Conference napalm::guitar

    Are you sure that this guitar is completely unfinished ?
    It must at least be oiled or sealed somehow, or else it
    would fall apart in no time. I suppose the cedar could go
    unfinished, but the spruce top would have to be sealed. 
                                                          
    					Mark Jacques
    

    
    The Seagulls I have seen are sealed but they do not have a gloss
    finish applied.  I think the seal is a polyurethane but don't quote
    me.  
    

    Where did you get this guitar? What music stores have them?
    
    Dave Jasmin

    
    Re: .3
    
    Once again, Mr. C's in downtwon Marlboro, MA has them.  Outside
    of MA....????
    

    I got mine at Liberty's in downtown Framingham, which is moving
    to Saxonville soon, right across from the old Roxbury carpet factory.
    
    It might have some kind of finish, but I can't see or feel it.
    
    						-Jeff
    

    I played a seagull severl years ago...according to the shop owner
    they are unfinished.
    
    Seemed like a nice guitar for the price.
    
    dave

    Hi,
    
    I have a Seagull I bought from the music emporium in porter square
    in cambridge.  Mine has a cedar top and cost about $250.  It is
    best acoustic I have owned, though my previous acoustic was a $50
    Harmony.  It has a nice mellow sound to it and the cedar top always
    gets comments.
    
    BTW I bought it for 2 reasons, first it is a lefty and it sold there
    for the same price as a righty, second the cedar top made it look
    nice.  I know you are supposed to buy guitars more objective criteria
    but sometimes ....
    
    Joe

    
    
    Warning- 
    		I've had a Seagull for 3 years,and everything was fine.
    Then this spring out of the blue, the bridge started coming off
    and the neck fucked up, etc. beware

    Mr C sold me a Kramer Baretta, he says it has a Seagull neck.
    The rosewood fingerboard looks like it has pore filler in it.
    Places look like car oil has touched the wood. I don't like the
    fingerboard. 

    I looked at a Seagull 12-string the other day.  I guess this is their
    better model.  It had the following features:
    
    	o Solid cedar top
    
    	o (apparently) Mahogany back and sides
    
    	o Rosewood fingerboard and bridge
    
        o High gloss finish
    
    The body was dreadnaught size, but with very rounded shoulders.
    Anyway, it played very nice, and sounded alot better than anything
    I've played in its price range ($519 list, the store was asking $395).
    The guitar appeared to be well constructed.  Has anyone had any 
    experience with Seagull 12 strings?
    
    	Jim
    

    RE: -.1
    
    Correction:	The top was spruce, not cedar.

    I stopped in the store I mentioned in .10 again last week-end and
    they had another Seagull 12 string.  I tried it out, and was pretty
    pleased with it, except for some string buzz caused by a lack of
    neck relief.  A quick neck adjustment cured that problem.  After
    a couple rounds of negotiations, the store owner offered the guitar
    to me for $440, tax included, and  with a nice hardshell case.  I
    said yes.
    
    The model is S.M. 12.  Solid spruce top, mahogany sides and back. 
    The store owner claimed the sides and back were solid, but I suspect
    that they are laminated.  
    
    I really like the sound of this guitar.  Outside of a Guild JF30 and
    a Martin 1228, I sounds as good or better than any 12 string I've 
    played.  It has good quality tuners (Grovers), seems to be well
    constructed, and isn't excessively neck-heavy (as many 12-strings
    seem to be).  The overall workmanship is pretty good, although the
    inside of the guitar is a bit messy (you can see glue here and there
    and stuff like that), but for the price, I certainly don't expect
    the same attention to detail as on my Martin HD-28.
    
    My only complaint is the neck.  It just doesn't seem real comfortable.
    It has a satin finish (unlike the gloss finish on the body) and is
    a little fatter than I like.   It is too bad, however, and I'm sure
    it is something I can get use to.
    
     Jim (who now has a Fender F350 12 string acoustic to sell...)
    

