Airline Guitars – MyRareGuitars.com

What’s the Difference Between Vintage Airline Guitars & New Airline Guitars by Eastwood?

Ivan Eastwood — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 12:26:32 +0000

Airline guitars have come a long way since their late-Fifties early days. But, how do the new ones, made by Eastwood Guitars, compare to the originals? Res-O-Glass vs. Mahogany, Old vs. New. Who wins?

The original Airline guitars were cheap, plastic (or rather, “Res-O-Glass”) models made between 1958-1968 and sold by Montgomery Ward via shops and catalogues. They were never intended to be great-quality instruments – but cheap alternatives for beginners who couldn’t afford bigger brands such as Fender, Gibson or Gretsch.

Most Airlines were made of Res-O-Glass simply because it made them cheaper and quicker to be put together – with no particular regard for quality or tone.

However, this characteristic made those guitars quite unique, and eventually a few professional players started to appreciate the qualities of the Res-O-Glass tone as “a thing”.

One of the first performers to be closely linked to the instrument was bluesman J. B. Hutto, whose red Airline must’ve been one of the inspirations for Jack White playing one, decades later:

Ah yes… Jack White. Despite the fact other musicians over the years have opted for vintage Airline Guitars (PJ Harvey, Calexico, Black Keys, Brian Jonestown Massacre) it was Jack White who most certainly brought the brand (especially the now-iconic JB-Hutto guitar shape) to the attention of a wider audience.

Jack White live with his Airline Guitar, in The White Stripes

Vintage Airline Guitars vs. Eastwood Airline Guitars: What’s the Difference?

When considering which one to buy, it’s important to remember a few things.

1) The first is this: Jack White didn’t really like his Airline guitar.

Yes. True. He, basically, thought they were terrible. Not long ago, White described his experience playing them:

“If people only knew how hard it was on these shitty guitars … because I didn’t know!”

In the now-classic It Might Get Loud film, Jack White once again described his experience playing his Airline:

“Pick a fight with it—that’s what you gotta do. Pick a fight with it and win the fight.”

Basically – Jack White, as a highly visual artist, chose to play an Airline guitar because in itself it sent a strong, visual statement about his band The White Stripes – the red color, the unusual shape, the fact it was a model used by an obscure bluesman… it showed they were different. And, as a musician, White liked th fact the guitar wasn’t a very good one: it made him struggle, it wasn’t reliable, it’d go out of tune, it’d make him fight it, and thus produce some more interesting performances, giving an edge to his playing.

In short: if you’re not Jack White, and if you decide to invest on a vintage Airline, you could end up disappointed, as they are generally not such great guitars… for the money. In the early nineties, in the days pre-White Stripes, few people cared about the Res-O-Glass models, and they were still sold cheap on the second-hand market. Perfect for scuzzy garage rockers with little money to spend, or for those who collected unusual vintage guitars… like future Eastwood Guitars CEO Mike Robinson.

2) New Airline Guitars are real Airline Guitars

New Airline guitar headstock – it is what it says it is… an Airline!

In the early 2000’s when Mike Robinson noticed all those quirky, cheap vintage guitars such as old Airlines, were increasing in value due to a renewed interest post- White Stripes, Black Keys et al, he decided it was time to actually bring them back – brand new, more affordable and more playable – and hence Eastwood Guitars was born.

But the story didn’t stop there, of course – Mike decided to resurrect the Airline brand, and bought it. Which means, new Airline Guitars are not “copies”, but real, bona fide Airline guitars – just like a new Fender or Gibson are still the real deal, even if their instruments are made of different materials and in different factories than in the 1950’s.

3) Vintage Airline Guitars vs. New Airline Guitars: Which One Is actually BETTER?

That’s a great question. That is the question. And that is something we can’t really tell you – it’s up to you to decide. There’s no doubt that there’s much more kudos in owning a vintage Res-O-Glass Airline, just like Jack White did. There’s no doubt that for a guitar collector, they’re something to be proud to own, a worthy addition to the collection of any fan of quirky, vintage guitars.

But for most gigging guitarists, those vintage Airlines are not necessarily the best choice. Tone? Great, sure. But in our own experience we’ve struggled to find vintage ones with a particularly good neck, and overall they’re simply not that reliable.

The inside of a vintage Airline guitar… not a pretty sight!

Just a look at the inside of any vintage Res-O-Glass model will show how cheaply put together they were. The necks didn’t have a truss-rod and required reinforced steel to be kept sturdy. All in all, a very alien instrument compared to todays’ standards – part of the appeal to some, but also the reason others (most?) would feel much more at ease playing a new Airline Guitar made by Eastwood.

The modern Airline guitars have kept the looks and the vibe that make the originals such cool instruments to play onstage – you know, a change from decades of Strats and Les Pauls, something that today still grabs the audience, visually.

Airline 59 2P – the current version of the classic Airline model, by Eastwood

But, of course, there are other, less obvious but very important changes – or, as should we call them, upgrades: the tone-chambered mahogany body, Airline vintage voiced Single coils (Humbucker-sized), tune-o-matic bridge and bolt-on maple neck. The new Airlines sound great, rich, and are more comfortable and familiar to play than vintage ones.

The vintage Airline Res-O-Glass guitars are undoubtedly cool, and any guitarist will get extra kudos for owning one. If you got one dirty cheap in the 90’s, that would’ve been definitely 100% worth it, even if no one wanted to buy one anymore, today. But now… are they really worth the price tag they go for today, after the Jack White hype? Mmmm…

So, the big question, then: are the new Airline guitars by Eastwood better than the originals? We would say so – just as many professional musicians playing one, worldwide also would. Let’s face it, a tone-chambered mahogany body beats plastic any day. There’s a reason why most guitars by most brands are made of wood, after all.

But we’ll leave the final answer to you – after all, in everything in life, and certainly when it comes to guitars, your own taste is what matters, and it’ll change from player to player. If you ever come across a Res-O-Glass guitar, by all means have a go – you might even love it. But will it be worth the investment, especially if you’re a gigging musician? Perhaps… perhaps not.

Watch: Vintage Airline Guitar vs. New Airline Guitar by Eastwood

Vintage Airline guitar demo:

New Airline guitar demo:

What’s the Difference Between Vintage Airline Guitars & New Airline Guitars by Eastwood? from MyRareGuitars.com

Complete Guide To Fuzz Pedals + The Best Fuzz Pedals

Ivan Eastwood — Fri, 15 Dec 2017 16:25:19 +0000

We just LOVE fuzz pedals, don’t we? They are pretty much the most “classic” of all guitar fx pedals: one of the earliest types of effect, used on several seminal recordings from the Sixties, and still popular today. But one question remains: WHAT are the best fuzz pedals, ever?

The history of fuzz is suitably… fuzzy! There are many different reports as to which was the earliest song to feature the sound characteristic of fuzz, or something akin to it, and its origins are closely related to the development of the distortion sound for guitars – and the very birth of rock’n’roll itself.

A Time Before Fuzz: the Origins of Distorted Guitar Sounds

Before we get into fuzz itself, let’s go back to the origins of the distorted guitar sound. All the first guitar amps were analogue, tube amps. When guitarists started to experiment with their amps – or have accidents! – that’s when distortion was born.

Goree Carter‘s “Rock Awhile” (1949) has an overdriven guitar sound, and the song is pretty much the birth of rock’n’roll – you can almost hear where Chuck Berry got his ideas from.

Famously, “Rocket 88” (1951) by Ike Turner/Jackie Brenston (often referred to as the “first” rock’n’roll song) is said to feature a guitar amp with damaged speaker cone, though the guitar is quite low in the mix.

For 1956’s “The train kept a rollin'” by the Johnny Burnette Trio, a guitar amp with dislodged tube was used to create a dirty guitar sound, and a few years later it was the turn of Dave Davies to slash his amp’s speakers for the dirty sound of The Kinks‘ “You Really Got Me”.

Kinks’ fuzz: Elpico AC-55 with slashed speakers plugged into Vox AC-30. Damn… glad it’s easier to just use a fuzz pedal nowadays!

The Fuzz and Muff Pedal Timeline has a pretty good list of other pre-fuzzbox songs.

None of those tracks use “fuzz” exactly, but they all presaged the desire for dirtier guitar sounds – which the first fuzz pedals made much easier!

Who Invented the First Fuzz Pedal?

Thank you for the fuzz… and no, we’re not talking about the ‘tache! (great as it is)

Lee Hazelwood was one of the most important fuzz pioneers: he asked a (sadly anonymous) radio station technician to make a custom fuzz box to be used in the studio – and it features on Sanford Clark’s 1960 song ‘Go On Home’ which is believed to be the first-ever track to feature an electronic device created specifically to create a “fuzz” sound… ie, the original fuzz pedal! (sadly, there are no pics of this legendary device…)

After this, more artists began to have an interest in that new, specific sound – the FUZZ! Orville Rhodes created the legendary Rhodes Fuzz boxes, used by Billy Strange and The Ventures, and after that, the history of fuzz really took off.

With the creation of the first commercially available fuzz – the Maestro Fuzz Tone – it was just a matter of time until a new generation of musicians fell in love for the dirty sounds of fuzz and it became a crucial sound in rock’n’roll ever since!

vintage Maestro Fuzz Tone ad

Fuzz vs. Distortion vs. Overdrive: What’s the difference?

Sometimes they get mixed up, because they do a similar job – to make your guitar “dirtier’! But they are all different.

It’s all to do with how they change the dry signal of the guitar – there are many sites that’ll explain this in detail, with images of the sound wave shapes they generate etc but, well, it can be a bit boring, really! What really matters is how different do they actually sound?

All you need to know is that overdrive sounds more “natural” (more like an overdriven amp sound) and smooth, and is the least harsh-sounding of the three. Distortion does what it says in the box, and sounds more kick ass than an overdrive, but not as harsh as fuzz. Think Nirvana, for instance.

You can use an overdrive pedal on an already overdriven tube amp, and thus get a sound that could be described as distorted, as if you were using a distortion pedal on a clean amp.

And then, there’s what interests us here: FUZZ!!! It’s a very different and altogether wilder beast…

This great video explains the differences:

Overdrive and Distortion pedals were developed years after the first fuzz pedals. In fact, it’s no coincidence that they were developed after the invention of solid-state amps, because that’s what they were actually made for – since SS amps can’t naturally be overdriven like valve amps.

It’s interesting to notice that most fuzz pedals sound much better when used with valve amps than with solid state amps, whereas overdrive and distortion can sound good with either. Maybe that’s a good subject for another blog… but maybe, it has to do with the fact that fuzz was originally designed to interact with valve amps, especifically!

Fuzz is one of the oldest types of guitar effects (as explained before) so it’s a very simple effect, and not very subtle, generally. This means two things:

1) most circuits can be easily copied, so that’s why you’ll find lots of Tone Bender, Fuzz Face, Big Muff etc copies (often more affordable, sometimes way more expensive than the originals!)

2) If you don’t know what you’re doing, your fuzz can sound bad!

Fuzz pedals (using germanium or silicon transistors) can sound very harsh, it’s true, but the best ones interact beautifully with your guitar, and knowing how to use your guitar’s volume and tone can greatly affect the results. Some fuzzes will sound terrible when you play chords, but are great for solos.

One of the joys of using fuzz is that despite it being a simple guitar effect, you really need to “play” the pedal – it’s often not just about stepping on it and turning it on, but about learning how it works with your guitar, amp and other pedals, fine tuning the settings. In many cases, if you’re a guitarist who only uses your guitar volume at 10, you simply won’t make the most of your fuzz pedal – fuzz pedals can be the wildest and most “in your face” of guitar effects, but really, they’re all about the subtleties of the player.

If you don’t know how to use your fuzz pedal, it can sound bad… but if you do it right, it could be the best sound ever!

What Are The Best Fuzz Pedals… Ever?

Well, to pick any Top 10 “Best Of” is always difficult, and controversial… and it won’t be any different this time! But to make things easier, we set a few basic rules:

No rare “boutique” pedals (instead, we chose those which were/are more-or-less easily available in the shops at one point or another)
We chose pedals which have been used by well known artists
Also, we’ve chosen mostly original pedals which inspired copies rather than clones.

There are SO many boutique clones out there that the list to choose from would be endless and generate even more discussion – there’ll be many people who’ll say that “such and such Big Muff/Fuzz Face clone is miles better than the original”, so we simply won’t get into this kind of argument – boutique clones are out! We’ll stick with the classic originals. Some pedals here HAVE been inspired by other models, but over the years made a name and inspired clones themselves, so we’ll include them.

It’s interesting to note that, because fuzz is generally a very simple and primitive effect, lots of good, cheap clones also DO exist – but here you’ll find the pedals that got more than just a great sound – they got MOJO to spare…

Death By Audio Fuzz War

Why? It’s quickly becoming a classic alt-rock / psych favourite, thanks to being used by bands such as Thee Oh Sees. It CAN give you some great fuzz tones, and is also great for some mad noises… a new classic? You bet! Also, American brand Death By Audio is one of the best right now…

Univox Super fuzz

Why? This octave-up fuzz, made by the Japanese Univox company, is without a doubt one of the most legendary ever made. Users include Pete Townshend (The Who), Poison Ivy (The Cramps), Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins), J. Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) and many others. It was also featured in the title of Mudhoney’s debut album, “Superfuzz and Big Muff”.

WEM Pep Rush Box

Why? Because it’s one of the few well-documented fuzz boxes used by The Beatles. John Lennon used it on ‘Paperback Writer’. A modern reissue looks and sounds the part, too. This is NOT a “Beatles-in-a-box” though, since the Fab Four used it sparingly. However, this connection with the Liverpool band was enough to make this pedal the stuff of legend and more desirable – but it is a great fuzz too, perfect for dirty Cramps-style rock’n’roll, meaty riffs and ripping solos… a great addition to any guitarist’s arsenal!

Foxx Tone Machine

Why? This is a legendary octave-up fuzz, introduced in 1971 and now quite rare (though reissued not that long ago). Users included Peter Frampton, Adrian Belew, Parliament / Funkadelic and Nine Inch Nails. One of the cool features – innovative then – is that it has a toggle switch to select octave up fx or turn it off… making it more versatile than the Roger Meyer Octavia. The Foxx Tone Machine inspired clones such as the super cheap Danelectro French Toast fuzz and the Joyo Octave Fuzz.

