Well, I've been using a Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion. But I'm really unhappy with it because the tune-o-matic bridge has loosened up on the thing and it won't stay in tune -- sort of wobbles around!! So, I've wrapped teflon tape around the studs to keep things tight. But the sound of the thing is pretty good. Also, I recently picked up a Carvin DC 135 for $300. I've owned about 20 guitars over the last 20 years and I think I like this one about as much as I've liked any of them.

Also, check out my post on the miscellaneous section for what you'd LIKE to be playing.

my new Ibanez GB10 natural, new to me anyway, with Thomasik 11s. i love it; took me two years to find the right one. It is a 1983 Japanese made.

I looked at the Benson models (used) and was pretty impressed with the them. I should have gone with the Ibanez rather than the Gibson or just stuck to solidbodies.

I am currently rocking on my '72 tele custom (the blond maple neck aerosmith-y looking one that has the 4 les-paul style pots, the pick-up switch up top and the rock humbucker. Come to think of it its quite obviously les-paulish, I wonder If he was annoyed to see fender doing that!). I recently had it re-fretted and set up by a guy named Mike Lull in Seattle who does really great work (gotta go make him a resource!). He kept the neck nice and rounded the way I like, not super flat like today's rock guitars. Im a violin player originally so thats probably why I like curling my hand around the neck to shape chords. anyway, it weighs a ton and never feeds back even in front of a really loud amp, i guess since it has so much mass to get resonating.

At the present time I have three main axes. I do most of my playing on my Ibanez SLTD, 6 string, Jet Black, very ominous, or at least that's what I thought when I saw Alex Skolnick playing one while playing with "Testament". Next in line is my "Joe Pass" hollow body jazz guitar, then its my Guild semi-hollow". I recently had the opportunity to play a "Benedetto" 7 string jazz hollow body guitar. Needless to say, somehow, someway I need to get up 14,000 dollars! LOL.

An Ibanez RG7420 7-string. Great guitar... once in a while it doesn't hold tune too well but it's good. The sound is great with the heavy distortion but my amp's low-end is crap so it really sucks sometimes to be blaring out a low A5th and get static....

My main axe now is a Buscarino archtop - it's a real gem. Beautiful acoustic sound, and a nice fat amplified tone ( but it does feedback easily at moderate to loud volumes...). It was very interesting talking to John over the year that it was being built, and working with him to get exactly what I wanted. After twenty-odd years of buying and selling guitars, I finally saved and plunked down the money and really did get my ideal guitar. His site is http://www.netace.com/buscarino/ - i didn't see him listed in the resources...

If you like, you can submit John's website to the Luthier directory or the Guitar Manufacturer directory (or any other directory you feel is applicable). Your submission will appear exactly as you write it, and you can edit it at any time. Like the lessons, we don't editorialize resources. When Sean and I created the site, we put in a base amount of websites and resources, but we were more interested in making it easier for you to submit the things that are of interest to you, because you know infinitely more about Buscarinos than we do...

I got a Heritage 575 a few months ago...a blonde beauty...it's like a 175 but at a fraction of the price...I string it with 12's and play jazz and blues on it. There's nothing like going to a blues jam and having a sound waaaaay bigger (not louder) then those guys with the strats.....or doing your best Joe Pass chord solo imitation....

Jeremy

just saw a pic of your 575. beautiful! one of these days, maybe. I've heard one once, and I've driven by the plant (tours wed 1:00). well, I prefer to be at work on wed at 1:00, but maybe I'll play one some day.

chris

yeah, I had John mail me some literature on his guitars about a year ago when I was considering buying an archtop. His work is beautiful and, if you can't afford a Benedetto, then his are the ones to get in that tradition. Also, anyone interested in archtops and you don't want one in the Benedetto, Buscarino, Unger tradition, take a look at Zeidler guitars. I put up a link to his site in the resources section yesterday. I played one of his archtops in Lawrence, KS about 6 months ago -- Oh man, unbelievable playability and great tone. And he maks mandos so beautiful it makes you want to give up everything to play that!