Good jumbo?

[jcwu]

One of the students at our church has been playing guitar for years, on a guitar that he received for free from a friend. Thing's got terrible action, and ... well, at one point, when he was changing strings, he took all the strings off at the same time, and proceeded to lose both the nut and the saddle, and he had bought a replacement nut that was too narrow and too high, and didn't know the saddle was gone (there were two metal rails that hold the saddle, and he thought that *was* the saddle).

Anyhow, long story short, the guy's now got a job and a paycheck, and would like to buy a guitar. He likes the shape of my F4CE, especially the cutaway, but wants a deeper body. I'm trying to steer him towards Guilds, but given that his budget is unlikely to be over $500 (around $400 is more realistic), I find it unlikely that I can find a jumbo from Guild that fits the price. The first guitar I'd thought of was the F47CE, but that's obviously out of his range, unless I can find one around $500-600 and subsidize his purchase..

So with that in mind.. I was hoping that the good folks here would be able to suggest a good quality cutaway jumbo?

 

[learnintoplay62]

Hey, why not keep on letting him play one of your guits while he saves. He'll not only save money but learn patience at the same time. :wink:

 

[taabru45]

Sometimes you see Guild Jumbo knock offs on Ebay.....while not Guilds, I hear they're pretty good. Steffan

 

[Ridgemont]

How about this Guild jumbo knock off: a GAD :mrgreen: you can probably find a used one on the bay within his budget. They still sound better than any of those other non-guild jumbos out there.

 

[jcwu]

Hey, why not keep on letting him play one of your guits while he saves. He'll not only save money but learn patience at the same time. :wink:

I have been! My F4CE was on permanent loan to him for a while, but then the other kids in the youth group needed a guitar to play, too... so my F4CE is on permanent loan to the youth group, and I have no other jumbos to lend out except my JV52, and... that's too much of a baby to go out on loan, know what I mean?

I think he can be patient and save up, but I think his parents will object to him spending more than $500 on a guitar, even if it's his own money that he's saved up. Therein lies the main budgetary constraint.

 

[jcwu]

Sometimes you see Guild Jumbo knock offs on Ebay.....while not Guilds, I hear they're pretty good. Steffan

Any particular ones you can point me to?

How about this Guild jumbo knock off: a GAD :mrgreen: you can probably find a used one on the bay within his budget. They still sound better than any of those other non-guild jumbos out there.

That's definitely a thought! Would always prefer buying after trying, but might have to resort to buying on eBay..

 

[Treem]

Guild JF4 is the answer...if you see one.

 

[Ridgemont]

That's definitely a thought! Would always prefer buying after trying, but might have to resort to buying on eBay..

True True. I remember about a year ago on the local CL was a GAD JF48 amber burst for $350. Hog b/s jumbo sounds pretty good right now. It only lasted about 3 days before someone snagged it.

 

[Dadaist]

I concur with the suggestion of holding off, saving a little more and then purchasing a "nicer" guitar...in the long run, He'd be happier.

Maybe even someone here on LTG might have one that doesn't get enough play time and they're thinking about selling.....just a suggestion.

David

 

[adorshki]

I think he can be patient and save up, but I think his parents will object to him spending more than $500 on a guitar, even if it's his own money that he's saved up. Therein lies the main budgetary constraint.

Sell the parents.

 

[MojoTooth]

Not to steer him towards a non-Guild guitar, but rather something in his price range, these Durango jumbos are very nice. I played on that a friend has and thought pretty highly of it. I'd almost buy the burst one for myself but I am holding out for another Guild. These durangos are made by Saga which makes solid instruments.

Mahog top $175 with hardshell case
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-DURANGO-B-18-JU ... 1997wt_755

Burst $260 with hardshell
http://cgi.ebay.com/DURANGO-B-48-PROFES ... 1847wt_754

 

[2Tone]

I would find out if it would be feasible to get his old guitar in decent playing condition. If it can’t be put right I would question laying out too much money for a single guitar. I wouldn’t want him not bringing his guitar on a mission trip, camping trip, or other outing for fear of it getting stolen or damaged...

Ya never know where\when worship is going to break out… :wink:

 

[Taylor Martin Guild]

Seagull, Alvarez and Ibanez all make jumbo guitars.
Some with pickups that are within the price range.
Some are all laminated guitars.
I sold a 1 year old GAD JF-48 locally for $500.00.[all solid wood]
It was a better guitar than any of the guitars that I first mentioned though.

Why a jumbo?
Lots more to choose from in Dred size.
[Dreds are normally louder than jumbos acoustically.]

 

[jcwu]

Guild JF4 is the answer...if you see one.

Saw one a while ago, on eBay.. at the time was looking for myself, but given its conditions, went for more than I wanted to pay.

Why a jumbo?

He preferred the shape and feel of it, after playing both dreadnaughts and jumbos. And he really likes having a cutaway. Which has nothing to do with the choice for a jumbo size.

I would find out if it would be feasible to get his old guitar in decent playing condition. If it can’t be put right I would question laying out too much money for a single guitar. I wouldn’t want him not bringing his guitar on a mission trip, camping trip, or other outing for fear of it getting stolen or damaged...

Ya never know where\when worship is going to break out… :wink:

Good points.. we had his guitar already up to playable condition - in fact, Keith Hollands over in Los Gatos did it up for free when I mentioned that I was trying to fix it up for a student in church. Bless his heart!! But it's one of those guitars where, when you start to think of the cost of really bringing it up to great condition, it might be more worth it to invest that money into a new guitar. But it's a beater guitar that I'm sure he'll keep, for situations like a missions trip (actually, I have a Takamine for that purpose, but that's another thread..).

Thanks to all for your advice and suggestions (including the one on selling the parents!). I'll run them by him and see what he thinks.

 

[chazmo]

Hmm.... An old JF-30, maybe? Or how about a new GAD one?

 

[evenkeel]

If he's going to venture away from Guild land, I'd add a Takamine "G" series jumbo to the possible list. Spruce top, lam maple back and sides. Used should be well within the budget. Very nice guitars, on board electronics are good.

 

[jcwu]

Are there jumbos out there with mahogany back/side?

 

[MojoTooth]

Are there jumbos out there with mahogany back/side?

the durango i linked you to is mahog back and sides

 

[jcwu]

Are there jumbos out there with mahogany back/side?

the durango i linked you to is mahog back and sides

I saw the mahog top, missed the fact that it's mahog back and sides, too. Doh!

Thanks for the links! I'll show him and let him chew it over.

 

[jcwu]

Hmm.... An old JF-30, maybe? Or how about a new GAD one?

So it turns out the cutaway is pretty high on his wishlist of features. So that narrows the search down a bit...