A brace of Dan Armstrong (London) guitars
So I went over to Manchesterguitartech to collect some cans of nitro-cellulose for my Dan Armstrong refinish, and what do you know, Steve had a visitor. It was another Dan Armstrong (London)!
A brace of Dan Armstrong (London) guitars
This was one of my Dan’s older brothers (on the left), made in the first quarter of 1974, and matches the look illustrated in the brochure I still have. Interestingly, the brochure advertises the fact that the neck is securely held by sturdy bolts, although both these guitars feature glued in necks.
By the end of 1974, when my Dan Armstrong was built, the body had changed considerably. My guitar body is around 45mm deep, whereas the older one is around 50mm. My Dan has a much smaller lower horn as you can see, but the body is also shorter – 325mm from the last fret to the bottom. The earlier model is at least 10mm – 20mm longer.
The earlier version also features a dressing away inside the lower horn to make upper fret access easier which mine does not.
On both guitars however, the bridge has tilted forward, tipping towards the neck with the force of the strings anchored at the back of the wraparound. The bridge is obviously made of a metal soft enough to yield under years of pressure. The bridge is advertised in the brochure as being made of cast aluminium, but the weight of mine would suggest otherwise. Without stripping away the chrome, it’s hard to tell what it’s made of. Brass? Something else cheaper and easier to cast?
Dan Armstrong bridge
Tags: Dan Armstrong
Saw your posts on the two Dan Armstrongs and I don’t see many posts regarding the Dan Armstrong London Series guitar. I was eager to read about your project and hope you don’t mind me sharing my little story.
I bought a Dan Armstrong like the one you are refinishing new in the Spring of 1975 when I lived in Sacramento, California. Its serial number is 4317 and I still have it, though I don’t play in that much any more. I didn’t know how to decode the serial number until finding a good site on line -http://www.danarmstrong.org/londonguitar.html – not too long ago.
Did you buy the earlier brother to your ‘Dan Armstrong? I did not know until reading the site that there were earlier versions. Also didn’t know there were only around 330 of the Model 341 made.
I have not modified mine, though time has not been all that kind to the guitar. It has many dings and dents, including a spot on the lower bout when I forgot to latch the case and the guitar came crashing out. I don’t have the original metal knobs and I foolishly replaced the Schaller tuners with Grovers.
Do you know of other Dan Armstrong London Guitar owners? Hope you don’t mind the post.
Dick
Dear James, I’m the owner of the Dan that was next to yours on Steve’s couch. I’ve tried contacting you before but it seems my message didn’t get through. Hope this one gets to you. Are you aware of the importance of Ian Halsey with regard to these guitars? I know he retired a couple of years ago and I’m having difficulty tracking him down. Can you help? Regards, Chris.
Hi Chris,
The complexities of the commenting system, I think. I replied to your last comment in a comment on the Dan Armstrong (London) serial numbers page elsewhere on this site.
Never heard of Ian Halsey though.
I have a Dan Armstrong London guitar, model 341. I bought it new from a music store in Springfield, MO.
Are there any schematics for this guitar available? A wire came loose on the transformer and the transformer was unglued from the pickguard. I soldered the wire back to where I thought it should go, didn’t sound the same so I took it to my local guitar shop and they could not fix it properly.
It seems like the volume pot is acting like the tone pot, and the tone pot i acting like the volume pot. Like the wires got switched.
Anyway, a schematic for this guitar sure would be nice.
Thanks!
Ummm…. probably best if I post a few pictures of my working wiring. I’m not up on how to represent a transformer in a wiring diagram.
I’m a guitarist, not an engineer.
Jim, Hi there. I have a 341 like the one Chris owns and – having not played it for some time find that the electrics need a little attention, so also grateful for the reassurance of your wiring. I replaced the bridge on mine 20 years ago but I think have the original hanging around in the back of a cupboard. It still plays beautifully in a quiet scratchy kind of way although one of the connections snapped very close to the pick up during a pre-gig accident and it hasn’t slid for – well 20 years. Do you know anyone who might dare fix it?
TG
If you’re somewhere around the Manchester area, I can recommend Steve at Manchester Guitar Tech and Jack at Jack’s Instrument Services. Both great guys who have done top class work for me. There’s also a pickup builder locally who I’m sure could help – Jamie at The Creamery.