Home / Instruments /Accessories / Ordering / Tips / Friends
archtop.com
1951 Epiphone Devon
Status: Pricing and hold status for all instruments currently available is shown on our Instruments page here. If this instrument does not appear on the Instruments page it has been sold, and is no longer available. Photos and descriptions of Previously Sold instruments may by found here. To be notified of examples of this model or similar instruments in the future, please contact info@archtop.com,. Please be specific on which instrument(s) you're looking for, and we'll be happy to contact you as soon as they become available.
Serial #: 61155, blue New York label
Body size at lower bout: 17 3/8" Scale length: 25 1/2". Nut width: 1 11/16"
Finish: Original tobacco sunburst finish, nitrocellulose lacquer type
Materials: Handcarved solid spruce top; solid cherry neck with centerstripe; arched maple back and sides; Brazilian rosewood fingerboard with oval fingerboard inlays, art-deco peghead inlay, and inlaid Epiphone logo, all in solid mother-of-pearl; single-bound body and fingerboard.
Hardware: 100% original hardware includes nickel Frequensator tailpiece, compensated adjustable rosewood bridge, hex-key adjustable truss rod, nickel-plated open-back tuners, contoured marbled tortoise celluloid pickguard.
Notes: The Devon is the rarest of all full-size Epiphone acoustics, made in small numbers in the New York factory only between about 1949 and 1953. The guitar has the 17 3/8" solid hand-carved top and the long 25 1/2" scale of the Deluxe, Broadway and Triumph models, with which it is structurally identical. Like these more commonly-seen models, the Devon also has a solid Brazilian rosewood fingerboard and the patent pending Frequensator tailpiece.
This example has the traditional dark sunburst finish, and sports an attractive thick marbled tortoise pickguard. Crack free, the guitar has been well cared for, with its all-original finish showing only a few nicks on the top and some widely distributed veneer checking on the back. The binding is all original and tight to the body, the original nickel Frequensator tailpiece is solid at the bend, and the original compensated adjustable Brazilian rosewood bridge is serial numbered to match the label. Smooth low action over fine medium jumbo frets, and a bright, forward voice, with pronounced reverb in the upper register. Hard to find, but worth the hunt, the Devon is a perennial best buy, delivering outstanding performance in a true vintage pro-sized acoustic archtop guitar.
Setup: The frets have been precision leveled, recrowned and polished as needed; trussrod tension and neck relief adjusted; bridge height adjusted; bridge compensation set; string slots at nut and bridge inspected and recut as necessary; bridge foot contour inspected and fit to top as necessary; bridge radius inspected and recurved as necessary; bridgewheels and tuners lubricated; fingerboard and bridge oiled; body and neck cleaned and hand polished.
This instrument is strung with medium gauge bronze strings (.013-.057).
The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according
to preference. String action is set at 5/64" to 6/64" at the 12th
fret, with moderate relief for acoustic playing with medium strings. The
action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable
bridge.
Case: Deluxe arched black molded hardshell case with plush lining.
