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| The crazymess continues. Not sure if anyone had done this yet and it is harder than it looks to install with proper bracing. Plays great! Ed
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Location: When?? | Interesting enough. Appears somewhat military-industrial in the photos.. but I doubt there is anyone here who could resist picking it up to give it a try. Pretty heavy I'd suppose. Height-adjustable saddle? What specific model? (looks like maybe a 1771) Glad to hear it worked and plays well!
Edited by Love O Fair 2021-11-25 9:23 AM
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Posts: 46
| It is a ($100) 87 Korean Celebrity 4681. Very thick top and lots of bracing. Perfect for this project. It does have a height-adjustable saddle. It has a aftermarket lightweight off brand Bigsby with bearings. It works well and stays in tune. After removing the now useless heavy electronics, adding the new components, including a Fishman Neo D sound hole pickup, it only added about 3/4 of a lb to the guitar. I may add the Chet Atkins handle to streamline the look. Ed
Edited by Juiced 2021-11-25 1:08 PM
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Location: NJ | no thanks
that's what my gretsch is for |
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Location: Australia | I remember Jeff Lynne had an Ovation with a Bigsby back in the Travelling Wilbury days |
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| Very cool. Thanks. I will have to look that up.
Ed |
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Location: NJ | I want to see a pic of jeff lynne's guitar |
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Posts: 46
| Me too! The only real acoustic (Ovation or otherwise) being offered currently is a Gretsch Rancher. I did find one photo of a Bigsby mounted to a standard acoustic on a BRYAN ADAMS live album cover. There is a video from some guy that converted his damaged Jay Turser.
Edited by Juiced 2021-12-01 2:14 PM
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Location: Cass County, Texas | Jeff Lynne playing his Ovation that has a Bigsby. 
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| Outstanding, Thank you for posting!
Ed |
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Location: NJ | interesting but just not for me |
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Location: Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA | Hello, Everyone,
Is it just me, or is Alpep completely right when he says that, "Ovation guitars don't get the respect they deserve."? It now seems that even some Ovation players couldn't, and/or can't leave well enough alone, and, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it.", doesn't apply here, either. I'm all for new and improved, like when Ovation invented the piezo pickup back in the day, but in this case , "New isn't always better!" Just sayin'.
Mike S.
Ottawa,ON.,
CANADA
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Location: Bristol England | It's not a matter of "leave well enough alone", it's his guitar and he can do what he wants to it. I have read previously on this site of members firing a guitar from a trebuchet and painting them in their own colour. That is their choice so they can do what they want with it. So what? It's a guitar that's all it is..... A guitar - Not the Holy Grail. |
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Location: Ottawa, Ontario, CANADA | Hello, James,
Point taken. My dad always said, "People do stuff because they can, and because they want to." "But just because you can do something, it doesn't always mean that you should." This goes for treatment of guitars, people, and everything else in life, IMHO. You can correct me, if I'm wrong here, too. I have been wrong before. Thanks.
Mike S.
Ottawa, ON.,
CANADA
Edited by Mike S. 2021-12-03 2:30 PM
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Location: Bristol England | Hi Mike,
No problem. Everyone is entitled to their point of view it's what makes the world go round. However it's a good job we don't live in North Korea or China or we would probably never be heard from again!
Cheers James. |
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| I have both! Some that will never get touched and others that have needed help due to wear and tear or for other reasons. I have a 1990s USA that the original owner tried to do his version of Willy Nelson's Trigger and almost wore a hole in the soundboard . The top finally collapsed. I purchased the guitar to try to rescue it. Beyond my repair abilities ( I repair amps) my local luthier straightened and repaired it into a very respectable sounding guitar with honest road wear. This Bigsby Ovation was a inexpensive rescue guitar that was destined for a trash can or wall art. The thick soundboard and shallow body made it very dead sounding. (among other things wrong with it) Now it is articulate and sounds wonderful with some added bling. Ed
Edited by Juiced 2021-12-03 2:50 PM
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| Getting some play time at the Christmas show. Fun stuff! Ed
Edited by Juiced 2021-12-04 7:11 PM
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Location: When?? | Ho-ho-ho! Lookin' good. Dig those thunder metal mics too.. and apparently you live where it's warm in December! |
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| Thanks and yes, unusually warm for this time of year...
South Carolina - USA |
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Location: Cass County, Texas | >>> LOF said "Appears somewhat military-industrial" <<< I like industrial.  Ed, y'all are looking good in that setting and attire. Enjoy!
Edited by Tom The Piddler 2021-12-05 6:39 AM
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Location: NJ | I guess I would just bend the strings......old school |
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Location: Yokohama, Japan | Juiced - 2021-12-04 9:09 AM
Getting some play time at the Christmas show. Fun stuff!
A Christmas gig! Nice! Great job on the installation of the Bigsby too. Thanks for sharing.
So, serious question here..., how has the Bigsby affected the resonance of the sound board and overall sustain?
Edited by arumako 2021-12-07 1:51 AM
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Posts: 46
| Thanks! "how has the Bigsby affected the resonance of the sound board and overall sustain?" Considering the extra thick top it helped it considerably. All the notes are now very articulate (Fishman humbucker sound hole pickup) and a improvement in the sustain. Not all Ovations will respond the same.
Ed |
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Posts: 755
Location: Muenster/Germany | You never know what´s possible if you don´t try the impossible.
I would not know what to do with a bigsby but I this guitar looks great, sheer rock´n´roll, except for the soundhole pickup, there must be a better solution. Some old Jazz boxes had a pickup integrated in the fretboard extension.
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