1960s Silvertone With The Amp Built Into The Case

BLAST FROM THE PAST. A guitar that came through our shop at 316 E 84th St, sold, and moved on. This instrument is no longer available.

Somebody at Sears had a genuinely great idea. Put the amplifier inside the case.

A kid orders a guitar out of a catalogue, a box turns up at the house, and everything needed to make a loud noise is in that one box. No second trip. No second purchase. Open the lid, plug in, annoy the neighbours.

An enormous number of American guitarists started exactly this way.

What it was

A 1960s Silvertone electric guitar, built by Danelectro in the USA and sold through Sears, listed at $899.

• Made by: Danelectro, in the USA
• Sold through: Sears, under the Silvertone name
• Scale length: 25.75 inches
• Condition: excellent for its age
• Neck: straight, good action, adjustable to taste
• Frets: no real wear
• Electronics: all working as they should
• Included: the original amp in case, still working

Why Danelectro built things the way they did

Danelectro made instruments out of what was cheap: masonite tops and backs on a pine frame, vinyl tape round the edge, lipstick tube pickups made from actual lipstick tube casings bought as surplus.

None of that was an attempt at quality. All of it turned out to sound fantastic. The hollow masonite construction gives a woody, slightly compressed voice you cannot get from a solid body, and the lipstick pickups are bright and clear with a chime that expensive guitars spend a lot of money chasing.

This is why Danelectros and Silvertones went from pawn shop filler to studio staple. They do a thing nothing else does.

Common questions about Silvertone guitars

Who actually made Silvertone guitars?
Silvertone was Sears's house brand, not a factory. The instruments were built by other companies, most famously Danelectro, and also Harmony, Kay, Teisco and others depending on the model and year. This one is a Danelectro.

What is the amp in case Silvertone?
A guitar sold with its case containing a small built in tube amplifier and speaker. You plug the guitar into the case. Sears sold them through the catalogue from the early sixties, and they are the reason a whole generation of American players got started.

Do the amps in these cases still work?
Often, yes, and this one did. They are simple tube circuits. Age related parts such as capacitors do fail eventually, so have any old amp checked before you lean on it. We can look at it for you.

Are Silvertone guitars good?
Good is the wrong axis. They are cheaply built and they sound genuinely distinctive, which is why players who can afford anything keep buying them. The masonite body and lipstick pickups produce a tone no expensive guitar quite replicates.

What did this Silvertone sell for?
It was listed at $899 at Bros Guitar Shop in New York City. For a figure on your own, ask us for an appraisal.

Does Bros Guitar Shop buy vintage guitars and amps?
Yes. We buy outright, take trades, and take consignments. Details below.

Where it went

Sold. Guitar and amp together, the way Sears intended.

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Come see us at Bros Guitar Shop

We are a family owned guitar shop on the Upper East Side, and we do more than sell instruments:

• Buying, trades and consignment on used and vintage gear
• Repairs and setups at our bench, including vintage amp work
• Appraisals. Bring it in or send photos and we will tell you what you have
• Guitar lessons in the studio downstairs
• Pickup and delivery available for a fee. Give us a call and we will sort it out

Bros Guitar Shop
316 E 84th St, New York, NY 10028
646-559-8771 and brosguitarshop@gmail.com
Mon to Fri 12 to 8, Sat 10 to 8, closed Sunday

Got something in a case under the bed? That is usually how the good ones turn up.