I don't know why I just didn't like my 1st BR 40. It was the only tenor I'd laid my paws on at the time, back in early 2016, and it arrived very poorly set up, which didn't help. It's flat botton (when viewed from the front) offended me, and I wasn't really expecting it to sound like it did, tuned CGDA. I guess it was a bit of a shock to the system.
Well, anyway, I've been spending the year persevering on my Osark, which I opted for instead, learning to love CDGA, and then recently decided I'd like to buy a longer scale, robuster tenor that could handle GDAE and a bit of heftier strumming. I asked around on the forum here about the Goldtone, but was warned off about it's "quiet" design, so I felt myself inevitably coming round to the BR 40 once more, especially since everyone enthuses about it, with never a bad word.
And lo and behold, on German Amazon (I live near Bonn) was a second hand (new condition) BR40T going for 400 euros (+ 3 euros postage!) This is less than 350 pounds, so I'm thinking it was quite a bargain, since the new ones were almost 600 euros. I think it had been there quite a while, but I don't think there's much of a market for tenors in Germany. Well, I snapped it up of course, and it's as though I'm seeing the instrument with new eyes and ears! It rings like a big guitar and looks just fine, and the seller even included a bag and a promise of some new strings.
I'm tuning it DGAE, trying to follow Fox's recommendation of 13-20w-30w-45w, but it's hard getting the desired acoustic strings seperately, so I'm presently using 12-18w (from an Eagle so-called Irish set) at the high end, then 30w and (wait for it...) a rather chunky 47 in the bass because it's the nearest I could find at Cologne's masive musicstore. That certainly irons out the problem of poor intonation which occur with lighter G strings, but I'd like to find a 45w and a 20w (phospor bronze) if I can. Any suggestions for this side of the pond, preferably? I'm not too worried about putting excess strain on the guitar since Fox has often pointed out that the body is braced for 6 strings, but 47 feels just a little oversized. Or does anyone else go that big?
I'm considering lowering the saddle (or is it the bridge?- well the bone thingy) a little bit by sanding - what grade sandpaper should I use? Will I regret trying to do it myself?
Anyway, all in all I'm much more enthusiastic the 2nd time around about this guitar, and am wondering if I ought to sell something to maintain the equalibrium....
[Interestingly the previous owner had bought it with the idea of stringing it as a ukelele (which he plays), but it didn't work out. It arrived tuned GCEA, with a strange-looking selection of strings on, with the wounds and the plains all in the wrong place to my eyes. The promised new strings have yet to arrive, but I'm guessing they'll do for my Osark]
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