fortyearspickn

Firewood ?

Harvard study - top 5 reasons for personal bankruptcy in the US have nothing to do with healthcare: Job Loss, Poor/excess use of credit, Divorce, Unexpected Expenses (uninsured losses). So when you say 'High cost of care OR time out of work' the answer is Time Out of Work NOT healthcare costs. I worked in healthcare finance for a few decades. In the US, we have tax payer supported county hospitals that take 'charity' patients. And the other 95% of the US hospitals take their fair share. Approximately 15% of their patients are uninsured. They pay, on average TWO PERCENT of their bill. That doesn't bankrupt anyone. But, it doesn't come close to covering the providers costs. If anyone would go bankrupt - it would be the doctor or hospital who accepted only patients with no funds. If you want to write songs and commentaries for our friends who live outside the USA, I suggest you limit your political comment to sites and forums in those countries. In the meantime - just initiate threads here that have to do with acoustic guitars and not your views regarding socialized medicine. The fact you bought a J35 does not give you a platform to espouse your political views here.

WOW ! Not the song - the political commentary. Poor timing given the Corona Virus thing, don't you think?

First they cancel the parades and now this.

The confusion plays right into the hands of many bad actors. Some people will lose money - some will make millions. And then there's the elephant in the room - the politicians with their hidden agendas. But, yes - the media is making it worse. They are word crafters and carefully plant words and phrases like 'mounting fears' 'critical shortages' and 'experts predict likely .... ' They do the same thing even with the weather forecast. "Major Winter Storm affecting millions." As Buffalo gets 2'' of dirty snow. Of course, this time, there are more devious reasons the media is fanning the flames than trying to help out the toilet paper producers. By the way - in the old days - they used corncobs and the Sears Catalog.

Had a NBD (yeah, banjo) 2 weeks ago - so I have been pouring over my very old Pete Seeger Book and my brand new Earl Scruggs book. For the first time ever, I've learned to use finger picks comfortably. (The key is to fiddle with them using a needle nose pliers until they fit perfectly on each finger. I put yellow paint on the 1 pick and red on the 2 pick. Soften and shape the plastic thumb pick in really hot water.) And, I need to change the 2 year old strings on my J45 Custom. Finally broke down and decided to get a string winder. Another thing I wish I'd done decades earlier! I'll have plenty of time for these things: We've decided to limit interaction with people, being we're both in our 70s and my wife's health is 'compromised'. We're going to politely ban our kids and grandkids from stopping by. One of our kids and his family is currently on a Caribbean Disney Cruise. They left a few days before the media poured gasoline on this and before the cruise lines first started offering refunds. And before Mexican ports like Cozumel closed their borders. Our other son and his wife and 3 daughters went up to Austin for a Spring Break mini-vacation at a luxury hotel. From the photos, they've had the place to themselves. Our third son - his wife is a bank manager and they are being required to stay open - including the lobby. I guess the bank company never heard of all the germs found on paper money! Pregnant women are allowed to stay home. And our daughter and her kids are still going to a couple of different pools every day (college and school district) for swimming teams they are on. So - even though I agree this is hype, especially if you compare it to the media's 'back page coverage' of Swine Flu (H1N1) ten years ago - we're 10 years older now and feel it ! Our grandkids don't remember Swine Flu, but they'll never forget "Corona Virus". I just hope they don't think it was caused by Mexican Beer! Almost all the shelves in our local grocery store are empty. Apparently a case of 12 cans of soup is $55 on Amazon! Best of luck to all my fellow old codgers on here! We may wind up eating cat food yet. And using corn cobs. (Remember to take the kernels off first.)

Welcome Aboard. You should have started a new thread instead of tacking on to an 8 year old one, that we don't know the outcome of.

Welcome Aboard! You might want to go look in the Acoustic sub-forum at a recent post started by Juan Carlos Vejar on the SJ200: A video clip and good discussion. I love mine, have had it for nearly 12 years now. I commend you on your tenacity and patience - ordering a Gibson knowing you'll have to wait as much as 6 months for it! I had a 6 week wait for a Deering banjo earlier this year and was climbing the walls. Let us know - over on the Acoustic Forum - when your New Guitar Day (NGD) occurs. We live vicariously at times! Jim

