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Update II: Ok, the Republic RP guitar is a reasonably priced solid-top guitar based on a mid-19th century guitar pattern. You get them from eBay or the importer Republic Guitars at http://www.republicguitars.com/parlorguitars.html
I happened to meet Dave C. (Battlefield Balladeers) this week and we compared ours that we purchased and have been using for a while. We both feel these guitars are a professionally-useable instrument with a period appearance for not much money, at least compared to high-line reproductions costing hundreds more. They are Asian-made, and apparently not particularly consistent in finish and hardware. Dave's has a golden glow to the top finish and tuner hardware different than mine. Both had headstock decals that literally wipe off with a rag and guitar polish. Nice case comes with but all black Nylon so perhaps I will attempt to make a period coffin-style case - how hard can that be - anybody got a pattern for me?
Neither of us has yet taken the step of replacing the unwound strings with gut to improve the impression, and we both yet play them using flat picks as much as we do a more period-correct finger style. I'm working on that.
You do have to get your ear accustomed to the much "smaller" but not unpleasant sound of these guitars, as compared to the fuller-sounding dreadnaught sizes we are used to. Think of it as a sweeter sound suitable to back up your marvelous voice (which Dave has but I don't).
Dan Wykes
btw Republic has no connection to me or I to them, and there may be better guitars available from another importer that I'm not aware of
I happened to meet Dave C. (Battlefield Balladeers) this week and we compared ours that we purchased and have been using for a while. We both feel these guitars are a professionally-useable instrument with a period appearance for not much money, at least compared to high-line reproductions costing hundreds more. They are Asian-made, and apparently not particularly consistent in finish and hardware. Dave's has a golden glow to the top finish and tuner hardware different than mine. Both had headstock decals that literally wipe off with a rag and guitar polish. Nice case comes with but all black Nylon so perhaps I will attempt to make a period coffin-style case - how hard can that be - anybody got a pattern for me?
Neither of us has yet taken the step of replacing the unwound strings with gut to improve the impression, and we both yet play them using flat picks as much as we do a more period-correct finger style. I'm working on that.
You do have to get your ear accustomed to the much "smaller" but not unpleasant sound of these guitars, as compared to the fuller-sounding dreadnaught sizes we are used to. Think of it as a sweeter sound suitable to back up your marvelous voice (which Dave has but I don't).
Dan Wykes
btw Republic has no connection to me or I to them, and there may be better guitars available from another importer that I'm not aware of
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