Roger Mayer Octavia

Why? This is the original octave-up pedal, as pioneered by Jimi Hendrix on songs such as ‘Purple Haze’. As if you needed any more reasons! Octave up fuzz pedals can be tricky affairs to use – but if you do it right, a very cool addition to a guitarist arsenal!

Shin-Ei FZ2

Why? The Japanese Shin-Ei is one of the most sought-after fuzz boxes out there, quite a collectors item, and has been used by bands such as Jesus And Mary Chain (on classic debut ‘Psychocandy’), Blur, Radiohead (in ‘OK Computer’!) and the Black Keys.

Maestro FZ-1 Fuzz Tone

Why? Mojo to spare!!! This is THE fuzz pedal that made fuzz popular, thanks to one song: ‘Satisfaction’ by the Rolling Stones. According to Keith Richards, he only used the relatively new pedal with the intention of using it for the demo, to mimic the sound that should be played by horns in the final version. However, the fuzz became the most essential part of the released version, and the rest is history… the fuzz craze was born!

Interesting to note that on the first ever demo of a fuzz pedal, they were basically trying to compare the Maestro Fuzz-Tone sound with traditional instruments such as cello or saxophone, as its main “selling point”!

Z-Vex Fuzz Factory

Why? This is one of the craziest fuzzes out there, capable of self-oscillating… ideal for the noise experimentalists. You’ll find more than just a few people who think this is their favourite fuzz ever, and some of its most famous users include J. Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.), Stephen Malkmus (Pavement / The Jicks), Annie Clark (St. Vincent) and Matt Bellamy (Muse). The Fuzz Factory became such a crucial part of Bellamy’s sound, tat he had guitars custom-made for him, with built-in Fuzz Factory!

Not many fuzz pedals are as versatile as the Fuzz Factory. You can do mad things with it, but it’s also a great-sounding fuzz, like few others!

Tone Bender

Why? The Vox Tone Bender (in its many different incarnations) is one of the most widely used and iconic fuzz pedals ever. List of famous users include Jeff Beck (The Yardbirds) , Jimmy Page (The Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin), The Beatles (bass on “Think For Yourself”), Mick Ronson (Ziggy Stardust-era Bowie), Marc Bolan (T-Rex) and Pete Townshend (The Who). Inspired countless clones and modern reissues that sound as good as vintage ones. Whichever you choose… it’s likely to be amazing!

Fuzz Face

Why? Once again, Jimi! More than anyone else, it was Jimi Hendrix the one guitarist most responsible for popularising fuzz… and his weapon of choice was a Dallas-Arbiter Fuzz Face. It’s virtually impossible to think of Jimi without thinking of the Fuzz Face, which he knew how to use like few others. Jimi was the textbook case of how to use fuzz and be able to be subtle or wild, depending on how you use it. Many other players used it… rom David Gilmour in Pink Floyd to, more recently, the Black Angels.

The Fuzz Face has had many incarnations and inspired countless clones…. and today Dunlop makes quite a few versions (including “mini” sized ones) which all sound unmistakably “Fuzz Face-y”, with minor – but to some crucial – differences in terms of tone. Whichever you choose – it’ll give you one of the most classic and most delicious fuzz sounds, ever!

Electro-Harmonix Big Muff

The big one, and not just the name! Arguably the most popular fuzz ever. The king of all fuzzes… the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff! This pedal has been used in records by most artists you care to think of… from Pink Floyd and David Bowie to Nirvana, Red Hot Chilli Peppers… and even The Carpenters!

A lot of Muffs…

The beauty of it is that it’s still widely available and relatively cheap. Bands big or small still use it, in dive bars and stadiums alike, worldwide, every day. There are many different versions – including the reissue of the famous “green Russian” – which, despite a few small differences pretty much sound like you’d expect a Big Muff to sound – so you can pick any safe in the knowledge it’ll be amazing! (ps: beware the EHX Germanium Big Muff Pi though. It’s a pretty cool pedal but the only one from their “Muff” range that doesn’t really sound “Big Muff-y”. As a versatile distortion pedal, it’s great. As a Big Muff fuzz… you’d be probably disappointed)

Even though the Electro Harmonix Big Muff never really lost popularity, there’s little doubt that, in the 21st Century, Dan Auerbach and Jack White helped to make this pedal even better known, and today it’s still one of the best-selling pedals around!

In our experience, we still see a LOT of people who own an Airline guitar and, lo and behold, 9 out of 10 times they also have a Big Muff!

No wonder – this combo sounds immense!

Now… YOUR turn to tell us: what’s your favourite fuzz pedal?

Complete Guide To Fuzz Pedals + The Best Fuzz Pedals from MyRareGuitars.com

WATCH: Moon Duo Covers The Stooges’ ‘No Fun’

Ivan Eastwood — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 10:08:43 +0000

Iggy Pop turned 70 last Friday, April 21. To celebrate the birthday of one of the greatest frontmen in Rock’n’Roll, Moon Duo covered The Stooges’ ‘No Fun’ on BBC Radio 6.

On this video, Moon Duo singer / guitarist Ripley Johnson uses, as usual, his Airline 59 3P Ripley Custom, his own signature guitar and also an unique model in the Airline 59 family, as it features our Transwarp Drive boost.

Airline 59 3P Ripley Custom

Rock on, Ripley!

Moon Duo’s worldwide tour continues in the U.S. and Canada. If you’re around to catch one of those dates, don’t miss it!

21/4/17 Chicago @ The Empty Bottle w/ Jackie Lynn
22/4/17 Detroit @ El Club w/ Jackie Lynn
23/4/17 Toronto @ Horseshoe Tavern w/ Jackie Lynn
25/4/17 Montreal @ La Sala Rossa w/ Jackie Lynn
26/4/17 Boston @ Great Scott w/ Jackie Lynn
27/4/17 Brooklyn @ Rough Trade w/ Jackie Lynn
28/4/17 Philadelphia @ Johnny Brenda’s w/ Jackie Lynn
29/4/17 Washington DC @ DC9 w/ Jackie Lynn
30/4/17 Cleveland @ Beachland Tavern w/ Jackie Lynn

More info:

Moon Duo official website

WATCH: Moon Duo Covers The Stooges’ ‘No Fun’ from MyRareGuitars.com

All You Need To Know About… Wide Neck Guitars

Ivan Eastwood — Wed, 01 Mar 2017 17:09:29 +0000

Wide neck guitars – what’s it all about? Do you need one? Here’s a look at all you need to know about this niche (for now) market which is increasingly growing…

A few years ago, Gibson announced their 2015 range of electric guitars, which featured several changes that didn’t please many of their core customers – and one of those changes was a wider neck. The move proved a big PR fiasco, with many players thinking that Gibson had finally lost the plot, and that the wide necks were one of the most visible signs of that.

Looking back, perhaps Gibson had the right idea, but just dealt it the wrong way, by having all their 2015 models being made with wide necks – thus depriving their customers of choice: there is indeed an increasing market for wide neck guitars, no question about that… but it’s not for everybody!

Why play a Wide Neck guitar? Is it for YOU?

The fact is, if we’re honest, that a good chunk of the population is, well… getting chunkier! To be totally blunt about it – fatter people have fatter fingers, and it can (sometimes, for some players) make it harder for them to play a guitar which has a narrower neck. But also, anyone who’s bigger and thus got bigger hands might find it a bit troublesome to deal with a standard, narrow neck guitar…

For those players, opting for a wide neck guitar can make a huge difference! It’s in fact quite remarkable that for so many years, the industry has not focused on this problem, but now guitars with wide necks are not such a rarity anymore.

Please bear in mind that when we say “wide neck” we don’t refer to the thickness of the neck, which is something else altogether – as most players will be aware, different guitars my have different neck profiles, with different shapes and different thickness (which is a subject that’s itself worth a separate blog!)

We are, of course, talking about the actual width of the fingerboard. Visually, at a quick glance, many people might not notice any difference in some cases, but the relationship between the player’s hand and the fretboard is so crucial and subtle, that just a matter of tiny millimetres can make a huge difference – the difference in fact, between you loving a guitar or maybe even loathing it!

What’s the Nut Width of a Wide Neck Guitar?

A regular guitar may have a width at nut of 1 11/16″, while a wide neck would have a width at nut of 1 7/8″, for instance.

We’re talking about minimal differences here, but which play a crucial factor on how much playable you will think a guitar is – depending on how comfortable either of them feels on your hand!

Going back to Gibson, here’s another comparison: the maligned 2015 Les Paul had a width at nut of 1.795″, whereas “normal” Les Paul Standard has a width at nut of 1.695″. That’s right – 0.1″ of difference that’s enough to make someone simply hate an instrument!

But that’s the crux here – it’s not about the instrument, because there’s nothing wrong with a wide neck, it’s just a matter of: do YOU actually need one?

Guitar Companies Who Make Wide Neck Guitars

There are brands who’ve been adopting the wide neck design, over the years, besides Gibson.

The Zarley Wide Neck Guitars was founded by Tracy Todd, who decided to make wide neck models after years struggling with playing standard guitars, and their instruments have been welcomed by players who fancied wide necks:

Zarley Wide Neck

Many “Heavy Rock” brands such as Ibanez, Jackson, BC Rich also make guitars with necks wider than the usual Fenders, Gibsons etc you see around.

Best Fingerpicking (“Fingerstyle”) Guitars?

Another common use for wide neck guitars is for those who play guitar “finger-picking” style… whatever the size of your hand! Though most fingerpicking guitarists use acoustic guitars, you can also use electrics for that style, and wider necks offer a distinct advantage, due to the wider width at nut and string spacing.

Wide Neck Guitars: for Beginners, too?

Perhaps another angle we could look at, is that wide neck guitars are also perfect for beginners and less experienced players, as it may be easier to try chords. Many people start on guitar playing a cheap Classical acoustic guitar (also known as Spanish or flamenco guitars) which are usually about 2″ wide (approx 49-52mm).

So we can’t see why wouldn’t beginners opting for an electric guitar not enjoy a wide neck model, in fact it could make learning even easier.

Is wide neck right for you? Well… first look at your hands, then let us know!

All You Need To Know About… Wide Neck Guitars from MyRareGuitars.com

Limited Edition Twin Tone Double Cut – only 24 Made

Vince Schaljo — Mon, 24 Oct 2016 15:41:26 +0000

Limited Edition Airline Twin Tone Double Cut – only 24 Made. (Reg Price $499)

Airline Guitars has produced a limited edition Twin Tone Double Cut. Order yours TODAY!

20% OFF this week only. Just $399 while supplies last plus FREE SHIPPING

Specifications:

Colours: White
Body: Basswood
Neck: Maple, Bolt-on
Fingerboard: Rosewood, Block Markers
Scale Length: 24 3/4″
Width at Nut: 1 5/8″
Pickups: Two Hot-Rail Humbuckers
Switching: 3-Way
Controls: 2 Volume, 2 Tone
Bridge: Fully adjustable Tune-O-Matic
Hardware: Gotoh style Nickel/Chrome
Strings: 10-46 D’Addario
Case: extra – gigbag $39, hardshell case $99
Unique Features: Limited Edition – only 24 available

Watch this product demonstration by Keith McFadden:

Limited Edition Twin Tone Double Cut – only 24 Made from MyRareGuitars.com

Tips on Tone – Issue #17

Vince Schaljo — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 14:31:15 +0000

Vincent’s Tips on Tones

Issue 17

“You are what you eat” is an expression we all know and understand as truth. Simply put, if you want to live a healthy and balanced life, you need to eat a healthy balanced diet. That said, the expression can be used with a much more metaphorical meaning for a number of different things. Your experiences, your friends and what you surround yourself by play huge parts in the person you are. Often you have no choice but to live through something that can change you for the better or worse. On the other hand, there are many things you have the ability to choose from that will have an impact your life, or at least some aspects of it. Music is one of these things.

For a musician, what you listen to plays a large role in what you end up creating, whether you are trying to or not! We are like sponges. We hear something we like, it soaks in, and later on it leaks out in our writing, playing, and the tones we decide to create. I can recall more than a few occasions where I’ll be listening to a track, and then hear a riff that sounds almost identical to something I’ve written without having any intention of doing so.

Keeping this in mind, you can actually increase your guitar “vocabulary”, and, in a roundabout way, improve your guitar tone without even having an instrument in your hands.

Here are some things to consider:

1) Listen to various genres

Even if you know the style you want to play or create, try not to limit your listening to that genre.

The most famous and signature guitar tones out there were not created by someone re-hashing something that had already been done, but by blending a variety of influences and sounds. Tony Iommi didn’t have a metal band to listen to for inspiration and look what he created! You’ll find that different genres call for different tones, and you will grow to appreciate subtle nuances that you can incorporate into your own playing and writing.

2) Try to isolate the guitar

The overall sound of a song is comprised of all the instruments mixed together. So, sometimes when you try and recreate a tone while playing by yourself you can over compensate in some areas. Adding extra gain, treble or reverb are a few examples. It might sound great alone, but throwing that into a band situation may just make everything sound muddy and convoluted. You’d be surprised to hear how some of your favourite songs’ guitar tracks sound on solo! It’s tricky, but try going back and forth between isolating the guitar in a song and then listening to the whole mix.

3) Study and analyze different players

Ask two guitar players to play the same riff with the same guitar and each will sound different. Did they just play a hammer-on or did they slide to that note? Was that the open D string or the A string in the fifth fret? How fast is their vibrato? What is their note selection and phrasing like?

These are all things that every guitar player does slightly different from another, resulting in a unique play style and tone. Usually you will be able to find repetition in a player, and if you can tap into that then you can expand your repertoire in no time.

Put it this way: your guitar, your amp, and your foot pedals are all inanimate objects. Sure, they will sound different depending on what they are and how they’re set, but it’s you who is actually telling them how to sound.

