Old Kraftsman was a brand name of guitars marketed through the Spiegel catalog. Practically all of these guitars were made by the Kay Musical Instrument Co. of Chicago, who mass-produced many thousands of guitars under their own name, and also under different brand names such as Airline (for Montgomery Ward) and Silvertone (for Sears). Kay was America's second-largest maker of such instruments, behind their Chicago neighbor, Harmony, who also made lower-priced instruments under different names as well as their own, for Sears, Ward's, and many others.
Many Kay instruments bear striking similarities to Harmony models, and I believe that Kay may have sometimes bought unfinished bodies and necks from Harmony to meet production demands.
The original Kay company succumbed to foreign competition in 1968, and Harmony followed suit in 1975. Both names were acquired by importers of inexpensive instruments from Asia, and are still in use today.
While the lowest-priced Kay products were simply cheap guitars, some of their better-grade models were decent instruments, even if not up to the quality of the more expensive “Name Brands” of their day.
These guitars have little appeal to serious collectors or players, but there are some folks who appreciate these old Kay and Harmony models.
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