Johnson Carolina series II jo-26

The features have been covered...
Engleman Spruce top
Mahogany back/sides
ugly, pepperoni pickguard that I peeled off right after it came out of the case. Looks great... naked. Maybe someday I'll get a greven PG
some kinda vintage bracing pattern (Advanced pre-war?)
mahogany neck w/tasteful if not slightly over the top head stock inlay... but I like it
vintage deeper neck, nice feel.
gloss finish
simple rosette
stained rosewood fretboard
mircodot fret markers
Rosewood bridge, bone nut/saddle
Cream Ivoroid body binding
short scale (24.9")
1.75+" nut width

it's not the most full featured axe, and there are some sloppy finish details... which don't affect the tone

It's been dubbed the 'poor man's Eric Clapton 00028 (tho it'd be technically, a 000-18V). Can't quibble with that. I've followed the evolution of this Greg Rich project for some time. During that time I've gone thru a few guitars, seeking a practical guitar that would cover my needs: basically, finger style blues, with meanderings into old folk idioms and whatever else my mid-century brain wants to take me. I've gone thru many Martins and Gibsons and Larrivees, and a few others. I've spent a lot of $$ here and there. After a while I figured that money wouldn't make a good guitar... it might be some cheap sleeper.

This JO-26 has a real vintage tone that hearkens towards the old Martin, yet can be downright dirty on the blues. Despite being a 'hog backed box, the bass is there in the right proportions... and it seems to be surfacing more each week. It is NOT overly bright as so many low end spruce/hog guitars tend to be.
The action is a bit high (as is often the case with new guitars), but it plays real nice up and down the neck. I may adjust that soon... and then it might be a real speed killer. I love the feel of the neck -- not too low profile but not that 'deep vee' that Martin puts on too many of their vintage models... which always annoyed my hands.

The tone is very balanced, but it has a nice bit of woody-boxy in the middle -- which I love. I like a guitar that sounds woody... earthy. Single note runs or chording sound super - no dead spots. Finger picked (with or without metal finger picks) it sound great, but with a moderate to heavy flat pick, it does country/bluegrass real good... but I wouldn't put it up against a big dread at a bluegrass jam. The best part...I want to play it all the time. Maybe it just sounds great... maybe it was a great deal..maybe both.

Guitar was set up medium, but very unplayable. Most guitars are set up this way (unless it's a custom job, or you buy it local and have the shop do your set up. I bought it on line, so got just cursory service -- great communication, great price). The top has little or no run-out (a problem on many asian made guitars. A few glue blobs inside, and the braces look like they could've used some sanding, but that is an over-sight that is inherent in lo-cost boxes. Everything works

Have not played it live, but I rekon it will work fine. I plan to install a K&K Mini for recording/gigging.

The tuners are not high end, but they hold tune and look old skool.

Finish is not too thick.

Haven't dealth with the company directly. I believe they have a 1 year warranty. Greg Rich is an active participant on many forums (BLueridge, Martin, etc).

I've been playing for about 30 years. I've owned numerous Martins ('34 0-17, 00-15, 000-15, 000-15S, 00-18V), Larrivees (OM-5, OM-3MT, L-03K, OM-50V), Gibsons (L-GO, T-GO, WM-00, archtop), Petros, Goodall, Favilla, Kalamazoo, Harmonys, Fender Strats, Guild Starfire, and others.

Over the years I've discovered that an expensive guitar does not satisfaction bring. I play more down home music, DIY, rag stuff... and most high end guitars are built too refined, too pretty (not all, but most). I like a guitar that grunts a little. This one does, and it can sound purty too.

if I lost it, I might take a look at the new Recording Kind series (the upgraded line of this guitar) which is coming out.

Wish it had a pickup... but I'll just install it myself. I like this guitar. If someone was looking for a beater or a steady mojo box for under 5 bills, I would heartily endorse this one.

The JO-26 is an all solid wood guitar with an Englemann spruce top, African mahogany back and sides, mahogany neck, rosewood fret board, bone nut, bone saddle, and a gloss finish. It has a very comfortable 000-style body, a 24.9 inch scale and the best nut width (46 mm or about 1.80 inches) I've had the pleasure of playing (I have big hands, so string spacing is highly important). Butterbean tuners and a diamond volute on the back of the headstock give it a classic touch. The Johnson inlay on the headstock is also tastefully done. The bracing is scalloped, forward-X. The pickguard is the only feature that looks cheesy (and, I must admit, a bit cheap). I suppose I could remove it and replace with something more classy and substantial.

I play fingerstyle and country blues, and this guitar does both excellently. I hadn't played a Johnson before but the wide nut width, the all solid wood body, and positive reviews from other owners sold me on it. I am now more than happy to own one! It has a great sound for blues (though being a 000 body it doesn't have as much bass as a dread, but that kind of goes without saying) and a wonderful sound for fingerstyle tunes. It sounded good with the strings it came with, but I changed the strings to Martin Fingerstyle SPs and replaced the stock plastic bridge pins with Tusq bridge pins and now I have more volume and sustain than I know what to do with. It rings, especially capoed on the fourth or fifth fret. When I play some Will Ackerman tunes on it with my Alaska Piks (plastic fingerpicks), I swear I'm playing a guitar that costs three or fours times as much. Very clear notes across the neck and great intonation all the way up. It's loud but notes don't drown out another. Great sound, even when strummed or flatpicked!