Tips on Tone – Issue #17 from MyRareGuitars.com

BARITONE GUITAR: What It Is & Why You Need One

Mike Robinson — Sun, 05 Oct 2014 16:16:36 +0000

One of the best selling models from Eastwood Guitars is the Sidejack Baritone. More recently they have also introduced the Airline MAP Baritone. Why are they so popular? First, let’s take a look at what a Baritone guitar is.

Simply put, they are exactly the same as any standard electric guitar but with a lower voice. A standard guitars tuning (from lowest string to highest) is E A D G B E. Baritone guitars are usually tuned a fifth lower (A D G C E A), or a fourth lower (B E A D F♯ B). Therefore, all the chord patterns you already know are exactly the same on a baritone, but simply produce a lower voice.

Why use a baritone when I can tune my standard guitar lower?

“So why not just take my trusty Fender and tune it lower?” you might ask. If you did, you’ll find the strings to be too “floppy” and not enough tension to produce a useable sound. The solution? Make the neck longer and use heavier strings. More precisely, make the “scale length” longer and use heavier strings. What is the scale length?

Airline Baritone Guitar & Eastwood Baritone Guitar

The scale length is the precise length of the suspended string, the length between the nut and the bridge. Generally speaking, most Gibson style guitars have a 24 ¾” scale and most Fender style guitars have a 25 1/2” scale. String sets of 10-46 gauge are typical for these guitars tuned E-E. On the other end, tuned a full octave below the standard guitar at E-E, a Fender Bass has a scale length of 34” and strings in the 45-100 range. Eastwood produces a number of “short scale” bass models, with a 30 ½” and 32” scale, also with the 45-100 string sets.

Most Baritone guitars fit in the middle and have a scale length ranging from 27” to 28”. Eastwood’s Sidejack Baritone has a 27” scale and uses D’addario Baritone Light strings, 13-62, tuned B-B.

Tension Chart

		Diameter		Tension
Item #	Note	Inches	mm	lbs	kg
PL013	B	0.0130	0.3300	20.940	9.500
PL017	F#	0.0170	0.4300	20.100	9.120
NW026	D	0.0260	0.6604	25.020	11.350
NW036	A	0.0360	0.9144	25.920	11.760
NW046	E	0.0460	1.1684	23.020	10.440
NW062	B	0.0620	1.5748	23.780	10.780

Why is a baritone guitar useful and why should I buy one?

OK, with all that technical stuff out of the way, the next question, “why is a baritone useful and why should I buy one?” The real advantage is that ANY guitar player can pick one up and be an expert baritone player immediately as the tuning is identical to their standard guitar, just lower. So every chord pattern you play is identical on the baritone.

For example, when you play an open E chord on your guitar, you’ll do exactly the same on your Eastwood baritone, but it will be an open B. Get it? So you can play any song or riff you already know, right out of the box, but you’ll notice a darker, more haunting texture in your tone.

Jeff Senn Model One Baritone Demo

The Jeff Senn Model One Baritone is a new Eastwood Custom Shop model, and one of those guitars that really could tip you into falling in love with baritones! VIEW MODEL ONE BARITONE INFO

NEW: Classic 6 Baritone semi-acoustic

New Eastwood Custom Shop Classic 6 Baritone

Truth be told, baritone guitars are still a little bit of a niche, though not as much as it used to be, and we’ve notice a steady increase in the number of users over the years. But still, you won’t find many semi-acoustic models available out there, which makes this recent Eastwood Custom Shop very appealing: Imagine a George Harrison Country Gent-style guitar… but with longer scale for a slightly darker tone! Sounds amazing… at the moment, the Eastwood Customs Classic 6 Baritone is a crowdfunding project, and those interested need only leave a small deposit to guarantee theirs and make sure the guitar gets made.

A brief history of… Baritone guitars

Next, let’s take a look at the history behind the baritone. Danelectro was the first to introduce the electric baritone guitar in the late 1950s where it soon appeared in a lot of 60’s surf music as well as background music for many movie soundtracks, especially spaghetti westerns. These days you’ll hear baritone in all types of music from folk to rock to heavy metal. The voice of the baritone is low enough to stand out in the mix next to a standard guitar and is high enough to cut through well above the bass.

Ian McKeye and his baritone guitar, live with The Evens

Brian Wilson used baritones often in his arrangements with the Beach Boys. Glen Campbell used them in great songs like Wichita Lineman. Ian Mackaye from Minor Threat uses a Sidejack baritone with his band The Evens. Jazz guitarist Pat Metheny uses baritones in his arsenal of guitars. Pat Smear of the Foo Fighters also uses a Sidejack Baritone. Colin Newman of Wire (who came up with the idea) uses the Airline MAP Baritone. The great Richard Hawley (can you tell I’m a big fan?) uses a Sidejack Baritone on his recordings, many of which were inspired by one of the earliest adopters of the baritone, the fabulous Duane Eddy.

If you have a studio, you really NEED a baritone electric. You won’t have to invest any time in learning to play it and you will quickly discover many useful applications. Eastwood produces a few variations and price points to suit every need. The Sidejack Standard and Deluxe baritones are under $500, great bang for the buck. The new Airline MAP and MAP DLX are killer baritones and come in under $900.

OK… How does a baritone guitar sound?

Here is a great example, where RJ Ronquillo rearranges Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus using the new Airline MAP DLX Baritone. The result is a deep, dark, beautifully haunting and more tearful composition than the original – “stripped” down to just a Baritone, without the need for gratuitous nudity.

Check out RJ here again, riffing along with his Sidejack Baritone giving “Hey Joe” a darker bluesy vibe, then showing the versatility of a baritone in surf and western styles.

Here is Lance Keltner taking a Sidejack Baritone for a spin with his band. Note the clarity when played along with a Stormbird Bass.

The baritone is also very useful when paired with a wide variety of effects:

..and with a little dirt too to give you that garage rock sound.

..and you can have hours of fun driving the baritone through GuitarRig 4:

So there you have it. Starting at just $429, it’s time to jump on the baritone bandwagon! Take home one of Eastwood’s family of baritone guitars and add some punch to your playing and recording endeavors. You’ll be glad you did.

update Oct 5/2014: here is a link to a recent Premier Guitar review of the Airline MAP Baritone:

http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/20377-eastwood-guitars-airline-map-baritone-review

Also just announced the MAP Baritone received the 2014 “Premier Gear Award”

BARITONE GUITAR: What It Is & Why You Need One from MyRareGuitars.com

Vincent’s Guitar Workshop – Issue 7

Vince Schaljo — Mon, 14 Jul 2014 12:04:36 +0000

Before you set out on your mission to level your guitar’s frets, the fret rocker was swaying like a baby’s cradle all the way up and down the neck. Now, your baby is fast asleep as the tool stays straight as an arrow no matter where you position it on the fret board. You’re nervous about disturbing its slumber with even one more small stroke of a file, potentially ruining all the work you’ve just put into getting it level. So, what if I told you now that the next step would be to use another file to go across each fret individually before the guitar will be ready for playing?

Well, that’s what I’m telling you! But don’t worry; the process is rather painless, and as long as you use the right tools and follow this guide, you’ll have your frets properly crowned and polished in no time.

First off, what does it mean to “crown a fret” and why is it necessary? If you look at your recently levelled frets, you will notice they appear very flat on top with tons of horizontal scratch marks.

This is not a good thing because: A) it is not very visually appealing, B) the strings will scratch up and down the fret when you bend, causing a “nails on chalkboard” effect, and C) the strings will contact too large a portion of the fret, causing your intonation to be off.

When a fret is installed, its intent is for the string to contact the center of the fret and not such a large surface area. What crowning does, then, is shave off the edges of the fret to make it round on top, or at least leave a very fine flat surface down the middle. The idea is not to take a bunch more fret off the top, but instead to just round it out. You don’t want to make all the time spent levelling a waste! Here’s some things you’ll need:

(From left: Diamond crowning files, sharpie, fret erasers, masking tape)

The crowning files shown here are a tad expensive, but I find they work the best for me. There are plenty of other options out there that don’t cost you an arm and a leg. I tend to use the 150 grit as it gets the job done faster. Note: these files are double sided, each side shaped for a different width fret.

As I stated in my last article, it’s a good idea to use masking tape to tape the fret board between frets as a backup in case you slip. To save tape and time, just use two pieces and move them from fret to fret as you work your way up. I didn’t use tape for the following photos.

To begin, mark off the entire length of each fret with your sharpie like so:

(sorry about the black mark on the fretboard, there’s a chip on my camera lens.)

The marker will serve as a template for when you start to file. When you file each fret, watch as the thick marker line gets thinner and thinner. When you’re left with a very fine line down the center that’s barely visible, you know that the fret has a nice crown:

Continue this process all the way up the neck, and you’re done crowning! When you’re finished, you’ll have something that looks like this:

Before you string up the guitar, it’s a good idea to use those fret erasers to polish up the frets, followed by some compressed air to get rid of the fret filings and residue left over from the polish.

The “fret erasers” from Stewmac are good because they’re colour coded depending on the grit they are. The best is to use a combination of a couple different grits for each fret; I like the green #600 and the yellow #1000. Steel wool is a good alternative for this step.

After you’ve polished the frets, you can clean the fret board and give it a nice dose of lemon or linseed oil, and your fret board should now look something like this:

All that’s left to do now is string it up, and have fun!

Happy playing!

Airline BOBKAT: http://www.eastwoodguitars.com/airline-bobkat-red/

Vincent’s Guitar Workshop – Issue 7 from MyRareGuitars.com

Vincent’s Guitar Workshop – Issue 6

Vince Schaljo — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 15:54:28 +0000

If you’ve been following along with my articles, you’ll know that I’m not such a big fan of fret buzz. Then again, who is? Last time, I talked about how to deal with minor fret issues that could cause buzz from one or two frets. Unfortunately, it’s sometimes necessary to have to do an entire fret level to get your guitar playing properly and today I’ll go over the first steps for this procedure.

The absolute first step before you do any kind of fret leveling is to ensure that the neck is as straight as possible. I explained a good technique for doing so in my “Worksop Issue 5”, so you may refer there before reading on if you like.

There are some contraptions available to help keep a neck straight, or apply force to simulate string tension while you work (such as the Erlewine Jig), but said contraptions are relatively pricey and to explain how to use them would fill up an article on its own! For now, we’ll go without.

With a straight neck and the strings off, you can begin to map out the bad frets. Using a fret rocker or straight edge, test each fret in the same way I explained in Issue 5. This time, however, you need a way to remember where the problem areas are. With a sharpie, mark along each fret where the rocker… rocked. If you’re nervous about slipping with the marker, you can tape off the entire neck as seen in this picture:

When it comes time to filing, you can use these markings to indicate where you need to pay more attention. Keep in mind the person in this picture is likely making markings for crowning the frets – only mark the fret in the area it’s actually high in.

Once the markings are done, you can get ready to start filing! Again, as a precaution and to save from cleaning up metal “dust” afterwards, you can tape off the neck. It’s also a good idea to lower the neck pickup if you feel you may slip and hit it, and taping off the whole top section of the body will prevent fret filings from flying into the pickup cavities or onto the guitar.

There are a couple different tools you can use to file the frets, my favourite being:

These fret level bars from Stewmac. I use the 16” and the 8” as the 24” tends to be too long for the instruments I’m working on. The idea is to wrap sandpaper around the beam, and slide it back and forth on the frets to make them level with each other. The weight of the beam should be enough force on the frets, so you shouldn’t have to push down very much. I like to use a 220 grit paper, but there are many who start with a lower grit and change to a higher grit as they progress. This helps make any file marks in the frets get smaller and smaller, eventually resulting in a smoother fret. Personally I prefer to do this step afterwards while I’m crowning each fret, so I find sticking to a 220 grit works just fine.

Like I mentioned before, the markings you made are reference points while you file. Make sure you hit those points in particular with the file and essentially get rid of those markings. You can also look and see the filings coming off each fret – there will be more buildup beside the high frets of course.

While you want to make sure your frets are level, don’t overdo it! A fret only so high, and the more you file, the closer you get to needs a re-fret job. The fewer strokes it takes you to get the frets level, the better. With that in mind, it’s a good idea every few strokes to go over with the fret rocker and check those problem areas.

When you’re confident with the height of the frets, you’re done! It’s time to move on to crowning and polishing. That’ll be next time on Vincent’s Workshop. For now…

Happy playing!

Vincent’s Guitar Workshop – Issue 6 from MyRareGuitars.com

Tips on Tone – Issue 6

Vince Schaljo — Thu, 03 Jul 2014 13:11:28 +0000

Tips on Tone: issue 6

by Vince Schaljo

Here in the great white north, winters can be… well… pretty great and pretty white! Unfortunately they can also be pretty annoying for your everyday commute, just trying to get from point A to point B.
One thing that can really help keep you safe and make your drive easier is, of course, a decent set of snow tires. If you just spent a small fortune on a brand new car, the last thing you want is to slip on some ice and have the thing destroyed!

Snow tires are a small price to pay for a better drive and reduced risk of damage. What does this have to do with guitars? Nothing! But here comes my analogy anyway. If you’ve spent a small fortune on a nice guitar and a nice amp, wouldn’t it make just as much sense as snow tires to want to represent their sound to their full potential? To reduce risk of damage to components? To help the signal flow from point A to point B well?
The term “it’s just a cable” is one I hear far too often, and while it’s true that most cables can get the job done, (to a degree) not all cords are created equal. Taking good care of your cables is important, and using a quality cord where it is required can actually improve your tone. Not to mention using the wrong cords can potentially cause serious damage to some expensive equipment.

One example of an error (and I’ve been guilty of doing this myself in a pinch) would be: not using a proper speaker cable when connecting an amp head to its cabinet. Just because the connector end fits into the input doesn’t mean the cable is meant for that purpose. Speaker cables should be used with your amp to head connection at all times, while instrument cables should be used from the guitar to the amp at all times. Why? The biggest reason is the shielding (or lack thereof) in the cables. Your guitar puts out far less power than the amp does, and as such your cable will need a good amount of shielding to keep unwanted external noise out. An amp that pushes so much power out needs a cable that will allow for more electrical flow, and does not require as much (if any) shielding to keep out the unwanted noise. When you plug an instrument cable from the amp into your cabinet, it struggles to feed signal through. It’s used to the easier flow through a speaker cable. You run a huge risk of damage to your equipment by putting this kind of strain on the amp. Not to mention, the small speaker cable required to make this connection will generally not cost you as much (depending on quality) as a longer instrument cable anyway!

