Eastwood Guitars....

[SacredCow]

http://www.eastwoodguitars.com/

Anybody ever seen one in person? I've always wanted a Mosrite, but I don't have that kind of spare change lying around! Some of these things look very cool, and the prices are pretty good- but are they PsOS IRL?

[here_is_to_hope]

1. Well....

"Where are Eastwood® Guitars made?"
"We make Eastwood® Guitars in three different factories based in Korea and China."

Says it all for me.

[SacredCow]

2. Well, that surely indicates that they're mediocre at the very best....

but for sub-$500, I wasn't expecting something truly phenomenal....

[ET Awful]

3. Being built in Asia isn't always a bad thing anymore . . . though I shy away from China

the Korean built guitars these days aren't too shabby (believe it or not, the Squier Classic Vibe series that I've played are superior to the Mexican made Fenders).

A lot of well made guitars are coming out of Korean factories these days. There are some good ones coming out of China too, but I'm not too keen on buying anything from there.

Depending on what you play, a lot of well known brands are coming from Korea: Schecter (some models), Michael Kelly, Epiphone, Squier, PRS SE series, etc.

Are they as good as a top of the line USA made guitar? In most cases no, in some cases, they're better.

The Korean builders in particular have improved a LOT over the pat 5-10 years.

[here_is_to_hope]

4. I have a problem with anything imported...

Why send money overseas when we have the real deal in Gibson, Fender and others?

[SacredCow]

5. I guess the price is the answer there....

were money no object, I'd absolutely buy nothing but the creme-de-la-creme of Fender, Gibson, Martin, etc...
But the fact is, I can't much justify dropping $2000 on a Les Paul, so I set my sights lower.

[ProfessorGAC]

6. Errrrrrrr. . .

Ibanez does make top of the line guitars. That's the cool part of the company. They make everything from the $130 starter to the $3k piece of art. I am a GIGANTIC Fender guy, but the best guitar i have (and my go to instrument) is an Ibanez. As great as my Fenders are, my Ibanez is better, and my Schecter is at least their equal.

Now, as to the acoustic side, i say Martin and Guild. Accept no substitute.
GAC

[SacredCow]

7. I just got my first Martin back in November...

Up until that, I was playing Yamaha and Ovation acoustics (still play the Ovation).

[ProfessorGAC]

8. Full Disclosure

I have a Takamine and a Ginannini. Those are Japanese and Brazillian. And they're both really good guitars. They're just not as good as my Martins. They play great, but the tone is just not as rich.
GAC

[Rob H.]

9. Hallmark makes what I've heard is an excellent Mosrite clone

Complete with roller bridge, metal nut, and a zero fret minus the narrow neck of the originals. They're a Made in Korea guitar, but the guys over at the Mosrite Forum seem to like 'em quite a bit. (Retail is $900, but prices on genuine Mosrites are ridiculous.)

Hallmark '60 Custom:



I have a Hallmark Sweptwing that I bought used and it's a very nice guitar; might switch out the bridge pickup for one of Hallmark's humbuckers, though, because the stock single-coil is pretty thin-sounding to me. It looks like something George Jetson would play. :P