    
    I understand that the same company that makes the seagull guitars 
    (Do-Si-La or something like that) are the same folks that make the
    Godin electrics.  The Godin parts are made in Canada and manufactured
    in Berlin, N.H. (interesting choice, I grew up just over the border in
    Maine).  Guitar Player just gave a fairly glowing review of the Godin
    ST-1.  It looks like a nice guitar in the pictures, anyone know
    anything else about them?  Any dealers locally where I could get a
    first hand look?
    
    Thanks,
    Al
    

    What's local to you?  Tewksbury Music in Tewksbury, MA has the Godin
    line.  Music Emporium in Cambridge, MA stocks the acoustic/electric
    models only.
    
    I have a Godin Acoustibass fretless and like it a lot.  The wood used
    and the quality of the workmanship is better than similar priced axes
    from Fender.
    
    							Brian

    Rumor I heard is that Godin was building (all?) necks for Kramer, and
    just recently decided to branch into full guitars.  I've tried the
    Acoustibass and a couple of 6-strings, one Tele style and one Strat.
    Well made, nice players, seem like very good value for the money.
    
    /rick

    
    Brian,
    
    Thanks, I live in Nashua, so Tewksbury is within striking distance. 
    I'll check out these guitars.
    
    Al
    
    

    
    For lower-priced guitars, consider me converted.
    
    I had all but settled on a Guild D-4 (around $525).  I was on vacation
    last week in my home state of Tennessee, however, and thought I'd drop
    by some of the local guitar shops just for grins.
    
    I picked up a Seagull S6 DLX (deluxe) that had a solid spruce top, and
    cherry sides and back.  Its voice knocked me out, though the new John
    Pearse strings didn't hurt.  I was convinced that this guitar would 
    blow away the Guild D-4 in an A/B comparison, but there was no Guild
    around to compare it to.  This guitar, including a nice hardshell case, 
    was more than $100 less than the Guild.
    
    I had played another Seagull earlier (back in Seattle) that I didn't 
    really like: it had a cedar top and cherry body, and as I recall it had
    a somewhat muddy tone.  The spruce/cherry guitar was last years model: 
    spruce apparently isn't available anymore a top material.  I bought it.
    
    I think it's hard to beat Seagull for the price.  
    
    Jim
    
    
    

    
    I went to see Crash Test Dummies last night and was pleased to 
    note that Brad Roberts played Seagull guitars exclusively (except
    when he used an electric guitar...then he used a Fender).
    
    I still like my Seagull, though my John Pearse strings sounded better
    at four months than brand new Martin Phosphor Bronze...I'm ready to
    cut 'em off after a week and buy some John Pearse.
    
    Jim
    
    

    I wandered into Music Emporium recently, just to do some window
    shopping, and wandered out with a new Seagull S6.  They had several
    to choose from, all excellent but of course each with their own
    personality.  I chose a spruce top over the cedar; the cedars did
    sound good, but seemed a little brighter and edgier than the spruce
    in general.
    
    This guitar is an amazing value.  Well made, nice wood, and a great
    sound.  I've been looking around for a nice, inexpensive flat-top to
    bang around with.  Since I tend to favor old wood and well played,
    broken in instruments, I've been keeping a lookout at the shows
    and vintage shops for a good bargain.  I'm somewhat surprised that
    the first thing to really grab me was a *new* instrument.  What
    cinched the deal was, they had a really sweet 60's D-18 nearby.
    I went back and forth between the Martin and the Seagull several
    times; the similarities were surprising.  I'd give the Martin a bit
    of an edge in tone, but not much; and volume and projection-wise,
    the Seagull ate it's lunch.  A tone cannon.
    
    List price was $440, tagged at $370 (without a case).  I was so taken
    with this guitar that I *forgot* to bargain em down!  Probably could
    have knocked another $50 off easy.  No problem, I still think I got
    a lot of guitar for my money.
    
    /rick