The flipside of this error is: using a speaker cable to plug your guitar into the amp. As I mentioned, a speaker cable typically has far less (if any) shielding. With the low output from your instrument, outside noises have a much easier time getting into the cable which can result in lots of feedback, squealing, and static. It’s a good idea to spend the extra money on a better quality instrument cable for this reason. You get what you pay for!

Make sure you buy only what you need. If you’re only ever going to be playing venues where you will never be more than 5 feet away from your amp, don’t use a cable longer than 10 feet! Just like when you throw a baseball or shoot a water gun, signal loses strength as it travels. The longer the cable, the more distance that needs to be covered which can actually have an effect on your tone and output.

Lastly, do a good job of maintaining your cables. When you’re packing up, don’t crumple them up and throw them in your car! Not only can this ruin your cables, but it also just makes it that much more difficult to untangle everything when it’s time to set up again. Learn how to properly wrap your cables, and try to keep them from being tied to each other like spaghetti. A small piece of tape or velcro around each separate cable coil is a good way to do this.

Save your money! Take care of your cables, and take care of your equipment by using the right cables!

Happy playing!

Tips on Tone – Issue 6 from MyRareGuitars.com

A Brief History Of Jack White’s Guitar Collection

Mike Robinson — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 20:28:54 +0000

In an era where guitar heroes are a dying breed, Jack White stands among the greatest guitarists of his generation. His preference for older, more primitive equipment came at a time when most guitarists were neck-deep in processors, pedals and preamps. Relying on his distinct style and killer tone, White became the touchstone for a new movement of more blues-inspired guitarists.

White used a truly unique collection of instruments to propel his no-frills style into the limelight. As you will see, his equipment choices evolved slightly through the years depending on which of his many projects he was working on. Here is a breakdown of the guitars he has used through the many phases of his career.

The White Stripes:

1964 JB Hutto Montgomery Ward Airline
This is the most iconic guitar in Jack White’s arsenal of rare axes. This model was made for Montgomery Ward department stores in the early 60s. This guitar was White’s workhorse throughout his time with the White Stripes.

Jack White with his 1964 JB Hutto Montgomery Ward Airline Guitar

White’s vintage JB Hutto Airline became so popular that Eastwood began producing a replica around 2000, however the replica features a chambered mahogany body instead of the original fiberglass model:

The new Airline 59 2P by Eastwood.

The one-pickup version from Eastwood, the Airline 59 1P, is also a good choice for players who aim to emulate Jack White’s tones:

It’s interesting to notice that during the Get Behind Me Satan tour, Jack started playing a modded Airline, with only one pickup – he removed the neck pickup and the control knobs:

24 Jun 2005, Somerset, United Kingdom — Jack White of “The White Stripes” performs on the first day of the Glastonbury music festival in Somerset. — Image by © Eddie Keogh/Reuters/Corbis

1950s Kay Hollowbody
This vintage hollowbody was one of the three guitars White used with the White Stripes. The Airline was his primary axe, but White frequently used the Kay Hollowbody as his slide guitar. Kay Instruments was one of the first companies to make an electric guitar. Blues legend Howlin’ Wolf–a major influence on White’s style–was among the most visible artists to use the Kay Hollowbody. This is the guitar White uses for “Seven Nation Army,” arguably the greatest guitar riff of the past decade.

Jack White with his 1950s Kay Hollowbody Guitar

1915 Gibson L-1 Acoustic
This guitar is commonly referred to as the Robert Johnson model. White began playing this guitar on the White Stripes’ Icky Thump album. For live performances, White uses a tape-on pickup. In an interview for Gibson’s website, White reveals that this guitar is his personal favorite.

Jack White with his 1915 Gibson L-1 Acoustic Guitar

The Raconteurs:

“Triple Green Machine”
This custom-made guitar started with a Gretsch Anniversary Junior. White enlisted Randy Parsons to modify the body and add a slew of bells and whistles, creating a truly unique instrument. He installed the same electronics from his Gretsch Triple Jet, a bigsby tailpiece, a lever-activated mute system, light-activated Theremin and a retractable bullet microphone. This guitar is also featured in the film, It Might Get Loud.

Jack White’s Triple Green Machine (Gretsch Anniversary Junior Guitar)

Gretsch Triple Jet
White is just as particular with the aesthetics of his equipment as he is with their performance. With the Raconteurs, White plated all of his equipment–pedals, amps, guitars–in bronze. This customized axe is based on a Gretsch G5445T Electromatic Double Jet. White added a third pickup (hence, “Triple Jet”) and an onboard MXR Micro Amp. The result gave White a a bronze-plated axe with built-in overdrive.

Jack White’s Gretsch Triple Jet Guitar

Dead Weather:

Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird
This guitar was intended for White’s tour with Alicia Keys in support of their James Bond theme, “Another Way To Die.” Keys had the box-shaped Bo Diddley model, and the idea was for White and Keys to re-create the image of Bo Diddley and the Duchess. When White’s neck injury sidelined that tour, he took up the same idea with Alison Mosshart in the Dead Weather.

Jack White and his 1957 Gretsch G6199 Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird Guitar

1957 Gretsch G6134 White Penguin
Another one of the rarities in Jack White’s collection. Gretsch only produced 12 of this specific model. White found the guitar while touring through Texas in 2007. The white guitar was a natural fit in White’s Dead Weather color scheme. This guitar was also used on the later White Stripes albums.

Solo/Misc.:

Fender Telecaster
This may be the tamest piece in Jack White’s guitar arsenal, but this American classic was White’s main workhorse on his solo album, Blunderbuss. In typical Jack White fashion, the guitar has been outfitted with a Bigsby and painted blue to fit with the project’s color scheme.

Jack White’s Fender Telecaster with Bigsby

Gretsch G6022CWFF Rancher Falcon Cutaway Acoustic
This guitar has been a mainstay throughout White’s career. He has said that this model is favorite acoustic to play live, because of the bass tones. Given his flair for customization, White has three Rancher Falcons, each with a portrait of a different women on the back.

White explains that the women featured on his guitars are Claudette Colbert, Rita Hayworth and Veronica Lake, which gives him a brunette, a redhead and a blonde.

Jack White with his Gretsch G6022CWFF Rancher Falcon Cutaway Acoustic Guitar

Posted by: Jason Schellhardt, writer for the cheap ticket search engine, Rukkus.

A Brief History Of Jack White’s Guitar Collection from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline Twin Tone Honeyburst – Only 12 Made

Mike Robinson — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 18:05:50 +0000

Eastwood’s tribute to the SUPRO Dual Tone is the Airline Twin Tone. This limited color run of only 12 guitars features a beautiful Honeyburst finish. Each guitar will include a $60 accessory package: gigbag, strap, instrument cable and chromatic tuner. Grab this deal before they are all gone!

Only $499. North American shipping $49, UK/Europe $149, Australia and Japan $189. $289 Elsewhere.

SPECIFICATIONS

Colours:	Honeyburst, Optional BIGSBY $139 extra
Body:	Basswood
Neck:	Maple, Bolt-on
Fingerboard:	Rosewood, Block Markers
Scale Length:	24 3/4″ (628mm) 20 frets
Width at Nut:	1 5/8″
Pickups:	Dual Hot-Rail Humbuckers
Switching:	3-Way
Controls:	2 Volume, 2 Tone Controls
Bridge:	Tune-O-Matic, Custom Chrome Tail (optional BIGSBY, $129 installed, see Accessories)
Hardware:	Vintage Kluson Style Nickel/Chrome
Strings:	D’Addario #10
Case:	gigbag accessory package INCLUDED
Unique Features:	Pin Striped Dual Pickguard
Suggested Retail:	$679.00 US

Here are some additional photos, scroll down to the bottom for videos:

Here is Duke Robillard using his Twin Tone:

…and here is RJ Ronquillo taking his for a test drive.

Airline Twin Tone Honeyburst – Only 12 Made from MyRareGuitars.com

NEW Airline Jupiter PRO – Metallic Black Finish – June 2013

Mike Robinson — Wed, 01 May 2013 18:20:50 +0000

We have a limited number of the new Airline Jupiter Pro Model coming in early June 2013. We are taking PRE-ORDERS now. (adjustment to shipping will be billed week of shipping).

This design is based around the early 60’s Silvertone Jupiter H49 which was also available with the Airline brand. Here we have upgraded our existing Airline Jupiter to create the Jupiter PRO. We’ve added a unique blend control that lets the player dial in a wide variety of tones. We have also replaced the wooden bridge with a Tone Pros Tun-o-matic, upgraded the bolt-on neck with a set maple neck and upgraded the hardware to create a solid, tour worthy guitar for today’s modern player.

This model features dual Airline Argyle pickups, three way flipper switch, two volume, two tone controls and a unique “blend” control that pans between the two pickups when the flipper is in the center position. The blend control ranges from hi-tone bridge pickup to neck pickup with the tone rolled off. Very versatile! Black finish with gold metal flake. Also check out the Jupiter PRO – Dallas Green Signature Model.

All PRE-ORDERS will receive a Body Glove Hybrid gigbag (factory list price $199) at no extra cost.

only $879. $49 Shipping to North America, $149 to UK and Europe. $189 Australia, Japan, etc. $285 South America.

Body:	Hollow-body, Maple Top, Back, Mahogany Sides
Neck:	Bound Maple, SET neck
Fingerboard:	Rosewood, Block Markers
Scale Length:	25 1/2″
Width at Nut:	1 5/8″
Pickups:	Dual Airline Argyle
Switching:	3-Way Flipper
Controls:	2 Volume, 2 Tone, 1 Blend
Bridge:	Tone Pros Tun-O-Matic
Hardware:	Gotoh style Chrome
Strings:	#10-46 DaDarrio
Case:	Hardshell Case Extra, pre-orders INCLUDE Hybrid gigbag
Unique Features:	Pickup Blend Control

All PRE-ORDERS will receive a Body Glove Hybrid gigbag (factory list price $199) at no extra cost.

NEW Airline Jupiter PRO – Metallic Black Finish – June 2013 from MyRareGuitars.com

Back Catalog Memories: 1960’s Airline “Jetsons” 2P Red Res-O-Glas Guitar

Mike Robinson — Wed, 01 May 2013 18:18:36 +0000

Airline guitars were being made in USA from 1958-1968 by Valco Manufacturing Company and sold primarily through the Montgomery Ward catalog company. Valco also made other popular brands like Supro and National. Today they are being made through Canadian company Eastwood Guitars. By the early 1960’s Airline were producing many different models – most in those early days were solid wood designs like the Town and Country, but the more valuable vintage models were made of res-o-glas. This model is often referred to as the Jetsons model.

Vintage 1960’s Airline Jetsons Red Res-O-Glas Electric Guitar

Res-O-Glas was Valco’s term for fiberglass. These guitars we made with two clamshell pieces (top and bottom of the body) that were aligned and held together with a slotted rubber grommet strip, then long machine screws through the back and into the front. There was a maple block inside the hollow body which served the purpose of mounting the neck. The necks did not have a truss rod – a major setback to these old guitars, especially 50 years later – but had a 3 screw pivot system to tilt the neck angle back and forth to adjust the action. These were covered but chrome plastic covers on the back of the body. One giveaway that a vintage version has a bad humped neck? Those covers are always missing, as someone over the past 50 years tried and tried to adjust the neck and eventually lost the covers.

Although they appear to be humbuckers, these guitars had single coil pickups with a unique tone that became popular with the blues players (not just for their tone, but more likely for their affordability vs. a new Fender Strat). That is what modern players are seeking out these old guitars, like Jack White, for the growly single coil tone. This sample had two pickups, each with its own volume and tone controls, and a unique 3-way switch labeled “Tone Switch”.

[See image gallery at www.myrareguitars.com]

Back Catalog Memories: 1960’s Airline “Jetsons” 2P Red Res-O-Glas Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

Back Catalog Memories: 1950’s Airline Town & Country Guitar

Mike Robinson — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 19:07:35 +0000

Airline guitars were being made in USA from 1958-1968 by Valco Manufacturing Company and sold primarily through the Montgomery Ward catalog company. Valco also made other popular brands like Supro and National. Today they are being made through Canadian company Eastwood Guitars. By the early 1960’s Airline were producing many different models – the more valuable vintage models were made of res-o-glas – but most in those early days were solid wood designs like this Town and Country Standard.

1950’s Airline Town & Country Standard Electric Guitar (Sunburst)

Although they appear to be humbuckers, these unique guitars had single coil pickups with a unique tone that became popular with the blues players (not just for their tone, but more likely for their affordability vs.. a new Fender Strat). That is what modern players are seeking out these old guitars, like Jack White, for the growl-y single coil tone. This sample had three pickups, each with its own volume and tone controls, and a unique 3-way switch (as opposed to the 5-way of a strat). This has its good and bad point. Good: you can have solid pre-sets for each pickup both in tone and volume that are completely unique. Bad: you miss the “in-between” tones that make the Strat so popular. A master volume rounded it out.

Another unique feature of this model was the rather crude “tone chambering” of the body. In the modern Eastwood version, it is made with the benefit of a modern CNC machine to completely route out the inside of the body, then laminate the back on to the guitar. On the 60’s version, they simply drilled huge holes in it to remove wood and remove the weight, then slapped an over-sized plastic back on it to cover up the holes. Crude but effective.

[See image gallery at www.myrareguitars.com]

Back Catalog Memories: 1950’s Airline Town & Country Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

Back Catalog Memories: Airline 3P Res-O-Glas Guitar (White Finish)

Mike Robinson — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 16:33:20 +0000

Originally, Airline branded electric and acoustic guitars were made in the United States from 1958-68 by the VALCO Manufacturing Company, and sold through Montgomery Ward catalogs. VALCO also used the brand names of National and Supro. Back in the day, many products were marketed under different brand names in three levels:

“Good” (Airline)
“Better” (Supro)
“Best” (National)

This way they could cover a wider price point by offering different hardware, etc to drive the price up.

