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Old 07-15-2016, 06:19 PM
Brad Ward Brad Ward is offline
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Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: DFW
Posts: 121
Default The 45 has landed...

Got the 45 today! It was packed for the worst, and it made it with flying colors!

I tuned her up and played for about 20 minutes and noticed the strings sounded a little dead.

I replaced them with a set of my favorite strings, D'Addario EJ-17. Changing strings allows one to really inspect the guitar inside and out and get the feel of the instrument.

This guitar is very light for a 12 fret dread, and lightly built if you have been following along. Per gave me a little less depth on the neck than the 00-42, the same as my CS D18-12 in the first few frets. Very comfortable. Thanks for listening.

The sound is very reminiscent of the 00-42, very articulate with a tight bass and wonderful balance. Willi Henkes remarked that he liked the bass in guitars to start out a little tight because it doesn't get boomy sounding as it ages, and I agree. It should age very nicely indeed.

The trebles are fatter than any of my other dreads and I really like that attribute. The Moon Spruce top is super responsive, just look at that silking... It is as white as a ghost though, compared to my 4-5 year old Red Spruce tops.

It will just get better the more I play it, so I will! Here's some pics out my back door...













Will post more impressions as we go along. Thanks to Per for taking on this project with me. I never imagined someday I would have a 12 fret dread 45 style guitar of my own. Especially one patterned after Norman Blakes pre war Martin guitar. And thanks to John Arnold for saving the plans and making them available. And finally, thanks to B&H for their free flow of knowledge that allowed Per to use his passion and woodworking skills to create a top tier style instrument like this, understanding this is only the 15th guitar he has built. Unbelievable.

Per, I knew you could do it, and you did. Congrats!
__________________
Martins; 00-37 SMK2, 000C-SMP, CSD21S, CS21-11, CS D18-12, CS D28-12
Gibson 67' LG-12
Marklund 00-42, D-45S
Marklund; 2016' OM-28 (in progress)
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