Well I did it again. This time I went with the CJ body style, short scale too. With the new stash of Madagascar rosewood that Collings has acquired, I couldn't resist...

Here's the specs:
Collings CJ Short Scale
Madagascar RW b/s
German spruce top with Adirondack braces
Tortoise bindings (body, headstock, fretboard)
Flourish headstock, Mom fretboard inlays
Abalone rosette
Waverly gold tuners with Ebony knobs
Nut 1 3/4"

I reluctantly traded back my D1AVSB to Steve at AMW, so if anyone's looking for a great 'hog, it should be there next week.

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

Welcome to the CJ short scale waiting society. Except for the tortoise bindings, our couldn't be more different, except they'll be great. tom

Here's a picture update, shouldn't be long now...

Very, Very nice. Should be a real beauty with the subtle appointments you ordered.
Can someone please explain short scale to me, does that mean the frets are narrower? What are the pros & cons?

Nice wood and love the 21 style look! Looks like you're sold on the German.

Papi: short scale= 24.9 instead of 25.5, nut to bridge. thus, slightly less string tension, very slightly shorter distance fret to fret. Reaches are suddenly just easier. So, yeah, the frets are closer together, but it'll take more of a mathematician than I to say just how much in the first twelve frets, for instance. Tiny. Still makes a difference.

Thank's Tom, I knew you would know. That CJ fever really is catchy, how does this sound, CJMhAVNSBVarnsscustom Approximately how much would this cost?

This is a guess, but an educated one. Mine's gonna be about 6500,and that's last year's upcharge. So, you'd have to to add about 700 for varnish and 100 for adi, so 7300 would be ballpark. These are the discounted prices. Ouch. I sold some guitars to 1. eat and pay the mortgage. and 2. fund the CJ varnish. The first part was not optional; the wisdom of the second part won't be known for sure until the sucker is sitting in my lap in a month or two.

PAPI, if you play any electric guitar, a good analogy for the scale length question is Tele vs. Les Paul. Even unplugged so the different pickups are taken out of it:

Tele = longer scale, more bite and twang, more work.

Les Paul = shorter scale, smoother tone, less work.

In my opinion, the same pretty much holds true for a longer scale dread vs. a shorter scale slope.

Good one Drummer!
And in the acoustic world, it would be comparing the scale of a Martin D or OM to a Gibson J, AJ etc., more or less.

a little less. I think Gibson's J's were 24 3/4, a bit slacker. The collings difference is a bit more subtle than the tele/Paul differences, which obviously have lots more variables. But the feel, yeah,kinda. Worth a try if you've never picked one up, especially if you find Collings a little "bright" (I don't, but that's one common nit pick). A smidge rounder. No less loud. Very, very good. Ain't they all?

Congrats. This should be a killer.