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I need a thin-body archtop that's passable quality and won't break the bank. Something along the lines of a Cort TRG-1 (Jim Triggs designed) or similar. Not a semi-hollow either (too heavy for me.) I've been surfing around without much luck. Any suggestions or recommendations are greatly appreciated!
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10-24-2022 10:35 AM
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What's your "breaking the bank" number? What's wrong then with the Cort? This one looks pretty cool.
Originally Posted by buduranus2
Cort Triggs TRG-1 Hollowbody | Reverb
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Definitely under $1,000 which would be a stretch anyway. The TRG-1 you linked to has been sold. They pop up here and there, typically around $500. Just missed a couple at that price. Appreciate you. Originally Posted by Woody Sound
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Find yourself a used Eastman 145-SM. Originally Posted by buduranus2
AKA
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Sorry I didn't notice it was gone. It looked pretty cool to me, especially the plain black board. Originally Posted by buduranus2
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Good call but scarce as hens teeth and harder to find. Originally Posted by AKA
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Doesn’t Peerless Guitars offer something? Jazznguitars.com
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I think you mean guitarsnjazz.com Originally Posted by jads57
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The Eastman looks like a good suggestion to me. I happen to have a red Gibson L5CT and if it should rain and I have to play in the open outside, I would take along a 1962 reissue Epihone Sorrento. A bit like a 125 TDC, full hollow lightweight thinine with Gibson mini HBs in it. Small guitar, and with a 24.75 scale and not the 25.5 of the L5CT. Plays and sounds very well and very affordable if you can find one.
An Epi Casino is what comes to my mind as well.
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Yeah, Sorrento looks like a definite contender. Not that many around. I'm reluctant to buy something online that I can't return. GC doesn't have any at the moment. There are some on Reverb but you can't return it if you don't like it. Originally Posted by hotpepper01
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If a cutaway is not an absolute requirement, perhaps a Guild T-50. Or maybe something like a Harmony Rocket? Under a grand, good quality, thin, hollow is a tough set of specs to fill.
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D'Angelico made a thinline hollow that was very comfortable and I loved the neck. THey made them for a few years and now they're hard to find new but on the used market you can get one. Try it out, it's fully hollow with a block inside. Best of both worlds. Worth a try.
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Pretty sure my Eastman John Pisano 880 has a 2 3/4 body depth. My understanding is the L-5 CT is 2 1/2. So is a 1/4" going to be a make or break?
Also, you might look into the El Rey Eastmans. Think those are thinner body, and can be had for reasonable investment.
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Fully hollow with a block inside? Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
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Yes. It's a single cutaway hollow body with a block that sits under the bridge assembly. The tailpiece is anchored at the endblock and the bridge block runs to the back. This gives a sustain and stability to the tune-o-matic bridge and also an acoustic attack to the strings. Really quite a nice mix of both worlds. Originally Posted by Woody Sound
Two humbuckers built into the top. They issued this, discontinued it, reissued it with even better pickups.
Exel SS
I had one of these in the shop, very comfortable and very acoustic vibe but NOT a fully big jazz box feel, so be aware. Not trying to sell this off as a thinline L-5 but rather an instrument that embodied what I loved about the smaller body with the character of a guitar that sounds really good in solo but also holds up to playing with a band.Last edited by Jimmy blue note; 10-25-2022 at 12:23 PM.
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Specs on the current version DC and SS: Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
Yes. It's a single cutaway hollow body with a block that sits under the bridge assembly. The tailpiece is anchored at the endblock and the bridge block runs to the back. This gives a sustain and stability to the tune-o-matic bridge and also an acoustic attack to the strings. Really quite a nice mix of both worlds.
Two humbuckers built into the top. They issued this, discontinued it, reissued it with even better pickups.
Exel SS
I had one of these in the shop, very comfortable and very acoustic vibe but NOT a fully big jazz box feel, so be aware. Not trying to sell this off as a thinline L-5 but rather an instrument that embodied what I loved about the smaller body with the character of a guitar that sounds really good in solo but also holds up to playing with a band.
EX SS: "A curvaceous and compact single-cutaway semi-hollow with a full-sized yet lightweight center block, the Excel SS is D’Angelico’s preeminent semi-hollow design."
EX DC: "A 16-inch-wide semi-hollow with deep cutaways and a lightweight centerblock, the DC offers a massively wide range of tones and remarkable sustain."
I have an early EX DC (2005). It has a full block like a 335 (not sure what wood). l have have played an older (2010-ish) EX SS. It had a partial block (also not sure what wood). I don't know how to interpret what the current blurb says. It could be that they now make the SS with a bigger block, or it could be that they're using the same words to describe two different things (I'm shocked to learn that there is imprecision on the internet).Last edited by John A.; 10-25-2022 at 04:12 PM.
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I just don't think anything with a solid block inside can be considered fully hollow. It still ends up to be a semi, with semi tendencies and tones, whether it's a full length block or a smaller block. But still, I had two, and they were very nice.
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Thanks to all who replied with your suggestions and recommendations. I happened across an Ibanez AFS75T that's perfect for me. Turns out they're all over the place for $3-400. I paid $255 for mine. It's not even 1-3/4" deep at the edges, very light, sounds good enough for my purposes (IOW meh) I've already sourced an OEM non-trem tailpiece for it that'll fit the existing screw holes. BTW it's a true hollow-body, so with the trem off it'll be light as a feather.
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Cool! I was going to recommend this but I've seen so few of them myself that I didn't know if they even made them anymore. I worked at Ibanez and I picked one of these out of the pile where they put guitars after they've stripped them of the parts. I took the carcass and put a trapeze tailpiece on it, put a Duncan mini custom in the neck, grover tuners and it has the feel and sound of a mini humbucker acoustic jazz box. They have a suprizingly comfortable neck on them. Yeah this was one of the fun rescues from my time served at Hoshino. Originally Posted by buduranus2
Thanks to all who replied with your suggestions and recommendations. I happened across an Ibanez AFS75T that's perfect for me. Turns out they're all over the place for $3-400. I paid $255 for mine. It's not even 1-3/4" deep at the edges, very light, sounds good enough for my purposes (IOW meh) I've already sourced an OEM non-trem tailpiece for it that'll fit the existing screw holes. BTW it's a true hollow-body, so with the trem off it'll be light as a feather.
Very cool guitars that you never need to worry about banging about on.
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A cool (and affordable) vintage option is a Levin 335 (nothing remotely ES-335 related). Single cutaway carved top acoustic archtop, thin body, only slightly deeper than the Ibanez pictured above. If Gibson made a Byrdland depth single cut L-50, that would be the best way to describe it. Occasionally I run into shoulder/back issues from my bigger/heavier instruments, and the Levin is terrific to play when that happens. I put a reissue DeArmond 1100 on mine and it sounds wonderful both amplified and acoustically.
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PM me. Originally Posted by buduranus2
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Maybe you missed it but I've got it covered now. I'm only a $300 player anyway. Originally Posted by AKA
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