Tweedledee
Member
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2007
- Messages
- 147
- Reaction score
- 1
One of my dream guitars is a late 1950s Aristocrat, but they're so expensive that I'll probably never buy one. As a compromise, I decided to get this 1960 Freshman.
So far I'm impressed with the Franz pickup. Combined with the hollow body and short scale, it delivers a great airy, woody tone with really articulate highs.
The short scale is actually not nearly as cramped as I feared it might be. Then again, I have really small hands so I like short scales. I think it's strung up with 10s right now, but I might put some 11s on it and see how it feels.
So, here are the negatives with it: the bridge, tailpiece, knobs, and tuners aren't original. Also, at least the back and neck have been refinished. It's difficult to tell if the finish on the top of the body is original or not. The label inside doesn't indicate the original finish color - is that normal for ones with natural finishes?
I probably paid a little more than I should have for it, but right now I'm loving it!
I had to spend some time pulling the pots out of the F hole so I could get some contact cleaner inside them. They were having some issues after 50 years. Now that they're cleaned, all the issues are gone! No more scratchiness or cutting out. There must have been a lot of buildup inside there.
On to the photos!
So far I'm impressed with the Franz pickup. Combined with the hollow body and short scale, it delivers a great airy, woody tone with really articulate highs.
The short scale is actually not nearly as cramped as I feared it might be. Then again, I have really small hands so I like short scales. I think it's strung up with 10s right now, but I might put some 11s on it and see how it feels.
So, here are the negatives with it: the bridge, tailpiece, knobs, and tuners aren't original. Also, at least the back and neck have been refinished. It's difficult to tell if the finish on the top of the body is original or not. The label inside doesn't indicate the original finish color - is that normal for ones with natural finishes?
I probably paid a little more than I should have for it, but right now I'm loving it!
I had to spend some time pulling the pots out of the F hole so I could get some contact cleaner inside them. They were having some issues after 50 years. Now that they're cleaned, all the issues are gone! No more scratchiness or cutting out. There must have been a lot of buildup inside there.
On to the photos!