 1.5 tones downtuned. Paul Brett is known for using alternative tunings, so the guitar was designed to accept that. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-C1GjMzKOGOQ.html Great to see your old instrument in such fine fettle, despite the dings - and still sounding great. Loved the burst of 'Walk right in' . . . another classic 12 string riff. Best wishes, stay safe.
Hi Alan, I've just spent nearly an hour wandering around your fine RU-vid channel. Your music and interests are manifold and I've particularly enjoyed your referral to Bert Weedon's 12 string piece. Thanks for your interest, n my old Harmony - it is a brute (sizewise) compared to the "Vintage" Instruments. Thanks for watching.
@@SillyMoustache Thanks Andy - that YT channel isn't one I use these days. I started a new one after my wife died and I moved home. Glad you found something interesting on it. Keep well. Alan x x x
They made some truly great instruments -sad to see them go. This one has had a neck reset before I got it and is as smooth to play as feasible. Thanks for watching.
No Thanks! Standard tuning dropped one tone is complicated enough! I play my Nation in open D , my Weissenborn in C and of course my dobro is tuned to G. Thanks anyway.
Yes, it is! try ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qC3u5MV9Chk.html and ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-OKRPDa4qpgY.html and ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-x961pcQEqJg.html probably some more, but it is one of my more recent acquisitions so ...
@@SillyMoustache you are so correct Andy! And when reviewing I note that I liked each of those videos when they originally released. I guess we just haven't seen this 12 string for a year and a half or do... Really enjoy all your content Andy. Jim from Canada
I like the way your strings are attached to the guitar, with the brass bead on the end holding them in place, rather than the pegs many use today. My Takamine has the pegs that push the brass beads in a hole, I don't like this style on mine. Your guitar looks huge to me maybe because of the weight you've lost.
Angie there are essentially two ways of exerting pressure on the top of a guitar to make it resonate. One is to put strings into the bridge and hold them there with bridge pins, and "pull" the top with the tension of the strings. This is the most common way for flat tops. The other is by using a tail piece at the butt end to hold the strings which then run over a "floating" bridge pressed down onto the top - most commonly found on Archtops but also on some early design flattops such as this one.
@@SillyMoustache I guess I've not understood how a guitar is made or designed, as I pay more attention on how it sounds. I also made sure mine was comfortable in the neck width, for when I was playing it. I didn't know that the way the strings are attached to a guitar, whether with the use of the pegs or just the brass beads made a difference in it's sound. I just found them easier to restring by not having them held with the pegs. Thanks Andy.
I believe yours is a 1970 model, as is mine which also has the sprayed laquer interior. I'm pretty sure they have Brazilian rosewood fingerboards, too. The last 2 seconds of your video is the clue the year model. The tuning machine have the brass gears, just like this one: jakewildwood.blogspot.com/2015/08/1970-harmony-h1270-sovereign-jumbo-12.html.
@@SillyMoustache Regarding the internal lacquering, I thought it was just something someone did to mine only until I heard you mention it here. I guess it was some factory thing...
Mine also has the lacquer interior, and brass gears, but has just a basic trapeze tailpiece and not the fancy one. Do any of you have what looks to be unpainted shim or wood filler showing under the fretboard extension?
@@NickleJ Maybe you have a 67? jakewildwood.blogspot.com/2016/02/1967-harmony-h1270-jumbo-12-string.html as far as the shim under the next extension, mine does have it as a result of a neck reset.
@@jimleo7750 Thanks Jim. The "shim" on mine I believe is actually wood filler. I just find it curious that I have read a few different accounts of something similar, usually attributed to an unknown previous owner neck reset, and I wonder if this is possibly another "special feature" straight from the harmony factory like the lacquer in the soundhole. If mine was from a reset, then it's cleanest I've ever seen- except for the most visible part of the job was left looking like that... (pic i.imgur.com/nDK0JVL.jpg) I saw that 1270 from Jake Wildwood and another he did. I love his work and especially the quality of his demo recordings! His bridges were the inspiration for the bridge I made for mine. Originally I made it out of sapele mahogany with a rosewood saddle and two teeny tiny rosewood feet (after I cut the saddle too low... i.imgur.com/NhGNQxk.jpg) but I later replaced the rosewood saddle with one made from elk antler (i.imgur.com/s5JimgE.jpg), which sounds fantastic, IMO EDIT: added pics