I've seen clips of SJ-200s being strummed. I think this is the first 'demo' clip I've seen where Blues were hi-lighted. It certainly ads credibility to the "King of The Flat Tops' versatility. The SJ-200 ,initially in RW, was offered up in the Big Band era as a rhythm instrument before Les Paul figured out how to electrify gits . Now, in maple, they are not meant to be The Loudest Kid On The Block. ' Just ' a quadraphonic tone monster ! incidentally, yesterday in line at the grocery store, leafed through a new LIFE series book on Bob Dylan. (Not to read the articles, just to look at the pictures, Mom). There was one with Bobster and a half dozen other guys on stage. He and 2 or 3 others were all playing Gibson Jumbos. Looked to be SJ200s. Coincidence? I think not. ( Possibly someone here has already purchased the book, and can tell us who, what, where and why.) 🙂

I was the actual TENTH MAN in that song writing group. I suggested a final verse .... "And as sure as my name is Martin Gibson, this is the first guitar I got for free." They kicked me out..

I've found the tiger stripe p/g grows on you. I wouldn't change the one I have on my J45 for anything. Congrats General - that is one big, fat keeper in the making. Play it like it's rented !!

I guess tone is more subjective than volume. I'd give the tone an 11 on a scale of 10. As far as volume - if I wanted it louder, I'd get an amplifier. But I wouldn't.

Yeah. Great job. Reminds me of Waylon's "Old Five & Dimers Like Me".

One more thing that can't hurt - if I were me, not wanting to do this again, I'd get a perfectly flat surface and lay the p/g down with a pile of 8 or 9 good books on top and let it sit for at least a day to flatten it out. Some plastics can be bent or shaped if heated. Plastic finger picks for example, in really hot water, can be tightened or loosened to fit your thumb. I wouldn't recommend doing this with a p/g. But if I were desperate, and could actually see a curl, or corner lifting - a day or three after doing the book press thing - I'd consider it. Or warming it with a hair dryer. And then flatten with books immediately on top. If the 3m adhesive is given a chance to grip a flat p/g it should hold. But if the p/g is curled before you put it on, you're "doing the same thing and expecting different results". I don't think you need to clamp with the 3m, but I'd remove the strings and put a couple of books on the p/g for 24 hours - making sure you cover the corners and edges. And, obviously, if the tape doesn't stick to the guitar's face - that is where the problem lies. If it does't stick to the p/g that's where the problem is. More naphtha! G'Luck.

JCV, I agree. A hard choice - which I hope I never have to make. But my H'Bird would be the one - not because it's Loud, but because it's Clear. Perfectly balance Hi's, Low's and Medium's. Sort of a "Sophie's Choice" between my other 2 - but it is what it is.

"A woman was accused of beating her husband to death with a guitar..."

They replaced our Dollar Store with a Five Dollar Store.

Aaaaah... Yes ! Thanks for this ZW ...I'd forgotten hearing it years back. You got my vote !!

Since you've spent years kicking the tires - considering different brands and models, it certainly sounds like you should have your finger on the trigger at this point! And the H'Bird is what many folks select as an entry on their bucket list. Used across all genres, including rock, etc. But, you already know this. And, you know there are 'posers' : Hummingbirds in name only that have different back and side woods, different body shapes, etc. Both the two you've identified are the real deal. Both have electronics on board, which I'm sure is important to an electric guy. Both do have the fretboard binding. The bursts are different - a matter of taste. But I don't think the Anniversary version is worth the extra money - unless you're going to put it in a vault for 50 years and then sell it as an investment. If you're going to actually PLAY it - it will soon be around the same re-sale value as the 'standard' a couple of decades from now. The "Vintage" and earlier "True Vintage" models are no longer produced, so would be lower price used. The True Vintage which came first didn't have electronics. Currently, however, there is a '1960s' version if you want New With A Warranty - that has many of the features the2 you've identified had as well as the 2 Vintage iterations - including the torrified top of the 'Vintage'. Since this is in the same price range - you might consider it. https://www.gibson.com/Guitar/ACCA45535/1960-Hummingbird-Fixed-Bridge/Heritage-Cherry-Sunburst At Musicians Friend (ask for a discount ! ) https://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/gibson-1960-hummingbird-with-fixed-bridge-acoustic-guitar G'luck.

More musicians are beat to death with banjos than guitars. Just sayin'.

Quintessential ! (Not sure what it means - but it sure seems to fit that guitar!)

Very evocative ! Great song, thanks. (Reminds my of "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg. ) Good Topic !

Wondering why they cost so much? And why you want to know if that new 2 u guitar might need one??

Welcome. As noted above, I use Elixir 80/20s on my J45. I change them every year or two though !

Welcome Aboard ! And Congratulations! Beautiful guitar, no doubt sounds like it looks. Answers the question: "If you could have only ONE guitar ... ? "