Eastman Archtops - I'm in a Quandry!

[whiskey02]

Ellen,
Please be aware that while many Eastman guitars generally have decent thickness neck carves, their ar371, 372 (es175 looking) models have considerably thinner necks.

[EllenGtrGrl]

Ellen,
Please be aware that while many Eastman guitars generally have decent thickness neck carves, their ar371, 372 (es175 looking) models have considerably thinner necks.

Thanks for the info. I hope that's not the case with the Pisano model. Eastman does list it as having their typical "Traditional Even C" profile. I hope that means the same thickness as their typical necks. If it doesn't mean that, the guitar will be going back to Guitars 'n Jazz, and I'll ask for an exchange with one of the Venetian cutaway models.

[EllenGtrGrl]

I haven't received a tracking number yet, to indicate that the Pisano has shipped, so a short time ago, I sent out an e-mail to Guitars 'n Jazz, asking them what the neck thickness specifications are for the AR380CE Pisano. I also stated in the e-mail, that if I found the neck to be too thin, I'd change my order to either an Eastman AR503CE, or an Eastman AR403 CE-D.

[EllenGtrGrl]

Update at 5:20 am, as I'm getting ready for work:

Lou at Guitars 'n Jazz responded to my e-mail, and informed me that he didn't think any of the Pisano models have thin necks. He also informed me that before the guitar shipped, he would send me the neck dimensions, so I could determine if the neck met my requirements. That's good to know!

[JCjazz]

Update at 5:20 am, as I'm getting ready for work:

Lou at Guitars 'n Jazz responded to my e-mail, and informed me that he didn't think any of the Pisano models have thin necks. He also informed me that before the guitar shipped, he would send me the neck dimensions, so I could determine if the neck met my requirements. That's good to know!

Hi Ellen. I had a chance to try this Pisano model a few years ago and its neck felt rather chunky (which was actually a deal breaker for me as I've got very small hands). I'm not sure how consistent it is though (might vary a bit depending on the actual guitar and also the year).

Good luck!

[ARGewirtz]

Hi Ellen. I had a chance to try this Pisano model a few years ago and its neck felt rather chunky (which was actually a deal breaker for me as I've got very small hands). I'm not sure how consistent it is though (might vary a bit depending on the actual guitar and also the year).

Good luck!

Ellen,
I don't know if you had a chance to view the clip of Rich Severson doing a demo of the Pisano 380ce that I posted with my reply a few days ago but in that demo Rich seems pretty satisfied with the playability of the guitar and if the neck was too thin I'm pretty sure he would have made a note of it. As I also mentioned in my previous reply, I live in NJ and happen to live only about 30 minutes away from Guitars N Jazz and their guitar tech takes care of my guitars (and he likes the Eastmans ). It's a great shop and they will accommodate you with whatever you need to confirm that the guitar is right for you.
Andrew

[EllenGtrGrl]

I got lucky, Mark at Guitars 'n Jazz responded to my neck dimension questions for both the AR380CE Pisano, and the Eastman AR503CE. The Pisano's neck was a bit chunkier than the AR503's neck - it measured .857" (vs .840" for the AR503) at the 1st fret, and .966" at the 12'th fret (the AR503CE measured 1.082" at the 12th fret). Due to the Pisano being a bit chunkier at the lower frets, I went with the Pisano. I already received the tracking number for it, so the guitar should arrive within the next few days.

[EllenGtrGrl]

My AR380CE Pisano arrived this morning at work! Here's a photo I took at my desk after I let the guitar warm up for a few hours (it had a cold ride to my work place - temps didn't get much warmer than 37F [3C] today; we've been having snow flurries!).



I haven't played it yet, due to its nickel strings (as you may recall, I have a severe allergy to nickel, that gives me mega dermatitis), but I did briefly grab the neck - nice and hefty!

I dropped off the AR380CE at my favorite guitar shop, to have it refretted with Jescar EVO Gold fretwire (which is hypo allergenic). I also included a pack of Ernie Ball Cobalts (complete with a wound 3rd/G string to replace the plain 3rd string) with the guitar, to have them replace the nickel D'Addario NYXLs that are on it. Oh, before you suggest them - sorry no flat wounds for me. I'm almost as allergic to Chromium (which is used in Chrome) as I am to nickel. Ernie Ball Cobalts (which are made out of Cobalt alloy), and RotoSound British Steels (which are made out of plain old steel) are the only electric guitar strings I can use - yes, my immune system is a mess (I also have asthma). I can tolerate bronze, and phosphor bronze strings, and for several weeks in May 2014 (when my nickel and chromium allergies were diagnosed - I had such bad dermatitis, I looked like a burn victim, all over my body), I was seriously considering using them on my electric guitars (because I was having a very hard time finding electric guitar suitable strings that were hypoallergenic [I checked the information on at least 200 different brands/types of strings, before I found the Cobalts, and the Rotosounds]), or giving up playing electric guitar altogether.

[Rob MacKillop]

Looks great, Ellen! And once you’ve de-allergised it, so to speak, I’m sure you’ll both enjoy getting to know each other. Best wishes for it all!

[jim777]

Great looking guitar, congrats! I LOVE that color as well, it really pops

[EllenGtrGrl]

Thanks everybody! Oh I forgot to mention - the truss rod cover is held in place in an unusual way - with magnets! I noticed this, when I took the protective wrapping over the headstock off, pushing the truss rod cover to the side, exposing the truss rod hole in the head stock. I started freaking out, and frantically searched for the screws and screw holes, so I could put the truss rod cover back on. There were none, but I noticed that when I moved the truss rod cover closer to its proper position, it "clicked" into place, and was solidly held. I realized then, that the cover was held in place by magnets. Go figure!