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Has anybody had contact/ordered something recently. I don't know where to begin...but I think I might be wanting to commission an archtop...
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05-08-2023 11:11 AM
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Jeff the question before you get someone on the line is what are you looking for in an archtop? If I remember correctly you play mostly a flattop to practice. Do you have a size in mind?
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I'm thinking 17" non-cutaway, all acoustic, no pickup. A rhythm box.
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Then you really want my Eastman 910C. Yours for £2,000 plus shipping.
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That does sound great...but unfortunately I already have a mental image of how I want it to look...
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Well in that case you need and L7. That is just me and in the long run more money but easily a better guitar to play and sell down the road. You heard it here first.
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Buzz has this L7c so you get the cutaway and it has a good floating pickup. If you want to go acoutic only just remove it but the much preferred to a Wu.
https://larkstreetmusic.com/stock.html
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I've been in touch with Lora. She's got a couple of builders she represents, both of whom build comparable instruments. Both are actively in production. Both will build a fine guitar to your spec. Both of whom have a baseline price for the guitar you're looking for and upcharge if you want an upgrade in woods to highest grade materials (it's not a lot of extra considering) and the Yunzhei guitars will be less expensive than the Wu, but both will be much less than any other well built hand built guitar (as you know).
They're both able to start work on a guitar almost immediately after securing the down payment.
Good luck with your new guitar!
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How do I even begin the process? What % is down payment?
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Write to Lora
guitar_archtop@163.com
She'll be very prompt and helpful. A delight to work with
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I contacted Lora last fall and she took quite a long time to get back to me. Not sure what all contributed to that. She was very responsive pre-Covid. Ended up not pursuing it.
Process used to be that you pay half up front and half on approval of the pictures. Not sure what it is now.
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As of last month, that was still the procedure and policy. Since the pandemic, and the following waves of COVID that hit China by their own design, responses with the individual workforces have slowed down communication times, but Lora is very attentive.
Originally Posted by Spook410
Beginning of the year was the Chinese New Year month long national shut down, and she seemed to be eager to get started after that. Let's hope the summer brings a productive year to us all. Do try her.
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I have a Wu just like that - 17", non-cut. I put my own Rhythm Chief pickup on it, but had him install the endpin jack. The pandemic definitely increased production times, but that seems to be slowly becoming less of an issue. I think Wu makes a guitar as good as any Gibson, although he builds to the Benedetto style, which makes a louder, somewhat brighter tone. A 17" with parallel bracing will be a great rhythm machine.
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Jeff I don't want to talk you out of it, but I remember several years ago when I was just getting into archtops, I asked the forum if they'd rather have an eastman 17" noncut archtop or a 40s epiphone triumph. You were among the people who encouraged me to get the triumph. I had both for a while and sold the eastman without hesitation. I still think that a good epiphone triumph is impossible to beat in that price range.
Again not trying to discourage you, but I know that a lot of people have mixed experiences with ordering custom guitars.
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This reminds me of how come, nobody ever made a replica of Freddy greens guitar. I forgot what brand it was, but it was pretty distinct for a rhythm machine.
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I've heard a few I thought were away from that "Benedetto" sound so I was thinking of inquiring...but nothing set in stone. Early thought stages here
The other possibility is an old Epiphone down the line, next year or so. Prices right now are ridiculous...I have not decided completely yet.
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My experience with custom guitar was not so great playing-wise. I would never order a custom made archtop anymore. I simply want to play and buy one that is available now. I had Bill Barker make me a beautiful 18 inch 7 string guitar in 1985. I picked out the woods and is was beautiful but in the end the 7 string was not for me and I never liked the neck. It was too narrow for a 7 string and in the end wished I had gotten a regular 6 string from Barker.
