Tuesday, September 06, 2011

Back in 'action' - how's that for a 'guitarpun'?

My apologies to those who over the past few years have left comments to which I haven't replied. I neglected this blog but now will give it some TLC. I will start with answering some of the questions that have been posted:

Megan wrote:
I have a ColTone, but know absolutely nothing about it.
By Megan on Vintage electric guitar is big-headed instrument on 3/11/11

I also know very little about mine. I acquired it some years ago and its neck was like a fence rail, and the big head makes it feel, as I said, like you'll take out someone's nose if you swing it around in a hurry. My attention to this guitar hasn't progressed much since the earlier post. It has been on my wall as a display piece. I was told Coltone was a brand that an Australian company 'maybe Maton' put on a cheaper Japanese issue but this is just folklore of someone who was perhaps just trying to remember the flower power days. I would appreciate getting any info on the brand because it's obviously needed on the net, so we can all sleep at night knowing that the mystery has been solved.

Marizio wrote:
maybe it is a Jumbo 280 does it have F holes or not ?
By Maurizio on Lifecycle of a 1960s Eko jumbo acoustic guitar on 12/19/10




My Eko has the old round hole. I'd love to have an f-hole model; that would be something special. At present the guitar is out of action as the bridge split because of all the hard work it has done for so long. I found Eko bridges selling on ebay for about $1 each in lots of a dozen or do... it's almost unbelievable that stock of them have come through the years. I didn't act and now can only curse for not buying at the time... however, I can easily put another bridge on... when I get the time and urge. Hell, the guitar must take a lot of stress from all the playing. I read somewhere that Django wore out a guitar every six months or so; it didn't say anything about the poor rhythm players who backed him; surely their axes were getting blunted, too.


Jay BB wrote:
Hello, I have just listed an old CoolTone Guitar on Ebay, I dont know much about it, it came from a very old friend of mine, so i know it is very old, maybe you could tell me a bit about it and what it would be worth about!! I also live in Brisbane. Regards jay
By Jay BB on Wanted: Info on ColTone guitars on 6/24/09

Jay, I am particularly sad about not making contact with you when you posted, as it was/is great to find a ColTone owner in my home region. I would be interested to hear more about the instrument you planned to sell at the time... by the way, I trimmed back the neck on mine to make it more playable... it had a weird triangular shaped neck that was a real wrist breaker. It was a bit like my first electric, a very early Ibanez that I bought in the mid to late '60s when I was just a teenager and plugged into an old 'radiogram' by connecting the live wire to the post on the top of a valve and the earth to the unit's chassis. As incredible as it sounds, I worked out this for myself and didn't even get sizzled.

Loko wrote:
i did a google search on contole guitars ,an you came up on it. I just got a 60s acoustic contole an i was wondering what you could tell me about the brand. I dont know anything about them never heard of them so any info you have would be appretiated.
By loko on Beware, mouse can bite on 10/18/08





I don't know if we're on the same fretboard here, loko. Mine's a ColTone, and I'd love to be able to help but ...

Joseph wrote:
Hey John,
I think I myself have one of these Bolero Guitars... and I have a few questions, as I haven't got a clue about this guitar. Just to make sure we're on the same page here... Does/Did your guitar have marble style inlays on the fretboard, two humbuckers, "Bolero" on the headstock, along with two triangular marble inlays on the head? What are these guitars worth? We were getting some work done on it from a luthier and he said it may be a rare japanese copy worth quite a bit of money. If you could possibly answer my questions, and also send me a picture of your Bolero (I dont have a working camera, and I would like to forward the picture onto friends in an email) to sikdogga2@gmail.com, that would be absolutely fantastic and very much appreciated. Thanks in advance,
Joseph.
By The Joe on Beware, mouse can bite on 9/19/08


My guitar was a dreadnaught-style acoustic, with a ply top. It originally had a heavy layer of lacquer like the old Eko, at least a millimetre thick. When I removed the finish, it sang like a bird. I cannot write about why I don't have it any longer; it is too painful. It was just a '60s Japanese issue (I think) that was obviously not 'up there' with the big-name guitars but after I liberated the sound it was probably the love of my life... as they say, better to have loved and lost... it sort of makes Jobim look a bit silly - he advised guitarists to buy the most expensive guitar they could possibly afford as cost equated with quality, but my old Bolero... I'm getting teary and must close. It's gettin' late and I'm gettin' sad. Goodnight everyone. See ya soon.


Again, thanks to everyone who has shown an interest in this blog, and I promise to keep up the posts.


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