eBay

Vintage '60s Silvertone 1446 Chris Isaac Model with Gibson Pickups and Bigsby

Up for your consideration is this vintage 1446 Silvertone, popularly known as the Chris Isaak model. It comes with the original factory-equipped Gibson mini-humbucker pickups and Bigsby vibrato tailpiece. The only non-original hardware is an adjustable floating bridge installed by the fine luthiers at the Munich Repair Shop (Stevens Guitars) that works wonders for tuning stability when giving the Bigsby a workout. I have the original bridge and will furnish it to you. The rear strap button is white and the front is black, but both look vintage so I don’t know if either is not original. The pickguards on these guitars are often in bad shape because they have decomposed, shrunk and cracked or they’re missing altogether. This one’s all here and in good condition.

The guys at MRS did a fabulous job of setting this baby up with remarkably low action that makes the medium neck a dream to play. The Gibson mini-humbuckers are powerful and transparent, with a unique shimmer that probably owes a lot to its very resonant hollow body. If a Gibson and a Gretsch had a love-child, this would be it. Unlike many Gibsons, this guitar doesn’t make you want to adjust your amp settings when you change pickup settings. The neck pickup is warm and full but not muddy; the bridge pickup is bright but not thin and ice-pick trebly; the middle position is tone heaven, especially when given the ol’ Bigsby massage.

With its sexy b/w tuxedo color scheme, this one’s a real looker for a guitar that’s pushing 50. Silvertone 1446s are hard to date. Made in Chicago by Harmony, they debuted in 1961 and were discontinued in 1967. I have been told mine is an early model. In any case, this one has a few nicks, minor scratches and light lacquer checking on the body that do not detract from the overall good impression. The finish has dulled and gone a little cloudly over the years, but I believe it would buff out nicely. All blemishes are minor and merely cosmetic, not structural. There were two spots underneath the original bridge where the paint had been chipped away. It looked like a previous owner had attempted to adjust the floating bridge with the strings tuned to pitch (ouch), but I had my luthier touch these spots up with a dab of matching paint. Sold as is.

No case, but I pack my guitars very well and will double-box this one to make sure it is well protected – certainly much safer than it would have been in the original pasteboard Harmony case.

Starting at 795 euros, this is a vintage guitar that properly set up yet priced to move. Silvertone 1446s are genuine collectors’ items rarely seen in Europe! This one’s more a player than a showpiece, but it won’t disappoint you, and I won’t either. Check out my feedback – over the years I’ve sold high-end gear to satisfied buyers in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Italy, Spain, Greece and Germany.

Shipping is free in Germany. I'll ship pretty much anywhere in the Western Hemisphere: It's 20.80 euros to the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Denmark, and Austria; 25 euros to France, Italy, and the UK; 33.20 euros to Ireland, Finland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden; 34.20 euros to Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary Slovakia, and Slovenia; 56.40 euros to Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia. Feel free to ask about other destinations or any other questions about the guitar, but only if you are serious about bidding.


I'll be listing more instruments this week and next, so if you like extraordinary guitars be sure to check out my other auctions, including a Burnt Gretsch Orange ToneSmith 510 boutique thinline Telecaster handmade in the USA, a vintage 1976 Rickenbacker 360/12, and a La Brujita (a great Fender Cabronita clone made in New York by Peter Gebhardt).