1978 Taylor 715. Serial number 484.

[pjmacd]

Another carbon fiber guitar to check out is the Journey OF660 (they also make a wood-topped model but I forget the model number). The OF660 has an arm bevel and a "Manzer" wedge, making it extremely comfortable to play.

Is a 00 size too large? If not, there are many 00 guitars from Martin, Gibson, Eastman, and many other builders.

[wooglins]

Perhaps a 12 fret Taylor Grand Concert. Very comfy, and similar in size to a parlor.

Tone is very big for size. Taylor has a 322 this year that has a mahogany top and Blackwood back and sides. Those sound heavenly.

[semolinapilcher]

Gorgeous guitar. Super cool. Love that cool old mustache bridge. Wowowow!

As to its replacement, I’d think a short scale 12-fret with a paddle headstock and maybe a cutaway.

And... does she capo much? If so, look at a terz. Gruhn sells a Martin custom 5-15. I can play mine laying back in a cozy arm chair.

[pdel]

Thanks for all the replies to this post, they really are appreciated.
Looks like she has many more options than she thought she had.
Will have to take a couple of day-trips this week and let her sit in several stores and see what she is comfortable playing.

[HeyMikey]

Its a great story and history with that guitar. I wonder if it would be worth contacting Taylor. Maybe they would be willing to create something special for her with the tone and playability that would make her happy. https://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/custom

[pdel]

Originally Posted by HeyMikey

Its a great story and history with that guitar. I wonder if it would be worth contacting Taylor. Maybe they would be willing to create something special for her with the tone and playability that would make her happy. https://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/custom

I think she is going to get herself something that she can play first for a few months .. then once she figures out exactly what works for her, and what size she can manage, this old workhorse of hers may well end up paying for something custom that can work for her well into the future.

[v32 finish]

hey there, condolences about the unfortunate situation. this makes me sad for your wife, and also think it speaks volumes that you're even here, not being much of a player. you'll be in my thoughts & prayers.

before I even saw that someone else mentioned it, I was already picturing the new Taylor 812ceDLX. It's got the really small profile, super tone for its size, and the beveled armrest. the other thing I pictured (also mentioned, though not by brand) is a little old Washburn parlor. they made some pretty nice ones back in the day and have a vintage -- as well as a 'comfort' -- lineup, though I'm less familiar with theirs than with Taylor.

sounds like you've got your ducks in a row, and pretty much have an idea how y'all are going to proceed. hope you figure out something that works for you!!

cheers
Scott

[Bob Womack]

I'm sorry to hear of your wife's injury. Here's a shot of the Taylor 312e 12 Fret Grand Concert I picked up recently. It is shallow and small and comfy on the couch. That may be a viable small-body option for her:







Bob

[rogthefrog]

Kindly

Originally Posted by pdel

We went "looking" yesterday and she was pretty much limited to the "Baby Taylor" and the "Little Martin" in terms of size that she was able to play comfortably.

Up until yesterday she was wildly frustrated at not being able to play any of her collection anymore, however, just watching the smile on her face when she picked up those two yesterday was the best thing I had seen in a long time.

Of course I knew that it would not be long before that smile started hitting my pocket book, so here I am today trying to research online to see who else has "baby", "mini", "3/4" guitars that might work for her.

I see a whole new (much more affordable) collection in her near future

Have you looked into guitars with a Manzer wedge and/or comfort bevel? My baritone has both and it's very comfortable.

Bill Cumpiano has also made ergonomic guitars:

https://www.cumpiano.com/special-commissions

(Scroll to ergonomic wedge guitar)

Cumpiano is relatively affordable. Tony Yamamoto is too, and has experience making wedges and bevels.

[pdel]

Went and played a little again today.

She came home with a "little martin", and also seemed able to play the Taylor GS mini for a reasonably sustained period without too much discomfort.

She also picked up a very inexpensive used "Maestro" whatever one of those is ... but she is the same whenever we go to the dog pound, If they have a dog with three legs and one and a half ears .. it will end up being ours for the next 10-15 years, I guess this thing just grabbed her for some reason, it wasn't worth the fight over the cost of a tank of gas ... I've been married long enough to know that sometimes, you just gotta time your battles carefully

Tried the T5, that didn't work for her and anything bigger than the mini was simply too much guitar for her.

