Cole Tremolo, Kensington, MD. What's the story?

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I'm curious if anyone knows the story on Cole tremolos. I'm having a custom guitar built and am toying with the idea of using some obscure tremolo. I came across a few of these "Cole" brand ones that look kind of cool. No routing required either.






Found these patents on them...Scroll down and you can see the drawings.




69' issue of Guitar Player reviews it but I can't read it with out buying it.


Advertisement for an arch top version of it.


I'd just love to know the history on them, were they aftermarket parts or was Cole a guitar builder as well. Can't find anything in my searches of it.

[cheepaxes]

I was just in Kensington two days ago. I've lived in the area 55 years and never heard of them. The area is not a hotbed of guitar manufacturing, although Microfrets guitars were made not far away in Frederick, MD in the '60s and '70s, and Kapa guitars were made in Edmonston, MD in the '60s.

-Scott

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Quick little reply...it would seem our Harry G. Cole was a bit of an inventor!



Patents for disposable mop heads and two for tremolos with the previously listed Kensington, MD address listed and two more for some kind of bottle (baby?) and a "baby bed structure" with the following address listed...2613 Arvin St, Wheaton, MD 20902 . Which of course is a house.

I have a feeling Mr. Cole might have been expecting, around 1957. 1966 made his life easier with disposable mops and was finally able to get back to guitars in 67'.

His Arvin home, presumably. Not a bad looking one at that!


Anyways, just had to pass that along!

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So by coincidence, after buying the Cole Tremolo ad off eBay the other night I went back and did a quick search again. Lo and behold there was another Cole tremolo for sale, half the price I paid for the solid body version of it. I couldn't pass up getting this other version that came with all the paper work and box! Soon I'll have super high res pictures of both and will be starting a FaceBook fan page shortly there after to get the word out on them and hopefully gain some more info on them!


Here's a little riddle for you, tell me what it is, that with out it, you're only playing half a guitar, but with it you're playing two. Give up?.

It's a Cole!

I can now, finally, play a WHOLE guitar!