ORIGINALLY PRODUCED: 1958-69

ORIGIN: USA

TYPE: Hollowbody, passive 4-string

BODY: Masonite, lyre-shaped, vinyl edging strip

NECK: Maple, bolt-on, 24 fine frets

SCALE LENGTH: 749mm (29.5-inch)

FINGERBOARD: Rosewood, white dot inlays

HARDWARE: Bridge is a single rosewood saddle mounted onto a chrome plate.

PICKUPS: Two lipstick tube pickups

CONTROLS: Two dual concentric volume/on-off, original wooden ‘pointer’ knobs were soon replaced by round ones

FEATURES: Coke bottle headstock, regular guitar tuners, aluminium nut

FINISHES: Bronze & white sunburst

COMMENTS: The body construction is a laminated pinewood frame with hardboard (masonite) back and front stuck in place. Curiously the neck pocket was extended from the body further up the back of the neck for added stability.

Longhorns were very wallet friendly at the time and a significant quantity of instruments were sold in Sears Roebuck catalogues in the States under the Silvertone brand. The Lipstick pickups really were purchased lipstick cases and featured an alnico bar magnet core with the coil wound around, which was then covered in tape before inserting into the metal casing.

Initially both pickups were placed close together towards the neck but they were soon moved to bridge and neck positions for hollower sounds. They were adjusted for height from the back of the body. The bridge adjustment was equally as crude using the three screws that connected it to the body, but it worked.