Gretsch Synchromatic

[Fatfingers12]

Wife’s grandpa had this guitar, we speculate that it was from the 40’s. It spent some time in rough storage. We had it rebuilt for sentimental reasons, not an investment. What would it have been built with during the day?

[Fatfingers12]

Any info on this guitar . Sorry if I came off flippant. I just was looking for some history on this guitar as I know very little about it.

[David Eastwood]

Calling Mr. DeRosa… calling Mr. DeRosa…

[Steve DeRosa]

I'm going to call this one a Synchromatic 100 (AKA Model 6014) and, based on the juxtaposition of appointments (assuming of course that they're all original) - post-1949 rounded headstock, short pickguard, "small" traditional f-holes, stairstep bridge, and "G" tailpiece - I'll set the date of manufacture as 1953-54, certainly no later as major changes (including dropping the Synchromatic designation) took place when Gretsch entered its golden age with the 1955 catalog. One little-known fact about postwar Gretsch acoustic archtops is that all but the most expensive models were made from laminated woods throughout; not to worry, though - Brooklyn-built instruments from this time period (both acoustic and hollowbody electric) used extremely lightweight woods in their construction, and in direct comparison to the similar Gibson L-48 and Guild A-50 had an airier, less "thuddy" tone with more sustain....

Now that you've heard the good news, be advised that the Brooklyn instruments from the WW II era through the late-60's Baldwin acquisition had a poor reputation in professional circles: in a time marked by some of the highest-quality construction and materials in guitar history, they were one of the first companies to make the move to kiln-dried woods - decades before they would become the de facto industry standard, even for a number of boutique individual luthiers - and those "pros in the know" in their New York home market overwhelmingly gravitated to erstwhile competitor Epiphone, the handcrafted creations of John D'Angelico, and an upstart company named Guild. Couple that with questionable neck joints - for many years a screw would be inserted through either the top of the neck heel or back of the neck block for increased stability - and volatile binding materials, and it's small wonder that any Gretsch archtop other than the entry-level New Yorker is a rare bird, albeit not especially valuable or sought-after in collector circles with the exception of the hand-carved 18" Synchromatic 400 and 17" 300 (which would be grouped together under the Eldorado name in 1958 - production of both versions probably numbered no more than 12-15 instruments total - and produced on a special-order-only basis through the end of the Brooklyn operation). BTW Count Basie guitarist Freddie Green used a custom-made non-cutaway 18" Eldorado (and may have owned a second such instrument as backup), but by that time virtually all the other Big-Band-era jazzers had gone over to electrics like the Country Club, and post-1962 low-end archtops were often assembled from a hodgepodge of available materials - again, not a strong selling point...

Bottom line is that, as you state, you're not going to recover any investment made in its restoration; on the other hand, if you're looking for a good-sounding roots/Americana instrument with tons of period vibe, Grandpa's Gretsch will serve you well for many years to come - use it well and often...

[Fatfingers12]

Steve
Thank you for taking the time to give your insight. Some of the components you commented on are new but it sounds like an accurate analysis. Thank you. One thing for sure the guitar has mojo!

[Keith Lee]

You want history about the Synchromatic 100 ?

Here's all you need to know:

McKinley Morganfield, better known as MUDDY WATERS, used a
Synchromatic 100 with a DeArmond pickup to record "I'm A Rolling Stone",
"I Be Troubled" and "I Feel Like Goin' Home"

Think he got it in the late 40's and only played it a couple / few years, but there is at least one picture on the internet of Muddy posing with one.

Found mine through serendipity, went into friend's buy / sell / trade used guitar store and saw what to me looked like a super cool semi-battered archtop dripping with mojo.

He told me it was loud and he wasn't kidding...great projection.

Somewhat bizarrely, someone had professionally put a black Eastman presumably Jazz pickup in the neck position, and it sounds great through my Roland Jazz Chorus 55 -
though 98% of the time I do NOT plug it in.

With Curt Mangan 13-56 Flatwounds tuned to Dm it's great for slide with a pick, though I don't use the slide for all of every song, mix in fingered parts too.

Paid $800 and it came with a newer high quality Geib case like the better Martins often come in.

This concludes my too long and too detailed story

SELAH