Bedell 1964 Dreadnaught

[ezra1]

I have a 1968 Southern Jumbo that I love and am keeping.

I have had a Jones for a slope shoulder J-45 or J-35.

I live in a very rural part of Texas and and a drive to Austin is 4.5 to 5 hours away to just test drive one.

There is a Quality Luthier at Action Sound in Hawkins ,Texas that is a reasonable driving distance.

I had taken a Jazz Bass and Strat in for a little work and these guys were all jazzed about these Bedell acoustics.

These guys stock multiple copies of the same models and I gravitated to these 1964 Dreadnaughts.

They are US made in Bend, Oregon.

I played 3 and one was really speaking to me as far as touch ,tone ECT....

I made a mental note, but did not move on it.

I did some research and Bedell used to be made overseas but now they are US made in Oregon.

Most all the wood is reclaimed.

Honduran Mahogany back and sides, Saple top and rosewood binding and dots.

They keep a record of your guitars wood history just in case you travel overseas.

The body's are tuned and this last run wa in nitro.

2 weeks later I dreamed about that guitar.

Woke up in a cold sweat and had to have it.

I went back and ......It had sold.

Kelly had 6 more.

They let me play all of them.

I narrowed it down to 2.

One had Elixirs ( which I like ) and the other D'Addario.

They put me a set of Elixirs on it and that made it just a hair better to my taste.

I put it on hold.

Last Friday, a little over a month later I went and got her.

She is harmonically rich and keeps opening up and getting louder.

The only complaint I have is the strings are a little stiff and I am going back next week to get a lighter set.

It didn't hurt that I heard Doyle Dykes in there playing one.

I am not saying it is better than a J-45 or J-35 but they are very good guitars and had enough stock that I could check out a slope shoulder and have comparisons.

[blindboygrunt]

Had never heard of them , after a little searching i like this one

 

[ezra1]

Had never heard of them , after a little searching i like this one

The top on mine is actually Sitks spruce.

I cannot find how to delete my multiple error post....apologies

[j45nick]

Had never heard of them before. Pretty interesting.

 

 

Hmmm..... vegan guitar?

 

My Gibsons and Martins are all carnivores, so I'm not sure this would work out in my stable.

 

Interesting though, and sounds good.

[blindboygrunt]

Had never heard of them before. Pretty interesting.

 

 

Hmmm..... vegan guitar?

 

My Gibsons and Martins are all carnivores, so I'm not sure this would work out in my stable.

 

Interesting though, and sounds good.

 

Yeah my j45 likes a big cheeseburger very now and then

[Leonard McCoy]

Bedell guitars seem like high-quality builds. Which model exactly did you get? I wish the headstock shape or appointments were a little more pronounced, and I'm not sure how I feel about fretboards made out of walnut. I doubt I could get any of their Brazilian rosewood guitars imported due to that exotic tonewood being red listed here.

[OldCowboy]

Yeah my j45 likes a big cheeseburger very now and then

You're fortunate! My harem of carnivorous ladies demands steak😒

[fortyearspickn]

Interesting. Thanks Ezra. Their website is well thought out. They seem to have acquired a large stock of Brazilian Rosewood that went to Spain in the 1950s and have navigated the 2008 expansion of CITES to include wood from endangered trees. Although the YouTube video touts the Bedells as being 'vegan' - I didn't see a reference to that on their website. They do seem to have established their 'Mission Statement' as being focused on sustainability. Of course, that works if you are only producing a handful of guitars each month, and not a truckload. All the ones I looked at list for $10K. No pick guards. Beautiful instruments. I bet they sound as good as they look. Their website provides a great summary explanation of CITES as it affects guitars under the 'Seed To Song / Passport" section.

[ezra1]

IMG_20170521_115339244_zpsoto2o5ef.

Bedell guitars seem like high-quality builds. Which model exactly did you get? I wish the headstock shape or appointments were a little more pronounced, and I'm not sure how I feel about fretboards made out of walnut. I doubt I could get any of their Brazilian rosewood guitars imported due to that exotic tonewood being red listed here.

I got the 1964 Dreadnaught.

The luthiers tune the carve, of the bracing.

It is Honduran Mahogany back and sides, Sitka Spruce Top, East Indian Rosewood headstock veneer, Ebony fretboard and Ebony bridge.

