NGD - Eastman T186MX

[lgherb]

After a period of pining for (and creating budget for) I took the leap and bought a new Eastman T186MX.

I love the quality build and finish. When I had read about the craftsmanship of Eastman it didn't really register until I pulled this out of the case, put it on my leg, and started picking and bending.

Well worth the investment (at least for me).



The binding is solid wood (maple) and not plastic:


Solid mahogany back:


Closeup of grain detail on back:


Sold hand carved maple top:


Perfectly set up by the good folks at Fuller's Guitar in Houston:


Awesome case:


The 2 previous best guitars in my arsenal are a Fender Baja Telecaster and a Yamaha LL16D acoustic. This is on a completely higher plane than those 2 (both of which I still love).

I'm 6'3" and the scale of my Tele gets slightly cramped as I move up the neck. I absolutely LOVE the geometry of this neck - there is nowhere on the neck where I feel I am running out of real estate.

The Bareknuckle pickups sound awesome, but I haven't really had a lot of time experimenting with different tones yet.

Now I just need to play and play and play.

[29er]

That looks great. Enjoy!

[Chickee]

Another stunning example of Eastman’s craftsmanship! You are a fortunate guitarist to have this in your stable!

frank d.

[jseth]

Looks fantastic! I have a 1975 Gibson ES-345 in the walnut finish, and the look of that Eastman is delectable in comparison! Love the wood binding, too.

You didn't say; What was the cost (if you don't mind divulging)? Was the case included in the guitar's price?

In any event, glad it fits you so well - enjoy that beauty! What amp are you playing it through?

May you play it for thousands of hours, in both good health and circumstance!!!

[marty bradbury]

Wow! Very nice guitar! Enjoy!

[lgherb]

Originally Posted by jseth

Looks fantastic! I have a 1975 Gibson ES-345 in the walnut finish, and the look of that Eastman is delectable in comparison! Love the wood binding, too.

You didn't say; What was the cost (if you don't mind divulging)? Was the case included in the guitar's price?

In any event, glad it fits you so well - enjoy that beauty! What amp are you playing it through?

May you play it for thousands of hours, in both good health and circumstance!!!

I paid $2400. and the case was included.

Right now, there aren't that many at all on the market and ordering one today from a dealer would be 10-12 months out due to pandemic lead times, etc.,.

I found a few dealers that had new ones in stock and the only other one I saw in the "Classic" finish had a noticeable wood imperfection that I didn't want to live with at that price.

The used ones I saw were not cheaper enough to dissuade me from going new.

This was still less expensive than a new Gibson 335 or new Heritage H-535, which were the only other ones I was interested in.

Right now I am playing it through a Carvin Belair 212 on the clean channel plugged directly into the amp (no pedals). Unfortunately, I have some noisy electrical circuits in the house that I need to take care of so when the buzz really starts bothering me I move over to my THR30II Wireless practice amp so I can put a minimal noise gate effect on it.

I have a TC Sentry noise gate on back order from Sweetwater that I'll put between the guitar and the Carvin 212 as a temporary fix until I can get an electrician friend to help me isolate circuit noise.

I have a lot of recessed LED lights on rheostats in the house and I think that along with perhaps one or two weak grounds is enough to make my practice area sound like a B-rate nightclub.

[Glennwillow]

Congratulations on that new Eastman electric! It looks fantastic!

- Glenn

[29er]

I have been curious about the internal construction and bracing of these Eastman fully hollow thin lines. I am guessing that there must be a block of wood at the tail piece that connects the top to the back? Maybe a trestle type brace?

I have not had a chance to play one and take a peek inside. That is a drool worthy guitar and I hope to get my hands on one at some point. Color me jealous

[Pura Vida]

Congrats again! What an amazing new guitar. I have the 15" version (T185MX), which is phenomenal.

[Pura Vida]

Originally Posted by 29er

I have been curious about the internal construction and bracing of these Eastman fully hollow thin lines. I am guessing that there must be a block of wood at the tail piece that connects the top to the back? Maybe a trestle type brace?

I have not had a chance to play one and take a peek inside. That is a drool worthy guitar and I hope to get my hands on one at some point. Color me jealous

I have the T185MX. You are correct. There is a small block underneath the tailpiece, but otherwise, it's hollow (the center block doesn't extend all the way down; just a few inches).

[Rad]

I have owned a few different Eastmans, including 3 or 4 thinlines. More often that not Eastman knocks it out of the park with their Electrics.

The difference you feel in the neck, more space, that you like so much is a product of the 1 3/4” wide nut. Very few electric guitars have that wide a nut. I suspect your Baja has the other extreme, a narrow 1.650” nut.

Yours looks stunning. Congratulations.

[29er]

Originally Posted by Pura Vida

I have the T185MX. You are correct. There is a small block underneath the tailpiece, but otherwise, it's hollow (the center block doesn't extend all the way down; just a few inches).

Thanks for the info on their construction. I owned an Eastman T58/V (Gretsch inspired hollow body) and that guitar had such a huge voice due to the fully hollow body and solid wood construction. I stupidly sold it when I decided I wanted a Gretsch Brian Setzer Hot Rod. The Setzer is of course, a fine guitar but I miss the wider nut width of the Eastman.