Gibson Tal Farlow

**vinnyv1k** · 10-25-2015, 03:47 PM

You know this whole broken Tal / UPS disaster turned into a huge blessing. It made me and Joe the best of friends.

**Marty Grass** · 10-25-2015, 03:53 PM

Originally Posted by vinlander

My Tal is doing the same Joe, once in a while the neck pickup start to vibrate sympathetically, I just slightly wobble it on the springs and it stops. Probably the pickup ring springs would need to be slightly extended to make them tighter when screwed or replaced by tubing. Nothing I consider a problem because the playability and tone of that guitar is just simply gorgeous.

I've had that happen a couple of times. The first occasion I chased after the vibration a very long time. When I finally found it, I stuffed something between the pickup cover and ring. That stopped it completely. I use the little felt pads that go under pots on pickguards. They cannot be seen, stay in place and work.

Using longer or tighter springs could work to. But they can be hard to control and tend to fly.

Dutchbopper · 10-25-2015, 04:09 PM

The Tal is likely the best value for money in the entire Gibson archtop offering.

DB

**Marty Grass** · 10-25-2015, 04:11 PM

Originally Posted by GNAPPI

Funny, but my TF developed a weird thing today... the D string popped out of the TP while it was sitting on the bed next to me. It was plugged in and I about crapped my pants with the noise the string made thru the amp!

I put the string back in and played for a while, set it down and, BOING, out it sprung again. I looked carefully at the TP and the string and it all looked fine. I re-set the string again and for the last 5 hours or so of sitting and me playing it, this hasn't happened again. I'll change the string and call for an exorcist if it happens again :-)

I'm not familiar with the TF tailpiece, but if it retains string balls simply by tension, like the L-5 TP, balls can go flying.

My luthier had worked at Gibson's for decades (60s-80s). He said everyone there who had to string those archtops was aware of the problem. The solution was easy but added some cost to production, so it wasn't implemented. But my luthier has done it for me and others.

He drills a small concavity where the ball rests. It's just deep enough to retain the ball so it cannot slide out and ping the top. It's not so deep as to significantly affect the integrity of the TP.

Heritage copied the same design of ball retention as Gibson, which is solely friction based. As a consequence a lot of Heritages have dings near the TP also.

It took my luthier about 5 minutes to make this improvement once the TP was off the guitar.

Having said all of that, you can do almost as well by positioning the ball sideways as it is inserted into the slot. If you picture the ball as a barrel, slide it into the slot with one of the ends of the barrel up, not with both ends of the barrel parallel with the top. As long as the slot is long enough and the ball is placed as deeply into the slot as it can go, it should work.

The detour is over now gentlemen.

**Max405** · 10-25-2015, 05:31 PM

Originally Posted by vinnyv1k

You know this whole broken Tal / UPS disaster turned into a huge blessing. It made me and Joe the best of friends.

thats for sure Vinny. It's funny how it works out that way.

**Max405** · 10-25-2015, 05:35 PM

Originally Posted by Marty Grass

I've had that happen a couple of times. The first occasion I chased after the vibration a very long time. When I finally found it, I stuffed something between the pickup cover and ring. That stopped it completely. I use the little felt pads that go under pots on pickguards. They cannot be seen, stay in place and work.

Using longer or tighter springs could work to. But they can be hard to control and tend to fly.

i got of those wedged between the pup cover and the pup ring on my wesmo. Guitar is dead quiet.

**Max405** · 10-25-2015, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by Cunamara

Lucky for Joe that he was making them up as he went along, eh? ;-)

was he? Oh my god. What a genius he was.

**Max405** · 10-25-2015, 05:43 PM

Originally Posted by Marty Grass

The detour is over now gentlemen.

not at all MG. Thanks for sharing.

**kid335** · 10-25-2015, 05:57 PM

So glad to see a happy conclusion. Great video as well.

**vinnyv1k** · 10-25-2015, 06:02 PM

Mark the Tal tailpiece is just a 175 tailpiece with a rosewood emblem on it. I find all Gibson archtop tailpieces to be a bit of a pain. I use a special soft wedge tool that holds the ball in place till I get the the string tight. It looks kind of like a giant Q tip. Some guys use a large eraser as a wedge. I always place a polish cloth between the tailpiece and top when restringing just in case. You don't want to be in a hurry when you restring a Gibson archtop.