Vintage Airline Res-O-Glas Electric Guitar (White)

Today, old Valco guitars are played by a wide array of bands and artists including David Bowie (Supro Dual Tone), The Cure (National MAP), Jack White (Airline 2P), Calexico and P.J. Harvey using this original Airline 3P Res-O-Glas, the top-of-the-line for Airline at the time. The original Res-O-Glas models were made with fiberglass bodies in two pieces, held together with screws and a rubber grommet. Unfortunately, these guitars did not have a truss rod. Instead, they had a wooden block sandwiched in the middle of the body, where the neck would mount. It had two pivot pins to raise or lower the action. The 2P model played by Jack White was known as the “Jetsons” or the JB Hutto” model, as was this beautiful 3P. The “JB Hutto” reference is a tip of the hat to the great bluesman and slide guitarist. Hutto was the first most visible guitarist to regularly use these resoglas guitars in live performances and recordings.

Here is a fine example of the original with three pickups – they were actually single coil although they look like humbuckers – a master volume and individual volume and tone for each pickup. These guitars are getting VERY hard to find and the vintage market now prices them well over $3,000. Unfortunately with the lack of a truss rod, most of the original res-o-glas guitars do not stand the test of time and typically have humped necks, poor binding and bad fretwork. That is why people like Hutto relegated them to slide use. Eastwood Guitars currently makes an excellent mahogany tone-chambered version for closer to $1,000 with modern, professional playability. Here is a link.

[See image gallery at www.myrareguitars.com]

Back Catalog Memories: Airline 3P Res-O-Glas Guitar (White Finish) from MyRareGuitars.com

Happy Customers Check in with Eastwood HQ

Mike Robinson — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 04:00:34 +0000

The Happy Guitarist

We ship a lot of guitars every month, all over the world. Rarely if ever do we get to meet our customers face to face, but fortunately, some take the time to write. It makes everyone’s day when those letters/emails come back to Eastwood HQ. Here are a few from the past couple of months.

Eastwood Sidejack Baritone Guitar (Black Finish, Left-Handed)

“My leftie baritone Eastwood arrived today! It is gorgeous and the sound right out of the case is astonishing. I’ve been dreaming about this for quite awhile and all my expectations and more were delivered! You deliver dreams. Thank you so much. Keep us lefties in mind. Rarely anyone does these days and your consideration deserves a secret handshake!” – James Spina

Eastwood Classic 12-String Guitar (Walnut Finish)

“LOVE this guitar! It’s an extremely versatile 12 string, ranging from a total acoustic sound to the 60’s Beatle/Byrds/Tom Petty sound. I use a Janglebox effects box with it and it chimes! Also, the action’s great on it. It’s easy to barre chords, and do fast runs that are more difficult with other 12 strings. This guitar makes me sound like a better player than I really am! I own a Danelectro 12 string, but the Classic 12 has a much fuller sound being it’s a hollow body. I’m very happy!” – William Evans

“Guitar looks beautiful and plays like a dream. Excellent craftsmanship and bang for the buck. A great instrument!” – Robert Porembski

Eastwood Stormbird Bass Guitar (Metallic Blue Finish)

“What a very impressive example of this old gibson bass guitar design. This is my first experience with eastwood guitar. I am very happy with this bass and I am looking forward to owning it for years to come. Thank You very much for creating this trully killer bass guitar.” – Jon David Lippens

Eastwood EEB-1 Bass Guitar (Black Finish)

“The bass is fantastic and belies it price, excellent setup really helped show the bass in it’s best light. I just wanted to tell you how pleased I am with the bass and the whole experience. Much of my purchasing is completed on line (I live out of town by a beach) and so it is always a little worrying spending money with people I don’t know, but you made it easy and have really delivered with your product and its price.” – Paul West

Airline ’59 Custom 3P Guitar (G Love Signature Model)

“Thanks for the speedy delivery of my new Airline ’59 custom 3p G Love Signature. Wow what a cool guitar! The neck is perfect, very well intonation and low action. Really easy to play.” – Martin Hammare (Sweden)

Airline Tuxedo Guitar (Black Finish)

“I know I sound like a broken record but just wanted to say Tuxedo is beautiful and kicks you know what sound wise. Just spent the afternoon going from sweet clean sounding country blues to chest thumping boogie on overdriven sound. Construction is flawless. I salute your quality control which is sadly lacking in some of the top US made guitars.” – Michael Cefola.

Eastwood Mandocaster (Sunburst Finish, Left-Handed)

“Just wanted to let you know that I received the Mandocaster just now and am having a hard time getting back to work.I don’t want to stop playing it. Whoever does the setup on these instruments deserves a raise.Very low action,no buzz,intonation is spot on.Very nice quality instrument. It was just what I was looking for and I love the case it came in.Thanks for helping out us leftys.I will spread the word.” – Chris Thomas

Eastwood Warren Ellis Signature Tenor Guitar (Vintage Cream Finish)

“Just received my new W.E. Tenor and am compelled to write.When I was a kid I wanted to play the tenor banjo, ya know, Eddy Peabody, Dixeyland and all that stuff so my mom got me a little wonder tenor banjo, lessons and the rest is unfortunate history until this week. When I got into my late teens and early 20s and playin with other guys, Oh how I wished I had asked to play the 6 string guitar. Now having 3 sons, 2 of which are musicians, there are many trips to the music store. Ah yes, literally hundreds of guitars hanging on the walls and nothing for me. NOTHING! Until now. This jewel from it’s wider neck to the length of the scale is the nearest thing to tenor guitar perfection that I have held in my 61 years. And yes, I chose the vintage cream. Just beautiful. Not even my Martin 018-Ts really play in tune all that well. It seemed like all the other electric tenor attempts were really converted 6 string formats. Guild, Gibson, Harmony, etc. Not anymore. You guys have nailed this and I love it. Not only is it beautiful, but it feels great, plays in tune and finally a real electric guitar for ME! Will definitely be sharing with my other Goofball tenor playing friends. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Sincerely,” – Stephen De

Airline ’59 Custom 3P Guitar (White Finish)

“I just unwrapped the ’59 Airline 3p last week. It’s like love with a new woman. I was knocked out by the comfort and playability. The design is not just radical. It’s real. In forty years I’ve never played an axe that has it all. Sound, versatility, smooth action, and best of all — It’s a total knockout! I have 5 guitars. No junk. I own a Guild Nightbird; a ’64 Telecaster; a Danelectro Baritone, and a classic Gibson Les Paul Double Cutaway. In the ’60’s I got a Gretsch Country Gentleman w/Bigsby. The Airline does everything I was doing by changing out gear onstage. The unlimited sound settings of separate tone/volume knobs for each of the three pickups makes the sonics unmatched. I thought the Vintage voice single coil pickups might be limiting, but they create a foundation of graphics that unwraps into a full array of effects. I’ve heard a nasty lipturned overdrive snarl, a smooth womanly warmth, and a fully honed razor edge knife cut lead. This guitar whips the air unleashing slashes of sound when needed, or fills the background completely by expansive rhythm tones. The Bigsby gives the freedom of surf sounds, or bluesy bends with a wrist flick. Maybe it exists, but in forty years of professional playing, I’ve never seen a more powerful, responsive, eye-grabbing instrument. I can’t thank you enough. This will be my last guitar.” – Greyson Dyne

Happy Customers Check in with Eastwood HQ from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline ’59 Coronado Introduces Two New Models

Mike Robinson — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 13:56:24 +0000

Last year Eastwood released the Airline ’59 Coronado. This September brings two new additions: a Left-Hand version in white and a stunning new Metallic Blue version with white binding. Same price for all, $1199, includes DLX hardshell case and FREE Shipping* until September 30th.

Airline ’59 Coronado Electric Guitar (White, Left-Handed)

Airline ’59 Coronado Electric Guitar (Metallic Blue)

Check out this video demo:

More pics of the metallic blue ’59 Coronado:

Airline ’59 Coronado Electric Guitar (Metallic Blue)

Airline ’59 Coronado Introduces Two New Models from MyRareGuitars.com

Eastwood Special Order Guitars – Order Yours Today!

Mike Robinson — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 05:23:34 +0000

Airline Map Electric Guitar (Custom Color: Black)

Is there an Eastwood or Airline guitar you’ve always wanted but in a different color? Different hardware? Or perhaps a left-hand model of something that is only available in right-hand? Well now it may be possible to have whatever you want. Read on…

Earlier this year a customer came to us asking for a custom shop guitar. He wanted an Airline MAP guitar, but he wanted it with gold hardware, gold switchplate and gold pickguard. Our standard reply was, “Any time we introduce a new color/model, our factory has to make a minimum of 8 pcs, so if you want to buy 8 of them, we’ll do it”. Typically at this point the customer will say, “Oh, I guess that’s out of the question then”.

But this customer was different. He said, “I’m willing to pay a LOT more for this, so name your price and let’s get it done!”. That got me thinking. I liked his concept of the gold hardware MAP model and I thought it would appeal to some of our existing customers, but did not want to make 8 of them only to sell just one. So I went back to him and suggested the following arrangement:

Send us deposit of $3,000 to commit to the order, and within 3-6 months, the 8 custom guitars will be completed.
Once complete, we send him his one guitar.
Then we offer the next 7 guitars at $999 each (including hardshell case) to our customers via www.myrareguitars.com
Once we have sold 4 of them, we refund $2001 back to him, making his cost on the custom guitar of his design only $999.

He agreed, and here is the guitar (sorry, they SOLD OUT within the first week!!).

So if there is something you are looking for that we do not currently make, send me an email and we can talk about it: michael@myrareguitars.com

More pictures of the Airline Map in black:

Airline Map Electric Guitar (Custom Color: Black)

Eastwood Special Order Guitars – Order Yours Today! from MyRareGuitars.com

New Eastwood & Airline Electric Bass Models – Moving Upscale

Mike Robinson — Sun, 24 Jun 2012 14:00:23 +0000

I started Eastwood Guitars over 10 years ago. Since then we have created dozens of guitar and bass models, focusing primarily on the 50’s and 60’s replica variety. As a guitar player, when called upon to play bass, I’ve always been more comfortable with the short 30″ scale as opposed to the traditional 34″ scale. They just feel right to me, and as most of the designs we tend to replicate from that era, they too were of the short scale variety. Consequently, most of the bass models we have introduced through the Eastwood and Airline brands have been short scale.

New 34" Scale Electric Bass Models from Eastwood Guitars & Airline Guitars

What is the downside to the short scale bass?

Shorter strings have less tension, and therefore the tone tends to sounds tubbier or even muddy, and with far less sustain. Not a bad thing for many 60’s style applications, but does not give you a huge, booming tone.
Longer scale basses have more overtones, clarity and punch.
30-inch scale feels noticeably short or awkward to a P-bass player and may be tough to make the adjustment.

Although I still feel every bass players needs a short scale bass in their arsenal, I too feel that Eastwood should have more 34″ scale options for our customers. In fact, we have had many customers over the years asking us to reach out to the 34″ crowd. So that time has come and we are now introducing 3 new Bass models this summer:

The Hurricane ($429)
The Stormbird ($469)
The 34″ Airline Map ($879)

Enjoy!

Order before June 30th and we will throw in a $99 hardshell case for FREE.

New Eastwood & Airline Electric Bass Models – Moving Upscale from MyRareGuitars.com

New Limited Edition ’59 Airline Catalina 2P LTD Guitar

Mike Robinson — Sat, 02 Jun 2012 05:34:54 +0000

Vintage Car Illustrations Inspire New Series of Limited Edition Airline Guitars

For years many of the naming and color schemes found in vintage guitars can also be found in the vintage automobile market. Last year while surfing the net for new color ideas, I stumbled upon a fantastic blog from Rickworks that features illustrations of the some of the finest classic cars ever to rule the road.

The Airline ’59 series has a unique rubber binding around the perimiter of each guitar, so this offers us the unique opportunity to have a two-tone color scheme on the front and back. We’ve decided to produce an exclusive limited edition series – only 24 of each model – that will be inspired from the Richworks blog. The first in the series is the “Airline Catalina”. Here is a photo of the 1955 Pontiac 870 Catalina:

1955 Pontiac 870 Catalina Car

Below are some photos of the guitar. Each will include an Airline DLX hardshell case, vintage style Airline Leather Strap and a signed Certificate of Authenticity. We will release only one new “59 Two-Tone” model each year, so grab your collectable guitar now! The Catalina is only $1079 including DLX Form-Fit Airline Tweed case, vintage Airline Strap (optional Bigsby B-50 add $139)

Pictures of the Airline Catalina:

Limited Edition Airline Catalina Electric Guitar (Two Tone Yellow/Black)

Take a look at the other car images in this fantastic blog from Rickworks and let me know which one you think we should do next!

New Limited Edition ’59 Airline Catalina 2P LTD Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline Introduces New 34″ Scale MAP Bass

Mike Robinson — Thu, 17 May 2012 17:46:51 +0000

Eastwood’s Top Selling Bass gets BIGGER!

The NEW 34″ scale Airline Map Bass in Seafoam Green!

