Cranes in Cardiff has gone, I see

[Cyclops]

My first guitar was a Rosetti Super Solid Seven. I was 14 and paid for it on the never-ever from my paper round. It was a deep red and had a whammy bar. Used to play my 45s thru the pickups. Discovered some time later that Macca also played a RSSS.

This was it aka Egmond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVdt1PPSAm4

[Veg1960]

This thread has taken an interesting turn (well, 'interesting' for some of us maybe) ;)

I am a bit of a fan of the underdog / alternative / outsider (goes well with supporting the City) and although I had ownership dreams as a young man, I prefer something interesting or quirky over a Fender or Gibson.

Some memorable / favourite 'alternatives' over the years have been:
Maison 335 style (decent quality late 80's? MIK) that particular one just had that something. So .. I sold it (one of many 'FFS' moments)
Mid 80's Fernandes 'The Revival' Strat . Wowza. Also sold that. There is a pattern here !
But my dearest possession/memory was a 70's Ibanez 'Custom' LesPaul clone which was my everything for years, many, many moons ago.
I played/abused the **** out of it until it truly died. I still have the tuner pegs ;)

The only guitar I truly regret selling was a PRS Classic 24, that I bought from Mike at Cranes on my 30th birthday. It was beautiful to look at and played like a Rolls Royce.The sound was great but it didn't really twang/thud like a good strat or grunt/scream like a good Les. It definitely had something though!

[Vimana.]

My first guitar was a Rosetti Super Solid Seven. I was 14 and paid for it on the never-ever from my paper round. It was a deep red and had a whammy bar. Used to play my 45s thru the pickups. Discovered some time later that Macca also played a RSSS.

This was it aka Egmond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVdt1PPSAm4

Nice!

My first fiddles when I were a lad in t'70's:

Martin Coletti 50's Archtop (and I still have this one ;) )
$_86.jpg

60's Futurama II
imagesX0QRJ215.jpg

Photos not mine.

[Vindec]

The only guitar I truly regret selling was a PRS Classic 24, that I bought from Mike at Cranes on my 30th birthday. It was beautiful to look at and played like a Rolls Royce.The sound was great but it didn't really twang/thud like a good strat or grunt/scream like a good Les. It definitely had something though!

My regret is selling my 1963 Strat. It was bought for £150 in 1965 which was the equivalent of about £1200 in today's money. How much is it worth now I wonder.

[Zenith]

My regret is selling my 1963 Strat. It was bought for £150 in 1965 which was the equivalent of about £1200 in today's money. How much is it worth now I wonder.

Around £9-10k now

[Wales-Bales]

From experience, Cranes were never able/wanted to compete. They only stocked selected brands - for a music shop of that size in the city centre to not check off all of the big boys is madness. Roland is the one that comes to mind.

If you could get, say a pedal for £150 in Cranes and PMT were selling it for £130, were willing to price match and they also offer interest free loans who are you going to go with? I've also experienced much better customer service in the 10 mins I spent in PMT than I ever did in the many years I visited Cranes or Gamlins.

What kind of bike have you got?

[Wales-Bales]

Anybody buying new instruments nowadays has got to be nuts. The prices are way up, yet the prices of used gear is falling.

[NYCBlue]

My first guitar was very similar to this. I still have the body somewhere. I got it in swap with a kid at school. He swapped it for Live And Dangerous by Thin Lizzy. A Double LP for an electric guitar! It just needed a couple of spots soldered.

https://reverb.com/item/3010554-earl...stream-electra

We didn't have the Internet back then, so at the time so I didn't know what I had.

[Cyclops]

How many guitars do you guys play?

I currently have four. I like to swop them around which I find keeps my practice fresh. Two have whammy bars - one a Fender; the other a Floyd Rose - and each calls for a different technique, particularly when doing squealies.

Something else I use to keep fresh is different effects - wah-wah, tube screamer and a Line 6 Pod X3 which simulates different rigs.

[NYCBlue]

I just have one bass these days, a Thunderbird. I've also got a Yamaha 6-string acoustic.

My wife has a '63 Gibson Melody Maker and an Epiphone SG. The Melody Maker is sweet.

Sometimes I toy with the idea of getting a short-scale bass, like an EB-0. I've also always wanted to get an Epiphone Rivoli and a Rickenbacker 4001. I've played both quite a bit but never owned either.

[Vimana.]

Crikey. Seven.
Too many have come and gone.

I like to 'roll my own'.
Strat - Tokai body, Fender neck, SD p'ups
Tele - Fender / Allparts
Esquire - Fender / Allparts

Seagull S6 Acoustic
Hohner Congress Archtop - '64
Martin Coletti Archtop - Early '50's
Aria Fretless Bass.

I enjoy the Esquire the most as a one-pickup guitar makes me work to get the nuances out of my right hand and riding the vol/tone controls.

Not much into effects.
Preamp set to edge of breakup, a little dab of reverb and ride the volume and (having tried quite a few) a Tubescreamer does it for me.

I have a Fender Princeton amp , but my everyday 'amp' is a PC running Scuffham S-Gear these days.
S-Gear is simply incredible ;)

[Cyclops]

I like to 'roll my own'.

I'm a fair way down the path of actually building guitars. Got a £70 Tele kit; several How To books; some specialist tools including a sander and a router and have been following the Crimson Guitar Vids on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/CrimsonCustomGuitars)
I've also got a Harmony H77 on which I'm going to experiment - including adding a Bigsby.

[Colonel Cærdiffi]

I actually invented the guitar.

[Heathblue]

How many guitars do you guys play?