**pubylakeg** · 10-25-2015, 06:17 PM

Something somebody mentioned just made me think. For a quick fix, and rather than having to order rubber surgical tubing, and waiting for delivery, and cutting it to length, perhaps an elastic band, wrapped round the outside of the adjustment screw springs would kill those sympathetic vibrations. Maybe.

**vinlander** · 10-25-2015, 06:53 PM

Originally Posted by Dutchbopper

The Tal is likely the best value for money in the entire Gibson archtop offering.

DB

Can't agree more.
Brand new they are definitely not cheap for a laminated guitar, but on the used market their scroll effect and unusual pick guard seems enough to make them less desirable than a 175 go figure. Far less Tal Farlows are produced and as an average for 3K or so, you get a Custom Shop bound f-holes and headstock guitar with a gorgeous woody tone.

**vinlander** · 10-25-2015, 06:54 PM

Originally Posted by pubylakeg

Something somebody mentioned just made me think. For a quick fix, and rather than having to order rubber surgical tubing, and waiting for delivery, and cutting it to length, perhaps an elastic band, wrapped round the outside of the adjustment screw springs would kill those sympathetic vibrations. Maybe.

Some guys even use heat shrink tubing around the spring

**Max405** · 10-25-2015, 07:20 PM

Originally Posted by kid335

So glad to see a happy conclusion. Great video as well.

kid335, yes the outcome couldn't have been better. Thank you for liking the video.
JD

**vinnyv1k** · 10-25-2015, 08:46 PM

A piece of a matchbook in between the pickup and the ring is a instant fix. Yes it is a Fred Flinstone fix but it works. :-)

**edh** · 10-26-2015, 12:12 AM

@Greentone, I was wondering the same thing. What amp were you using, Joe?

**Max405** · 10-26-2015, 10:47 AM

Originally Posted by edh

@Greentone, I was wondering the same thing. What amp were you using, Joe?

No amp. I used a Zoom G3 straight into my of PC. No amp sim. Just a touch of reverb. I found that it acts sort of like flat amp (like the Johnny Smith Emrad) that only amplifies the sound of the Guitar and adds nothing else to it. Sort of like starting from scratch.. I like adding the touch of reverb because it gives the Guitar sound a little space around it.
Thanks JD

**2bornot2bop** · 10-26-2015, 06:32 PM

Fabulous review my brother Joe!

I could not agree more with your assessment of the Tal Farlow. It seems to me that the TF is the hidden gem in the 17" Gibson archtop lineup. Why buy a used L5CES when one can acquire tone to die for and all the versatility one could want at a much more affordable price.

That sunburst is striking! Congrats on getting booboo into the right hands for a proper restoration. I can almost hear Patrick saying "I told you so!"

Originally Posted by Joe DeNisco

Some of you may remember, Several months ago, I bought one of Vinny's Tal Farlows. UPS broke the headstock during shipping and refused to pay the insurance claim. Vinny "The Tiger", and his never say die attitude took them to court and after some ups and downs, won his court battle.
In the end it worked for me and my friend Vinny and thankfully that is all behind us. I am not one for naming guitars. But, we decided our poor baby needed a name. We called her, Booboo.

Getting Booboo fixed..

My plan was to meet Patrick Amato (Patrick2) at Pastore Music in Union City, NJ on August, 18 so we could hand the damaged Guitar to Ronaldo Orlandoni. The night before, Patrick called me and told me he couldn't make it. Instead, he wanted to come with me when I picked up Booboo. Then tragically, early on the 18th, Patrick passed away. Ronaldo loved Patrick. He told me Patrick would come to visit Him at least once a month for the last 45 years. Ronaldo told me that he still doesn't feel like Patrick is gone. He expects Patrick to walk into the shop at any time. In a strange way, it felt like Patrick was with us the day I picked up Booboo.

It took a little more than 2 months to complete the repair. When Ronaldo opened the case, I was amazed by the beauty of this guitar. He pointed to the spot of the repair and I swear he called Gibson and had them send him a new neck for him to install. You cannot tell the neck was ever broken. Only if you use hi intensity LEDs you can see faint black brush strokes above the stinger under the nitro. The master took his time gluing the neck, then sanding it, then blending the color tone. The stinger, which was severed in half is now perfectly, yet faintly visible through the reddish black/brown into yellow burst under perfectly applied nitro cellulose lacquer. I swear to you guys, I didn’t think it was possible but the neck repair is totally invisible. This can only be achieved by the hands of a master who by his own account has done more than 400 such repairs. My guess is he's done many, many more. There were 4 such repairs in his one man shop during the time Booboo was there. All Gibsons...

