I looked it over carefully, and under the grime I discovered it was a 'Prestige' brand, which I knew nothing about, but I knew it wasn't anything near the quality of my Martin. The strings, what were there, were in tough shape. One tuner needed attention. But, under closer scrutiny and wiping away some of the dust and crud, I realized this thing was ding free and that all the internal bracing was in tact, and structurally it was sound.
Now to the good part. I asked the gal what she had to have for it. She said, "Forty bucks." I said, "No, I don't really want another guitar, and besides I'll just cut it up to make a resonator, so thanks anyway, but I'll pass." She came right back at me asking that I make an offer. I said, "No, I don't want to insult or offend you." She said, "Make an offer, I'll probably take it." I said, "OK, twenty bucks." She said, "It's yours." I paid the lady and took off for home to see what a mistake I really made, wondering if she was pissed at the person who owned it and was getting 'even' by giving it away . . . nah, it was too grungy, and she seemed too nice.
Well, after a good scrubbing and a wax job; a new set of strings; and tuning, I discovered that I had just 'stolen' a pretty damn nice guitar. Not high-end, but it plays well and the finish is flawless with nice edge binding, rosewood fingerboard with solid frets, what I think is maple top, and the sides and back appear to be mahogany.
So, off I went to the internet to research my prize. I could only find one guy who claims to own a similar model, and nothing about the manufacturer. The guy says it was American made in the '60s for distribution through Sears and that it was produced for only a short time. But, that all I could glean from my web effort.
That's alright, nothing like a 'good deal' to make the world a better place.
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