I would buy the Eastman, and I would look for a used one in the 800 series.
Check Reverb.com and Guitar Center used.
GC has a 45 day no questions asked return period, and I’ve used it a couple of times with zero negativity coming from the GC staff.
Reverb has more stuff coming through from a wide variety of sources, from private to huge retailers. Some have return policies.
Used Eastman archtops are among the best buys in guitars, period. For that matter, so are the E series of flattops. You have to be diligent in your inquiry and ask the right questions, of course. As with any maker, there are better and worse examples of a style.
As for Loar, their higher end stuff is, well, just ok, imo. I ordered a low/mid end from GC, in “new” condition, to be picked up at the local GC. I opened it there as I usually do upon receipt, and it took me well under 5 minutes to hand it back to the counter guy and get my full refund, no questions. They even refunded the shipping, based on the poor build quality. It was a Loar in the $350 range, but still, the build and qa/qc was just shy of appalling.
Sum: I’d go used Eastman 805, with or without cutaway/electric.
Fyi, I play fingerstyle 60-70%, flatpick 30-40%. If you’re going to play an archtop unamplified, I suggest a flatpick, or use a lighter gauge for finger style. If you’re going to plug in, heavier gauge (12’s or up) can work really well for fingerstyle too.
Good luck Gerardo!
|