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Question: Can someone help me identify this guitar!?
I have a classical guitar that was passed on to me from a music teacher, and I need some help to know where it came from, and what value it has, if any at all!.
On the inside it has a sticker, (browned with age) that says "Custom built Classic Guitar, The Harmony Company, Chicago 9 IL, Number 173!.
Then underneath that it has a stamp that appears to say "F-62JG" although this is pretty faded!.

Anyone know anything about it!?Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
The Harmony Company is an American musical instrument manufacturer that was in its heyday the largest stringed instrument manufacturer in the USA!.

Harmony was founded in 1892 by Wilhelm Schultz!. In 1916, it was bought by Sears, Roebuck and Co!., which wanted to corner the ukulele market!. In 1928 Harmony introduced the first of many Roy Smeck models, and went on to become the largest producer in the U!.S!. They sold 250,000 pieces in 1923 and 500,000 in 1930, including models of guitars, banjos, and mandolins!.

In the late 1930s the firm was making violins again after a 19 year hiatus, bought brand names from the bankrupt Oscar Schmidt Co!.—La Scala, Stella, and Sovereign—and was marketing not only Harmony products, but also using the Sears name, Silvertone, plus a variety of trade names, such as Vogue, Valencia, Johnny Marvin, Monterey, Stella, and others!.

The company hit a peak in 1964-1965, selling 350,000 instruments, but low-end foreign competition led to the company's demise 10 years later!. Between 1945 and 1975, the Chicago firm had mass produced about ten million guitars!. The company reduced their output over the years, later focusing on student models sold through JCPenney!.
The Harmony Guitar Company ceased in 1975, and the Harmony name was sold!.

The name is now used by a company based in Elk Grove Village, Illinois!.

Vintage Harmony guitars are now a popular item for collectors and often fetch high prices on eBay!.

Harmony hollow-body instruments were marked with inkstamps within the body of the instrument!. A model/batch number of the form nnnnHmmmm where 'nnnn' is a batch number and 'mmmm' is a model number ('6072H950' for example would be an H950 model)!. They were also stamped with a date stamp with the season and two-digit year ('F-45' would indicate the instrument was manufactured in the fall of 1945)!. Only 'F-xx' and 'S-xx' are found as date stamps, S could be summer, perhaps Harmony synchronized its orders with the main catalog distributors (as Sears & Roebuck, Montgomery Wards)!. A former Harmony employee reported a different scheme: "We worked 10 hours, 5 days a week, any 8 more every Saturday!. That was both shifts!. I believe the "F" and "S" on the serial numbers was for first or second shift!."

So if your guitar is marked F-62, its likely that it was made in 1962!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Google the company!.Www@QuestionHome@Com