![]() ![]() Its success was based on its head start over competitors. Meyercord continued to manufacture decals through to the 1960s. That combined with the many variations of gold labels that Weymann changed regularly points to the likelihood of an American manufacturer rather than importation. Weymann started displaying those gold labels on their instruments at the same time, or a little after, Meyercord commenced manufacture. Meyercord made many decals for instrument makers, and most likely supplied the gold decal headstock labels for H.A. Meyercord Ads from the Music Trade Review, the one on the left is from 1st April, 1899 p.41. The company advertised for many decades in the Music Trade Review. This US based decalcomania company was a big success and for a number of years it had a monopoly on decalcomania for the music industry, with decals for pianos being one of its important products. George Rudolph MEYERCORD – photo from Chicago Tribune 23 February 1941 courtesy James Hutchinson, great grandson of George Meyercord. The Meyercord Company was registered in 1896, and by 1899 had branches in New York and St Louis. The first decals to be manufactured in the USA were by George Rudolph Meyercord in Chicago Illinois in 1894. Advertisement 1870, New York City Directory 2. One company that was importing and selling decalcomania in New York was W. ![]() It seems highly likely that Oscar Schmidt, with his frequent trips to Germany in the 1890’s, purchased decals for his zithers there. Atkinson & Co.ĭecals were imported into the USA most likely from Germany from around 1860. _ DECAL SUPPLIERS to the Musical Industry in the early 1900’s: 1. The others had Hawaiian themes, all dated 1929 or 1930: Harmony used these ‘paper transfers’ on a few of their guitars apart from the Houn’ Dog. It also caused it to crack even though the guitar’s finish was fine”. Then another coat was applied just over the picture, giving it a slightly raised effect. They were printed onto a very fine paper, almost like a rice paper, then applied to the guitar after the lacquer finish coat was applied and still wet, the paper pretty much melted in, and the art was left intact. “These images were a bit different from the normal decals. I received the information below about these Supertone decals from someone I contacted many years ago: Bradley Kincaid Houn’ Dog Decal by Harmony Supertone 1929-30 Harmony had a slightly different method for some of the decals they used on Supertone guitars around 1930, starting with the Bradley Kincaid Houn’ Dog, c.1929. When dry a clear lacquer was put over the work to protect the decal. It was applied in the correct position and smoothed out, then the paper was soaked with water and pulled away from the transfer, then smoothed down again. This is then sanded or rubbed smooth and the back of the transfer is coated either with the cement which is furnished by the manufacturer of the decalcomania transfer or with a good grade of rubbing and polishing varnish which has been thinned down considerably with turpentine”. “The proper method of applying a decalcomania transfer on lacquered work is first to bring up the finish in the lacquer to all but the last coat. It appears the decals were supplied by the manufacturers front side down on a special paper. Other manufacturers followed, and decalcomania decoration on guitars reached its peak in the 1920’s and 1930’s: (More about Oscar Schmidt and his company in this post OSCAR SCHMIDT COMPANY. In the late 1890’s Menzenhauer and Schmidt started using this decalcomania decoration on their highly successful fretless zithers and autoharps: Late 1890’s, early 1900’s Menzenhaur & Schmidt Zither decalsĪ few years into the 20 th century, Oscar Schmidt started making guitars, and to make them seem more valuable he often added decal decoration to the soundboard, and occasionally to the fret board. “With decals, inlaid marquetry can be closely imitated and various shades of wood and even pearl can be reproduced with exactness.” In the USA, from the end of the 1890’s, this decoration was used on pianos, mandolins, guitars and zithers etc. 1930’s Oscar Schmidt Stella Guitar with decalcomania imitating wood and pearl inlay OSCAR SCHMIDT and other makers using DECALCOMANIA ![]() ![]() The image is then varnished over to protect it from damage. It entails the transferring of a printed image on paper onto ceramic, wood or any other material. The term decal is the shortened version of the word ‘decalcomania’, which is the English pronunciation of the French word décalcomanie. ![]()
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