This guitar retails at $ 2199

[Bozz]

I was in Nashville for a few days this week and my wife wanted to visit a shop/boutique in the Gulch district called "Two Old Hippies". We had been in there about ten minutes when I happened to glance through the window of a closed door in the back of the shop. It was full of guitars! I turns out that the shop owners are Tom Bedell and his wife (the two old hippies.) He purchased the Breedlove company a few years back and is also making Bedells in their factory out in Oregon. One wall was all Breedlove's and the other all Bedell's. I was really surprised with the build quality of Bedell's. They range in price from $10K to $2K and every one is pretty visually stunning. As a group they sound well balanced with very nice note separation, clarity and sustain. Not huge volume. Lots of premium tonewoods with striking grain patterns and contrasting sapwood, Brazilian Rosewood, Cocobolo, Flamed Maple, Adi, Bearclaw Sitka, etc. I didn't see any short scales, except on their parlor size and they all felt a bit heavy, but quite comfortable to play. I suppose the weight could be attributed to the use of denser tonewoods. These guitars are definitely on my radar now and I will be interested to hear what people think of them after playing them a while.

[Bozz]

IMG_20170521_115339244_zpsoto2o5ef.

I got the 1964 Dreadnaught.

The luthiers tune the carve, of the bracing.

It is Honduran Mahogany back and sides, Sitka Spruce Top, East Indian Rosewood headstock veneer, Ebony fretboard and Ebony bridge.

This guitar retails at $ 2199

 

Congrats, by the way. That's a sweet guitar and I'm sure you'll enjoy it for years to come!

[jannusguy2]

I had the chance to buy a Brazilian Rosewood Bedell, at cost, as a close friend of mine is a close friend of the Bedells. I played one and was impressed but I passed on the purchase due to the fact that I always try to have some awareness of resale value. I found, as evidenced in this thread, most folks have no idea what Bedell represents in quality or anything else for that matter. They also build Breedlove. Anyway, when I buy, I try to purchase something that will at least be worth what I paid for it if not increase in value when it comes time to move it. I sort of felt that folk's significant lack of awareness of the brand was anathema to that rule. That's not to say they aren't great guitars because they are.. different strokes and all that.

[ezra1]

Different Strokes I understand.

Some people buy guitars with an eye upon flipping them.

Others buy if the Instrument speaks to them as a viable tool in their arsnel.

Bedell's made in the USA are new on the scene and other than their website there is not a lot of info out there.

Who knows what the future holds as far as brand longevity ?

I wish them well.

And the quality and workmanship is top notch that I have seen.

I have an abundance of instruments and lean toward older Gibson and Fender gear.

I generally have avoided newer manufactory offerings unless it was pretty good reissues.

I am surprised that I wanted the Bedell but it felt like an old love in my hands and woke me from a sound sleep thinking about it, two weeks later.

I am glad I bought her.

.....Upon my passing there will be a monumental yard sale.

[bobouz]

Bedell's made in the USA are new on the scene and other than their website there is not a lot of info out there.

Don't know exactly how the sale of Breedlove to Bedell transpired, but it wouldn't surprise me if Bedell's USA-made line of instruments are being made in the Breedlove facility, by the same personnel. That would mean a lot of experienced people are involved in production, and you would expect a high level of build quality. The construction of my 2010 Breedlove USA-made mandolin is outstanding.

[jannusguy2]

Different Strokes I understand.

Some people buy guitars with an eye upon flipping them.

Others buy if the Instrument speaks to them as a viable tool in their arsnel.

Bedell's made in the USA are new on the scene and other than their website there is not a lot of info out there.

Who knows what the future holds as far as brand longevity ?

I wish them well.

And the quality and workmanship is top notch that I have seen.

I have an abundance of instruments and lean toward older Gibson and Fender gear.

I generally have avoided newer manufactory offerings unless it was pretty good reissues.

I am surprised that I wanted the Bedell but it felt like an old love in my hands and woke me from a sound sleep thinking about it, two weeks later.

I am glad I bought her.

.....Upon my passing there will be a monumental yard sale.

They are very fine instruments. You did well I'm sure..

[ezra1]

I did go back yesterday as the Medium Guage Strings were a little much for me.

They put a set of Elixir Nanoweb Phosphore Bronze Custom 11-52 on there and that is better for me at this time.