I currently have four. I like to swop them around which I find keeps my practice fresh. Two have whammy bars - one a Fender; the other a Floyd Rose - and each calls for a different technique, particularly when doing squealies.

Something else I use to keep fresh is different effects - wah-wah, tube screamer and a Line 6 Pod X3 which simulates different rigs.

I just have a Tele now but, post my brain clot cannot play very well, I find it difficult to co ordinate my left hand fingers, my lad has an Ibanez 4 string bass, his 1st bass, I bought it for him in Cranes, an Ibanez Roadstar II 4 string bass (a 1984 model), again I bought it for him from Cardiff guitars, A fender Jazz 4 string which he has had defretted by Dave Dern, A fender Jazz 4 String, A fender Jazz 5 string, a fender hybrid (jazz Precision), a squire 4 string Precision

[Vimana.]

I'm a fair way down the path of actually building guitars. Got a £70 Tele kit; several How To books; some specialist tools including a sander and a router and have been following the Crimson Guitar Vids on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/CrimsonCustomGuitars)
I've also got a Harmony H77 on which I'm going to experiment - including adding a Bigsby.

The guy from Crimson is a good resource. He is quite intense though ;)

I actually invented the guitar.

U dun evn go 2 Cranes

[Colonel Cærdiffi]

The guy from Crimson is a good resource. He is quite intense though ;)



U dun evn go 2 Cranes

[Wales-Bales]

Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster, A near vintage Gibson Les Paul Standad, 1983 Squier MIJ '57 reissue JV Precision, and a Kemper Profiler amp. All bought used, and in fantastic condition with regards to age. TBF, I've saved myself quite a bit of money, and will probably make a profit or break-even on anything I sell. I still need 3 more guitars though. A Gibson J-45, Gibson SG with P90's, and a Schecter Hellcat VI. I'm just waiting for the right deals to come along.

[Cyclops]

Fender Stratocaster, Fender Telecaster, A near vintage Gibson Les Paul Standad, 1983 Squier MIJ '57 reissue JV Precision.

Yes, yes - but how many frets do each of them have and, more importantly, what COLOUR are they?

[Wales-Bales]

Yes, yes - but how many frets do each of them have and, more importantly, what COLOUR are they?

I have conservative tastes .. black /mn bass, white /rw strat, wine red /rw LP, and white blonde /mn tele. Have you got one of those Kemper gadgets? I sold all my amps and pedals for a pretty penny, much better now I can play at all hours, and it's marvelous for recording The benefits of not drinking and giving the football a miss since Red Vince came along is an enhanced mancave

[jon1959]

Air guitar! It never lets me down.

[lardy]

Anyone played a Brian May? I tried one at A Strings in ponty (Andrew is my favourite dealer around S Wales, recommend a visit) and thought it was amazing. Couldn't believe the range of tones just by flicking a switch on the body.

[Zenith]

Anyone played a Brian May? I tried one at A Strings in ponty (Andrew is my favourite dealer around S Wales, recommend a visit) and thought it was amazing. Couldn't believe the range of tones just by flicking a switch on the body.

From experience I have found A Strings a bit useless, when I went in with my Jazz hollowbody for a setup (I phoned beforehand as well) the guy took a look and said yeah not much we can do really, that's the best it'll be. Now I know guitars very well and I damn well knew it could be a lot better.

Then the main guy, Andrew, just went off on the phone and said I'll be back in 5 mins - half hour later he wasn't. The younger guy moved the floating bridge a couple times and said yeah this is great now, bollocks was it. I said I would pay for the time anyway and he said buy a couple packs of strings to cover it, which came to 30 feckin quid.

Got it set up in Blackwood and it now plays like it should do. On another note, Took my Strat Elite (2016) to Gareth in Cardiff as I was recommended by a few people and he did feck all on that as well. The problem I had with fret buzz was still there 10 days later with no difference, I said this at the time and he gave me a load of bullshit and said £78 please. Daylight robbery here guys.

[Cyclops]

Got it set up in Blackwood and it now plays like it should do. On another note, Took my Strat Elite (2016) to Gareth in Cardiff as I was recommended by a few people and he did feck all on that as well. The problem I had with fret buzz was still there 10 days later with no difference, I said this at the time and he gave me a load of bullshit and said £78 please. Daylight robbery here guys.

I set my Strat and Tele up using Haynes manuals by Paul Balmer. Totally eliminated fret buzz.

Get excellent mpg now!

(PS I also find coconut oil to be effective for the moving parts of a Floyd Rose)

[Wales-Bales]

From experience I have found A Strings a bit useless, when I went in with my Jazz hollowbody for a setup (I phoned beforehand as well) the guy took a look and said yeah not much we can do really, that's the best it'll be. Now I know guitars very well and I damn well knew it could be a lot better.

Then the main guy, Andrew, just went off on the phone and said I'll be back in 5 mins - half hour later he wasn't. The younger guy moved the floating bridge a couple times and said yeah this is great now, bollocks was it. I said I would pay for the time anyway and he said buy a couple packs of strings to cover it, which came to 30 feckin quid.

Got it set up in Blackwood and it now plays like it should do. On another note, Took my Strat Elite (2016) to Gareth in Cardiff as I was recommended by a few people and he did feck all on that as well. The problem I had with fret buzz was still there 10 days later with no difference, I said this at the time and he gave me a load of bullshit and said £78 please. Daylight robbery here guys.

I feel a "who's the best luthier" conversation coming on

[Cyclops]

"who's the best luthier"

Isn't it nailed on?