BluesKing777 Posted December 24, 2020 Share Posted December 24, 2020 (edited) 50 minutes ago, CJB said: That’s a great video! The Gibson definitely wins that one but like you say, the Waterloo is not too shabby for being brand new. Both my Waterloos have opened out sensationally over the years - great job Collings! Another thing to consider with my 2 Waterloos is they both had a K&K Trinity Pro pickup system installed, sensational, but the old Gibson is never, ever, ever getting tampered with like that! https://www.kksound.com/products/trinity.php But the Blues King L-00 is crying out for something apart from the silly included Baggs Element - because the saddle/bridge has already been tampered with installing the Element at the factory all those years ago, I may just get that ripped out and a Baggs Anthem installed (also has an Element to fill the saddle space but a mic too). And a new bone saddle! BluesKing777. Edited December 24, 2020 by BluesKing777 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robroy Posted December 24, 2020 Share Posted December 24, 2020 I don’t think anyone has mentioned the modern iterations of the Gibson L-1. I had the model with the Robert Johnson « signature « on it and I am still in disbelief that I sold it over ten years ago. I had some other modern L-00s that were lacking something and I parted with but that L-1 was a very sweet blues guitar. I can still imagine hearing those ringing trebles! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuestionMark Posted December 25, 2020 Share Posted December 25, 2020 (edited) Also, no one has mentioned Epiphone’s Inspired by Gibson’s line, L-00 Studio (that formerly was called the EL-00 Pro.). For years I’ve been saying a that with a tight fitting replacement high density bone or tusq saddle put into it, that model can be an awesome fingerpicking guitar. Plus, the model is X braced and has a great Gibson-like slim taper neck. They’re machine made in Indonesia (what I think is Epi’s better plant) and though they have laminated sides and back, with the guitar’s smaller body, it does not really have any kind of significant negative impact on the sound, especially with their solid wood tops. I own two of the EL-00 Pro named ones in my collection, the standard solid spruce topped sunburst 00 model and a limited edition solid natural mahogany topped 00 version that was pretty hard to locate. Both with much better tusq saddles that I put in. Plus, when I play either electric I use a Fishman Rare Earth Humbucker soundhole pickup rather than the model’s stock Sonic pickup. With those modifications, the model is quite a good 00 guitar IMHO. QM aka “Jazzman” Jeff Edited December 25, 2020 by QuestionMark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 On 12/24/2020 at 9:48 PM, robroy said: I don’t think anyone has mentioned the modern iterations of the Gibson L-1. I had the model with the Robert Johnson « signature « on it and I am still in disbelief that I sold it over ten years ago. I had some other modern L-00s that were lacking something and I parted with but that L-1 was a very sweet blues guitar. I can still imagine hearing those ringing trebles! There is a nice 1928 Gibson L-0 at Folkways, Canada: https://folkwaymusic.com/vintage-instruments/item/id.4037 BluesKing777. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 Speaking of the L-1, it was my assumption that the WM-00 was about the same but I don't know about the specific dimensions matching up. Is this the case? Question for those of you who've owned/tried the Waterloo WL-14 in both the X and Ladder bracing. What do y'all prefer and why? I'm getting dangerously close to thinking about one of these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 16 minutes ago, CJB said: Speaking of the L-1, it was my assumption that the WM-00 was about the same but I don't know about the specific dimensions matching up. Is this the case? Question for those of you who've owned/tried the Waterloo WL-14 in both the X and Ladder bracing. What do y'all prefer and why? I'm getting dangerously close to thinking about one of these. Although the body shape is similar, the WM-00 is overall a larger guitar. If I recall the lower bout is 14 7/8" wide with a full jumbo depth. Massive back braces. So no, it is not even a close match up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robroy Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 (edited) I have the Waterloo WL-14 When I was at Guitars etc in Longmont, CO I compared the ladder-braced to the x-braced and chose the ladder-braced. I had never heard such nice tone out of a ladder-braced guitar, plus I had a x-braced vintage lg-2. that is hard to beat The ladder-braced didn’t have the sustain of the x-braced, perfect for blues etc Thanks for your suggestion Blues 777. Unfortunately my guitar funds are running low after recently acquiring a new J-45. More on that soon. Cheers. Edited December 26, 2020 by robroy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 @zombywoof Thanks - makes sense! @robroy Very interesting to hear and not surprising. I imagine if Mr. Collings felt it was worthwhile to make a guitar with 'obsolete' bracing methods then I bet it really is something special. Out of curiousity, have you played your ladder braced WL-14 alongside a mahogany topped WL-14? