-- No Longer Available --

The Worlds First Full-Scale Electric Guitar
(full 25" scale)
Rickenbacher Electro-Spanish
Circa 1933-37. Model officially released in '35.

Only 46 were produced between 1933-37.
Presently, **only 6 known to exist**.

The HOLY GRAIL of music & pop culture.

This incredible relic, bridged the gaps in stringed instrument manufacturing, functionality/design and the way guitar would be played for the rest of history. A meager 5.5 lb of American history, this instrument spawned the birth of modern Blues, Jazz, Rock N Roll & forever changed the world of music, as we know it.

Only 46 of these models were produced during '33-'37. This guitar pre-dates the patent awarded to GD Beauchamp & Adolph Rickenbacher for the first "Electric Guitar" in 1937.

Produced by Electro String Instrument Corporation aka Rickenbacher (known today as Rickenbacker) -- it was built with considerable collaboration between National, Dobro, Harmony, Mosrite.

It is 100% original. Frets are near mint condition - nut has been replaced (the only replacement on the instrument).

Wherever you are located in the world - We will cover your flight or will meet you to deliver this instrument.


Check out the www.rickenbacker.com History Page!

A history lesson for the guitar buff:

The electric guitar wasn’t invented until 1932, when the big band era was on the upswing. The first person to every play a true electric guitar was a jazz guitarist named Vaughan Reed. The first type of guitar was a kind of hollow bodied acoustic guitar that used tungsten pickups. It was manufactured by a company called Electro String Instrument Corporation. This guitar was called the “Rickenbacker.” (Reference: )

The first electric Rickenbachers were made of aluminum and were designed for playing Hawaiian style but they quickly developed a model that could be played Spanish-style, or what we now think of as the standard way of playing. Rather than build the wooden bodies for the Spanish-style guitars themselves, they contracted with Harmony, who came up with this design that had 17 frets clear of the body. The guitar was fitted with a classic trapeze tailpiece or the Patented Kauffman vibrato unit (what we know today as the "whammy" bar) that was designed by Doc Kauffman, who later went into business with Leo Fender. (Reference: Miachel Simmons).