I think she will be happy with the mini ,,, she got to play the Mahogany and preferred it over the regular .. though she is holding out to try and get her hands on an e-Koa to see how it sounds before committing to the Taylor she wants.

I may plan a day trip out to Nashville or up to Chicago here in the next few weeks so that she can go play a decent selection, there really wasn't too much up in and around Knoxville that grabbed us.

She insisted on taking her Taylor into GC just to see what kind of number they put out there,

I told her to add 50-100% to the number they gave her and it would probably be closer to the mark based on the one or two sales of similar make/model/year that I've been able to find online, though to be quite honest .. i would quite like her to keep her "baby" as I suspect once she is playing again, she may be able to spend 5 minutes or so each week running her fingers over the old gal'.

Sometimes we have the same goal in life ...

Thanks once again for the feedback in this thread ... it really has helped open our eyes to what is out there, I can only imagine her collection expanding again after letting her read this thread.

She is talking about turning one of our spare bedrooms into a "music room" now .. so the music bug is well and truly back ... the spark had been missing for too long. Maybe at the same I could stick a pool table and a bar in the other spare bedroom and that way we would have a fantastic excuse not to have to host any of the family when they come for visits ... hmnnn .. now you got me thinking.

... another long day. Time for bed.

Pete.

[semolinapilcher]

My intuition is that with that particular guitar, it'll be well worth driving to Nashville and consigning.

You only need one buyer, and you're not in a rush. GC won't see it that way.

[Athens]

Originally Posted by pdel

........She insisted on taking her Taylor into GC just to see what kind of number they put out there, .................Pete.

I hate hearing about folks selling something that they've had that long.

Where are you located? maybe an AGF'r who's local might want to look at it or know of a shop to sell it without giving up too much to consignment fees.

DON'T LET HER SELL IT TO GC! They won't give her near what it's worth.

There was an early 90's 815 at the local GC last year. Great guitar but a bit large for me.

She's already pick her new baby, but the Taylor x12 series is small and comfortable too. Maybe look at those down the road?

[L20A]

There will be a huge loss of tone and volume with the small guitar.
You may want to install a pickup and use a small acoustic amp to get a fuller sound from the baby.

Try playing with a strap to take some tension off her shoulder.
I have a bad shoulder and the strap makes it a lot less painful when sitting.

I hope she will one day be able to go back to her full sized guitars.

[Godfather]

Originally Posted by Athens

DON'T LET HER SELL IT TO GC! They won't give her near what it's worth.

She's already pick her new baby, but the Taylor x12 series is small and comfortable too. Maybe look at those down the road?

+++1 !!!
Take the day trip to Nashville. It will be well worth your time and a lot of fun too. Stop in at Rippy's on Broadway for some BBQ and music.

[pdel]

Thanks for the replies guys, she had no intention of selling to GC, but she was interested to get a starting point .... She indicated that she wanted the old gal to pay for the new toys, however I feel like she just wanted to show willing.

I don't think it'll take much persuasion on my part to convince her that her baby should have pride of place in the new music room, I know how much it means to her, and I would not want her to let it go unless she insisted.

Upon taking it from the case earlier this week, I noticed a couple of cracks in the top, either side of the neck, running down to the sound hole. I'm pretty sure they have been there a while .. the guitar has not been out of the case for a couple of years ... have not investigated the cracks fully yet, she said the sound is unaffected, but we really need to get someone with a decent amount of repair experience to take a look and advise, I suspect it'd be worth a call to Taylor to see if they can help. We are relatively new to the Knoxville area .. so have not established rapport with a decent/trusted luthier yet.

The little martin she bought yesterday was one of the "e" models, she plugged it in after we got home and spent quite some time with it ... She was more than happy with the sound it was putting out, the Taylor sounded even more impressive in the store than the Martin, so I suspect when we eventually bring that one home, she will be locked in her room for a while getting acquainted.

This morning she is not complaining of any shoulder pain whatsoever ... she is however complaining about the loss of calluses on her fingertips She was using a cheap strap, but will now invest in something a little more sturdy/comfortable.

Nashville is only about 4 hours from here ... maybe a three day/two night trip on the cards in the very near future.