Saga Gitane DG-255

I bought my DG-255 as a "near Mint" used off ebay. Thankfully, this turned out to actually be true: zero fret wear and no dings. For the money, the features are a 9. If I compare it to an entry level Martin Flat top (D-15), it is not quite so well done (iffy tuners on the DG-255) but nothing really noteworthy. I like the thick finish - this is better than the D-15. It looks hot.

Mine came with a replacement DR tailpiece and a Dupont bridge; and three sets of 1610 Argentine strings (!). I wish the last owner would have changed the tuners instead. Otherwise, I suspect the after market stuff makes zero difference.

The guitar is surprisingly light, I like. Very fast neck, love the long scale (I have fat sausage fingers), love the cutaway. You NEED the cutaway.

FANTASTIC! It has THE vibe in spades. They really nailed the spirit of the fast gypsy lines here - this IS what makes this guitar such good value. It really sings/barks and bites. It is addictive. It is loud. I love it! Loads of midrange - perfect for acoustic chamber music.

I will be even happier if I can make it work in a non-gypsy context (celtic/flamenco/classical/folk fusion?) - since otherwise it is not really very versatile. But hell, for the money, who cares?

This is where things start to go wrong. A trip to the Guitar Man might be in order. The tuning pegs seems to have sharp edges on the holes where the strings thread through. This has resulted in a number of broken/snapped strings at the peg - even without any playing. This is a most irritating problem. The sharp edges need filing off the pegs, or the cheap and cheerful stock tuners need replacing.

The edges of the frets need filing back a bit on my copy (just a dash).

The action is ONLY JUST high enough with Argentine 1610 strings and a Dupont after market bridge (no shims). This is ~4-5mm at the 12th fret - which seems high already, even with no shims. But the strings DO rattle occasionally I suspect slightly heavier strings is the way to go - and I do not have a particularly aggressive picking style. The previous owner had put a lot of really bad shims under the bridge to raise the bridge and action. I removed them. The stock bridge and the aftermarket Dupont gypsy bridge are extremely similar. I wouldn't have bothered. I would have replaced the tuners. I suspect the previous owner "adjusted" the truss rod, the neck currently has too much curvature in my opinion. Ho Hum.

The intonation is almost, but not quite, perfect, with the Dupont bridge and no shims. I might try and adjust it a bit - but its a minor thing. Chords at the nut play in tune; bar chords also do in most places......hummmm. My Martin D-15 has 100% perfect intonation.

It stays in tune.

It certainly looks like it would survive life in the wild. It survived a week with UPS in "near Mint" condition, so it must be pretty tough.

Thankfully unknown

An inspirational and hugely fun guitar. The fast clean playability and the absolutely on-the-money Django tone/vibe give this Ax a Grin factor of 10. I challenge you NOT to get stoked while banging out Minor Swing on this baby.

Great value for money, but don't expect miracles - this is an entry level guitar in my opinion. I suspect mine needs a proper pro-setup.

I have been playing 25 years. I also own an unplayable Gibson Les Paul (how I've tried), a very playable Godin LGXT, a simply perfect Martin D-15 acoustic, and a workhorse Eastman F-815 mandolin. I play bluegrass, celtic, folk, gypsy jazz and midi guitar.

The sound is good and almost as good as one of the more expensive models in the Favino, Dupont, catagory...almost.

Action was too high,but when bridge was lowered where the large E at the 12th fret for about 7/64ths there was a buzz on each fret. The buzz continued to seven frets from the end of the fingerboard. I removed the last seven frets and radiused the "lip" over the fingerboard thinner and re-installed the frets. This seemed to work. I also replaced the cheesy strings the guitar comes with(which broke when tuned up to pitch)with D'Adario Gypsy Jazz strings. I also used a small countersink the ream off the sharp edges in the holes in the tuning key shafts which I'm sure was part of the reason the strings broke initially. The seventh fret was still a tad high and after dressing the frets the buzz was virtually eliminated. If I had to do it again I think I would save up and get a Dell Arte, Dupont, or Favino. If I had charged for the work I had to do to make this guitar playable the extra money could have gone to pay for a better model. If one is not a repairperson or a builder, this guitar could very well be a big disappointment. It was probably a Friday or Monday guitar. As my daddy used to say, "You pays your money and takes your chances".

The tailpiece is a tad thin, nad probably will break soon, but more stable ones are available. So far the tuning keys have held up, but I've only had the guitar for two weeks, so time will tell. The finish is easy to touch up because I took all of the plastic fingerboard dots out and replaced them with ebony dots(personal preference). I'm not used to the European side dot set up, so I inlayed a black dot at the tenth fret and inlayed a white dot at the ninth fret(American setup, personal preference). Since the fingerboard binding finish was dulled due to sanding the dots I applied a coat of Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil gunstock finish with my fingers which blended in with the poly finish of the guitar. I also sanded off the logo at the peghead(personal preference), sanded the ebony overlay and applied another coat of Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil to blend with the poly finish. I discovered using the Birchwood Casey stuff when I had to repair broken pegheads of Taylor guitars that have a poly finish. As far as dependability of this guitar, I'll have to wait about a year and see if it holds up.

I dropped an email last week 4-2-09 to the rep at Saga and told him what I had to do to make the guitar playable, but have received no reply as of yet. Don't expect one.

I have been playing for close to sixty one years and play about fifteen different stringed instruments. If I had my druthers I would have much rather been able to play it rather than order sight unseen. Around this area where I live if you go into a music store and ask for Django type guitars you get the "deer in the headlights look" from the salespeople. They only cater to the heavy metal generation, and jazz is not hip enough to generate sales. If I had been able to play one before I bought it I would not have bought this guitar, perhaps the next one. What do I like about it? The price. The finish is nice and the guitar is well constructed, but I wish the Saga factory builders or final inspectors would take the time to make the guitar playable without all the necessary repairs needed.