Hi Tigger..........

There are a ton of older 12 String threads that might be of some interest. Here's a few:

Haruo 12 String - What do we know? (110)
Any serious 12 strings players left? (110)
12-string tuning/tension/capo issues (24)
Retuning my 12 string (10)
Cravin' a 12-String (62)
Guild 12 Strings (39)
Help: Help-12-string guitar (12)
Guild 12-String Guitar (36)
12 String Tuning (16)
Twelve-String Tunes (31)
Tuning a 12 string? (56)
Twelve String Tuning (51)
6 string as 12 string (4)
12 string (22)
capo's for 12 strings? Recomendations? (18)
where did the blues 12-string go? (46)
HELP! How to tune a 12 String (18)
Help: $1500 on a 12 string - but which? (19)
pleasures of the 12 (34)
Recommended capo for 12 string (19)
Santa Cruz 12-String (4)
12-String Setup (13)
12 string tuning (14)
12 String guitar rag (1)

I don't know what you are considering financially but play some in your price range and see what FITS you (body and playing style) and then have someone else play it if you can while you listen with your back turned. Compare some that way if you can. Most of the 12's being built now are pretty solid but remember the pressure is different on a 12 and so you don't want something too light.

I can't emphasize enough the fit angle and the blindfolded sound comparison. What you hear is often not what an audience hears. Buy the best you can afford with the sound and feel you like the best.

We had a really wonderful member around here, an excellent picker and fine teacher as well named Rick Fielding who died a few years ago (much too young but not from drugs). When he was a young man he had an experience where he believed the wrong guy about a new Twelve and the result of doing so. Here's the tale as Rick told it:

"Each of my 12 strings has it's own little memory but the worst was "Pedro" the Mexican built beauty that I bought when I was about twenty. The salesman said it was built to be tuned to pitch and I foolishly believed him. Now the problem was that my girlfriend at the time felt (justifiably so) that we should be saving our money, so when I purchased "Pedro" I snuck him into a closet for the night, planning to tell her about it the next day.(after I had thought up some story to justify my purchase) About 5am, a noise like a bazooka woke everyone up with a start in our communal rooming house. People were searching everywhere for the source of the explosion......but in my heart I knew what it was. I let someone else find the broken pieces of wood and wire, but I had to own up to it. Needless to say I got yelled at, AND lost Pedro one day after buying him!"

Spaw