Last weekend I went on an unexpected trip to Nashville. I had visited Carter Vintage Guitars a few times but never Gruhn Guitars. I took an uber out there on Sunday only to find out they were closed (note to self: check store hours before taking uber). So Monday we went over to Hattie B’s for some hot chicken (yum!!). We walked down to Gruhn’s after lunch to check out the guitars.
My focus was the much hyped sinker guitars George has been designing. I spent about an hour playing most of the sinker’s on the floor. My favorite was a 12 fret, 0000-18 that I came back to a few times. The 0000-18 body size and tone just fit my style of playing better than a D-18, being a singer/songwriter as opposed to a Bluegrass player. I really liked the 0000-18, but wasn’t quite ready to pull the trigger on a new purchase. I went to purchase a shirt on the way out and they asked if I would like to go upstairs and meet George. Of course I couldn’t pass this opportunity up so me and the wife headed upstairs.
There was a whole bunch of really nice guitars up there. George came out and greeted us and we started chatting instantly about the sinker guitars. There were a few upstairs that I was able to play and spend some more time with. We went into a quiet room and spent the next two hours talking with George about all things guitars and some zoology as well! I had many questions about his decisions on the specs of these guitars and he gave us detailed explanations about everything. He has some very interesting thoughts on Adirondack vs Sitka, Hot Hide glue and through saddles vs drop ins, but I will leave that info for him to tell you.
He would listen to me play a few of my songs and kept bringing in different guitars for me to try and compare to the sinkers. I ultimately could not resist a 0000-18 12 Fret Sinker Sunburst. It just worked so well for my voice and playing style, not to mention it was gorgeous! It was really eye opening to be able to compare this guitar to similar guitars, including a 1928 000-28! While that guitar was spectacular, the sinker held it’s weight (and saved my pocketbook). Honestly, all the sinker guitars sounded very similar to our ears, they are that good. I even played a sinker D-18 against a 1939 D-18 Authentic and we all agreed the sinker sounded better. George has done something really special here with the design of these sinker guitars. I believe these will ultimately add to his already legendary legacy.
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