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  #1  
Old 02-21-2019, 01:23 PM
JuanRivers JuanRivers is offline
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Question Choosing the Right Vintage Archtop Advice

Hi Everyone! I recently played my friend's Epi Triumph and fell in love with it. Ever since I've been researching quality vintage archtops for sale that won't break the bank. I'm looking in the $500-1000 range, so I probably won't be able to find a good triumph (I did see a 1945 model on ebay for $799 but I didn't pull the trigger bc I was suspicious on its condition being priced so low. kicking myself about it now.)

Any advice on the good option under $1k. Looking for the right combo of rich tone/playability. From the research I've done so far, seems like the best options are:
- Kalamazoo k21,31 or 32
- Epi Zenith
- Epi Olympic
- Gibson L50, L48,
- Gretsch New Yorker, Corsair, syncromatic
- Harmony Cremona, Patrician
- Recording king m3
Also a lot of compelling Hofners out there, but I haven't been able to discern the best models.

Any helpful tips or advice here? Which would be the most similar to the triumph? Maybe certain years to look out for or avoid?

My gut has me leaning towards a Zenith or Kalamazoo, but I'm kinda green when it comes to archtops so any feedback would be super helpful!

Thanks!

Last edited by JuanRivers; 02-21-2019 at 03:17 PM.
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Old 02-21-2019, 03:18 PM
JuanRivers JuanRivers is offline
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or even just recommended sellers : )
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Old 02-23-2019, 01:48 PM
upsidedown upsidedown is offline
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I played a fantastic L-50 at Guitar Center last night. One bent tuner (the G), is all I could see wrong with it. If I didn't spend money on a guitar coming to me on Monday, I probably wouldn't have resisted taking it home with me. A struggle even at that.

Here's the listing.
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Old 02-23-2019, 03:13 PM
JuanRivers JuanRivers is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by upsidedown View Post
I played a fantastic L-50 at Guitar Center last night. One bent tuner (the G), is all I could see wrong with it. If I didn't spend money on a guitar coming to me on Monday, I probably wouldn't have resisted taking it home with me. A struggle even at that.

Here's the listing.
Woah! Thanks. I've found a few L-50s that are a bit cheaper, but it can be such a crapshoot buying online without playing it beforehand or really getting into the condition. Since you've noodled around on this baby already, would you say it's listed price is fair??
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Old 02-23-2019, 07:01 PM
upsidedown upsidedown is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JuanRivers View Post
Since you've noodled around on this baby already, would you say it's listed price is fair??

All I can say is that it's in good condition - maybe a little dirty - except for the tuner. I have no clue about its value though.

EDIT: revisited the L50 and looked more closely. It has a top crack and it’s also separated/ing on the side. So no, it’s not priced fairly.

Last edited by upsidedown; 02-26-2019 at 10:08 AM.
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Old 02-26-2019, 12:56 PM
upsidedown upsidedown is offline
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See edited post above.
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Old 02-27-2019, 07:44 AM
Petespix Petespix is offline
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I've owned a 1940 Epi Zenith, a nice guitar but I sold it after buying a 1937 Gretsch Model 35 which I feel sounds so much better. I been playing it a lot for a few years now and still love it.
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advice, archtop, archtop guitar, buying advice, vintage acoustic

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