ndavis1971 Posted October 7, 2019 Share Posted October 7, 2019 (edited) So my l00 arrived. I only have a 48 hour inspection period. There have been some minor repairs and there is some bellying above the soundhole. It’s only 3 pounds so bellying not terribly surprising. What was surprising is how sonically it differs from my 1936 14 fret l00. The 12 fret is louder, has more bass, and sounds less midrangey if that makes sense. I’d prefer no bellying but not sure how realistic that is with these guitars. Maybe someone can chime in. Sounds incredible. A cannon. Like a vintage 0018. Of course sound matters most Edited October 7, 2019 by ndavis1971 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 Such a beautiful instrument! In my experience, bellying is entirely to be expected at that age. The old Bluegrass adage with Martins is "no belly, no tone" of course. It looks like a dream, enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 Glad it showed up. After all the posts about the hunt, the guitar arriving is almost anti-climatic. As you say, unfortunately, top deflection is a fact of life with these guitars. Everything about them is just too lightly built. Technically, a top will belly (swell) below the bridge and sink above it. Only becomes a real issue when the action gets too high and the intonation goes awry. My L1 has the typical swollen belly beneath the bridge so a Thompson belly reducer in its future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle fester Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 I don't have anything to say on the bellying, but I did want to say nice looking guitar! Enjoy, you should have us all over to have a go on it 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobouz Posted October 8, 2019 Share Posted October 8, 2019 With a guitar this old, my guess is typically that things have moved about as much as they're going to move. If it's playability is satisfactory now & you treat it right, it should remain stable for a long time. Coincidentally, D'Addario extra-light PB EJ-15 strings happen to suit my playing style on many of my acoustics. Lighter strings might go a long ways towards easing your mind re future body changes. The guitar looks like a winner - Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ndavis1971 Posted October 9, 2019 Author Share Posted October 9, 2019 Thanks guys for all the help! So what do I do with the 1936 14 fret? Sell it? This one is louder and has greater range but perhaps not a balanced kinda compressed more quite midrange as the 14 fret l00. Is that characteristic of the 14 frets? Worth keeping it as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted October 9, 2019 Share Posted October 9, 2019 I would do nothing regarding the 14 fretter. At least for a while. Selling guitars were some of the worst mistakes I ever made. You were in the enviable position of not having to use a guitar as trade bait or sell it to acquire something else. Your are still in the honeymoon period with the 12 fretter so everything about it is sweet as it gets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted October 9, 2019 Share Posted October 9, 2019 5 hours ago, zombywoof said: I would do nothing regarding the 14 fretter. At least for a while. Selling guitars were some of the worst mistakes I ever made. You were in the enviable position of not having to use a guitar as trade bait or sell it to acquire something else. Your are still in the honeymoon period with the 12 fretter so everything about it is sweet as it gets. Ditto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ndavis1971 Posted October 11, 2019 Author Share Posted October 11, 2019 Wise counsel. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted October 11, 2019 Share Posted October 11, 2019 Gorgeous guitar. Congrats! Norman Blake once famously said, "Never trust a guitar without a belly." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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