Alex -- you are right -- probably 30-40 dollars in the depression - but that is not 150 dollars in today's dollars. Even if it were, quality vintage instruments increase in value relative to new instruments. A Kalamazoo was cheaper than a Gibson, it was made, as I said, without at truss rod, so they could sell more guitars. But by today's standards none of the guitars made in that era would be considered cheap. They were all hand made and from quality tone woods and with good design made in the USA. The cheapest thing in the depression was labor -- labor costs were extremely low -- few jobs -- high unemployment -- but level of craftsmanship was still very high. Also there was a huge drop in prices across the board at the onset of the depression.
There are some bargains out there in vintage guitars if you play blues, but if you look at what you call "reproductions" of these guitars today made by luthiers - they cost at least $5,000 - and the wood is not aged. You have to remember most importantly that African Americans, and Immigrants in this era worked for dollars a DAY - This is why Gibson created the Kalamazoo brand because they were suffering economically - people could not afford their instruments.
Stella was a quality old world instrument maker filled with immigrant Italian luthiers who specialized in making mandolins. It is said Leadbelly contracted with a particular individual there to make his twelve string because he was so expert making dual course instruments. And any guitar made by the original Stella company would have been expensive even then, because the guitar was not a big market item - it was all mandolins, fiddles and banjos. They were acquired eventually and all these companies started making instruments on an assembly line to economize and expand their sales; Stella, Kay, Regal, Harmony all pretty much interchangeable employing much of the same labor force in the Chicago area.
