I want a G&L acoustic

something like this:










It's a '65 LG1 that I got used in 1974 for my 8th birthday. It was $70. Just a plain and simple blues guitar. I took it to Carlo Greco, Manny's luthier back then, in 1984, and he redid it. I practically lived on 48th St in those days. Mohogany bridge added, and intonation and scale length properly compensated. Pickguard removed to improve brightness. Nut handcut by Carlo. I've owned several- Lg1's and Lg2's ranging from mid 40's to '65 pictured. This one is special though. Not just because of the history, it has a voice if you know what I mean.

My whole point is that in many ways this guitar represents the acoustic incarnation of the Telecaster. I wish I could buy a G&L acoustic that incorporated this kind of thinking.

ANyway, fantasy I know, butI thought I'd share cause it's on my mind. My son's birthday is coming up and I went to GC tonight and played about 10 guitars in the humidor. I'm not going to trash any brands here, but there was practically nothing under $1000 worth a damn. If I'm going to fork out for something with as much long term value as my dad did for me, I wish it could be a G&L.

-Tim

BTW- 1.75 nut, 2.375 bridge, 12" radius, 25.4" scale, narrow bout, 4" depth. Mohogany sides and back, spruce top and rosewood fretboard. A very fast neck, even with pretty high action- narrow for some people's taste, but the 50's models has 1.875" for a nut width- preferred by most collectors, and I just like the feel of narrow and tall, as opposed to the other way around. almost the same thing I like about my ASAT's (basically) '52 neck. Narrow at the nut and tall, so my thumb doesn't cramp up. Widening out significantly at upper frets, and thus plenty of space available at the higher frets. Kinda a tele neck really.

Last edited by TMO on Tue Apr 02, 2013 9:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.

PS. Ideas for an acoustic incorporating some of the ideas I mentioned, with an upper limit of $500 (no love from uncle sam this year, so that's really a hard cap). I know alot of guys on this forum know vastly more than practically anyone, and often are shop employees or savvy collectors. So advice gratefully accepted.

I sorta wasted time at GC trying Martins and Gibsons. Yeah sure, an anniversary Hummingbird sounds good, but in a choice between a car or a guitar I think you know which way Im going to go.

The cheaper models that sounded OK were Yamaha FG700 (bad ergo but hey it sounded good), Seagull S6 (really pretty good), and surprisingly, the Fender Hellcat sounded nice. But I can't get past the Tim Armstrong (rancid) graphics. Wish they had a plain jane version.

All ears

Son's B'day is 4/26.

As a proud Canadian, I would suggest you check out some acoustic guitars from Godin, like Seagull, and if you raise your budget, Larrivée.

PS. Ideas for an acoustic incorporating some of the ideas I mentioned, with an upper limit of $500 (no love from uncle sam this year, so that's really a hard cap). I know alot of guys on this forum know vastly more than practically anyone, and often are shop employees or savvy collectors. So advice gratefully accepted.

You may want to check into a used -- they've been discontinued -- Epiphone Masterbilt AJ-500M, Tim. I have the Rosewood version -- that's an AJ-500R -- but you'll be wanting to look at the "M" for "Mahogany" examples. The "good ones" can be really good.

Hey Tim,

I and gonna go with LiquidSmoke on this one also. For that price range you should really go and play some of the Godin stuff. I would recommend the "Norman" line (Godins take on a Martin) They are all made in the us and canada with outstanding woods (most of them all solid in the 500 price range). The Seagull line has a little wider nut and a slightly modified Dreadnought shape. I have both and tend to gravitate towards the Norman.

Scott

The Seagull S-6 that I played was very good. They didn't have the narrow nut variant at the store, but it's made. The specs are very close to the lg-1. I'll look into the Norman line. Godin/Seagull's a top contender, so thanks for the ideas, my northern brethren. Peace, eh?

EDIT: Holy cow, thanks for the heads up canucks: http://www.normanguitars.com/b18tobacco.html
I know it's superficial, but the Seagull headstock bugs me cosmetically.

Besides the Norman, you may want to watch for a Simon & Patrick (http://www.simonandpatrick.com/guitars.htm) if the Seagull headstock bothers you. It's another of the Godin brands.

If you can up the budget, I'll also second watching for a used Larrivee -03 or even the -02 which they've occasionally made.

When I was shopping for an under $1K acoustic a few years ago, I wound up with a Martin 000-15, but it was a tossup between that and a Larrivee L-03. Both were considerably less expensive just a few years ago, but if you find a deal and can swing the cost, they're great, simply appointed guitars. (I tried a couple of Seagulls at the time. One was great, another was okay. I justified upping a few hundred to Martin/Larrivee because I figured the case was worth $100 and I'd just be happier long term.)

If you haven't seen this thread, check it out:
viewtopic.php?f=36&t=5908

Wow, thanks for the heads up, Eddie.



Dat Shape...Where have I seen that body style before....?


Oh yeah.





G&L folks- anybody know where this jig might be? Bet Dale would've, sniff.