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Passion not a problem.....I dig that brother. I will try that one on my wife. As far as repairs in our neck of the woods, Gryphon, C.B.Perkins, or Keith Holland. Also congrats on the incoming. Always good when something stays in the family. As far as the binding issues, you ever wonder why old Gibson's don't seem to have much binding issues but Epi's, Guilds, D'Angelico's, and D'Aquisto's do ? What is Gibson doing different ? You can buy a 1951 Gibson and though it will be heavily checked the binding will be tight and fine.
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06-11-2016 12:46 PM
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Jonathan, I really dig your YouTube videos.
Originally Posted by campusfive
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the NY companies all had the same supplier of celluloid. Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
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Vinny, Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
My 53 Epi had binding issues, my 46 Epi does not. The Binding on this one is real bad. Both of my DA's have original bindings with no issues. My 71 Guild has fine binding, but the heel cap is bad. The original pickguard is long gone on my 48 DA but is fine on my 37 DA. This new Epi has the original pickguard in good shape, but was long gone on my 53 Epi and has deteriorated on my 46 Epi. I think the plastics used for bindings, pickguards and heel caps varied from year to year on guitars made by all these makers. Some years are more prone to problems than others. I have seen Gibbys with binding issues as well. Luck of the draw, I guess.
Thanks on the tips for repairmen. As for the wife, show her that money is being devalued as we speak, seeing as the government has been printing the stuff (so to speak) with reckless abandon. Convince her that you are better of with your savings being in hard assets, and since real estate is unaffordable in our area, guitars will have to do. Perhaps if she thinks of the new guitars as an investment as opposed to a new toy for Vinny, she will encourage you to buy more (as if you need any encouragement for that sort of thing
).
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Joe D gave me a history lesson on how celluloid is made. I can see how it varies from batch to batch. I have never had a binding issue with a Gibson ever. Just pickguards gassing. Guilds never a pickguard problem but plenty of binding issues.
The binding on my DAQ was just starting to shrink when I sold it. Yes you are right. Just a roll of the dice I guess.
It is a shame though to get binding rot on something like a DA or a great old Epi.
I know a lot of DAQ's made in the 80's suffered from severe binding rot. Mine was a 85. I got lucky. Jimmy used some different brand of acetone based glue that destroyed the binding down the road. I know a lot of DA's made in the 50's have bad bindings and a lot made in the 40's and 60's are just fine.
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I also have a triumph regent but with several repaired cracks.
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Stringswinger,
I love these old epi's - congratulations - the cutaways are quite rare. Certainly worth the money and repair effort. Enjoy !
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Originally Posted by Steve Longobardi
Steve, My noncut Triumph rivals my DA's. Not all vintage Epi's are stellar, but a LOT of them are. I am hoping when I get this one dialed in, it is one of the stellar ones.
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Stringswinger, Originally Posted by Stringswinger
I had a 48' non cut deluxe years ago that was amazing in every way. I sold it because nut was too narrow for me - but what a fabulous guitar. I always keep my eyes open for old epi's .
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Back in the day, John D'Angelico and Jimmy D'Aquisto did a lot of restoration on old archtops. They thought nothing about refinishing, re fretting or rebinding a guitar. If old tuners were worn, they were replaced. Pick guards and bridges? They too were chucked if they were no longer doing the job. That was a day where folks fixed up old houses, cars and motorcycles as well. Not to mention radios, TV's etc.
From a modern, ecological point of view, folks were less wasteful in those days. Today, nothing gets restored. It all gets replaced. (Yes we do a better job of recycling, but if we restored things, there would be less to recycle)
The thing about archtop guitars is, you cannot buy a new guitar with the tone of the old ones. Perhaps in 50-80 years some of the new ones will sound as good, but few of us will be around to hear it.
Collectors are obsessed with originality and higher end appointments. Tone is not valued as much in the vintage market as it should be. IMO, quite a few of those doing the collecting do not have the ears to hear the difference.
For me, nothing sounds as good as a superb vintage archtop. I am also aware that with Epiphone and D'Angelico (and to a somewhat lesser degree with Gibson), the difference in the professional grade archtops was mainly cosmetic. D'Angelico's Style A-1, Style A, Style B and Excel were all crafted with the same care, out of top notch woods. The differences were cosmetic . The same was true of Epiphone. The Triumph, Broadway and Deluxe are the same guitar with different cosmetic treatment. To some extent, the same is true of Gibson. L-7, L-10, L-12 and L-5's are all amazing guitars if you find a superb one. I have played some L-7's that smoked some L-5's. (If anyone wonders why I have omitted Super 400's, New Yorkers and Emperors from this discussion, it is because 18 inch guitars ARE different)
When all is said and done, I will be in this guitar, fully restored, just a bit more than a new Eastman would cost. I am pretty sure that there has not been an Eastman built yet that will rival this guitar for tone and volume. The guitar sounds great as I bought it, with old bronze strings and a poor setup. The wear and tear on this guitar tells me that it has been well played, a telltale sign of a great guitar. In my hands, this guitar will receive the attention that it is due. It will be played in public on jazz gigs. Those who can hear, will enjoy the sound of an instrument made by first rate American craftsmen (most of whom were of Italian extraction), made in a day where folks had pride in their work. And at the same time, I will be proud to be keeping the tradition of jazz alive.
