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Electric guitar

Maker Travis Bean

Date1978

Place MadeSun Valley, California, United States, North America

ModelTB1000A (Artist) model produced for display at trade shows, mounted on metal stand, with cutaways showing construction features

Serial No.1234

SignedStamped into pickup covers: TRAVIS / BEAN Cutaway through head: TMarkingsStamped onto head near nut: 1234 Stamped on back of tuners: S / Made in W. Germany Stamped in black ink on later potentiometers: A250Kê / MADE IN JAPANDescriptionTravis Bean's guitars were constructed with cast, hollow, aluminum necks, which extended through the body. The pickups were mounted onto the aluminum neck. The NMM’s example was modified with cutouts as a demonstration model for the 1978 National Association of Music Merchant’s trade show to illustrate this unique design.

Stringing: six steel strings
Body: solid koa with arched top and flat back
Head and neck: hollow, machined aluminum, coated in black Imron (automotive enamel); neck continues into body cavity, where pickups and bridge are mounted on it; head with T-shaped cutaway
Binding: none
Fingerboard: rosewood (no radius); 20 nickel-silver frets (22 without the neck cutaway); mother-of-pearl blocks and aluminum side dots behind 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th, 15th, 17th, 19th, and 21st frets
Nut: bronze
Bridge: chrome-plated steel with individual adjustable saddles
Tuners: six chrome-plated steel Schaller covered worm-gear tuners with chrome-plated steel heads
Strap buttons: aluminum, affixed to guitar end and upper bass bout with steel philips’ head screw
Pick guard: missing, originally stainless steel
Finish: clear with slight craquelure
Pickups: two humbucking, shielded pickups, the bridge pickup partially cut away to show construction
Controls: 3-way switch, two later volume and two later tone potentiometers
DimensionsTotal guitar length: 999 mm (39 17/32″)
Back length at neck heel: 376 mm (19-5/16″)
Upper bout width: 269 mm (12-19/32″)
Waist width: 207 mm (10-15/16″)
Lower bout width: 357 mm (14-3/4″)
Side height: 25 mm (3-5/16″)
Head length: 166 mm (6-13/32″)
Head width, top: 68 mm (2-25/32″)
Head width, bottom: 57 mm (2-3/8″)
Neck length (nut to upper edge of body): 446 mm (13-15/16″)
Neck width, nut: 42 mm (1-11/16″)
Neck width, heel: 56 mm (2-3/16″)
Vibrating string length (nut to bridge edge): 624 mm
ProvenanceVincent Gallo bought the guitar for $3500 from a former Bean employee, Richard “Obe” Oblinger. Lynn Wheelwright (Clearfield, Utah) then purchased the guitar on eBay and donated it to the NMM.

Gift of Lynn Wheelwright, 2009.

Credit LineGift of Lynn Wheelwright, 2009

Object number14433

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