New Member in need of a little help.

Willie

VicBulbon

in short still not the gypsy style guitar, I presume?

Willie

It surely is.

VicBulbon

If it is authentic, in your opinion, is that price fair for a gypsy guitar like that one?

stuology

https://www.djangobooks.com/forum/discussion/comment/106529#Comment_106529

I mean it is clearly inspired by the Selmer-Maccaferri models that Django was known for playing (although famous for their small oval holes and large D-holes, they also sometimes came with larger sound holes like this one).

I'm not sure exactly what you mean by 'gypsy guitars'. Gypsies - or more accurately, Manouche or Sinti, played guitars, they didn't make them. And no one made guitars for them - Maccaferri was an Italian classical guitarist. Django had an endorsement deal with Selmer, so he is associated with those guitars, but other people from the era played them too, notably Eddie Freeman, Oscar Aleman and Al Bowlly. A lot of players at the time and since, including both Sinti and gadjos, have sought out original Selmers or well-made reproductions because they are so associated with Django and his sound. But calling them gypsy guitars is a bit like calling Strats African-American-Native American guitars because Hendrix played them.

So going back to this - I think what you are after is a vintage, French Selmer-style guitar. This one seems to tick that box pretty well. Paul Beuscher was a shop so they didn't make guitars, but they did brand other makes including, I believe, some made from leftover stock when Selmer stopped making them. The problem with this guitar is its provenance - it might be a Di Mauro or it might not. From a collectors point of view it doesn't have much value, but these kind of guitars can be a real bargain for those after a vintage guitar without the inflation that comes with named luthiers. Michael would probably list this as a 'gypsy mystery.'

Value looks about right depending on condition - buying vintage on the internet always comes with a bit of risk. I'd fix that wonky moustache though.

VicBulbon

Thanks for the explanation stuology. I understood what you meant. I guess I wanted to ask, is that guitar similar enough in style to the selmer ones that if played, it will give that sound known by us as gypsy jazz? I am now just a bit wary, because the seller of one of the guitars I originally asked you guys in this post where some members hav told me it's a french acoustic guitar not particularly similarly to the Selmer guitars has sent me a clip, and it is clearly noticeable to my ear that it is something I wouldn't like for gypsy jazz.

Now that you said, if Michael had it listed, he would call it gypsy mystery. I am reassured.

Thank you very much. It might be worth a shot.

stuology

Hard to say. If you were buying it from Michael I would say go for it but off some guy from Reverb, it could be great, it could be unplayable. Guitars don’t age well in my experience, they need a lot of expert care to make them sound good.

VicBulbon

The seller said that the scale length is 630 mm. Do you guys find that very unusual for an o hole to have that scale length and also meet the body at the 12 fret?

billyshakes

Vic,

Just a question how much in this style you have played? If it is not much, I might recommend you avoid venturing into the unknown of the vintage guitar world. As has been said by others before me, there are great Asian made instruments that will give you the sound and look that you are seeking. If they are set up correctly, they will last you for a good portion of your learning, and they will be easily playable. My concern for trying some of these vintage instruments (especially sight unseen/unplayed) is that they may have various issues such as the neck twist this seller is talking about, lifting frets, loose braces, etc. Any one of those very solvable things could derail your learning process as you spend more time trying to fight with your guitar and less on learning.

Furthermore, as you play, your ear will grow, your idea of the sound YOU want to hear from yourself will evolve. When we start, we may want to sound like Stochelo, or Angelo, or Django because those are the albums we listen to. Later, you might find you want to combine Stochelo's vibrato with Django's phrasing while using Moreno's attack. By that time, you'll know the instrument you want, the sound you want, the neck shape you prefer, etc. Then you can safely plunge into some of these vintage instruments with character.

Least that's my 2 pennies. Good luck!

Lango-Django

^^^ this ^^^