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That was a great post.
It was something that needed to be said. From a players perspective, replaced tuners, bindings and pickguards don't alter anything relating to sound of a guitar. When the masters made guitars, they used old wood because there predecessors taught them that was the right thing to do. Now, who knows what your gonna get? The wood on my Solid Formed might have been cut from a tree that I made out with my wife under 4 years ago.. Who knows.
Great pist Marco.
JD
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Update: I got the guitar back from master luthier Stephen Strahm. He did a fabulous repair job to the original binding and reglued the top and back for $200 all in. A super deal. He did point out a small crack in the tailpiece, so a trip to the welding shop (for a small brazing job) will be in order soon.
I strung the guitar up with TI 13 flats (IMO, Bronze strings belong on Martins, not archtops, but then again, I am not a "trad jazz" guy) and set it up.
It sounds great and plays like a 50's fat neck archtop should. The Brazilian, compensated bridge intonates fairly well (on 2 of the strings it is off a little bit). The tuners are tight and the neck is straight.
Here is a pic of the Epi along with my Guild Benedetto Artist and the D'Angelico II New Yorker:
Last edited by Stringswinger; 06-27-2016 at 04:59 PM.
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Hey Marc,
It's great to see a nice old archtop back in circulation. Congrats on a great find and refurbish - due in no small part to the foresight and knowledge you have to recognize the deal and the potential.
Kudos!
Chris
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Hey Marc, Where is this Stephen Strahm located ? Nice threesome !
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Here you go Vinny: Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
Stephen Strahm Guitars
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BTW, this is my third vintage Epi. I had a 53 Triumph (non cut) that I sold because the neck was too fat for my taste. I have this one and a 46 Triumph (non cut). All three are very warm guitars. It is said that Epi's are brighter than Gibsons, but all three Epis that I have owned have been very warm. My 71 Guild Artist Award is a brighter guitar.
Perhaps it is the pre-war Epis that have the bright tone? Whatever it is, these vintage Epi's have tone that rivals my DA's. The vintage fat necks are not my favorite, but I can live with the necks on the 46 and the 51. The neck on the 53 brought memories of boyhood baseball games.
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Beautiful... fix'er up and enjoy!!!
Congrats!
-Chris
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Thanks bro ! Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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The Epi just looks like it's seen some stuff in its life.
Any ghosts in it Marco?
It is my opinion that The older guitars guitars retain energy. It comes out and blends with your own energy and the result is something, different. And can be special.
thanks for sharing Marco.
Joe D.
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I totally think there's energy in our old guitars. It's the first law of thermodynamics and it sounds damn good! Originally Posted by Joe DeNisco
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Oh, yeah! What a good find. The Triumph Regent is one of the very first archtop guitars I ever played. It's the real deal. (The first archtop guitar I ever played was my first guitar teacher's D'Angelico Excel. I was twelve years old, and it just about ruined me, as far as guitars go. Every other guitar I ever played was fractionally as good as my teacher's guitar.) My hometown music store owner--who had been a recording artist in the 40s/50s--had a back hall stuffed with a bunch of unsold Epiphone archtops. This guy had some of the neatest, most unusual things in his store. How many of you have ever seen this amp by Acoustic?
He had this amp for sale, sitting out on the floor with the Fenders, Kustoms, and other Acoustics. (Mid-60s, wood cabinet, speakers fire out to the side, reflected by the doors.) The amp actually sounded good with an archtop.
Anyway, the Triumph Regent was and is a GREAT guitar...the direct competitor with the Gibson L-7C back in the day. Those are two of the best rhythm instruments of all time, IMO.
ENJOY!
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...^ but one of the reasons I love this forum!!
Thanks, GT!
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Yeah, I ought to pay a word tax on this forum.
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These old acoustic archtops all have ghosts. When you play them, you feel a connection to the past. As a native East Coaster, I feel a special affinity for DA's, Epis and Guilds. I am sorry that all three brands have been disparaged by corporate guys who lacked respect for the tradition. Originally Posted by Joe DeNisco
These old Epis are very cool guitars. They are a poor man's DA. This one is well used, but far from used up.
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^^^^^ Here we go again ^^^^^
Keep em comin Marco!
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