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robroy Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 Didn’t get a chance to play the mahagony-topped version but no doubt it’s sweet too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 Not to muddy the waters further but has anybody tried the Crooked Star version of the L1? Tony Klassen's no frills line of 1930s inspired guitars are in the same price range as Waterloos while his guitars have gotten a thumbs up from the likes of Stefan Grossman and Roy Bookbinder. Not to shabby. One of our members owns several Crooked Star instruments so hopefully he will chime in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 Very interesting- I’m aware of New Era but not Crooked Star. They look nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 4 hours ago, CJB said: Question for those of you who've owned/tried the Waterloo WL-14 in both the X and Ladder bracing. What do y'all prefer and why? I'm getting dangerously close to thinking about one of these. Which pretty girl to marry? Good news is you don’t have to marry the Waterloos - you can try them out first! Depending on what you play, I would go the ladder braced model - simply because there are a billion skinny neck X braced guitars out there. BluesKing777. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 4 minutes ago, BluesKing777 said: Which pretty girl to marry? Good news is you don’t have to marry the Waterloos - you can try them out first! Depending on what you play, I would go the ladder braced model - simply because there are a billion skinny neck X braced guitars out there. BluesKing777. 🤣 So true! I think this coming week I'll go fiddle around with a WL-14mh I know of and see if I can find a ladder braced one to sample. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 47 minutes ago, CJB said: 🤣 So true! I think this coming week I'll go fiddle around with a WL-14mh I know of and see if I can find a ladder braced one to sample. You really won't go wrong with any of them, mine are beautifully made guitars. The mahogany would make a nice companion for your Gibson LG2! Here is a video of the 12 fret mahogany with Carl Miner playing - I don't think they are as refined as he makes it sound but you know.... BluesKing777. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zombywoof Posted December 27, 2020 Share Posted December 27, 2020 (edited) 18 hours ago, CJB said: @zombywoof Thanks - makes sense! @robroy Very interesting to hear and not surprising. I imagine if Mr. Collings felt it was worthwhile to make a guitar with 'obsolete' bracing methods then I bet it really is something special. Out of curiousity, have you played your ladder braced WL-14 alongside a mahogany topped WL-14? It was not as much that ladder bracing became "obsolete" as it became associated with el cheapo guitars. Everything turned around when the internet arose and information became far easier to come by and a new market for ladder braced guitars popped up. Folks learned that the archetype "blues guitar" was an Oscar Schmidt concert while Elmore James played a Kay Western Special and Jimmy Page worked out all the songs for Zep III and played "Stairway to Heaven" on a Harmony Sovereign. While small builders such as Mike Hauver began offering repros of guitars like the Stella Gambler, Collings was the first established larger builder to jump onto the bandwagon. Their guitars were so popular than when the first models were released every one that showed up at Mass Street Music was sold before it ever hit the shelf. They literally had a waiting list. It took me close to a year to even get to try one. Edited December 27, 2020 by zombywoof Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted January 1, 2021 Author Share Posted January 1, 2021 Well, quick update. I now have a L-00 Studio in the house for a little while to try it out. So far I'm quite impressed. It seems to punch way above it's weight as far as build quality and tone - these are a great bargain. I'm not crazy about the look of the walnut back and sides (only because I love looking at mahogany) but that's not significant and the quality of the walnut is very nice I'd say. It has a similar neck feel to my LG2 and a slightly flatter fretboard but overall its very comfortable to play. More focused tone and seems to be a great compliment to the LG2. Strong voice too. I'll enjoy it for a few days and see where I want to go from here. Happy new year everyone! