The Penguin occupies a distinctive place in the Gretsch catalog. Its single-cutaway shape is compact, but its appointments are anything but restrained: gold hardware, sparkle binding, a plexi pickguard, and the unmistakable Penguin silhouette. The G6134T-58 Vintage Select ’58 Penguin revisits that design through a 1958-inspired specification, pairing a chambered mahogany body with an arched laminated maple top, Filter’Tron-style pickups, and a Bigsby vibrato.
The guitar featured here is a modern, Japanese-made Professional Collection instrument, a contemporary offering of a vintage 1958 guitar, and part of the Vintage Select Series. Retail pricing is $3,499.99 as of the time this article was published.
The rarest bird in the Gretsch catalog
The Penguin was introduced in 1955 as a "solidbody" counterpart to the White Falcon — Gretsch's idea was to take the Falcon's deluxe ornamentation (white finish, gold sparkle binding, gold-plated hardware) and put it on a smaller, single-cutaway body. In practice, the Penguin was barely marketed, never appeared in a Gretsch catalog, and was priced close to or above a Falcon despite being the smaller instrument. The combination of a high price tag and almost no promotion meant very few were sold.
That obscurity is exactly what makes the vintage Penguin so sought-after today. Estimates vary, but most sources put total original production somewhere in the dozens across the model's run from 1955 to 1964, with the rare double-cutaway version even scarcer than the standard single-cut. Because Gretsch kept no clear production records for the model, nobody knows the exact number that left the Brooklyn factory — which has only added to its mythology among collectors. It's now widely regarded as the "holy grail" of vintage Gretsch instruments, with surviving originals changing hands for well into six figures.
Gretsch revived the Penguin as part of its Professional/Vintage Select lineup in the early 2000s, modeling it specifically on the late-1950s version with Filter'Tron pickups rather than the earlier DeArmond-equipped examples. The G6134T-58 reviewed here continues that approach: a faithful, modern recreation of a guitar that was nearly impossible to find new in its own era, let alone decades later.
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It's got the look
The Penguin takes the ornate visual language associated with Gretsch’s White Falcon and puts it on a smaller, single-cutaway body. Gold sparkle binding and gold hardware are central to the design, not incidental trim. They are part of what makes a Penguin recognizable before you hear a note.
This Vintage Select model focuses on the 1958-era Penguin, a point in the design’s history associated with Filter’Tron pickups. Its modern pickup choice, a pair of TV Jones Filter’Tron Classics, puts that pickup character at the center of the instrument. It is more useful to understand this guitar as a period-inspired production model than as an exact substitute for any one surviving vintage Penguin.
Body construction: chambered "solidbody"
The G6134T-58 has a chambered mahogany body beneath an arched laminated maple top. It is not a conventional fully hollow Gretsch, nor simply a slab-bodied solidbody. The chambering is a defining part of the Penguin’s construction and helps explain why the model has its own feel and response within the Gretsch range.
The listed lower bout is 13.46 inches, the upper bout 10.5 inches, and the waist 8.625 inches. Both the body and neck have a gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish. On this example, Vintage White is framed by gold sparkle body binding, with gold hardware and a gold plexi pickguard carrying the Penguin silhouette and Gretsch logo.
Pickups and controls
This Penguin is fitted with two TV Jones Filter’Tron Classic pickups, one at the neck and one at the bridge. Filter’Trons are central to the late-1950s Gretsch story, and this model’s pickup selection is one of the clearest links between its historical reference and its modern specification.
The control layout gives each pickup its own volume control, plus a master volume. A three-position pickup selector chooses bridge, both pickups, or neck, while a separate three-position tone switch provides preset tonal choices. You can balance the pickups with their individual volumes, then adjust overall level from the master volume. In the video, listen for how the three pickup selections behave before and after a tone-switch change.
How it sounds
The TV Jones Filter'Tron Classics are built to replicate the character of the original late-'50s Filter'Trons as closely as modern manufacturing allows, and that character is the whole point of this guitar. Compared to a single-coil, Filter'Trons have noticeably more low-mid body and less top-end bite — they're often described as sitting tonally between a single-coil and a humbucker, with the twang Gretsch is known for but without the ice-pick harshness that raw single-coils can have at high volume.
On the bridge pickup, expect a cutting, percussive attack with plenty of articulation — this is the pickup position associated with classic rockabilly chicken-pickin' and surf-adjacent twang. The neck pickup is warmer and rounder, better suited to jazzier chord work or smoother lead lines. Blending both pickups together thickens things up considerably, giving a fuller midrange that still retains clarity, a product of the chambered mahogany body underneath doing a lot of the acoustic work.
Despite its chambered rather than fully hollow construction, the Penguin resonates more than its "solidbody" classification might suggest — chambering lightens the instrument and opens up the tone compared to a true slab body, without introducing the feedback tendencies of a full hollowbody at stage volume. The Bigsby adds subtle pitch wobble and shimmer on sustained chords rather than dramatic dive-bombs, which fits the vintage character the rest of the guitar is going for.
Bigsby, bridge, and hardware
The Bigsby B3GB vibrato tailpiece is an integral part of this Penguin's identity, and is paired here with a Space Control bridge. The Bigsby allows subtle pitch movement and chord shimmer, while the original concept of the Space Control was to literally change the string spacing at the bridge to accommodate the player's preference.
The hardware also includes gold Grover Imperial die-cast tuners and jeweled G-Arrow control knobs. A gold plexi pickguard, pearloid Neo-Classic thumbnail inlays, and sparkle binding carry the visual theme across the instrument.
Mahogany neck and playing specifications
This G6134T-58 has a mahogany neck with a Standard “U” profile, an ebony fingerboard, and a 12-inch radius. It has 22 medium jumbo frets, a 24.6-inch scale length, and a 1.6875-inch nut width. Other Penguin iterations and many Gretsch guitars use maple necks, so the mahogany specification is worth noting when comparing models.
This specific guitar weighs 8 lb 10 oz. The shop’s neck-depth measurements are .820 inch at the 1st fret and .970 inch at the 12th fret.
G6134T-58 Penguin specs at a glance
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Model | Gretsch G6134T-58 Vintage Select ’58 Penguin with Bigsby |
| Collection | Professional Collection |
| Country of manufacture | Japan |
| Finish | Vintage White, gloss nitrocellulose lacquer |
| Body | Chambered mahogany |
| Top | Arched laminated maple |
| Body binding | Gold sparkle |
| Neck | Mahogany, Standard “U” profile |
| Fingerboard | Ebony, 12-inch radius |
| Scale length | 24.6 inches |
| Frets | 22 medium jumbo |
| Nut width | 1.6875 inches |
| Pickups | Two TV Jones Filter’Tron Classics |
| Controls | Neck volume, bridge volume, master volume, three-position pickup selector, three-position tone switch |
| Bridge | Space Control |
| Vibrato | Bigsby B3GB |
| Tuners | Grover Imperial die-cast |
| Weight of this guitar | 8 lb 10 oz |
| Included case | Gretsch G6238XL solid-body hardshell case |
| Price | $3,499.99 |
The G6134T-58 brings together compact chambered construction, late-1950s-inspired Filter’Tron character, Bigsby vibrato, and distinctive Gretsch appointments. Learn more about the product and availability here on our product page.
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