Godin 5th Avenue

[WezV]

your a bugger fernando!! you got my archtop GAS going and i ended up winning this on ebay
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=110276812786&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=001

as far as i can tell its a 50's framus tango
http://www.framus-vintage.de/modules/modells/instruments.php?katID=4628&instrumentID=2782&modellID=386&cl=EN

obviously its in need of some work but thats always fun - i'm expecting to have to do a neck reset and whilst i am at it i might remove the fretboard and put some kind of reinforcement in there... we will see - bit of a gamble

[FernandoDuarte]

Hehehehehehehe C'mon wasn't that expensive! And you will get more experience in repair Archtop guitars :D

Thinking in ask for a friend who is going to USA bring something alike, if I bid on eBay, but I'm completely out of money... Have used all my "credit" on bank on the last months

[PhilKing]

Nice one Wez.  I have a couple of Silvertones and they sound great for the price, though they are getting more expensive over here.

[WezV]

Hehehehehehehe C'mon wasn't that expensive! And you will get more experience in repair Archtop guitars :D

i have been after an archtop to repair for ages and they normally go for more even with the neck pulling right away from the body.  i am glad the seller didnt take two minutes to find out its name as he would have probably doubled his money just with a more detailed description

i was a bit worried by the fact these dont have a truss rod but removing fretboards is easy and it will let me put some graphite in there and sort out any neck angle isssues i expect at the same time... i still wish i could get one with a solid spruce top rather than laminates but this will do for now

i am a sucker for cheap old guitars - mainly because i cant afford the not cheap ones!

i also have a hofner thinline body in the workshop that was never made into a guitar, it was still stuffed with 60's german newspapers when i got it - been thinking about putting a neck on it for ages but havnt gotten around to it yet... i might do it soon and spray it red to match the guitar recently tattooed on my leg

the thing i missed out on today was this:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280252991762&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fshop.ebay.co.uk%3A80%2F%3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dm38%26_nkw%3D280252991762%26_fvi%3D1

the westones are usully good workhorses in their own right but i was watching it for the pickups

[indysmith]

the westones are usully good workhorses in their own right but i was watching it for the pickups

You should make your own called the Wez-tone

[WezV]

i did think that might be why i have always been drawn to them... but really i think it comes down to the body laminations i am used to seeing in the thunders.  they are a nice simple design i have always liked

[WezV]

this is the other thing i was drawn to:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220264841080&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fshop.ebay.co.uk%3A80%2F%3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dm38%26_nkw%3D220264841080%26_fvi%3D1

gone a bit more than i can afford though

[FernandoDuarte]

Well, if you're going to take off the fingerboard and put graphite why not put a double-truss rod on it? No more warping neck :D
I think you should try make one, someday... a solid top, etc kinda tough work, but surely would be amazing when finish the thing!!

That old guitar you post in the last one is a little bit weird, but in a charmy way, like those girls that aren't beautifull, but has a actrative way of sight, walk and talk, if you understand me :D

[WezV]

i couldnt put a two way truss rod in it - seems kinds wrong.  the graphite would be a sensitive repair because no one needs to know its in there!!  i might not even have to do anything yet - you never know.

i will do a full size jazz archtop from scratch at some point but i am working up to it....slowly

i really like the stauffer designs as its when things really start to get recognisable as modern guitars - basically its the birth of martin which leads very directly to the birth of the modern X braced, steel string acoustic. the headstocks interesting too - i wonder if leo fender was familiar with it.  it certainly has to be one of the first 6 in line headstocks, with perfectly straight string travel to boot!!

[FernandoDuarte]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=380056546669

What's about it? Looks like would need a heavy repair session :?
For that price could be ok, but higher I don't really know...

[WezV]

you will not  get a bargain on that one, most of the work is purely cosmetic other than the obvious need for a neck reset, which they all need sooner or later.   For a skilled repair person that really doesnt need much work and could be quite valuable.. thats a seriously nice guitar behind all that mess

harmonys and kays tend to go relatively cheap in the US, we see more german names like my framus or hofner in the UK

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-1950s-KAY-ARCHTOP-JAZZ-BOX-ACOUSTIC-GUITAR-K37_W0QQitemZ110279884547QQihZ001QQcategoryZ118979QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

thats pretty typical of what you find... unplayable at the moment but the neck so badly needs a reset that you probably wouldnt need any steam - that thing looks like it would come out if you gave it a bit of a wiggle, which is great when you need to remove it anyway!!