Oh the agony and the ebony..actually rosewood, but one can dream. My guitar gift selection has heated to white hot and now I'm more undecided than ever. I spent my lunch breaks the last few days visiting guitar stores and scouring Craig's List for the one right guitar of my brother. How can I expect to find the one for him when I can't even seem to find the one for me?
There are a couple of very tempting choices on CL. I have contacted the sellers and had the initial telephone interview about the guitars in question. (Both are RK dreadnoughts and fantastic guitars.) But then I browsed the local stores and then back to CL. So many good options but will they be the right one for him. I seriously doubt it.
I think I've decided to gift him my 000 (Sunburst). I A/B/Ced my guitars tonight and I like them all but this one comes up a little short sound wise (for me... I think). The Dread is by far the best sounding, the 0-body by far the most portable while retaining excellent playability as a guitar (and not some toy). The 000 is somewhere in between sound wise and if I was going to keep one guitar for myself it might be the 000 because it is the "Swiss Army Knife" of guitars. It's strummable and finger-pickable. it's comfortable to hold sitting, which is how I play. (I don't even own a guitar strap.) It has a 1.75" nut and a short scale both of which, in my somewhat experienced opinion, make it "easier" to play. And the sunburst just looks fabulous.
All of these characteristics add up, mostly, to an excellent first guitar for a fledgling player. So, for now, it's the 000. However this is the one guitar I own without a case so I will have to procure one so I can lug it to Dayton via commercial air. I think I'll run the gauntlet and try to carry it on the plane. I've had pretty good luck in the past and this is a relatively short domestic flight on s Saturday, how crowded could it be? Maybe I shouldn't have asked that.
Giving him of my guitars breaks my nuclear decision triad over which to play. Giving him one of my guitars puts me that much closer to GASSING for the magical third - the "3" they refer to in the Schoolhouse Rock song from the 1970s - "Three, It's a Magic Number". Anyone else think that song was song by Gary Busey?
As Led Zeppelin (the best band ever) says, "It's time for me to ramble on." Wait, I thought that's what I was doing?
More to follow, likely.
dj
I'm sure your brother will be happy, and knowing it was one that you have loved personally maybe he'll even be more likely to try to learn how to play it!!!