c. 1930s Oscar Schmidt Sovereign Stella

Circa early 1930s Oscar Schmidt Sovereign in great condition. This is certainly one of the more interesting pieces we’ve had in the shop. Due to the overall level of craftsmanship which is uncharacteristic for the line, we feel it is very likely that this instrument was constructed by Oscar Schmidt foreman Fulvio Pardini. Fulvio is most commonly remembered as the builder for Leadbellys famous Stella 12-string Jumbo guitar.

A rare X-braced example of a Sovereign model, this guitar features flamed Cuban mahogany top, back, sides, and neck, as well as a maple fingerboard covered in elaborately engraved pearloid which matches the peghead veneer. The ebony bridge is adorned with inlaid gold sparkle and pearloid to match the overall look of the instrument with its gold sparkle purfling, back strip, and neck inlay. Tying the aesthetic together is the wonderful oversized pearloid pickguard with an engraved floral motif. The original lacquer finish shows minimal wear for a guitar of this age.

This piece required quite a lot of restoration to get it back to playing condition. When we first obtained this instrument the pearloid on the fingerboard had shrunk, causing the fingerboard to cup. In order to rectify this Tom removed the nineteen individual pieces of pearloid, as well as the fingerboard itself, added a lightweight aluminum neck reinforcement, then reattached the fingerboard which he then radiused and painstakingly reapplied the original pearloid. A neck reset was performed and new frets were added, cracks were repaired, and an overall setup was performed, making this guitar play the way it was designed to nearly a century ago.

The deep V profile neck is 1 13/16″ wide at the nut, with a depth of 0.97″ at the 1st fret and 1.27″ at the 10th fret, string spacing is 2 1/8″. Scale length is 24 3/4″. The body is 13 1/2″ wide at the bottom bout with a depth of 3 5/8″. Weight is 4.18lbs.