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Location: Michigan | how the hell do these american made guitar companies stay around when a brand name like ovation or adamas leave the states because they are not making a profit on their guitars?
i know i am not familiar with every brand of guitar but here is an american made guitar company that i have never heard of . maybe i am totaly out of the loop but does anyone on this board know of anyone who has one of these guitars?
how do they stay in business competing against giants like fender who can't make it in the states.
anyone had the chance to see or play one? GWB
http://bedellguitars.com/blog |
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | There are MANY boutique guitar companies that do quite well. They are not competing with Fender and Gibson, they are catering to a niche audience. There are some luthiers / guitar makers that only make a few guitars a year. They don't have to fill stores or have stock for online sales and pay rent in huge industrial buildings. MCS, J.C. Harper, and I think even that Danzig dude is still crafting fine instruments along with countless others. It's all about right-sizing. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Bedell Guitars is not a small company.
They bought Breedlove... or "merged" HERE
Apparently they do make guitars in the USA... maybe in Oregon.
But they also have Asian guitars like everybody else.
That is not to say that they are not nice guitars... I have Asian woodboxes too. 
GWB... I had not noticed Bedell before either.
I think I might has seen them "on Sale" at MF but not paid attention...
cuz it weren't a Roundback. 
Edited by Old Man Arthur 2014-11-06 1:54 AM
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Location: Flahdaw | Although Seagull ain't American, they ARE North American, and they produce some very nice guitars for the money |
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Location: Boise, Idaho | Next time I get over to Bend I need to visit the Breedlove shop. |
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Posts: 2683
Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | Speaking of Seagulls, a guy came in here last week with one he had custom made. It was an auditorium size with a solid cedar top. It had both the undersaddle pick up and the built-in microphone. He said they MEASURED his hands and fingers and arms and built it to fit him perfectly. It took eight months to build and they sent him videos of the progress. It has a lifetime warranty and if he ever has to send it back they will ship him a loaner on their dime.
The guitar might well have been one of if not THE best wood boxes I have ever held in my hands. A friend who owns several Martins, a Laravee, and a COLLINGS said it was better than any of his guitars.
And the cost? $1456.
I WANT ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
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Location: Flahdaw | Very cool! |
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Location: Canada | Interesting. I have actually been craving to have a dreadnought at home and have mainly been looking for a Tak EF360SBG, but am also checking out Guild D-50/D-55 or Larrivee. There are not many solid wood Seagull models, though as they are Canadian there's a chance I might actually find one in a local store and actually play it rather than take risk of online transaction.
Edited by d'ovation 2014-11-06 1:04 PM
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Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | I have a Larrivee here at the shop that is so loud it could knock you over. I have also had Seagulls here that were fantastic for inexpensive guitars. And I had a Simon and Patrick parlor guitar that sounded like a dread. Those are all part of the Godin company. Art and Lutherie is their least expensive line and the one I played was just OK. They also make La Patrie which I think is their classical line. I'd love to get my hands on one of those and try it. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | A while back, I encountered a street musician from Canada who was playing a Seagull on the sidewalk of a busy corner ('busy" with automobile traffic)... I was riding my bicycle. I could hear his guitar from almost a block away so I turned-around.
No amplifier, and it wasn't like he was playing hard or beating on the guitar.
That Seagull was that loud.
I am thinking that I gotta try one of the Canadian guitars, too. 
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Location: Flahdaw | I bought a nice used cedar top Seagull on CL for $250, played it for 2 years, sold it for $250
Edited by BobG 2014-11-06 2:17 PM
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Location: Jet City | When I finally decided to buy an acoustic/electric, I went in to buy a Seagull Artist. The sales guy handed me the then newly redesigned Ovation, a 1778LX... And that's where all the roundback silliness started
I do have this Larrivee though. It's an LV-09, 1 3/4 nut, and loud. They're made in the USA now.
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Location: Flahdaw | I had one of those I bought from Gator (remember him?) Nice guitar! |
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Location: Texas | I have been looking at a Conant Seagull. There have been 6-8 of them show up on Craigslist in the last month. |
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Location: Flahdaw | amosmoses - 2014-11-06 5:33 PM
I have been looking at a Conant Seagull. There have been 6-8 of them show up on Craigslist in the last month.
Handmade by Dr Conant, from actual freeze dried seagull meat. Available exclusively thru www.davekell.org |
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Location: Jet City | darkbarguitar - 2014-11-06 2:29 PM I had one of those I bought from Gator (remember him?) Nice guitar! There's a dude that's missed 'round here. I never have had the pleasure of making it out to the East Coast to hang with y'all at a gathering, and now that I'm able to, well.... not much goin' on. It is a great guitar. I wouldn't consider Larivees to be 'inexpensive' though. I coulda bought some broccoli covered carbon fiber for about the same $. |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | Collings is US only, Santa Cruz too and Bourgeois and a bunch of others. Collings makes about 3000 a year. Not sure about Taylor if they are US only. The Canadians are nice, I think Goden has about 5 brands. The reason that Adamas and Ovation went overseas is that Fender shut the factory down and they did that is cause they can't find their *** with both or either hand. |
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Location: Jet City | Ervin Somogyi only makes a few guitars every year. He's managed to keep a roof over his head in Berkeley for decades. Some day I'll have me one of 'em.  
Edited by Damon67 2014-11-07 6:43 PM
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Location: Canada | guitarwannabee - 2014-11-05 5:48 PM how do they stay in business competing against giants like fender who can't make it in the states. anyone had the chance to see or play one? GWB http://bedellguitars.com/blog From what I gather they were produced in China as the el-cheapo overseas branch of Breedlove. Only moved to Oregon to compete in the upper end market earlier this year. It will remain to be seen if they will make it or not ... |
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Location: Michigan | interesting note i took my adamas 12er in for a restring yesterday and while the owner of the music store and i were bullsh$@#% he asked me if i was coming up see tom bedell who was hosting the evening there .
i kinda thought hell this is the blog i put out a month ago about who are these mom & pop guitar builders that i have never heard of and surviving against the big players out there.
i guess this maker of guitars that i have never heard of before has a pretty big guitar company . very small world we live in.GWB |
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Location: Flahdaw | cwk2 - 2014-11-06 11:29 PM
they can't find their *** with both or either hand.
I just checked....I found my *** with BOTH hands. Over and over again. I can even do it with my eyes closed. |
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never heard of this american guitar company
