Late 30's/Early 40's Epiphone Flat Tops (FT Series)

[GoneTroppo]

Hey folks,

Has anyone any experience with these pre-war Epiphone flat tops? The internet seems to have almost no videos whatsoever describing tone/playability etc.

I am very interested to know how they compare with pre war Gibson and Martin's for example.

Thanks for any info in advance!
GT

[GoneTroppo]

Changed the title to cast a wider neck so to speak..

[GoneTroppo]

Nobody has any experience with these at all?!?!

I believe the very early New York made Epiphone flat tops were ladder braced, so I would guess they would be, at the very least, pretty sweet instruments for blues, folk and slide playing..

[Osage]

I had a 1929 Model 0. It's an all mahogany, 13 fret, X-braced guitar. Fantastic sounding little guitar. They often have sunken tops, which mine did but boy did it sound good. I've played several late 30's and early 40's models as well. All ladder braced. They don't sound like ladder braced guitars though. More like a combo of an archtop and a flattop. I really like how they sound and the build quality is excellent but I would think the sound isn't for everyone. I personally would not think of them as a blues guitar like many ladder braced instruments.

[Dave Richard]

While I don't have any experience with those pre-war NY Epiphone flattops, I do have extensive knowledge of their '30's/'40's archtops, and can suggest three sources of reviews and infos for the OP.

One is the website 'The Unofficial NY Epiphone Registry', a fantastic source for all things pre-Gibson Epiphone. It's put together by a Swiss man, Felix Wiedler, and it is the most helpful location for these instruments, including the flattops from the late 1920's to the company's end in '57.

There is a companion FB page, 'The Unofficial NY Epiphone Group', where owners and enthusiasts can post photos and ask questions about these(mostly) guitars, flattop and archtop.

Third, there is Jake Wildwood's website, 'Country Guitar Doctor': he's a dealer and repairman in Rochester VT, and in the Museum section of his site, he has detailed writeups on four 1950's Epi flattops, and one '41.

Good luck with your hunt!

[zombywoof]

I have owned two - an FT 110 and FT 79. Best as I can describe them is they did not do anything terribly well but sounded really good trying.

While I prefer Epiphone archtops to Gibsons, these were both eventually replaced by Gibsons - a 1932 12 fret L1 and 1942 J50.

[GoneTroppo]

Originally Posted by Dave Richard

While I don't have any experience with those pre-war NY Epiphone flattops, I do have extensive knowledge of their '30's/'40's archtops, and can suggest three sources of reviews and infos for the OP.

One is the website 'The Unofficial NY Epiphone Registry', a fantastic source for all things pre-Gibson Epiphone. It's put together by a Swiss man, Felix Wiedler, and it is the most helpful location for these instruments, including the flattops from the late 1920's to the company's end in '57.

There is a companion FB page, 'The Unofficial NY Epiphone Group', where owners and enthusiasts can post photos and ask questions about these(mostly) guitars, flattop and archtop.

Third, there is Jake Wildwood's website, 'Country Guitar Doctor': he's a dealer and repairman in Rochester VT, and in the Museum section of his site, he has detailed writeups on four 1950's Epi flattops, and one '41.

Good luck with your hunt!

Dave! Thank you for the resources, most helpful!

[GoneTroppo]

Originally Posted by zombywoof

I have owned two - an FT 110 and FT 79. Best as I can describe them is they did not do anything terribly well but sounded really good trying.

While I prefer Epiphone archtops to Gibsons, these were both eventually replaced by Gibsons - a 1932 12 fret L1 and 1942 J50.

Thank you for response zombywoof, appreciate it...

What years were your FT 110 & FT79?

Best!