Dire Straits…

This near mint single-cone (variant 6) resonator with a 16 inch wide and 3 1/3 inch deep nickel plated body weighs just 7.50 lbs. and features a sand blasted Hawaiian scene on back, palm trees on front and a solid area on the sides with two 'rolled' 'f' holes on the top. Single supporting wooden bar (1 1/8 x 5/8 inches) running along length of body and sitting on two smaller pieces of wood, which in turn each sit on circular wooden base. There are two other wooden supports which also sit on wooden bases. Solid maple neck with black-to-clear finish, a nut width of 1 3/4 inches and a deep 'V' profile. Slotted peghead with rear-facing three-in-a-line strip tuners with oval ivory buttons. Headstock face with 'shield' shaped gold and black decal with "Trade Mark" in gold and "National" in red. Serial number "S 5953" impressed into top of headstock. Single bound 'ebonized' maple fretboard with 19 original medium-thin frets (14 clear of the body) and pearl dot position markers. Nickel plated resonator cover with nickel-plated hand rest over 2 9/16 inch diameter center hole secured by nine screws. The cover is beautifully decorated with small diamond shaped "crow feet" cutouts. The resonator cover is stamped "Pat. No. 1762617 / pat No. 1741453 / Made in U.S.A.". Single 'swirl' design resonator with wooden bridge on circular ebony base (secured to resonator by single center screw). Trapeze style tailpiece with single strap-button screw fixing and original blue felt protector pad on the underside. Quite simply the finest, all original, best sounding Style 'O' you could ever wish to find… strung with D'Addario EJ42 Phosphor Bronze Resophonic 0.16-0.56 strings. Housed in its original three-latch black shaped soft-shell case with purple cloth lining (9.00).

This superb example is the late 1934 (we date this one as November) variation #6 (of 8) with a nickel-plated bell-brass body, 'rolled-in' 'f' holes, slotted headstock, 14 accessible frets and a new, simpler Hawaiian scene. This version was made from late 1934 through 1935.

The Style O is probably the most famous and widely known instrument in the National range. The classic Dire Straits album, "Brothers In Arms", and the greatest hits release both feature Mark Knopfler's beautiful late 30's 14 fret Style O on the cover. The first five hundred or so Style O's had steel bodies, which did not take the nickel plating very well. After these the bodies became brass which was far more successful. The style O was first introduced in 1930 and went through no less than eight variants before being discontinued in 1941.