Hey Dr. Bill, I'm on Nick's waiting list now - eh. He probably told you.

Stuart

This is the old version of his headstock logo that I like the best(except the wood would match the guitar's back woods, these are koa. Stands out better on darker wood):
http://www.acousticmusic.org/product_images_popup.php?id=590
http://www.blue-g.com/stk/view_img.cgi?pid=01861&im=5

My guitar is just like this one, except my stain looks redder, and the brazilian on mine is, to me , more attractive:

http://www.blue-g.com/stk/detail.cgi?pid=01808

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quote:

Originally posted by collingscowboy:
John Renbourn, being a great guy (besides a passable guitarist), sent his Franklin back to Nick to help him out.

I've never heard this before, and frankly it makes little sense to me.

The best way for John Renbourn to "help him out" would quite obviously be to keep playing a Franklin in public, and on recordings, and give attribution of same.

Unless this "gift" occurred during the period Franklin production was terminated; however I've never seen or heard of Renbourn's Franklin being up for sale.

What I did read was that the top of Renbourn's Franklin was caved in by airline handling equipment in St. Louis (when Kukich was still out west), consequently he had the top re-built, by someone else I think. It seems true that he is no longer playing it out, but I was not aware that he didn't own it any more.

Can you imagine James Taylor "helping out" Jim Olson by giving back his guitars to Jim, and then being seen from that point forward playing another maker's guitars?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: D2H2259,

I received an email from John within the last two weeks after asking him about his Franklin and he certainly seemed to still have it and still loves it.

He couldn't remember if the top wood was german or Adi, but no indication that it was gone.

Read about all the damage on his site, and writes that it is still a great sounding guitar.

Though the update could be outdated, but I think he would have mentioned something in the email had he got rid of it.

It was Nick that told me to listen to some of his recordings a month or so ago.

Blue-g needs more english. They have some very nice guitars. Very annoying given the flight risk.

Stuart

quote:

Originally posted by Stuart:
He couldn't remember if the top wood was german or Adi, ..
Stuart

Adirondack Spruce was essentially unavailable in the 70s and 80s, and Franklin did not use it.

They used German spruce initially for the upscale OM models, switched to Engelmann sometime in the early 80s.

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FWIW, here are some clips with Frankin guitars (OMs & Jumbo a.k.a. Prairie State)

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=pJ09MGPmqDM
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=0n02qyrlBUk
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ssDmXPCQx1E
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=tGvUtQGdxgg
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=dHR1xk8Rp5k
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=kPUibheuDUo
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=-QgJQLSXzsI
http://www.dreamguitars.com/audio/Franklin_OM_1991.MP3

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Thanks D2H.

Didn't realize you had posted these.

Now I want to hear them live.

I know he likes to build with German, but I sure wish I could hear an Adi top.

Appreciate the links.

Stuart

That will indeed be a challenge for you. I've never seen or heard of one, except a couple from the 70s & 80s, where I know for sure they didn't use it, mis-identified as such by consignment shops. If he's been using it since he re-started there can't be more than a few around.

Apparently he will, but prefers his german, which is a stash that goes way back as you know.

I'm on his list to get a guitar built.


Have you played a mahogany. I hear he's killer with that too.
Stuart

I've only seen a few Mahogany Franklins on the 'net. There were some listed as standard models in the old catalogs though, so there undoubtedly are some around.

I've read good reports from 2 owners of Mahogany Franklin OMs, but I've never heard one myself. I may have heard a Mahogany Jumbo; I wasn't blown away by that guitar, actually. But I'm not positive it was Mahogany. And I didn't play it.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: D2H2259,

I'm not a huge fan of his jumbo guitars either, but he makes them because customers keep requesting "a bigger guitar". The question is, why? The OM sounds huge.

Mike Dulak, his associate, had a mahogany jumbo, that was good, no better than an SJ.

There are good, and great actually, players who love that guitar model though. And it's "fellow travelers", e.g., Greven's Prairie State, the 16"-17" Larsons, Martin M's and converted archtops.

I think the Jumbo on the 5th clip I posted above sounds pretty special, YMMV and all that. That one's Rosewood.

I've concluded that model's a little too big for me, but I can't take issue with anyone who prefers it, myself. And there are those people out there.

I've read comments from a couple of those players where they indicated there were some differences vs. the OM in terms of: immediacy of response, overtones, projection, fullness of tone, sustain, "whoomph when you dig in", maybe volume, bass,some other stuff, that led to their preferences for the type of music they were playing. Sort of, more like a dreadnaught but without the typical dreadnaught's relatively overpowering bass. And more comfortable to hold than a dreadnaught, due to the OM depth and the steep curvature of the body.

But frankly, having only played one koa Jumbo in a shop for a few minutes, I can't say I have a real understanding of what they were talking about. Which is not to say that I think they are wrong.

You're right though, my OM's plenty loud, as far as that goes. And I don't have to push my shoulder way up high to play it.

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