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@MartyGrass...What an awesome score! Is that formerly one of Big Mike's treasures?

Thanks for the clarification. Heritage also made 2 16" Johnny Smiths, I don't know how thick they were. I saw both 16" Johnny Smiths at a PSP. When I asked Ren why the hardware on Heritage Johnny Smiths was black he said " that's the way Johnny wanted it".

Great question. 1. Johnny didn't sign the 16! 2. 16 is shallower and narrower. 3. Johnny's got a 25" scale. 4. Both are X-braced and thin topped for acoustics. The standard HJS is 17" and 3" deep. Heritage made two 18". One is 3" deep and the other is 3.25" deep.

Fab guitar. What are the differences between this and a Heritage Johnny Smith?

I had this one a decade ago. It went to a friend then years later to another friend. Now I get it back. It has a beautiful acoustic tone. Also, it is the only one I know of with a Venetian cutaway, which is elegant.

Beautiful guitars! I'm too broke to be buying any Eagles these days. I'll admire them from afar though! I did get to hold one for a PSP photo once. Spectacular build.

The best!!

A very special Heritage and a good story to go with it Mark! This thread inspired me (thanks Tim @Gitfiddler) to get my Super KB and plug it into my new MB California Tweed 4:40. They are a wonderful match. I hereby move the Super KB back to the top of my all time favorite Heritage list. Special thanks to Mark @MartyGrass) for selling it to me! Probably the one i will keep until the end.

Here's an American Eagle newly for sale. Mike Hale (BigMike from the forum) sold his entire guitar and amp collection due to health issues. This American Eagle once was mine. https://reverb.com/item/82963327-heritage-american-eagle-19-1994-natural Many years ago someone who made his first post on HOC was selling this. It seemed like the listing was written by someone who didn't understand electric guitars. I contacted him, and he told me the guitar belonged to his recently deceased father. The seller plays flattops and was in his early 20s. He didn't know much about the AE. He lived in NYC. Patrick was a HOC member who had strong opinions about a lot of things and was the Heritage sales rep for part of NY and NJ. He hated the design of the AE. However he was willing to check the guitar out for me. He met the kid in a restaurant and shared a meal. He then thoroughly check out the guitar, including testing the truss rod function and examining the bracing. He called me from the restuarant to tell me the guitar desperately needs cleaning but is otherwise like new. I told him to pay the guy the money I sent Patrick. It was a deal. Patrick delivered it to me a couple weeks later in one of his routine trips to the Heritage factory. But in the meantime we talked on the phone. The wood easily cleaned up and the setup was perfect. But the gold needed more work. After about a week that was done. By the next week he told me he had the guitar out on a stand in his office all this time and now he gets why the Heritage boys made this design. He actually liked it. He loved the quilted maple. I had it for about five years or so and traded it to RhoadsScholar. Eventually it got to BigMike. Now Patrick is dead (sudden death in his sleep) and Rhoads likewise is (COVID). BigMike loved the AE and encourage me to get one that was listed on eBay, which I did. Benedetto wrote a book on the archtop years ago. It is a masterwork. In it he described the AE as a truly great archtop and described it. This was the only Heritage to make his book. I had occasion to talk with Marv Lamb, Aaron Cowles, Maudie Moore and JP Moats about the model. There are two things that stood out. First, it took more time to build one of these to make a decent wage off of. And I'm talking about hours spent, not just materials. The bracing and the plate tuning was the best they could do. They used the best wood they could find and would save it for the next build. The second thing was that the Heritage team was serious about the model. They decided to make it when the shuttle exploded and America was demoralized. Earlier we had the Iranian hostage crisis then we had the huge recession. Yes, it is kitschy to most. Maudy told me that the guitar needed something on the pickguard. Marv wanted the Challenger shuttle, and Maudie made it happen. The Liberty Bell was made in Germany and cost Heritage $500 each. The case is a vault, is heavy, and is red, white and blue. I had the AE that is now listed hanging on my wall in front of my desk for a few years. Soon I was brainwashed and appreciated the style. It is 100% old school Gibson/Heritage. It was certainly not a great marketing idea, but at the beginning they planned on only 25 guitars anyway. This is Heritage's Citation. The only one I've seen that had this much work put into it is the Centurian. The one for sale is 19. Mine is 15. Check out the listing. Below is my guitar.

Good call on the Centurian, lol I hear Christopher Lambert in "Highlander" saying "there can only be one". Or was it Sean Connery? An American Eagle would be nice, too

I like it when my wife goes out of town. I have a shitload of guitars in the studio but when she goes out of town they start sneaking out into the house and I can pick up whatever I feel like and not have to go back out to the studio. If it were up to me I would have them hanging in every room..... My H-170, my Leon, my Prospect 12 and my H 576 would live in the living room and bedroom.

My situation seems to be different. Right now I have 5 guitars that I can grab an play. My 140, Strat, Melancon Tele, Taylor and Dean Acoustic are either in an open case, or on a stand. I've played 4 of the 5 in the past two days. Last week, I played my 535 for 2 1/2 hours when I was jamming with my friends, and pulled out the 157 for about an hour of just playing around in the basement (it did start to get a bit heavy after an hour). I like playing all my guitars. When I have to clean things up and put all the guitars away, I miss just grabbing another.

+1

Looks awesome!

111518, I see you have the red Heritage Leon Rhodes. I have the blue one. I think there were only five built. I changed out the white pick guard and now have a black pearl on it. It is one of my faves but I don't have a lot of call for it as my H-170 and 162 seem to go with the music I am hired to play lately. My all time favorite Heritage model is the H-170....or at least mine. I don't know why as I have fancier Heritage's, but this particular guitar is just the perfect balance of tone, feel and soulfulness.

These threads come up every once in a while. I love them because I start going through all my models and fall in love with all over again.

535. Versatility to die for.

Nice, congrats. I have a 1997 535 in natural also. Wonderful guitar.

Great looking guitar, congrats!

Enjoy that beauty!

Around 50 years ago, I was in Tillers Music, lusting over a Guild Starfire IV in natural that looked almost exactly like that. Unfortunately, it was way beyond the budget of a college student paying for tuition, dates, etc. That is a GREAT looking guitar.

Nice! Congratulations.