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted January 6, 2021 Author Share Posted January 6, 2021 Hey again everyone. Got another question for y'all. After a good bit of time with this L-00 Studio (which I really am enjoying but I'd like to find something that suits me a little better) I've decided I'd like to dive in a little further and find a L-00 that really suits me. I am curious if it's okay to put out a WTB/Want to Trade listing here? I appreciate that this forum doesn't seem to be overly commercialized which makes it welcoming and gives it a good feel. Some other forums feel a little too commercial so I don't want to ask around if it's not welcome. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted January 16, 2021 Author Share Posted January 16, 2021 On 12/22/2020 at 8:33 AM, j45nick said: The typical L-OO, like my Legend, is short scale. I just measured mine to confirm. I don't know if there are any long-scale variants. I hope you guys don't mind me bringing this one back up again but I'm curious specifically about the L-00 Legend. @j45nick and other what can y'all tell me about the neck profile on these? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 2 hours ago, CJB said: I hope you guys don't mind me bringing this one back up again but I'm curious specifically about the L-00 Legend. @j45nick and other what can y'all tell me about the neck profile on these? It is a true, fat 1930's profile with a pronounced V-shape. It has a nut width of 1.75" (about 44.5mm), and string spacing at the bridge of 2.375" (60.3mm). The wide string spacing at the bridge is handy for clumsy fingerpickers like me. It is surprisingly comfortable neck, given its heft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted January 16, 2021 Author Share Posted January 16, 2021 1 hour ago, j45nick said: It is a true, fat 1930's profile with a pronounced V-shape. It has a nut width of 1.75" (about 44.5mm), and string spacing at the bridge of 2.375" (60.3mm). The wide string spacing at the bridge is handy for clumsy fingerpickers like me. It is surprisingly comfortable neck, given its heft. That's what I was afraid of, thanks! Sounds just right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 (edited) 2 hours ago, j45nick said: It is a true, fat 1930's profile with a pronounced V-shape. It has a nut width of 1.75" (about 44.5mm), and string spacing at the bridge of 2.375" (60.3mm). The wide string spacing at the bridge is handy for clumsy fingerpickers like me. It is surprisingly comfortable neck, given its heft. Sell it to CJB, Nick, you mean old skinflint!🤠 Or to me - I’ll give it a stretch! Importing old guitars is close to impossible where I live, but if I lived in mainland US, CJB, I would buy a ‘real’ 30s L-00 before a reissue. Actually just looked at Reverb. And there are about 20.....so probably a lot more on local lists and shops. Today, I would buy the 34 Black L-00 from Florida for $4600 on Reverb, tweak it and away I go! I might anyway, hmmmm, looks good. But hang on, I already have my 37....... BluesKing777. Edited January 16, 2021 by BluesKing777 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJB Posted January 16, 2021 Author Share Posted January 16, 2021 (edited) 10 minutes ago, BluesKing777 said: Sell it to CJB, Nick, you mean old skinflint!🤠 Or to me - I’ll give it a stretch! Importing old guitars is close to impossible where I live, but if I lived in mainland US, CJB, I would buy a ‘real’ 30s L-00 before a reissue. Actually just looked at Reverb. And there are about 20.....so probably a lot more on local lists and shops. Today, I would buy the 34 Black L-00 from Florida for $4600 on Reverb, tweak it and away I go! I might anyway, hmmmm, looks good. But hang on, I already have my 37....... BluesKing777. I have a really good idea. Might be be best one I've had all day actually. You can buy that black '34, have it sent to me and I can hold on to it for you and give a thorough public assessment. I won't even threaten to sand the neck on it. Deal? I spent some time comparing Gibson small body sizes today and I have so many more questions now. Not sure where to start so I'll go to the ol search function and see what I can dig up before starting another new discussion. we'll see... LG, B, and F content soon.🤓 Edited January 16, 2021 by CJB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BluesKing777 Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 (edited) OK, I bought the 34 and sent it to you to hold, just go wait out the front. I’m still thinking you could try a CEO7, similar specs to a Legend, fit in the same case. And are available.... (forum playing up a bit, don’t know what it is doing, may get a triple post here) BluesKing777: Edited January 16, 2021 by BluesKing777 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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