An unpopular comment

[MartyGrass]

On 1/18/2021 at 9:44 PM, DetroitBlues said:

I’m scratching my head too.  Shape hasn’t changed.  And for the record there was an Inlaid “The Heritage” in 1985.  I had one.

The bound headstock, special inlays, and truss rod covers were always an option.

Most controversial design was the Circle H.

Anyone who knows about Heritage and sees the Custom Core model will distinctively know it’s a Heritage and the slight change also is a quick way to know it’s a higher end Heritage.

 

 

There are clear similarities in the shape.  Note the string course in the Core is more angled and the headstock mass is greater.

I did not intend my post to be another thread complaining about the appearance of the headstock.  My point was that the original headstock was designed mostly for function, which the original owners clearly lost sales over.  Now it is more stylish IMO.  Something  is lost and something is gained.

[FredZepp]

Of course, even the old guard at Heritage varied the dimensions of the headstock over the years.  Early examples could be very narrow.. then it progressed . 

[Steiner]

12 minutes ago, FredZepp said:

Of course, even the old guard at Heritage varied the dimensions of the headstock over the years.  Early examples could be very narrow.. then it progressed .

Haven't they created 3 different sized headstocks?

[DavesNotHere]

35 minutes ago, Steiner said:

Haven't they created 3 different sized headstocks?

[DavesNotHere]

Looks like the edit feature has gone away.

I meant to add to the above, H-555 (with Roy Clark  head stock), H-150, and H-120

[Gtwibs]

Man I like those old thin ones. At least on solidbodies.

[MartyGrass]

1 hour ago, Steiner said:

Haven't they created 3 different sized headstocks?

They've had the narrow (snake head) and larger ones, the latter being for hollowbodies.  Maybe they have had some tweens in there.

[Steiner]

2 minutes ago, MartyGrass said:

They've had the narrow (snake head) and larger ones, the latter being for hollowbodies.  Maybe they have had some tweens in there.

The 150, 575 and Eagle all have different widths.  It appears this new one is again different from those three.

[MartyGrass]

8 minutes ago, Steiner said:

The 150, 575 and Eagle all have different widths.  It appears this new one is again different from those three.

I can confirm that, not that Steiner needs confirmation.  I was thrown off by assuming my H-576 would have the same headstock dimensions as the H-575.  It doesn't.  The H-576 is broader and matches the GE.

[pressure]

I asked for the middle size headstock for my SuperLight Millie. I thought the narrow headstock looked too thin and the wide headstock looked too large. Just like Goldie Locks I wanted the headstock to be jussst right.

No Bears were harmed in the creation of the SuperLight Millie.

[rockabilly69]

5 hours ago, DavesNotHere said:

 

I love the middle one, and that's a cool truss rod cover too!!!

[Dick Seacup]

I think it's fairly obvious the reason Heritage failed to gain any market penetration whatsoever between 1985 and the mid-2000s is because of the fugly headstock design. Nobody with any talent would willingly choose to show up on a big stage, under the bright lights, with a guitar of such poor build quality and lack of playability. The headstock announces it as soon as it comes out of the case. Also, the Circle H logo is far too reminiscent of Hondo.

And not in a longing-for-bygone-days-of-my-impoverished-youth way. More of an, "international-conglomerate-with-no-understanding-or-appreciation-of-the-ethos-of-Heritage-has-gone-and-made-things-far, far-worse" way.

[skydog52]

What's not to like?

[FredZepp]

While the headstocks on Heritage archtops are noticeably different from the solid body models, the dimensions varied over the years even on the same model. 

These are both H-150 headstocks from ones I've owned...  The left one is a 1988, the right a 2000. 

 

[bolero]

Fred beat me to it: in the 2000's the H150 headstock got wider

not a big deal, as far as I'm concerned

I like the CC headstock, but I won't be selling my '94 H150 any time soon

[Gitfiddler]

Quick question for the masses...

Will the ubiquitous 'Circle H' headstock become a collector's item or shamed down the road?

[DetroitBlues]

Is it a fact it’s a different size or is it just an angle on a picture giving the impression?

[Gitfiddler]

47 minutes ago, DetroitBlues said:

Is it a fact it’s a different size or is it just an angle on a picture giving the impression?

Not sure since I don't own one.  Here are a couple of other examples.

[TalismanRich]

Who knows what makes something "collectible".     I think that first, it needs to be desirable.   I didn't think the Circle H was very good looking.    If it was a great playing guitar at a steal of a price,  I would probably get one, but give a choice  between two identicals,  I would take the traditional or the custom core styles.

I don't think that the size was different, however.   

[MartyGrass]

I agree about what is collectible.  I had a Heritage Little One, which is a rare production model.  Not many sold and it was expensive to build.  The body and neck consisted on many layers of wood put together after the wood strips were dyed.

Mine was a good travel guitar, and that's what I used it for.  It was almost indestructible.  It sounded decent and played well.  And it was easy on the shoulder.

Some might consider it collectible.  It is interesting.  Most would pass on it.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKNGGBXvH-o

[DetroitBlues]

48 minutes ago, MartyGrass said:

I agree about what is collectible.  I had a Heritage Little One, which is a rare production model.  Not many sold and it was expensive to build.  The body and neck consisted on many layers of wood put together after the wood strips were dyed.

Mine was a good travel guitar, and that's what I used it for.  It was almost indestructible.  It sounded decent and played well.  And it was easy on the shoulder.

Some might consider it collectible.  It is interesting.  Most would pass on it.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKNGGBXvH-o

There was an example that had a solid flame maple top and body.  Only the neck was the multi-laminated feature.

[DetroitBlues]

I asked the Factory today.

Yes, the headstock is slightly larger.

How much, no idea....

[Gitfiddler]

24 minutes ago, DetroitBlues said:

I asked the Factory today.

Yes, the headstock is slightly larger.

How much, no idea....

You know the headstock haters will demand exact measurements. 

[Steiner]

THIS THREAD IS USELESS WITHOUT DIMENSIONS!

[LK155]

Well, isn't that a coincidence?  Yesterday  I measured all three of mine. 

Have always thought they were all the same size but managed to avoid shovelling snow for a while finding out for sure.  

Here's what I measured (in inches, even) on each headstock:  length from top edge of nut, width at widest point, width at top.  And the results:

2001   H155 (bound):      7 1/4,         2 5/8,        1 15/16

2005   H150 (bound):      7 1/8,         2 5/8,        2

1996   H535 (unbound):  6 15/16,     2 11/16,     1 15/16

There doesn't appear to be any wild variation on my three, although it seems that at some point between 1996 and 2001 the length grew a bit. 

But let's remember they're cut by hand on a table saw (we've seen this many times at PSPs), so the H535 measurement may just be the result of someone having a bad day.  Wish I had a bigger sample to deal with.  

I've never considered complaints about Heritage headstocks as serious.  But apparently there are lots of people out there who are willing to believe just about anything.