#Harmony rocket full#

There are various scuffs and minor marks on the body as a whole from honest use, and some nicks along the neck profile gloss as well, yet nothing deep or distracting to the palm while fretting. The body exhibits some finish loss on the lower bout treble-side edge, purely cosmetic, and the maple rim surrounding the input jack is structurally sound. The Red Sunburst gloss finish is 100% original, and while the finish on top is more muted from UV exposure, the back of the body retains a much richer shade. The rosewood bridge works in concert with the chrome-plated vibrato unit which responds very smoothly with the original spring, jumping back into tune well and providing a surprising amount of range and nuance. The plastics include a bright white pickguard and extremely clean quartet of cream cupcake knobs with gold text, and the chrome plating is gleaming on the vibrato and pickup surrounds. The DeArmond gold foil pickups have matching date stamps on their baseplates from November 10th, 1965. The stock open-gear strip tuners are intact with original white buttons, holding pitch reliably.Īll of the electronics work as they should, with individual Volume and Tone knobs for each pickup, and a three-way pickup selector switch. The headstock features 'Holiday' silkscreen text, and interestingly enough, the original finish on the headstock face was shot after the tuner bushings were installed, so the bushings themselves are also finished over. The original nylon nut measures 1 3/4' in width. This model originally had sunburst finish which was later switched to red.

#Harmony rocket full#

The frets have their full factory height and well-rounded crowns, showing virtually no wear, and the guitar plays well in every register up the 24 1/4' scale. The H54 was released as part of the Rocket series in 1959 with two pickups, a three-way pickup switch, and four control knobs. The dyed maple fretboard sports pearloid dot inlay and original slender fretwire.

The maple neck has a deep and substantial U-shaped neck profile carve with tons of heft and shoulder, measuring. Each pickup has strong output across all strings, and when mated with the fully hollow maple body, the tone gets both the immediate attack of the maple and the warmth and fullness of the hollow construction. This pair of gold foils sound great individually, with a particularly full and even tone with both pickups engaged. They have a percussive snap and twang, tight bass, and a harmonically rich midrange that sounds great when each pickup is singled out or when paired together. There's really nothing that can match the balance, clarity, and overall tonal character of original DeArmond Gold Foil pickups. Professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar with fresh 10-46 strings and comfortable action, this Harmony Rocket is ready for stage and studio use. Fully hollow and featherweight at only 6lbs 4oz, this Rocket has a bright and crisp acoustic tone that translates well through the pickups. This Rocket is a rare Holiday-branded example sold through the Aldens mail order catalog, and one of the nicer variations of the Rocket platform, featuring a chrome Bigsby-esque vibrato tailpiece and a pair of DeArmond gold foil pickups.

Very cool piece of 60's history made in Chicago USA.Up for sale, a 1965 Harmony Rocket model H56 in 100% original condition and in perfect working order. The guitar is as is all sales final, no returns so please look at the many pictures listed as they are part of the description, read thoroughly and ask questions as buyer consents upon purchase. The guitar plays good, looks very vintage and sounds good.The guitars ships with no case but will pack well and professional. There are serveral cracks on body evidence of it not having a humidifier over the years which were sealed. The original tuners the G and D has a slight bend but functions well and only cosmetic. when I got it the guitar was missing the pickup so it now has an exact new gold foil and reads around 6.1k with new pots, original knobs, bridge, and tailpiece. It has some lacquer checking and some Knicks, scratches etc. Offered is a 1960’s Harmony Rocket finished in Sunburst in lacquer and has very cool natural patina.