Up for sale, a 1963 Silvertone Stratotone Jupiter in exceptional, 100% original condition and in perfect working order. Manufactured by Harmony in the USA and virtually identical to their "H49 Stratotone," this Silvertone model 1423 has a Black Sparkle finish that was exclusive to the Silvertone-branded version of this guitar, available via Sears. This model was only offered from Winter 1959-63, and was one of Silvertone's more expensive offerings. The pickups have strong output and the clear, percussive quality that you only get from a DeArmond Gold Foil (this particular iteration of the gold foil design has silver diamond covers). The tone is full and dynamically responsive, with a distinctive woody bite when picked with authority, and a glassy clarity in every pickup position. The body is fully hollow, which adds a certain richness and soft attack to the notes that you simply can't get with a solidbody instrument. The guitar weighs a mere 5lbs, professionally setup here at Mike & Mike's Guitar Bar with 11-49 roundwound strings and easy-playing action. The neck has a very chunky C-shaped profile carve with generous shoulder and ideal substance, measuring .940" deep at the 1st fret and .965" at the 9th. The dyed maple fretboard features multi-ply binding and pearloid block inlay, and the original slender frets are intact and remarkably clean, presumably dressed in the instrument’s lifetime, yet still retaining good meat and well-rounded crowns. There is fairly deep finger wear into the fretboard itself on frets 1-5 which does not affect playability. The guitar plays easily up the 24 1/4" scale with a straight neck and responsive, optimally adjusted truss rod. The bone nut measures 1 3/4" in width, and the headstock retains the silkscreened Silvertone script logo, along with the original Waverly open-gear tuning machines. On the body, all of the electronics work as they should, including the ingenious "Blender" knob. This knob acts as a balance control between the two pickups when both are selected, giving the player a smooth gradient between the Bridge and Neck positions. This is easily one of the coolest features of the Stratotone Jupiter and one found only on this model. The pickguard retains its complete set of mini black DeArmond bell knobs along with the rotary pickup selector paddle, and all of the black silkscreen text is intact on the guard. Under the pickguard, the harness features untouched solder joints, with mini CTS pots that date to the 31st week of 1963. Both pickups have Rowe Industries foil stickers on the baseplates too, with matching date stamps from October 9th, 1963. Hardware includes the original Brazilian rosewood floating bridge and nickel trapeze tailpiece. There's light patina on the tailpiece, and the chrome pickup covers and bezels are positively gleaming. The nitro lacquer Black Sparkle finish has densely packed sparkles and light vertical lacquer checking. Cosmetic wear is limited to light wear on the headstock edges and a couple dings on the back between the tuners, along with a few scuffs and minor nicks on the body, largely relegated to the back. A gigbag is included.