another mangled instrument

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: DPF
Date: 09 Jan 13 - 12:14 AM

Debra, I was completely impressed when you came out to the pub sing in Williamsburg and unfolded that thing. It's an impressive instrument and idea!

Dan

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: banjoman
Date: 08 Jan 13 - 04:50 AM

I have said on similar threads what I think of DELTA and that their initials stand for:
Dont
Expect
Luggage
To
Arrive
and you could add the word Safely at the end

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 08 Jan 13 - 02:04 AM

Deb said it all. You don't even have to loosen the strings to fold it down. And when you set it back up, it's damn near in tune. Of course, any time you take a guitar out of a case, you have to tweak the tuning a little. As for sound, it's extraordinary. It can hold its own in an acoustic session with fiddles, banjos, etc.
I have the I-Beam pickup system in it for stage work, and when it's plugged in, it's great - clear highs and lows.
I use it it for strumming, flat-picking and what little finger-picking I do.
I recommend this guitar unreservedly for anyone who has to fly to gigs. In fact, I'll be bringing it back to Alaska in 2 weeks.

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 10:11 PM

Deb's guitar sounded good to me when I last heard her perform.

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: DebC
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 08:10 PM

Yeah, amazing, eh? Jed Marum and I both road-tested the prototypes and back then we always thought you had to loosen the strings to fold it back up.

When I was visiting with Harvey last summer, he said that Thom Bresh unfolded a V-A without loosening the strings and everyone watching was waiting for the guitar to explode when he unfolded it and tightened the bolt. Harve said everyone was totally blown away when it was in tune!

Unless I sell it, I'll have the OM-4 with me when I am in the UK in Feb-March. Who knows? I may even make it to Sussex. No gigs, but I'd love to see Ian C again, meet you, Will and see a friend in Worthing.

Deb

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Will Fly
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 06:19 PM

Fascinating, Debra - folded, unfolded - and then a near-perfect D chord...

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: DebC
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 04:32 PM

I also use a Voyage-Air. I have two: a custom one that was built for me by Harvey Leach, the inventor and a mass-produced OM-4 model. I do both strumming and finger picking and the OM-4 performs very nicely in both situations. The OM-4 is a demo model that I tour with and is for sale.

The unfolding and folding do not affect the instrument at all. In fact when you unfold the guitar you only have to make slight adjustments in tuning. Strings seems to last a wee bit longer than regular guitars.

I appeared on Rik Palieri's "Songwriter's Notebook" a while back with a Voyage Air. The one that I have is a VAD (dreadnought size). Here is the video

Debra

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Gurney
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 03:42 PM

Interesting, Seamus. I like the idea, but I notice that the Ad features only strumming. I once played a Maccaferri which sounded wonderful flatpicked, but was not at all lively played fingerstyle.
How is yours?

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Will Fly
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 04:21 AM

Seamus - what's the effect on the strings of unfolding and re-folding? Do they come up to pitch quickly? Do they last as long as on a normal instrument?

Just curious.

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 07 Jan 13 - 12:22 AM

Which is precisely why I got a Voyage-Air guitar. I have to fly a lot, and for years I used a Calton case. Excellent piece of gear for protecting my guitar. But the Calton case doesn't do a damned bit of good if the guitar is misplaced or doesn't show up at baggage retrieval. I would eventually get the guitar 2 or 3 days after the gig was over, but I had to rely on the generosity of friends to do the job. Apologies from the airlines and a $100 voucher. But with the Voyage-Air, the guitar fits in a hard backpack and goes in the overhead bin. Haven't had a problem for the last 3 years

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: PHJim
Date: 06 Jan 13 - 11:51 PM

This happens more often than we might expect. They don't all get this much publicity.
I have a friend who had the headstock of a beautiful Fulawka pedal steel guitar broken off on an airline conveyer belt.
My son had three days of panic while the airline tried to track down where his bass had disappeared to.
An article in Guitar Player magazine many years ago about the hazards of flying with instruments told of Chet Atkins watching, through the window of the plane as an airline employee stole his guitar. He said he didn't mind losing the guitar so much because Gibson would give him another, but he'd just shelled out a pile of money for the flight case it was in.
Barney Kessel always purchased an extra seat for Mr. Guitar.

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 06 Jan 13 - 11:36 PM

What a mess!

Subject: RE: another mangled instrument
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 06 Jan 13 - 07:50 PM

very mangled

Subject: another mangled instrument
From: GUEST,skivee guesting in
Date: 06 Jan 13 - 02:08 AM

this time it's Delta