Buying custom made to me really can only equal potentially what you want but more potentially not. Buy and guitar already made is the only way to go for me from now on. There a plenty of great guitars already made and for sale so i can play it and make a decision. No guesswork no matter how much I might think the idea of getting a guitar made for me personally. Also, at my age the out-clause and what if I want to sell is a major factor. In this case Gibson, real Epiphones, and similar win hands down. Selling a Wu will not be easy, and I don't see any demand for a used one.
Jeff, if you have your heart set on getting one custom then certainly go for it I am just giving you my experience.
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Oomph and the Deacon have posted wise words in this thread. All who have read their solid advice and ignore what they have written, do so at their own peril.
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Endless entertainment here on the forum! Mr. B floats a question about a custom Asian build with some loose specs-17", non-cut, no pickup. Trusty forum members who have been down this path offer some advice. However, the Deacon right away sends him on a hunt for a 50's L-7C in New Jersey with a asking price in the $4,500+ range. One would guess the mission statement here would be to get a non-cut acoustic archtop built offshore for reasonable/low money? Mr. B could take his pick of non-cut L-7's without a pickup for less than 5K and be closer to what he is looking for.
Shoot, if we are spending Mr. B's funds, why not a nice non-cut Stromberg, Epi Emperor or Super 400.
My question to Mr. B-have you had the chance to test drive one of the Eastman non-cut 17" archtops?
I have and it was a better than fair rhythm machine.
My acoustic 53 Epi Triumph Regent:
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Many people have made Stromberg Master 400 copies. Originally Posted by NSJ
The only copy I've played was not even close to a real one.
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Yeah, I'm thinking more and more I'm going to do with what I have.
Overall, the Eastman/Benedetto sound is not my bag. It's not a bad sound, just not my thing.
And yes, I was looking to stay in the 2k range for now. It doesn't make sense to me to spend much more on a guitar that won't be my main instrument.
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Jeff if you look hard enough you will find Epiphone Triumphs in in the 2k range. Ignore the 3k+ asking price you see on reverb. Triumphs with a cutaway cost more, but a noncut is attainable in your budget.
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Time to start the hunt, as they say...and to tuck away the scratch Originally Posted by omphalopsychos
Good news is, it'll take me a while to get there, and probably to find one, so I have a while to see if this rhythm guitar thing is something I'm going to stay crazy about. I can say that after one month of practicing it almost exclusively, I've already drawn up what I want to dip further into during the coming months...
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In the late 1930s: An Epiphone Emperor. Originally Posted by NSJ
From 1940 to ca. 1958: Two Strombergs - a Master 400 (blonde) and a Master 300 (sunburst)
From ca. 1958 until his death: A Gretsch Eldorado (blonde). He got the guitar as part of an endorsement deal with Gretch.
Reportedly he switched from the Strombergs to the Gretsch for active use (while still keeping the Strombergs) because of the rising prises of Stromberg guitars after the death of Elmer Stromberg in 1955. Green didn't want to subject those now rather costly instruments to the rigours of touring with the Basie band and thus landed the Gretsch endorsement deal. There goes a story that when the album with Basie and Ella Fitzgerald was recorded, Green was so pleased with the first day in the studio that he told Fitzgerald that he would bring his "best guitar" (one of the Strombergs?) the next day.
At the time of his death he had the two Strombergs and the Gretsch. I have seen a picture of him from the 1960s where he plays an Epiphone Emperor (likely his old one from the 1930s) - maybe because his Gretsch was in for service.
As for replicas of Greens guitars, the Gretsch Eldorado was the top stock model and was available on order at that time. In recent years some boutique makers have been making replicas (more or less) of the Stromberg guitars. I myself have a Master 400 "hommage" which Jim Triggs made for me some years ago. It has the looks but is parallel braced as opposed to the Strombergs which had a single diagonal brace.
Check this out: The Guitars That Freddie Green PlayedLast edited by oldane; 05-11-2023 at 06:17 AM.
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Respectfully disagree. I see a lot of people commenting who’ve never owned a Wu. So if you’ve never owned one, what makes you think your opinion holds merit? No builder can match the $1400 price of a Wu. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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