For me the action was great. This was listed as new on eBay and I don't think anyone tweaked it when it came from the factory. It's low enough to zip around the strings without fear of any buzzing. The top looks great (I can even see some cross grain in it; a luthier once told me that's the sign of a good top) and I can't see any finish flaws at all. Very well made, especially for the money.

This is a solidly built guitar. Period. I'm not sure why Johnson only gives it a year warranty; it sure to last a hell of lot longer than that. I haven't played it live yet but that's only a matter of time (I would play it without having a backup). Finish seems very well applied, strap button is solid.

I've e-mailed Johnson Guitars a few times in the past year to ask about some of their models and they've always replied and done so in a very friendly manner. Again, the warranty is one year but I'm sure the guitar will probably even outlast me.

I've been playing for nearly 30 years, the last 12 or 13 fingerstyle. I have owned a few other acoustics and currently own the Johnson and a Martin SWOMGT. The best things about the Johnson are its nut width, its sound and its incredible value. I can't think of anything else the guitar needs (maybe to come with Tusq bridge pins; they really made a difference in sound and sustain). I only wish Johnson offered a dread with as wide a nut as this 000 size. I'd buy one of those in a heartbeat. If this were lost or stolen, I'd definitely buy another. For the $385 I paid for it, I definitely got a great guitar. Even if you pay a little more (I see them on the web for about $450), it's worth it!

This solid spruce-top and solid African mahogany bodied 14 fret 000 has perfect gloss finish. The top is tight grained and nicely bookmatched. The top features a forward shifted X scalloped bracing. It is short-scale (24.9")with a 46mm nut which is slightly wider than 1-3/4". It comes with vintage-style closed butterbean tuners.
This guitar was shipped in a Guardian Deluxe hard case which itself retails for $129. This is a top quality Chinese-made guitar.

The guitar has the typical spruce/mahogany sound, with balanced highs and lows and good clarity.

The setup is only a bit higher than I like for fingerstyle, but is quite adequate. The gloss finish if flawless and all workmanship, both inside and out is clean. I could find no problems with the construction or finish.

This a great reasonably priced, well made short-scale acoustic that should provide great playing for a long time.

The guitar carries what I consider a less than adequate 1 year warranty. Johnson's cheaper guitars carry better warranties than this one. I would not rely much on the manufacturer's warranty and since this was a mailorder deal, I'd most likely have any repair work done by my local trusted luthier.

I've been playing guitar for over 25 years and currently own 2 Martins as well as a few other assorted brands. This guitar compares favorably with the Martins that cost 2 to 3 times as much. If you want a reasonably priced short-scale guitar definitely consider the JO-26 (mahogany) or the JO-27 (rosewood).

All solid wood acoustic with solid spruce top mahogany back and sides. rosewood fingerboard and a nice floral motif inlay on the head stock, diamond pattern inlays for position markers on the fretboard. Bone nut and saddle, a shorter scale length 24.9 if I remember correctly and the nut is 46mm or in inches 1.8 inches. Butterbean type tuners. This is a triple 000 body style. Finish is gloss but not overly appled. Made in China

Sound is what this guitar has going for it the body style and bracing pattern lend themselves to a very balanced sound with very good string to string defination--good sustain and a ringing tone. Depending on how the guitar is set up it will lend itself in my opinion well to fingerstyle and bluegrass -- folk and acoustic blues

This (in my experience)is where this could go from a great guitar to less so --- my guitar was dropped shipped from a wearhouse and not from a dealer directly. As such the set up was poor and the inlay on the fret board was poorly cleaned up. The filler used in the inlay process was not cleaned up so much so that I thought some of the inlays were missing and I was ready to send it back; however!! some one suggested that they may be there and to try scraping a bit and sure enough they were there under the filler. The same individual who deals in Carolinas' indicated he had seen a number come where the dye and fillers were not cleaned up well some reports I've read said theirs was fine. Keep in mind this is a pretty inexpensive guitar so you might expect some trade off between price and attention to detail. The finish was fine otherwise only other issue was the pick guard was not fully seated and had seperated-- I believe they just have some adhesive backing that was probably not applied as well as it could be but it was easy enough to get it to adhere just by pressing down with moderate pressure. The action required some work. I used the Martin standards to set it up for saddle height,neck relief and string height. As such it required some work on the saddle and truss rod adjustment but I have it to where it is OK for my style of playing fingerstyle guitar.

Time will tell -- it carries a one year warranty the laminate side/back models have a longer warranty; maybe because they expect less chages to occur.

The dealer was very co-operative when I first wanted to return the guitar as were the folks at "MusicLink". I also had an assurance from Greg Rich designer of the guitar that if I had a problem he would go and hand pick one for me. So I have some confidence that they stand behind this product and are working to improve it

Playing for about 35 years --own Gibson Tacoma Epiphone Yamaha Larivee acoustics. I would buy this again if lost or stolen. This China made guitar from the "Grand Factory" I think is part of an emerging class of guitars that is hard to beat for the price and consider the solid wood materials the design and sound its going to satisfy a big chunck of the market. Where it could become a most optimal product -- is set up and quality control -- add another 100 dollars and tweek the set up and details finish---then A++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++