Incoming - I finally got my 7-string El Rey!

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

There’s a nice solid/carved American Archtop for sale at Guitars ‘n Jazz Dale Unger American Legend Carved 7 String Natural Blonde Archtop w/ OHSC — Guitars 'n Jazz

That’s a fabulous guitar! Dale has been making world class archtops since he opened shop about 30 years ago. I remember the first time I played one - it was at the fall Philly guitar show in ‘97 IIRC, and I was blown away. I really loved everything about it.

I’d just gotten my first 7 string archtop (the newly released Ibanez AF207) soon after switching completely from 6. I still had a few remaining 6s to sell, including a black 165 and a blond X500, so I decided not to buy an AA until I’d sold the remaining 6s and was fully comfortable putting serious $ into a 7. That was probably the worst guitar related decision I ever made except for selling my first 175.

I came close to buying an AA many times, but a reason always came up not to do it. If the El Rey proves to be as solid and giggable as I think & hope it will, my plan is to order a basic archtop from Dale and sell my 16” and 17” carved Eastmans 7s. I’ll never sell the AF, though - after 28 years together, it’s as much a part of me as the 175 would be if I still had it.

One step at a time……

[Mark M.]

That’s a fabulous guitar! Dale has been making world class archtops since he opened shop about 30 years ago. I remember the first time I played one - it was at the fall Philly guitar show in ‘97 IIRC, and I was blown away. I really loved everything about it.

I’d just gotten my first 7 string archtop (the newly released Ibanez AF207) soon after switching completely from 6. I still had a few remaining 6s to sell, including a black 165 and a blond X500, so I decided not to buy an AA until I’d sold the remaining 6s and was fully comfortable putting serious $ into a 7. That was probably the worst guitar related decision I ever made except for selling my first 175.

I came close to buying an AA many times, but a reason always came up not to do it. If the El Rey proves to be as solid and giggable as I think & hope it will, my plan is to order a basic archtop from Dale and sell my 16” and 17” carved Eastmans 7s. I’ll never sell the AF, though - after 28 years together, it’s as much a part of me as the 175 would be if I still had it.

One step at a time……

My friend who sold me the El Rey was only parting with it because he bought an Unger AA just like that one. They are indeed great guitars.

[floatingpickup]

My friend who sold me the El Rey was only parting with it because he bought an Unger AA just like that one. They are indeed great guitars.

Many of Dale Unger’s guitars are laminated. The one for sale at G’nJ is Dale’s American Legend model, which is all solid/carved.
Keith

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

Many of Dale Unger’s guitars are laminated. The one for sale at G’nJ is Dale’s American Legend model, which is all solid/carved.
Keith

That's not a negative. His laminated tops are 3 layers of fine spruce, and they sound amazing - I'd be very happy with one. Even in bad shape, they have wonderful tone.

About 3 years ago, I drove a few hours with money and the intent to buy a 20 year old 7 string American Dream that was described by the seller as "in excellent condition and ready to gig, with very little fret wear and no problems". It was a bit less than that - it needed board planing and frets at the very least. The action was twice as high as it should have been with the bridge all the way down, although it did play very well. I was truly shocked at how good it sounded.

I liked the sound so much that I even called Dale to ask if he'd do the work. He suggested that I pass, since by the time he did everything I described plus the inevitable other problems, I'd be less than a thousand dollars below the cost of a basic 7 new from him.