Jerry Jones Guitarlin

This is an update to my previous entry. As I said at one point in my review, the outside strings seemed a bit close to the edge of the neck. This actually became more of a problem a couple of months ago when I started doing gigs that required more lead work. But I've found the solution: simply replace Jerry's bridge with one made by Schaller, I think it's model 477 or 577 or something. Anyway, it's the one with the rollers that allow for string width adjustment. You may have to shim the neck ever so slightly, and you will have to drill two more hole in the guitar, but luckily the middle hole on Jerry's bridge is exactly where the middle hole on the Schaller needs to be attached, so it's much easier lining things up. Still dig my two Guitarlins!

I have two actually, one's circa '97 in red, and the other is circa '98 in black. I liked the red one so much that when I found the black one on sale I jumped at it. Both of them have the intonatable Neptune bridge, which I've heard has a brighter tone than the standard wood saddle bridge (makes sense). The toggle switch is the most solid toggle I've ever encountered. It's like something the military would use! The fretboard is very flat and wide, and the neck is quite shallow. I find it's great for barre chords.

The sound is sort of like a Tele with adenoids, although it's responsive enough that by driving it a bit it seems to really open up and go "CLANG!" I'm running it through either a Tech 21 Trademark 10, or a friend's mid-60s Vox Cambridge (with a MesaBoogie speaker upgrade). I don't always use effects, but when I do, I have Carl Martin Compressor, Hot Drive'N'Boost, and ChorusxII. The neck pickup is a bit non-descript, but that can be handy when you want to lay in the background a bit. Bridge pickup has a nice bite, almost like old Billy Bragg-ish. Did I mention "CLANG"? Running both pickups results in a richer version of the bridge pickup sound.

The guitars were nicely set up from the factory with 10-46, but I changed to 11-49, so I can tune down a tone on certain occasions and get an even richer baritone-ish sound. Everything was and still is solid. Nice fret work, and the "tape" around the edge is there to stay, unlike on the Dano versions I've encountered. Bone saddle, which means the strings don't get caught as easily as they might with the aluminum saddle on the Dano. The outside strings seem slightly closer to the edge of the neck than most other guitars, but I adjusted once I got used to the neck.

I've used the red '97 on literally dozens of gigs, and sometimes had the black '98 as a spare. In addition, I've put in quite a few hours busking with each through a little battery powered amp, in many extreme temperature changes. Since the finish is painted Masonite, and Masonite is used for (among other things) outdoor signs, I'm not worried about finish checking at all. Nothing's had to be replaced yet, these guitars are just totally solid.

It's true, Jerry answers his own phone! He's quite helpful too. Since nothing's gone wrong, I have no idea what the warranty is, although after almost five years, I'm probably out of the warranty period anyway.

I've been playing professionally for ten years, and semi-pro for four or five years before that. In the past I've owned Rickenbackers, Strats, Teles, SGs, etc. If my Guitarlin(s) were lost or stolen, I would absolutely look for another. The exchange rate on the dollar is not in our favour lately, otherwise I'd see about getting one of Jerry's 12-strings.

I think this is a '99. I got it from a guy, or possibly a shop, on Ebay with the tags still on it. Thirty-one fret 25" scale maple neck with rosewood board and large frets (6100s, I think), deeeep cutaway hollow masonite and poplar body with two lipstick tube pickups, master volume and tone. These guitars are hand made in Nashville using ultra-cheap materials put together with real craftsmanship. This one has the intonatable steel "Neptune" bridge and is "blood and cream" sunburst, which makes it look like a tulip.
One niggle here is that the tone pot is a little useless. It has no discernible effect until it's turned about half way down and then becomes very muddy. It's a touchy operation if you're just looking to roll off a little treble. Fortunately, I don't really feel the need for that.

Like the reviewer below, longtime love for Link Wray and early Lyres influenced this purchase to some extent. However, my band plays all-original pop that gets compared to Blondie, The Stranglers and other things that make no sense, although we did cover "I Confess" one show.
My main guitar is an old ES-345 and I wanted something that would give me a more transparent single coil sound on certain songs and had more personality than a Strat. When I got the Guitarlin I took it, along with the 345 to practice hoping to use it on a few songs. I ended up using it for the entire practice, never feeling a real need to go back to the humbuckers, even on "heavier" songs. I'm using it with a blues deluxe set clean and stepping upon a Tube screamer for overdrive, and a Vox wah and Rotovibe for other reasons.
I found all the pickup combinations to be very worthwhile. The bridge is very bright, but not at all shrill; it's fun, with a twangy bass string snap and sounds jangly with clean chords and aggressive and sizzly with distortion. The "neck" pickup (placement would be equivelant to a middle pickup on other guitars) is still twangy, but fuller sounding and a bit louder. Unlike the last reviewer, I found this setting to be really usable - a great default setting. The middle position is way louder than either pickup alone and much mellower on the treble strings while still retaining that nice quackiness on the bass strings. This is a good position for when you feel a humbucker/P-90-like sound my be in order, although it's definitely its own thing. All settings have tons of personality clean and overdriven, and each one has become a must on at least one song.
After my timid and weak band members went home I stayed for a bit and tried it through an old top boost AC-30 and a Marshall Super Lead. Clean through the vox was stellar, and distorted settings on both amps were a lot of fun. You really can get a lot of styling sounds out of this plank. Depending upon how you play it, it'll jangle, twang snap, bark and crunch.
I'm wondering how the Neptune bridge affects the tone as compared to the usual rosewood bridge. I may order one and try it out.