For a few years now customers have been asking us for a “Bass Players” version of the popular Airline MAP Bass. Well, that day has come. We only have 12 of these new models in stock, so if you are ready to rumble, hit the BUY NOW button right away as they are shipping now and won’t last long. Special Price only $879

SPECIFICATIONS
Body: Tone Chambered Mahogany
Neck: Bound Maple, Bolt-on
Fingerboard: Rosewood, Block Markers
Scale Length: 34″
Width at Nut: 1 5/8″
Pickups: Two Alnico Hot-10 Humbuckers
Switching: 3-Way
Controls: 2 Volume, 1 Tone
Bridge: Tune-o-matic bridge, trapeze tail
Hardware: Grover Style Nickel/Chrome
Strings: D’Addario #45-#100
Case: extra
Unique Features: NATIONAL Style Striped Pickguard
Suggested Retail: $1099.00 US

I’m not sure who this fella is, but he has some nice things to say about Eastwood and Airline models:

Stephan Wickham: Eastwood Guitars basses and guitars are real sleepers for most people. It will surprise many that they have large acceptance with musicians in alternative genres such as West Coast Punk, grunge and modern alternative rock. Eastwoods are popular with some top players like John Fogerty, Mick Karn and groups like Foo Fighters. People expect the build quality of original Danelectro (e.g. particleboard bodies) and Valco / National guitars / basses and are surprised to see Eastwood Guitar reproductions that there are improvements, such as the body tonewood. While the Airline MAP bass carries Airline name it is actually based on Valco 1962 Val-Pro 85 bass. It produces a killer low rider tone and works best with a medium-to- fast player. In addition to punk, grunge it fits well with 60s rock, Grateful-Dead tone, reggae, modern country & blues. The body is chambered mahogany, rather than acrylic resin / fibreglass of original Val-Pro 85. I would swap out the bridge, nut and knobs to better quality components and it would be good to go. For people that don’t like the Sea-Foam Green, it also is available in White or Black. In Black it comes with black & white pick guard with white binding on body, which gives it a bit of art-deco Duesenberg design flavour. The addition of a 34″ scale to the Eastwood Airline MAP bass product line offers an excellent tone alternative to original 30″ short-scale model and more familiar length for most bassists.

More Pictures of the new 34-inch scale Airline Map Bass:

The NEW 34″ scale Airline Map Bass in Seafoam Green!

Airline Introduces New 34″ Scale MAP Bass from MyRareGuitars.com

Lap Steel Guitar – You Need One!

Guest Post — Tue, 01 May 2012 14:00:24 +0000

I don’t remember what drove me to my first lap steel. Maybe I needed a new sound for a song my band was working on, or perhaps I just felt like my guitar playing was in a rut. Whatever the reason, once I discovered it I was instantly hooked.

I started with an old Electromuse (it looked like a boat paddle), and then had to figure out what to do with it, and so I commenced the seemingly endless quest for the right tuning, picks, bar, and tone. Now, this was before we all had the Interwebs at our fingertips (back when I’d visit the library once a week to review the three emails I’d acquired since last login), so how-to videos via youtube simply were not an option. I was left to my own devices.

Electromuse Lap Steel Guitar Pickup

I plunked away on my steel, but I was missing something. My sound was thin, and noisy, and out of tune…nothing like what I was hearing in my head. I chipped away at it without much luck, until I met Spider Webb Welten.

Willbern “Spider Webb” Welten owned a music store in Sparta, IL (also noteworthy as the film-shooting locale for some scenes from the original movie version of In The Heat Of The Night). Welton’s was a small, quirky store that shared its quarters with a wig shop/hair salon run by his wife, and it featured a few glass counters, about twelve guitars wrapped in plastic (for that cozy, backwoods, Invasion of the Body Snatchers ambiance), and some miscellaneous cases which, I would soon find out, housed lap steels and pedal steels.

Upon my first visit I took in the air, tainted with the chemical aroma of hair product, as a skinny, elderly man came out from the back and asked how he could help me. As soon as I told him I was looking for a set of steel strings, the old man perked up. ” C6TH, E9TH or both?” he inquired, and I could already tell I was in way over my head. “Uh…it’s for a lap steel?” The old man frowned and corrected me, “it’s not a ‘lap steel,’ it’s a straight steel, son” and he walked behind the counter and pulled out a pack of 6-string “straight steel” strings. Then he took out a card and scratched down A/C#/E/A/C#/E, with the words ” Top A Tuning ” underneath. As I paid for my strings, I asked if he had any other tips. In the course of the next hour, Webb pulled out three lap steels (straight steels), three pedal steels, an assortment of finger picks, and a magazine that had his picture on the cover. I realized that this was the guy, and I had happened to find him in middle-of-nowhere-southern-Illinois by complete chance.

Following are some of the tips that I learned from Spider Webb that day. These small nuggets of information that the steel guru shared have been invaluable, and I hope they will also help you on your journey to steel enlightenmen:

Get some heavier strings. Most steels come with fairly light strings, but thin strings equal thin tone, and this is especially true for the lap steel (which is the name I still call it by…sorry Webb). I typically use a custom gauge that consists of .056-.016, and I feel they produce a nice, fat tone, whether played clean or overdriven.
Use two metal finger picks and a plastic thumb pick. This is the key to speed and articulation, and will help you cut through a band better than simply using your fingers. I prefer a medium Pro-Pic that is heavy enough that I can barely bend it, and a heavy, large National thumb pick. I often use a lighter, blue Herco pick, which I also use for the banjo and the pedal steel, because I’m too lazy to carry multiple thumb picks with me, but the heavy Nationals give me a much fuller tone. Fingers without picks can give you a really great tone as well, so you may experiment both ways.
Keep your fingers on the strings behind the bar. This was a huge eye-opener for me, as it allowed me to get a truly defined tone without any noise. It also helps to keep the bar straight and accurate for better intonation.
Play on the line. This takes a little time to get used to, but you always want to keep your bar directly over the fret marker. Playing in the space will cause you to be flat.
It’s not fine china, so don’t be afraid to use some pressure and push down on the strings with the bar. You will get a much better tone this way.
Use a volume pedal. Starting with the pedal about 20-30% engaged will give you plenty of room to add sustain to notes when needed.
Use vibrato the way a singer would. Play the note clear and solid, and then add a slow vibrato by rolling and moving the bar back and forth. This is one of the more difficult techniques to learn, and it takes some time to accomplish.

Here are a couple of videos of me playing the Airline Lap Steel Guitar, available from www.eastwoodguitars.com for only $349:

1) Hawaiian Tone

2) Kick Butt Blues Tone:

I’ve owned two of Eastwood’s Airline lap steels, and I believe they are the best steel on the market for the money. The Airline has plenty of string height at the nut, and a bit wider string spacing than other steels in the same price range. The body has plenty of mass and weight, giving the steel a great tone, both clean and driven. Add a bit of delay and fuzz for an over the top tone, or try some modulation effects or a POG for a cool organ effect.

Written by: Dave Anderson

Dave Anderson

Lap Steel Guitar – You Need One! from MyRareGuitars.com

New Airline RS-II Guitar Demo Video by Mason Stoops

Mike Robinson — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 04:07:51 +0000

Mason does it again with some great playing and a quick history lesson on the Airline RS-II. Enjoy the show!

We have a new shipment of RS-II guitars coming in 2 weeks –> Order before April 30th for FREE Shipping!
(North America only)

Airline RS-II Electric Guitar (Natural Flamed Maple Finish)

Airline RS-II Specifications:

Airline RS-II Demo – Mason Stoops – Eastwood Guitars.
Body: Maple top, back and sides.
Neck: Set, bound one-piece, straight-grained Canadian maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood, Block Markers
Scale Length: 26″ with 12″ radius
Width at Nut: 1 11/16″
Pickups: Two AIRLINE Vintage Argyle Diamonds
Switching: 3-Way, Chicken Head Knob
Controls: 2 Volume, 2 Tone
Bridge: Tune-O-Matic, Trapeze Tail
Hardware: Vintage Kluson Style Nickel/Chrome
Strings: D’Addario #10
Case: Extra
Unique Features: Roy Smeck Pickguard

BUY NOW: $749.00 US

New Airline RS-II Guitar Demo Video by Mason Stoops from MyRareGuitars.com

Eastwood Celebrity Sightings (January 2012)

Mike Robinson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:36:04 +0000

1) Tom Hamilton – Aerosmith – Airline MAP Bass

2) G. Love and Special Sauce – Custom Airline 3P ’59

G Love - Custom Airline 3P '59 Guitar

3) Miss Alex White – White Mystery Band – Classic 6

Miss Alex White (White Mystery Band) - Eastwood Classic 6 Guitar

4) Jay Codina – Blue Tattoo – Classic 6 Lefty

Jay Codina (Blue Tattoo) - Eastwood Classic 6 Lefty Guitar

5) Casey Crescenzo – The Dear Hunter – Coronado ’59 Custom

Casey Crescenzo (The Dear Hunter) - Coronado '59 Custom Guitar

6) Bill Nelson – Airline MAP

Bill Nelson with his Airline Map Guitar

7) Ripley Johnson – The Wooden Shjips – Airline 3P DLX

Ripley Johnson (The Wooden Shjips) - Airline 3P DLX Guitar

8) Tara Elliott and the Red Velvets – Airline 2P

Tara Elliot (The Red Velvets) - Airline 2P Guitar

9) Simonne Jones – Airline ’59 1P

Simonne Jones - Airline '59 1P Guitar

10) Milos Angelov – Matthew Good – Classic 4 Bass

Milos Angelov (Matthew Good) - Eastwood Classic 4 Bass

11) Abraham Millett – Third Eye Blind – Classic 4 Bass

Abraham Millett (Third Eye Blind) - Eastwood Classic 4 Bass

12) Creepoid – Classic 6

Creepoid - Eastwood Classic 6 Guitar

13) Rico – FOREVER THE SICKEST KIDS – Airline Town & Country

Rico (Forever The Sickest Kids) - Airline Town & Country Guitar

In Studio with Obie O’Brien – Classic 4 Bass

Obie O'Brien in studio with his Eastwood Classic 4 Bass

Eastwood Celebrity Sightings (January 2012) from MyRareGuitars.com

Two New Left-Hand Models: Folkstar and ’59 2P (February 2012)

Mike Robinson — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 02:50:00 +0000

Eastwood has just released their Airline ’59 2P and Folkstar models in Left-hand. Both models start shipping week of Feb 7th. The ’59 will be available in Red, the Folkstar in Red or Black.

Airline '59 2P Electric Guitar (LEFT-HAND) from Eastwood Guitars

The ’59 2P upgrades include: dual VVSC pickups, striped pickgaurd, chrome tone switchplate, rubber body binding and includes the DLX Airline hardshell case. Retail price $1299.

Our Price: $999.00 US

_________________________________________________________________________

The Airline Folkstar is a tone cahmbered mahogany body with a resonator cone adn piezo pickup. It also has a mini humbucker on the neck poistion and a blend knob to blend between the two pickups.

Airline Folkstar Resophonic Guitar (Red, Left-Handed)

Airline Folkstar Resophonic Guitar (Black, Left-Handed)

Shipping is $49 North America, $149 to Europe.

Two New Left-Hand Models: Folkstar and ’59 2P (February 2012) from MyRareGuitars.com

YouTube Your Eastwood (January 2012)

Mike Robinson — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 15:00:28 +0000

Lots of people are getting their music out there on YouTube these days. If you put up something creative – featuring EASTWOOD or AIRLINE guitars – we will give you a shout out in our monthly newsletter. Here are the latest ones…

Roscoe Does BECK – Eastwood Ichiban

Jeffrey Beauchamp Art Show Promo – Airline Tuxedo

Floating Action – Eastwood Classic 12

Missle – Airline 2P and MAP Bass

Gearwire.com – Airline Mandola

THE BLACK LIPS using an AIRLINE TWIN TONE

The Surf Aces with AIRLINE MAP Guitar and BASS. WOW!

..and the Joey Leone Signature goes south with a great Chilean band, called “Voodoo Zombie”

Dutch band DEE STAAT featuring EASTWOOD Delta 6

Dirty Pavor – Knobs & Switches

Unfortunate Science – featuring Eastwood WANDRE DLX

Hospital Beds – featuring AIRLINE MAP

YouTube Your Eastwood (January 2012) from MyRareGuitars.com

New Airline Coronado ’59 Demo by Mason Stoops

Mike Robinson — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 17:38:43 +0000

New Airline Coronado ’59 Demo

Check out this new demo from our friend Mason Stoops. Mason does some great research and shares some interesting historical info about the origins of the Coronado model. Great job!

The Airline ’59 Coronado is our tribute to the Supro Coronado model used by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. The originals were made of Res-O-Glas, but we have upgraded the design to tone-chambered mahogany bodies. Upgrades to the standard Coronnado model on this ’59 include rubber body binding, zero fret, Tone Pros bridge and Deluxe Airline hardshell case.

The ’59 Coronado include the DLX Airline hardshell case. Only $1079.

SPECIAL OFFER: We will also include a white Airline leather strap ($45) and a white Airline Curly Cord ($39) and FREE SHIPPING for all orders until Dec 15 ONLY. ($99 shipping outside North America)

New Airline Coronado ’59 Demo by Mason Stoops from MyRareGuitars.com

Mason Stoops Demos The Airline Folkstar Resonator Guitar

Mike Robinson — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:16:43 +0000

Hey everyone, here is Mason Stoops from California. Mason has been a customer of My Rare Guitars since we first met at NAMM in 2005. He is a talented player and we are very proud to have him helping out with some guitar demos. Good thing we have them in stock at www.myrareguitars.com, because after you watch this video, you’ll want one!

Only $699. Order before October 31 and get a FREE hardshell case!

Airline Folkstar Resonator Guitar

Mason Stoops Demos The Airline Folkstar Resonator Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

TWO New AIRLINE Single Pickup Models – $549 DLX and $899 ’59 Custom

Mike Robinson — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 11:43:49 +0000

AIRLINE delivers TWO new Single Pickup Models – 1P DLX $549 and the ’59 Custom $899. The original Airline’s were made of Res-O-Glas and had a floating bridge. Eastwood has upgraded the design to a tone-chambered mahogany body / fixed bridge and reduced the signal path to a single pickup/volume control, allowing for crystal clear roll off tones to full on power crunch.

FREE SHIPPING until October 31.

Eastwood Airline 1P DLX Electric Guitar

Airline 1P DLX – $549 – Features tone-chambered mahogany body, bolt-on maple neck. Single Alnico HOT-10 Humbucker (case extra).

Or upgrade to the new Airline ’59 Custom 1P…

Eastwood Airline '59 Custom 1P Electric Guitar

Airline ’59 Custom 1P – $899 – Adds the Airline Vintage Voiced Single Coil pickup, striped pickguard, rubber body binding, Tone Pro’s Bridge, Wilkinson tuners, and the Airline DLX hardshell case.

