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DANELECTRO: LAP STEEL S61
circa 1958

Danelectro - S61 1 lipstick tube-style pickup, natural finish lap steel electric guitar made in Neptune, NY, USA circa 1958 This is a Danelectro model S61 lap steel/slide guitar made in New Jersey in 1958. It features a solid body construction, an Art-Deco-ish design, a natural finish, one single coil, lipstick-tube-style pickup, a fixed wooden bridge that is also a palm rest, a neck-through type of design, and a wood and metal nut. This lap steel is very clean and in great shape. It comes with a hard shell case. Get this classic while you can and acquire the beautiful, haunting sound of the lap steel.

CONDITION:
This lap steel is very clean, 100% original and in good condition. There is tiny, almost invisible wear to the finish below the tailpiece/bridge and a some minor wear to the finish along the edges. If you look closely you can see some general wear although it still looks great after so many years of existence.
Description from VintageSilvertones.com

TUNERS:
The tuners, opened-back, 2x3 inline machine-heads with white, plastic buttons are in good working condition. They are smooth and hold the tuning and intonation well.
VintageSilvertones.com

NECK:
It has a neck through design with a wood and metal nut, a 22.75" scale, circular position markings and thirty-six fret markings. They are not actual frets as it is a slide guitar and the pitch is made by the steel's (or slide's) contact with the string and not the fret's contact with the string rendering frets unnecessary. The headstock, featuring a screwed-in vertical "Danelectro" on wood logo has some minor wear on the top edges. The string are high above the neck for easier sliding.

PICKUPS:
The one, single coil, lipstick-tube-style pickup sounds very clean, smooth and full. Near the bottom on either side of the bridge there are two white, plastic knobs, one for tone and one for volume. All of the electronics work properly.
Description from VintageSilvertones.com

The Dimensions are:
    Overall length: 32.5"
    Body width: 7"Description from VintageSilvertones.com
    Body thickness: 1.5" with neck 1 11/16"
    Scale: 22.75"Description from VintageSilvertones.com
    Width of the nut: 2.75" (depth: 1.25")
    String height at 12th fret: 3/8" (approximately)

Here's the original description from the 1958 Danelectro catalog:

Hawaiian Guitar..Description from VintageSilvertones.com
The S61 is the Hawaiian guitar you have been waiting for. The beauty of natural wood is brought out by meticulous sanding and 5 coats of sealer and lacquer.
  • New bridge design offers two important advantages:Description from VintageSilvertones.com
  • 1. By combining the functions of bridges and hand rest, it is easy to pluck the strings right up to the bridge, to achieve startingly crisp effects.
    2. By resting the heel of the hand just over the edge of the bridge, a quick damping or muted effect is obtained.
  • Slanted adjustable pickup misses no tones. The lowest and highest and everything in between ring out full and clear.Description from VintageSilvertones.com
  • New easy-to-read fingerboard is accurate and complete; thirty-six fret marks.Description from VintageSilvertones.com
Hawaiian Guitar S-61 $49.50
Description from VintageSilvertones.com

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Danelectro - S61 1 lipstick tube-style pickup, natural finish lap steel electric guitar made in Neptune, NY, USA circa 1958