There are cool guitars, and there are cool guitars. And then there's the Gretsch 6129.
Introduced in 1954 as a variation on the 6128 Duo Jet, the Silver Jet sported a silver sparkle top derived from the plastic wrap that the company also used as a drum shell finish.
Despite solidbody appearances, the instruments featured chambered two-inch deep mahogany bodies, while other specifications evolved rapidly throughout the first few years of production. This example, currently on the wall at Vintage And Rare Guitars in Bath, likely dates from the first half of 1958.
It sports the thumbnail fretboard inlays introduced early that year, but not the Filter'Tron pickups that later became standard issue. As you might expect with any 56-year-old instrument, this Silver Jet requires a little fettling to keep in tune, but the sound from those DeArmond Dynasonic single coils is truly monstrous; a twangsome thing of wonder and a killer rock 'n' roll machine.
Check out more vintage goodness from our friends at Vintage and Rare Guitars.
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