RBSinTo

Chief, Of course not! It was cleverly held in place with bits of binding-coloured duct tape. You know, Martin-style. RBSinTo

The Guitar Center I visited was I the Miami area a few miles from Aventura where we stayed. I don't recall the address, as our host drove . No one bothered, followed or shadowed me while I was in the store, and as I recall not a single word was passed between any of the staff and me for the forty-five minutes I was there. This included me wandering through the store to get to, and enter the humidified acoustic guitar rooms where I gravitated to the Martin/Gibson/Taylor area, and played an almost $4,000.00 Martin that was not locked down, or when I browsed the shelves of sheet music and books. Inv short, I have no complaints about my first visit to this music chain. RBSinTo

gearbasher, We knew about the " duck and cover" drills here in Canada, but they were never conducted in our schools. I always knew they were useless and a waste of time because if hiding under a desk could save someone from the blast and radiation effects of a nuclear weapon, members of the American military would have had school desks strapped to their bodies for protection in battle, in case the Russians decided to use them. RBSinTo

CROWB8, I'm 74, turning 75 in April. RBSinTo

Chief, We are in the Miami area, and are flying back to Toronto tomorrow. RBSinTo

Head shops??? Boy are you guys ever young. Sounds like I have underwear older than most of you........and I'm wearing it. How about atomic bomb tests broadcast live on black and white T.V. in the early 1950's. Free air for filling tires at service stations (which is what we called "gas stations" back then). A rubber hose that crossed the ground in front of the pumps, and caused a bell to ring when a car crossed it, so the attendant would come out and gas up your car, as well as wipe the windows, check the oil and replenish fluids under the hood....all unasked. RBSinTo

My wife and I are in Florida visiting friends, and the other day, just for something to do, I visited a Guitar Center just to noodle a bit. I'd heard them complained about for years on guitar websites, but had never been in one before, so thought I'd satisfy my curiosity and drop in. None of the expensive instruments were available to play unless a salesperson unlocked the wall hanger, and because I had no intention of buying anything, I chose not to bother them, and ended up playing the one high-end Martin whose hanger was unlocked. I think it would have been very difficult for the New Mexico would-be thief to get his hands on any valuable instrument, and take it out of the store undetected. RBSinTo

As a DIY project, I can tell you from personal experience that the most difficult part is installing the female jack in the bottom of the lower bout. A friend and I put a pickup in my Washburn parlour guitar, and we needed his pre-teen daughter to put her arm inside the sound hole to secure the threaded ring nut as neither of us had small enough hands and arms to do it. We also had to customized the pick-up attachment as it was too large to fit the sound hole, and in the end, modified it so it was easily removable as necessary. Sounds ok, but not great. But that will to a great extent depend on the quality of the pick-up, and mine was quite inexpensive. RBSinTo

My mother went every Saturday morning along with all the other Jewish women in the neighbourhood. In addition to the hairdo, it was a coffee klatch, gossip session, weekly social event that was the Facebook of its time. RBSinTo

When I was a youngster, around seven or eight years old, my mother would visit the hairdresser every Saturday morning. The salon was about three or four blocks away, and above a variety store. When she would run out of ciggerettes, she'd phone home and summon me to the salon, which I would walk or bike to. She'd give me 37 cents (!!!!), and I'd go downstairs, buy a package of Menthol cigarettes, take them back to her and then return home. There was never any question about a young child purchasing ciggerettes, a salon full of women smoking, or that they smoked indoors. Signs of the times. RBSinTo

My D-28 has the volute, while my j-45, Guild GAD jf-30, Washburn parlour (I can't be bothered to look up the model number), Solo DYI classical, and Grenada ES335 knock-off do not. And I can't detect any difference, pro or con in the playability in any of them based on the presence or absence of the volute. RBSinTo

sparquelito, Just to be clear, neither duct tape nor zip ties would have been capable of repairing the broken headstock on my j-45. Sometimes, you just gotta use glue. RBSinTo

Whitefang. Can't post because file sizes are to large. PM me with your email address, and I'll send a couple to you. RBSinTo

gearbasher, Up to about a year ago, there was a now-rare free-standing phone booth not far from where our children live. I have been an avid candid street photographer for over 40 years, and based on the phone booth, got an interesting idea for a picture. I rounded up our grandchildren, had them pose together inside the booth, all looking at their cell phones, and took a series of photos of the scene. Not long after, the phone company removed the booth, and now other than a few wall-mounted pay phones still scattered around the city, the era of the phone booth is over in Toronto, at least. RBSinTo

Don't remember the routine, but this actually happened to me with one of our children's friends. RBSinTo

When you tell a young person that Paul McCartney was in another band before he was in "Wings", and can name all four members of that group. RBSinTo

My 1974 D-28 has the volute, which, I believe is there to add strength to the neck-headstock point. RBSinTo

sparquelito, Youe tongue in cheek comment aside, Duct tape is indeed very handy, but it isn't a panacea. It's effective use depends on the substrates requiring adhesion, and the size and shape of the pieces, ambient conditions and the type of wear they'll be subjected to. For example, I couldn't use it (or twist ties) when I was refurbishing the styrofoam guitar case because like every other tape and adhesive I tried, Duct tape wouldn't stick to the styrofoam. A specially formulated, dedicated styrofoam adhesive was required. Nevertheless, it is still the Handyman's very good friend, and like you, I always have a few rolls on hand. RBSinTo

I was a very heavy smoker from about age 16 until 1990 when I was 42, and quit for the third and last time. And when I played hockey in university, during games where I was the back-up, rather than the starting goalie, I smoked on the bench, without protests from anyone. RBSinTo

Never heard of them, or ever to my knowledge have ever heard any of their music. They are very talented musicians but I think their music is of a style I could only enjoy in small, occasional doses. RBSinTo

Just to be clear, any company or industry that was deemed capable of converting from peace-time to military production by the War Production Board was obligated by law to do so. Gibson and everyone else didn't do so because of any great streak of patriotism on their part. They were obligated by law to do so. https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/story/Article/2128446/during-wwii-industries-transitioned-from-peacetime-to-wartime-production/ RBSinTo

The tops were either Sitka or Englewood Spruce, and the sides and bottoms were either Mahogany or Rosewood. Naturally. RBSinTo

Kenburn, With respect, if you have a G-00, I suggest taking it to a music store that sells cases, and fitting it to one. RBSinTo

Larsongs, Your title for this thread and statement in your initial post would seem to indicate that any success Gibson should have in 2023 will depend on Martin making what you feel are bad business decisions. It seems to me that a better business plan would involve proactive planning based on what Gibson can do to make quality and innovative products, rather than hoping for Martin to make mistakes. RBSinTo

Larsongs, I seriously doubt that Martin is going to destroy their reputation by suddenly building instruments from particle board and re-cycled skids. But if it lets you sleep better at night, buy an older, used one. RBSinTo