Video Review:

TWO New AIRLINE Single Pickup Models – $549 DLX and $899 ’59 Custom from MyRareGuitars.com

New Model: Airline ’59 Custom Coronado Guitar

Mike Robinson — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 14:00:33 +0000

Airline '59 Custom Coronado Electric Guitar (White) from Eastwood Guitars

Eastwood Guitars has some new Airline models out this month, notably the ’59 Custom Coronado – a tribute to the old Supro used by Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys. The originals were made of Res-O-Glas and had a floating bridge. Eastwood has upgraded the design to a tone-chambered mahogany body and an adjustable roller bridge. Other upgrades to the standard Coronado model on this ’59 include rubber body binding, a zero fret for super fast low action, a Tone Pros bridge and Deluxe Airline hardshell case.

Pricing and Availability:
’59 Custom Coronado: $1079.00 US

Airline '59 Custom Coronado Electric Guitar (White) from Eastwood Guitars

New Model: Airline ’59 Custom Coronado Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

Eastwood Celebrity Sightings (August 2011)

Mike Robinson — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 16:00:39 +0000

1) Mr. Uzaki Ryudo – Airline 2P Guitar (Red)

Mr. Uzaki Ryudo with his Airline 2P Guitar (Red)

2) Peter Silberman from The Antlers – Airline Town & Country Guitar

Peter Silberman from The Antlers with his Airline Town & Country Guitar

3) EELS – Sunburst Airline Bass

4) Voodoo Zombie’s Lu Cifer – Joey Leone Superfast (photo credit: Fotos: Ignacio Orrego G. – Fotorock):

Voodoo Zombie's Lu Cifer with his Joey Leone Superfast Guitar

Eastwood Celebrity Sightings (August 2011) from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline Folkstar Resonator is Back in Stock!

Mike Robinson — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 15:00:25 +0000

We’ve been SOLD OUT of the popular Airline Folkstar model for a long time but will begin shipping again this month, get your order in soon before they sell out again!

Airline Folkstar Resonator Guitar

Here are some video demos to get you in the mood:

Airline Folkstar Resonator is Back in Stock! from MyRareGuitars.com

John Varvatos Bloomingdales Window Display Features 100 Eastwood Guitars

Mike Robinson — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:00:13 +0000

John Varvatos Bloomingdales Window Display Features 100 Eastwood Guitars

As we speak, about 100 Eastwood guitars and Airline guitars are being installed in a window display in Bloomingdales on 3rd Ave, New York City for two weeks with John Varvatos. The display ends June 26th.

Send us a photo of you in front if this display, pointing at your favorite guitar!

John Varvatos Bloomingdales Window Display Features 100 Eastwood Guitars from MyRareGuitars.com

New from Eastwood Guitars: Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar

Mike Robinson — Mon, 02 May 2011 15:00:43 +0000

New from Eastwood Guitars: The Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar (Red, Sunburst & Green finishes)

We have a small pre-shipment of the new BIGHORN ready to ship today. Based on the original 1960’s AIRLINE Bighorn, it features an updated adjustable bridge and the popular Diamond Argyle single coil pickups. The first four orders for each color will receive a gigbag, tuner and strap so that your Bighorn will be ready to rock the day UPS delivers! Order yours today, only $469.

Airline Bighorn Guitar Specifications:

Colors: Red, Sunburst, Green
Body: One Piece Basswood
Neck: Bolt-on Maple
Fingerboard: Rosewood, Dot Markers
Scale Length: 24 3/4″
Width at Nut: 1 5/8″
Pickups: AIRLINE Argyle Diamond Single Coil
Switching: 3-way
Controls: 2 Volume, 2 tone
Bridge: Hardtail Strat Style Adjustable
Tuners: Chrome Vintage Kluson Style
Retail Price: $579

BUY NOW ONLY $469

Video Review:

More Pics of the Airline Bighorn:

The Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar (Red)

The Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar (Sunburst)

The Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar (Green)

New from Eastwood Guitars: Airline Bighorn Electric Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

New! Custom Vintage Airline Leather Guitar Straps

Mike Robinson — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 14:00:24 +0000

AIRLINE has released some cool new Made in Canada leather straps that look like they came out of a 1960’s Sears Catalog. This hi-end all leather thinline stap has white stitching and padded non-slip shoulder pads. Their unique look lets you stand out from the crowd . Grab one from Eastwood Guitars, only $45 + shipping.

Custom Airline Vintage Guitar Straps (Leather)

New! Custom Vintage Airline Leather Guitar Straps from MyRareGuitars.com

Winter NAMM 2011 Recap

Mike Robinson — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 15:00:05 +0000

Another wild and wacky NAMM show has come and gone. Good to see a lot of you out there this year and thanks for your continued support. Special thanks to Scott Hager, Wendell Ferguson, Carl Cook, Rob Roberge and Dave Robinson for their help at the booth. They also helped devour a good weeks worth of food and booze! Another successful NAMM Show. Here are a couple of picture and videos.

Airline Guitars: Winter NAMM Booth 2011

The Airline Guitars Booth at Winter NAMM 2011

Twin Peaks Moment

Guitar.com Interview

Strange Alien Visit

An Alien Stops by the Airline Guitars Booth at Winter NAMM 2011

Guitar Geek Festival on MSNBC

A Nice WANDRE Comes Home

Me & My Wandre Guitar!

Musicians Network Interview

Winter NAMM 2011 Recap from MyRareGuitars.com

Eastwood & Airline Celebrity Sightings

Mike Robinson — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:00:27 +0000

Over the past few months we’ve had many Eastwood and Airline celebrity sightings, so I thought I’d share a few to bring you up to date. Here’s the quick list:

Deerhoof’s Edward Rodriguez (Airline Tuxedo guitar)
Cheap Trick’s Rick Nielsen (Airline Map Guitar)
Nick Cave (Airline Tuxedo guitar)
Luke Doucet (Airline Map guitar at the Lilith Fair)
Super Satellites’ Christian Olguin (Airline Tuxedo Guitar)
1980 Ovation Breadwinner & Eastwood Breadwinner guitars
Hot Chelle Rae’s Nash Overstreet (Airline Map Guitar)
Amanda Zelina (Custom Airline 2P Guitar in Sahara Blue)
Design Star’s Antonio Ballatore &Timothy Gruse (Airline Map Guitar & Bass)

Deerhoof's Edward Rodriguez (Airline Tuxedo guitar)

Here is Edward Rodriguez from DEERHOOF with his AIRLINE Tuxedo.
Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen (Airline Map Guitar)
Lou Vito, one of Eastwood Gutiars Artist Relations people, snapped this one of Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick with his AIRLINE MAP guitar.
Nick Cave (Airline Tuxedo guitar)
This one is a number of months back, but a nice shot of Nick Cave with his AIRLINE TUXEDO. Nick’s band, GRINDERMAN will be touring this fall. Grinderman’s main instrumentalist – Warren Ellis – has been working with us on releasing the Warren Ellis Signature TENOR guitar, coming next month! Here is a sneak peak photo of the Tenor.
Luke Doucet (Airline Map guitar at the Lilith Fair)

Warren Ellis Signature Tenor guitar from Eastwood Guitars

Here is Luke Doucet using his AIRLINE MAP guitar on tour last month with Lilith Fair.
Super Satellites' Christian Olguin (Airline Tuxedo Guitar)
Another great photo from Lou Vito featuring Christian Olguin from NYC group, Super Satellites with his AIRLINE TUXEDO guitar.
1980 Ovation Breadwinner & Eastwood Breadwinner guitars
Not really a “celebrity” citing, but here is an original Ovation Breadwinner from 1980 pictured next to a new Eastwood Breadwinner. Cool!
Hot Chelle Rae's Nash Overstreet (Airline Map Guitar)
Another summer Warped Tour with Nash Overstreet from Hot Chelle Rae featuring his AIRLINE MAP in Seafoam Green.
Amanda Zelina (Custom Airline 2P Guitar in Sahara Blue)
Amanda Zelina dropped by Eastwood HQ to pickup her custom AIRLINE 2P Sahara Blue.
Design Star's Antonio Ballatore &Timothy Gruse (Airline Map Guitar & Bass)
And who would have guessed? Antonio Ballatore and Timothy Gruse from H+G TV’s popular show, Design Star with their AIRLINE MAP Bass and Guitar. Really? Is there no end to the “I Get It” craze!!?! I guess not…

Eastwood & Airline Celebrity Sightings from MyRareGuitars.com

The New Airline Electric Mandola

Mike Robinson — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 04:19:09 +0000

Eastwood Guitars began shipping the new Airline Electric Mandola this week. This is the third in a series of new stringed instruments from Eastwood, which includes the Airline Folkstar Resonator, Airline Ukulele and the upcoming Eastwood Electric Tenor Guitar.

Eastwood Airline Electric Mandola (Seafoam Green)

Following on the success of their top selling Mandocaster, Eastwood introduces the Airline Mandola. It features a solid Seafoam green alder body in a USA map shape with an 18” scale maple neck and rosewood fingerboard. A single Humbucker pickup with volume and tone controls delivers a deep, dark, mysterious tone that is completely unique sounding – like a baritone mandolin. The Mandola is tuned in fifths (C-G-D-A low-to-high) and a fifth lower than a mandolin. Historically, the larger Mandola is the actually ancestor of the Mandolin, the name of which means simply “little Mandola”.

“As with all our Eastwood and Airline models we are striving to offer something a little different for today’s modern players,” said Mike Robinson, President and founder of Eastwood Guitars, “Last year we introduced a Lap Steel and a very successful electric Mandocaster. The Mandola fits perfectly into this new family of instruments along with the Folkstar, Ukulele and Tenor. All of these models will continue to help our customers expand their sound.”

Airline Electric Mandola

Only $349

The New Airline Electric Mandola from MyRareGuitars.com

2009 Airline Guitar Contest Winner!

Mike Robinson — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 13:00:03 +0000

Congratulations to Beth McKeever from MN, USA. Here she is posing with her new ’59 Custom Airline 2P guitar. Great photo:

Congratulations to Beth McKeever from MN, USA

Here is Francois Ducrohet from Bagnolet France, who won the Draw Prize for the Airline 2P Guitar:

Francois Ducrohet from Bagnolet, France

Congratulations and thanks to all who entered!

2009 Airline Guitar Contest Winner! from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline Tuxedo Guitar in Metallic Copper Finish

Mike Robinson — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 13:00:46 +0000

Close-up pictures of the Airline Tuxedo guitar – now available in Metallic Copper!

Eastwood Airline Tuxedo Guitar with Copper Finish

Airline Tuxedo Guitar in Metallic Copper Finish from MyRareGuitars.com

Airline H44 Guitar in Taxi Cab Yellow

Mike Robinson — Thu, 01 May 2008 13:00:04 +0000

Close-up pictures of the Airline H44 guitar – now available in Taxi Cab Yellow!

Eastwood Airline H44 Guitar in Taxi Cab Yellow

Airline H44 Guitar in Taxi Cab Yellow from MyRareGuitars.com

1960’s Supro Airline Pocket Bass Guitar

Rob Roberge — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 13:00:18 +0000

What’s the best bass for guitar players? What’s arguably the coolest bass ever made? What’s got bottom that’s so huge, warm, and round that Mr. “I like Big Butts” Sir Mix a Lot would pen a moving ode to it? If you guessed the Valco-made Supro and/or Airline Pocket bass, you guessed right.

1960's Supro Airline Pocket Bass Guitar

What makes it so special? Let’s start with the delightful design, typical of early to mid 60’s Valco. The Supros came in black, with transparent thumb and finger rests on either side of the body and the white (and sometimes, rarely, black) headstock. The Airline came in the Ice-Tea sunburst and white pickguard wings. Some of the Airline models came with a bound neck; some did not. For my hand, I dig the unbound, thinner neck, but that’s all to taste, I suppose. Either model is a ridiculously easy bass to play. Both models sport Brazilian rosewood fingerboards.

Is one better than the other? I think the AIRLINE model is better looking, but beware: The SUPRO model has a MUCH better down angle from the nut to tuning pegs. The Airline’s angle is too shallow, allowing the strings to pop out of the nut unless you add some after market string trees on at least the A and the D strings.

Other interesting features? Small (for a bass, at any rate) Kluson tuners. A monster of a fat Valco pickup in the neck position and a piezo pickup in the bridge. The knobs are for pickup blend and volume.

What’s the story behind these? They are pretty much a guitar-sized bass, which is really just too cool. Actually, the bodies ARE guitar bodies (or, at any rate, were USED for Valco-made guitars that are the cousin of these basses). The only things different are the necks and the bridges. So, it was probably an economical way for Valco to use the bodies as a duel-purpose body to get more bang for fewer production bucks (though they probably weren’t very successful, as the productions ran for fewer than 4 years).

But back to the bass at hand (if you’re lucky enough to have one at hand). None other than vintage gear collector and ex-Bob Dylan sideman and Saturday Night Live bandleader GE Smith called these the best recording basses around. I’d agree and go one further – they are the coolest bass for jam sessions and live gigs if you’re a guitar player who plays bass on the side or a bassist with small hands.

The neck pickup is a typical Valco monster. VERY full and fat and round (put some nylon strings on this and play along to “Rubber Soul” all day long) with tremendous depth and warmth. The piezo pickup (and the blend knob) result in a much lower volume, but have an incredibly woody tone that resembles a standup jazz bass. Maybe not enough volume for the stage at this setting, but a fabulous recording setting.

The 25 7/8″ neck practically begs you to play chords and/or two note combos. The bass has a ring and chime to it that jumps out of a good cab’s speakers.

How much should you pay? As I write this (always a danger to list a price for vintage instruments…a month later, this could be woefully out of date the way prices seem to go), a MINT example seems to be going in the $800 range (that’s with the original hard shell case). A beater that you could take to your garage or a bar stage? Around five hundred bucks. Which, really, when you think about it, is better than money in the bank. You have an incredibly cool bass that will have people coming up before and after the set asking “what the hell are you playing?” Which, of course, is part of the fun with oddball gear.