After being shipped across the border from the U. S. into Canada the guitar was still perfectly in tune. It had what felt like .009s on it and was set up with low action and a perfectly straight neck. Fret work is conspicuously good, and buzzing was minimal with this setup. I switched the strings for an .011-.50 set and raised the action and pickups. The neck didn't flinch. It seems extremely stable for a 31 fretter. The guitar plays fairly easily with the .011s and a medium action, with improved tone. I wish the neck was a little fatter; although it is wide enough it has a fairly shallow, round profile that I'm not used to. On the other hand, a thicker neck would make this thing really neck-heavy, as there's not much of a body there at all.
Everything is put together exceedingly well. Besides the excellent fretwork and neck set-up, the body/neck joint is tight, the bridge feels absolutely stable, the sunburst finish is beautiful (but don't be expecting masonite to be mirror-smooth; it's masonite), and the vinyl binding on the sides looks like it's there to stay. Vintage Danelectro appeal but built with more care and attention to detail than any Danelectro ever was.
Wrong thing: the ground wire running from the bridge was flopping around loose, which means the guitar was making a lot of noise unless I was touching a pickup or the selector switch. It's quite quiet now that the ground is connected. I guess I'll have to take a point off for this one little thing. Other than this, however, the electronics look cleanly and securely soldered.

The absurdly long and skinny horns on this longhorn-body guitar look so delicate from a distance, but feel rock-solid as soon as you pick the guitar up. In fact, everything about this guitar's constructon inspires confidence: the hardware is heavy duty from the pickup switch to the screws; the finish and binding look very stable; and now that the new strings have settled in the guitar has stayed in tune for two weeks.
I try not to ever gig without a backup guitar, as I think it's rude to possibly make your audience wait around while you change a broken string, but If I were to do so with this guitar I wouldn't be too nervous.

No issues that would require customer support. Jerry Jones is pretty well spoken of by others, though. I feel confident I'd get good service.

I've been playing for about twelve years, and have owned a bunch of different guitars, mostly "vintage" or reissues thereof. For the past few years I've pretty much settled down with the 345, but as I said I've been looking for single coil sound for awhile. Recently I've bought and sold a '70s tele, a Jaguar reissue, tried out a G&L, and looked at some strats and the new Vox guitars. This Guitarlin is more playable and put together than most of those guitars, and to my ear has more distinctive and useable tones. And it looks cool. It does everything I think a single coil guitar should. I think I'll be keeping it. Great pricing for such a gig-worthy, small-production, hand-built American guitar.

This guitar is an updated reproduction of the original Danelectro Guitarlin. Longhorn-shaped body, 2 lipstick pickups, 31 (yes, 31!) frets, maple neck, masonite top/bottom over a poplar frame, vol, tone, 3-way toggle, beautiful copperburst finish, Dano-style slab o' rosewood on steel bridge, repro Kluson-style tuners, plastic nut. Original and new korean Danos have an aluminum nut - I assume the plastic one stays in tune better.

I bought this for 2 reasons: 1) Link Wray played one in the 50s. 2) Danny McCormack of the Lyres played one in the 80s. This is the only guitar that will do that over-the top nasal twang that these guys got. The bridge pickup is incredibly close to the bridge, so there's no low end, but a great twangy midrange & treble. When both pickups are on, they are in-phase, so they get louder. I was surprised at how much I liked it with both on as I'm not a big fan of that out-of-phase strat sound (too wimpy for my taste). It's fuller than the bridge PU alone, and meatier than the aforementioned strat sound. The neck PU alone is just OK - it lands in the same rough area sonically as a strat's middle PU (does anyone ever use this PU by itself?). These pickups and the Masonite are key to its unique sound, as is the wooden bridge saddle. Nothing else in the world sounds like this guitar. It's not a sound for everyone, but if you like Link Wray, there's no substitute. Gets an 8 because it's not a swiss army knife - you buy it for its 1 or 2 useable sounds. I use it with a Matchless Spitfire and it sounds killer. I'm dying to try it with a Twin Reverb. Has its own completely unique sound, not comparable to Fender or Gibson.

When I got it, the high e-string was sort of muted and dead at the nut, but the problem mysteriously went away after a few hours of playing. Set-up was excellent - low action, straight neck (a challenge with 31 frets!). The neck is wide & flat like a PRS, really nice & easy to play. Despite everyone's advice to get the Neptune Option Bridge (with metal intonatable saddles), I opted for the original style as I thought the rosewood would give a shorter and more authentic sustain. The rosewood saddle on the bridge is filed back a bit to compensate the 3 treble strings. Mine has perfect intonation and stays in tune all the way up the neck. The copperburst finish looks just like the original (the new Danos have cheesy finish - their copper doesn't look anything at all like the original). Pickus seem fine - haven't touched them since I got it - much brighter than their korean counterparts. It's a little neck-heavy, but what else would you expect from a 31 fret neck? The entire thing weighs about 5 pounds, so the neck heaviness isn't a big issue.

I would gig without a backup. This is a solid, handmade, American made guitar, and the quality is very apparent. My friend has a korean U2, and it's already got a fret lifting out. Finish quality looks a little thin, but that's because it is authentic to the original.

Call up the Jerry Jones company and Jerry himself answers the phone! Very pleasant to deal with. Haven't dealt with any warranty issues yet (the guitar has no problems), but I'm confident he'll be there when I need him.

A high quality reproduction, better quality than an original (try getting any Dano to stay in tune or intonate properly.....). Jerry Jones stuff costs about two and a half times what a comparable korean Dano costs, but you get what you pay for. You can get a used one for pretty close to the price of a new Dano, and if you factor a case into the cost, the price gets even closer. Jerry's stuff is much, much higher quality than the new Danos. None of his single neck guitars lists for over $1000, and can usually be bought new with case for $650-$800, and used for $350-$600. Try Indoor Storm in NC and ask for Max - he gives great prices and is very honest & straightforward.