Now that Booboo is fixed, how does she play? Early on, Vinny told me, wait until you play a Tal. You will wonder why they are not the most popular guitar in the lineup. He was right. The guitar plays itself. It has the first class playability and amplified sound of an L5, with the added comfort of a slightly shallower body. Guys, this could very well be the best guitar I've ever played. I have it setup with insanely low action, with no buzz anywhere. This is a guitar made to be amplified. It is a classy, full sounding, daring departure from the usual archtop designs. I love the pickguard. The dimensions are perfect. 17" Lower bout, 3" deep. 25-1/2 scale, 1-11/16 wide at the nut. The inlayed swirl in the lower cutaway makes this guitar one of the more uniquely attractve archtops I've seen. Multi-layer bindings throughout, bound F-holes with a bound headstock. The figure on the top and back is not the perfect straight across "10 top" variety. Instead, it looks more like a beautiful cloud formation at sunset. The sides are quilted perfectly tying everything together. The full but comfortable 5 piece tiger flame neck makes you think that you were mistakenly sent the neck that was intended for gods guitar. Looking down at it while your playing makes you feel fortunate and it demands that you step up your playing a notch to deserve such an indulgence.
Guys, if you haven't already done so, spend a couple of days with one of these masterpieces. You will soon understand what the Gibson name on the headstock really stands for. It's the original. The benchmark. An instrument that pampers its owner with first class feel, sound, elegance and the sensation that it can't possibly get any better. This Gibson Tal Farlow is an extraordinary guitar.

**Max405** · 10-26-2015, 08:07 PM

Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop

Fabulous review my brother Joe!

I could not agree more with your assessment of the Tal Farlow. It seems to me that the TF is the hidden gem in the 17" Gibson archtop lineup. Why buy a used L5CES when one can acquire tone to die for and all the versatility one could want at a much more affordable price.

That sunburst is striking! Congrats on getting booboo into the right hands for a proper restoration. I can almost hear Patrick saying "I told you so!"

Yeah, you knew Patrick well and that's exactly what he would have said. The problem is, he didn't tell me to take it to Ronaldo, but he would said I told you so anyway...
The Tal is a no compromise, top shelf Jazz Guitar. I saw yours the other day. 2b, I can't believe you would part with that guitar. What a perfect instrument. There will be person who buys it who will sleep with it every night. Dress it up in Victoria's Secret teddies and stuff.. What a gorgeous guitar. A Hutch to boot!
Thanks for the nice things you said about my review, I appreciate it brother.
JD

**Max405** · 10-29-2015, 11:48 AM

Hi Guys,
I've been looking for this in my files. It was on my work computer.
This is Ronaldo and Patrick.

Gibson Tal Farlow-84c3e40de80e6a14-jpg

**citizenk74** · 10-29-2015, 07:26 PM

That's a keeper! Thanks, Joe!

**Greentone** · 10-29-2015, 07:37 PM

JD,

Great picture of Patrick. Ronaldo and Patrick are in deep conversation there about something very important about the guitar universe.

**vinnyv1k** · 10-29-2015, 07:41 PM

Great pic !!! Thanks Joe.

**Max405** · 10-30-2015, 08:40 AM

According to Patricks lovely wife Fran, Ronaldo is probably saying, "No, No, No Patch-a-rick, you no hava to change a the pick up on a this a Guitarra. The one on it is a joosta fine like it is a"..

Fran told me Ronaldo use to argue with Patrick all the time about modifying guitars. Patrick would win most of the time. But when Patrick had to sell a guitar, he'd run right back to Ronaldo and have him change it back. Ronaldo told me the same thing. What a Lovely man.

Ciao, Ciao..
JD

**GNAPPI** · 10-30-2015, 10:05 AM

I LOVE that Italian accenta'

My grandparents had it, my ex's grandparents had it.

Her grandfather once asked me "Hey Gary, wherea are youa going? I said I'm going to the beach at Son-o-ma. He screwed his head into a grimmace thinking where I could possibly be going as he was living in New Yawk some 50 years and knew it like the back of his hand, and he said "Thisa place-a where is-a it?" I said Grandpa, you never heard of Son-o-Ma Beach?

He bunched up both of his fists and whacked me in the chest.

For you non-Italians, the old school folks said son of a bitch, Son-o-ma beach :-)