Indiana Guitar Company Remington Archtop

Received the Remington Archtop as a present from my girlfriend.
She knew I was looking for an archtop, because I like the sound.
Have a Gibson Les Paul Studio, a Gibson BluesHawk, a Guild D25-M
and a Martin DM, but I still was looking for that "jazzy" sound.
So a few weeks ago when I got back from an assignment, here's a
big, beautiful wrapped package waiting for me, which happens to
be the Remington! The guitar looked GREAT! Strings were lousy,
so I took it to Mario Martello, a wellknown luthier who takes
care of the guitars of a lot of musicians. He exchanged the
tuners, and exchanged the strings with Gibson 9/42's.
Then he adjusted the bridge and did something on the PU's.
Now, this is a TRUE Archtop! Almost Wes Montgomery at his best!
Mario, who also builds guitars, told he'd never buy this guitar,
but he had to admit, it's a lot of instrument for the buck!
He said the total quality of the guitar usually costs a lot
more, if you compare to other brands.
Anyway, at home I have Marshall amps and this guitar is SWEET!
It's NOT a Gibson HJ my neighbor owns (extremely close though!),
but if you compare what he paid and what my girlfriend paid,
I'd think the Remington is worth every penny! And...if this
nice playing guitar breaks down after five or six years, I'd
get another one!
All I can say: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED !!!

You HAVE to exchange the strings !!! Adjust the bridge and you
might as well exchange the tuners!
The Gibson 9/42's give this guitar the REAL Archtop sound!

Finish is pretty good al over. I mean if you look at the guitar
and didn't know the price, you'd swear it would set you back a
lot more !!!

Don't know yet, only had it 6 months,but so far everything's great!

Not needed

See the beginning of this message.

2003, made in China I believe. Here's the real deal. . . I ordered this by accident on E-bay(another story). I received the Guitar packed very carefully, with a plastic over cover inside the Johnson Arch Top case I elected to add for $49.00.

First, I was struck by the beauty of this Guitar when compared to the $219 price tag. I was thinking I would just hang it on the wall as art where no one could see it too closely. I am pleasantly suprised however at the finish of the binding and wood work. It is truly a beautiful Guitar. Flamed maple top with bound f-holes and binding around body, neck and headstock. Even the logo on the headstock is done with elegance.

The tailpiece / Bridge set up is nice. I was expecting major cost cutting here but it looks nice and is solid.

Tuners seem adequate at first glance - we'll see how long they last.

Neck is similar to a Gibson "C" with Block inlays of some as yet unidentified material. Some of the inlays are crooked. Overall with the binding and rosewood fretboard it looks nice.

Guitar came with free cable and strap.

Stock strings are from original mfr I believe and seem to have travelled across the ocean. Don't even mess with them. I put Gibson 9/42's on immediately and the guitar changed from a tinny, buzzing "Dobro" to a deep & rich sounding hollow body as one might expect from the looks.

I play Blues clean through a Crate amp in my closet. The pickups are quiet. You can get nearly endless sustain with feedback on this guitar.

Standard Les Paul type pick up selector allows you to change from deep and full neck sound to a very bright bridge sound.

For something that I thought I would put high up on a wall - this guitar sounds surprisingly good. I am cycling regularly with my other (all higher priced) guitars (strats, Carvin, Fender acoustic).

I Like it! Blues and rock handled well by this guitar.

Finish is amazing for the price. figured flamed maple top for $219!!

Nicely done too.

The action is great - once I changed the strings and let the neck settle in after a few hours playing, I found the guitar easy and responsive.

Joints in the binding are not perfect, and just around the neck joint there is a little rough work if you look very closely. But these are very minor flaws. Finish is painted on with a brush, so at the right angles, you can see the brush marks, but again a minor thing.

I don't play gigs, but I would doubt the stock hardware, although adequate, is up to professional standards. My opinion is that this is a guitar you keep at home. It has a lot of character though, and Indiana GC has managed to create an inexpensive piece that has sound and playability.

Did not deal with factory. Mandalay music was no problem in the ordering and shipping process.

I was hoping to loose this guitar before I even got it. I was praying for someone to outbid me!! Now I am very attached and have made fiends with this instrument. Great sound and very playable. It is my first Archtop - If it were stolen I would probably buy a more expensive version of the same guitar. On the other hand, if it lasts for 5 years, I might just replace it with the same model . . . .