We have two of these in the house, and both get used with the bands. One is set up like a normal bass – one set up as a baritone electric ukulele (hey, why not?). These are fabulous made in the USA vintage basses that are still pretty affordable on the vintage market (the Reso-Glass super short scale Map Shape Bass is ALSO incredibly cool, but they’re going for well over a grand now). Get one while you can. And, hey Mike, how about a re-issue?

Editors note: We’ve considered doing a re-issue of this little beast for some time. But, the ultra short scale has some inherent design flaws; the worst of which is the extreme difficulty in keeping these in tune. The heavy strings combined with the short scale make intonation and pitch very difficult to nail down. If someone invented tuners with a much higher (or lower?) gear ratio, they would be easier to tune. Also, the short scale length does not give a full resonance as a Bass. But hey, it is a great BASS for guitar players indeed…

In the meantime, we decided to offer something that is the best of both worlds, and hence the AIRLINE Bass and the new AIRLINE MAP Bass. Both are 30″ scale (shorter than traditional 34″ scale BASS), and therefore offering 1) complete comfort for a guitar player, 2) long enough scale for accurate tuning and setup and 3) resonant enough for professional Bass players.

But, might still be cool to do the real McCoy in the coming years…

– Mike Robinson

1960’s Supro Airline Pocket Bass Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

Guitar Review: Eastwood Airline H44 DLX Electric Guitar

Guest Post — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 13:00:39 +0000

I love off the wall guitars. Always have, always will. At the January 2007 NAMM trade show in Anaheim, California I discovered the Eastwood Guitars booth and was amazed at the number of way-cool guitars they were producing, many of which were reissues of old Supro and Airline guitars.

I can’t help myself. I’m an especially big fan of old Airline guitars. I’ve owned many over the years and have always dug their quirky shapes and sounds.

Eastwood Airline H44 DLX Guitar

Catching my eye in particular was an Airline H44 DLX in a copper finish, reminding me of the old 50’s Harmony/Kay Stratotone, which in those days was considered kind of a poor man’s Les Paul.

The H44 sports a really cool small bodied, single cutaway shape with two mini-Humbuckers, a short trapeze tailpiece, three way selector switch and a master volume & tone control. When I got home after NAMM I kept thinking about it and ended getting one a month later.

When I unpacked it, I was immediately struck by how beautiful it looked in its copper finish with just a hint of sparkle to it. I took it out of the box and immediately began twanging away. True to the original Stratotones, this guitar came with a fat “baseball bat” type neck. The advantage of a fat neck is that it’s very stable and practically un-warpable. Also like the originals, these guitars have a movable non-adjustable wooden bridge with a fixed compensated saddle. With a set of 10’s the action was good, and the intonation was pretty darn close.

I noticed the bridge moved around a bit whenever I would bend the strings (just like the old ones), so I remedied the problem with an old bluesman’s fix; I just put a few short strips of double stick tape underneath the bridge and voila! It held like a champ even on my wildest bends.

The tuners are open-faced, again just like the old ones. Some people think open faced tuners “slip”, but that’s a load of hogwash. I always wrap the string around itself against the tuning post, which kind of “locks” the string, and when I do that along with stretching the string a few times it always stays in tune. No problems with the tuners here.

The string slots on the nut were a tad on the tight side, “pinging” now and then when tuning. A little bit of Big Bends Nut Sauce lubricant took care of the problem. Note: Tight string slots at the nut is the number one reason guitars don’t stay in tune. Always keep some lubricant handy and you’ll be a happy (and in tune) camper.

So how did it sound plugged in? Very cool indeed! Mini humbuckers typically have a darker sound than single coils, plus they’re more powerful, so it’s important to set an amp’s controls accordingly. I first revved it up through a small Roland Microcube amp. It was quite at home here. There were plenty of modeling amp settings that I could find to make it sound good. Then it was on to a Line 6 POD in my studio, going direct into the recording console. With a few little tweaks I had some very bluesy sounding tones happening through the studio monitors. Nice!

Next it was on to a Rivera 45 watt 1-12 Clubster combo amp. There was no problem dialing up a nice, slightly overdriven Mike Bloomfield “Super Session” kind of sound. I liked it mostly clean, but with just a hint of amp distortion. And finally, I ran it through a 15 watt Fender Blues Junior amp and it sang out like it owned the joint!

Will Ray with his H44 DLX

Here’s my take on guitars like the H44 ‘ they’re specialty instruments meant to create unique guitar tones that normal Strat, Tele and Les Paul guitars can’t do. I use guitars like this a lot in the studio when I’m looking for something different to add character to a track, or on a live gig to give a different mojo to a song. I find that when a guitar sounds a little different, it will make you play a little different. I already know what I sound like with my usual guitars. But what can I paint with a different paintbrush?

Conclusion? I like my H44. It’s built like an old guitar, but without old guitar hassles. It’s very cool looking and stable. Plus my wife digs the color. What can I say? She’s a keeper.

Post by: Will Ray

Guitar Review: Eastwood Airline H44 DLX Electric Guitar from MyRareGuitars.com

What I Learned at My First NAMM Show

Rob Roberge — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 13:00:21 +0000

What I learned at my first NAMM show:

The NAMM show is incredibly HUGE. It’s fitting that it’s across the street from Disneyland, as you end up walking just as much as you would at the self-proclaimed happiest place on earth (not when there’s a million guitars across the street, Walt). On a further plus, there’s a lot less puke and fewer children at the NAMM show.
Parking is a slice of hell. Maybe two slices. And that’s with Disney running the parking, and Disney does parking with an efficiency that rivals the train schedules of Fascist Governments.
NAMM is, however, one of the most incredibly organized colossal endeavors I’ve ever seen. We’re not just talking about hundreds upon hundreds of booths with guitars and amps and accordions and ukuleles, but full rooms of grand pianos and other enormous instruments. Add to this the complexity of visitor lists, vendors, exhibitors, performers, and so on, and it’s just incredible that the whole thing comes off without a train wreck of disasters.
People who wear sunglasses indoors look like idiots. The NAMM show is no exception. Knock it off, people. If you don’t have some eye condition and you’re wearing sunglasses inside during the day, you look stupid. You do not look like a rock star. You look like a guy trying to look like a rock star. Which is really not an admirable goal for anyone over 14.
The guys at the Eastwood booth were a kick and a half to hang out with for four days. Many laughs, much guitar geek love and a cool surf guitar show for the first two days by fellow Buster Keaton fan Peter Robinson of the CA surf band Surf Cinema. Thanks for the great time, guys!
Metal and shredding are with us to stay. As is guitar-face. And sunglasses inside. And men in their fifties in leather pants. We can ask why, or we can accept it and move on.

I also learned there were a lot of guitars I wanted. The short list:

A radical Fritz Bros Jimmy Reed Thin Twin model (high end…got a spare four grand for a fellow down on his luck?)
A cheapie (retail under three bills) Dano Pro (in Aqua, and several colors that were not Aqua…which is what happens to me when a guitar is offered in Aqua and/or Sea Foam Green…I know only that it is offered in other, non-essential colors. Aqua, people!). It played really well, and it had an improved bridge over the last re-issues. And it comes in Aqua.
Some very cool Italia models, including an absolutely stunning twelve string electric with a beautiful headstock. Why aren’t there more sparkly guitars in the world? Well, Italia is doing their part to right that wrong. A big sparkly thanks, folks!
See-through Ampeg Dan Armstrong. I didn’t play it, but it’s see-through. That’s enough cool factor.
SEVERAL Eastwood models released at NAMM, but there were also a couple of others that will be ready in April – the AIRLINE Tuxedo “Kay Barney Kessel” Model and the Map Shaped Bass. The Saturn (man, that’s a fun guitar to play…and I got one!), The Town & Country (ditto), but the big hit was the Map Shaped Guitars. I’m guessing EASTWOOD sold out of those at the show. All great lookers and players.

And a bunch more. What else did I learn?

Peavey continues to make solid, well-made really ugly stuff. 40 years and counting of truly aesthetically challenged design. You would think they might have accidentally made a cool looking guitar by now, but nope, you’d be wrong.
There was a guy who always dressed in camouflage and sold machine-gun shaped electric guitars. I kept my distance.
In a world of large booths, Fender and Gibson have REALLY large booths. No stunner there, but the Fender booth did have some cool historic guitars. They also had a new Eddie Van Halen model that costs a lot of money for something that looks like it was made in a high school shop class by a stoner in 1982.
Randy Bachman seems like a nice guy in addition to being a legend who has played on lots of great tunes.
I learned there were a lot of amps I wanted.

Again, the short list:

The new. Which isn’t really a re-issue, as I don’t think they ever did a Jet with 6V6 output tubes (a early Reverberocket, yes, maybe a Jet, but I don’t remember that…I’m pretty sure they all had 7591’s). But, anyway, it sounded great, and had only Volume, Tone and Tremolo Speed and Intensity knobs. Cool. Low wattage, few knobs. Gotta love that.
Our very own Don Mackrill’s Airline 18 Watt amplifier. Just a great looking and sounding amplifier. Hand made, with style and care and great tone. What’s not to love? Don, I want one in Sea Foam Green! (Everything should come in Sea Foam Green with a Bigsby option. I’d put a Bigsby on my Sea Foam kitchen table if I could).
Ben Fargen’s 4x6V6 amp. Yummy. Four 6V6’s, which is such a cool way to get to your 30-40 watts, rather than the more conventional two 6L6’s.

What else?

Joel Weaver of Home Brew Electronics, in addition to making my favorite overdrive pedal (The Power Screamer), is a nice guy. Check out his pedals. Great stuff.
I begged Groove Tubes…I cajoled JJ Tubes…Nobody is going to make a new 7189A tube. Argh. This is sad news to a Magnatone M10 lover. They just don’t run on EL84’s, no matter how rugged, and there is an ever-dwindling (and ever-expensive) supply of 7189A’s. As my niece likes to say, this news is “poopy.” Poopy, indeed.
A lot more people that I might have expected wanted Paul Stanley’s autograph. But, hey, it’s a big world. More power to him, I suppose.
There’s one very cranky and not incredibly competent woman who checks your bags on the way out. There may be more than her, but I kept running into the same one. She would demand I open my bag, not really look in, and then bark at me to move on. I could have had a severed head in that bag for all she knew. (I did NOT have a severed head, for those wondering at home).
There are a LOT of people who play guitar better than me. That’s not a huge surprise to me, but when they’re all in the same room with you (albeit a VERY LARGE room), it’s pretty humbling. A lot of people who can play out there in the world. Pretty cool.
I learned that I had to sell some stuff to make some room for what I carried out of there. NAMM is a heady experience, a gear freak’s nirvana (or close…maybe it would be nirvana with vintage axes, too), and a tiring sensory overload that’s a ball.

There’s nothing quite like it, and I can’t wait until next year to see what’s new.

See you in next month’s newsletter.

What I Learned at My First NAMM Show from MyRareGuitars.com

Toronto Band Metric On Tour This Month

Mike Robinson — Sat, 01 Oct 2005 13:00:21 +0000

Fellow Torontonians Metric are on the move this month. The tour kicked off with back to back SOLD OUT shows in Toronto this past week. It was a treat to see Jimmy and Josh ripping up the stage with their new Eastwood AIRLINE guitars.

Metric is on tour now!

Tour Dates:

09/28/05 Toronto ON The Phoenix Concert Theatre (all ages – retail info soldout)
09/29/05 Toronto ON The Phoenix Concert Theatre (all ages – retail info soldout)
09/30/05 Ottawa ON Capitol Music Theatre (all ages – retail info)
10/1/05 Montreal ON Club Soda (all ages – soldout)
10/2/05 Boston MA Paradise Rock Club
10/3/05 Providence RI Century Lounge
10/5/05 New York NY Bowery Ballroom
10/6/05 Brooklyn NY Southpaw
10/7/05 Philadelphia PA First Unitarian Church
10/8/05 Washington DC 9:30 Club
10/10/05 Carrboro NC Cat’s Cradle
10/11/05 Atlanta GA The Loft
10/12/05 Birmingham AL Zydeco
10/13/05 Nashville TN Exit/In
10/14/05 Cincinnati OH Top Cats
10/15/05 Cleveland Heights OHGrog Shop
10/17/05 Detroit MI Magic Stick
10/18/05 Chicago IL Empty Bottle
10/19/05 St. Louis MO Creepy Crawl
10/20/05 Lawrence KS The Bottleneck
10/21/05 Omaha NE Sokol Underground
10/22/05 Minneapolis MN Ascot Room @ The Quest
10/23/05 Winnipeg MB Ramada Conference Centre (all ages – retail info)
10/24/05 Saskatoon SK Louis Pub / Univ of Saskatchewan (all ages – retail info)
10/25/05 Edmonton Starlite (all ages – retail info)
10/26/05 Calgary AB MacEwan Hall / Univ of Calgary (all ages – retail info)
10/27/05 Edmonton AB Starlite (all ages – retail info soldout)
10/28/05 Edmonton AB Starlite (18+ soldout)
10/30/05 Vancouver BC The Commodore (afternoon show – all ages – retail info)
10/30/05 Vancouver BC The Commodore (evening – 19+ – retail info)
11/1/05 Seattle WA Crocodile Cafe
11/2/05 Portland OR Doug Fir Lounge
11/3/05 San Francisco CA Slims
11/4/05 Los Angeles CA El Rey Theatre
11/5/05 San Diego CA The Casbah
11/7/05 Tempe AZ Big Fish Pub
11/8/05 Tucson AZ Plush
11/10/05 Austin TX The Parish
11/11/05 Dallas TX Gypsy Tea Room
11/12/05 Houston TX Meridian
11/15/05 Fort Lauderdale FL Culture Room
11/16/05 Tampa FL The Orpheum
11/17/05 Orlando FL The Social
11/18/05 Miami FL Club Revolver
11/25/05 FRANCE Nantes Olympic
11/26/05 FRANCE Angouleme La Nef
11/28/05 FRANCE Paris Trabendo
11/29/05 FRANCE Rennes La Cite
11/30/05 FRANCE Strasbourg Laiterie
12/1/05 FRANCE Evreux Abordage
12/3/05 FRANCE Winterthour Gaswerk

Metric CD

Toronto Band Metric On Tour This Month from MyRareGuitars.com