Eastman T186MX

[cincinnatiharry]

ALL. SOLID. WOOD. HOLLOW BODY.



https://www.eastmanguitars.com/t186mx

So it’s a solid wood hollow body 335.

WANT.

[Maggieo]

They're super cool.

And Eastman's craftsmanship is impeccable. I've got the T64/v and it is wonderful.

[Mechanical Birds]

ALL. SOLID. WOOD. HOLLOW BODY.



https://www.eastmanguitars.com/t186mx

So it’s a solid wood hollow body 335.

WANT.

Can’t ever get over these guitars costing as much as most Gibsons- I understand they’re well made there’s just some kind of psychological block in my mind that will forever tier origins as:

1. America
2. Japan
3. Mexico
4. Other Asian Countries

Though for all I know about economics maybe China today is what Japan was ~40/45 years ago, it’s just hard to make the distinction for whatever reason. It looks cool and I’m sure is great, it’s just something I can’t help

[shadowplay]

What I don't like about these and so many modern figured wood guitars is that the maple is nearly always that uniform corrugated stripe shite that reminds me of nothing but stuck on photoflame trash. The first image is reminiscent in colour to an early late 50's early 60's Gretsch Country Gentleman but the figuring on these is often gorgeous and subtle like ripples on a pond, all unknowable whorls and eddys and IMO you could look at it for decades and still find yourself drawn into it's caramel depths, whereas the reissues are have similar violent corrugated looking figuring that gives me the horrors.

Just my 2 tuppence worth.

Aesthetically I'd have gone with a less blooze daddy carved Spruce top like my old Yamaha SA-1200S.

D

[BoringPostcards]

$2499???

Awful pricey for a guitar that's essentially a Gibson copy with an ugly headstock and weird sounding brand name.

I would feel bad dropping that much money on a real Gibson.

[Larry Mal]

Well, it's an all solid wood guitar, whereas Gibsons are laminate. No way that's not going to add to the price here.

Whether the all solid wood construction is a good thing it up to you to decide, the use of laminates makes the guitar a better electric guitar than it is an acoustic, the more rigid laminate helps reduce feedback. That's the thinking, anyway.

Use of laminate doesn't matter with the ES-335 since it's only barely an acoustic guitar, the center block and thinline construction means that there's really not much acoustic sound to preserve by caring about whether the wood is solid or what.

It's not clear to me if this Eastman has a center block or not, actually. If it doesn't, then the solid woods probably gives it a pretty nice acoustic sound considering. My laminate ES-330 has a fun acoustic sound that is really not useful as an acoustic guitar or anything, but it's still inspiring when you are playing it.

If it does have a center block, then I'm not sure what the all solid wood construction would really be doing here.

Still, it's nice seeing Eastman do different things, you know?

[BoringPostcards]

Well, it's an all solid wood guitar, whereas Gibsons are laminate. No way that's not going to add to the price here.

Ah yes, that would make a difference.
I did some reading and learned they were a respectable violin company. I no longer doubt the quality.
Also, I trust Maggie's opinion. She's owned some real quality gear and has good taste.

I still don't like that headstock. The string pull appears to be drastic.

[Larry Mal]

I get it. Eastman is just another company for people that want to feel "they do Gibson better than Gibson does!" and I get a little tired of all the Gibson clones. For as lame as the internet would make you feel that Gibson is, it seems that no one else can design a guitar people actually want other than Gibson.

I give Eastman a little more respect because they do some original twists, and the quality is genuinely very high. I played a Gibson L-00 clone and it was a great playing and sounding guitar.

At the end of the day, though, a Chinese made knockoff of a classic American design is just something I am never going to support. Sure, the quality is great, but that's what happens when you can invest in a nice factory in China instead of the United States and pay Chinese laborers less than Americans can work for.

People will accuse me of being some dipshit jingoistic American, but whatever nation you come from, you want to support the manufacturing base there. If it wasn't important, nations wouldn't be competing like demons to have as much of it as possible, and once China is allowed to be the manufacturing center of the entire world and we are all dependent on that nation for everything the Chinese hegemony is not going to be very good for the rest of us.

[Maggieo]

Well, it's an all solid wood guitar, whereas Gibsons are laminate. No way that's not going to add to the price here.

Ah yes, that would make a difference.
I did some reading and learned they were a respectable violin company. I no longer doubt the quality.
Also, I trust Maggie's opinion. She's owned some real quality gear and has good taste.

I still don't like that headstock. The string pull appears to be drastic.

Thanks!

Remember when I got that Mahogany-topped Les Paul standard? Well I spent the afternoon doing a side-by-side shootout with the Eastman versions and the only thing that made the Gibson win was its neck shape. Otherwise, total dead heat on every other metric.

And, honestly, I think The Padre looks cooler than the goldtop or the black beauty Eastmans.


The Padre, January 23, 2020 by Maggie Osterberg, on Flickr

[gregrus]

Eastman is great. Love the sound

[cincinnatiharry]

$2499???

Awful pricey for a guitar that's essentially a Gibson copy with an ugly headstock and weird sounding brand name.

I would feel bad dropping that much money on a real Gibson.

Dumb post is dumb. Sorry. Gibson don't make an all solid wood 335 thing, no comparison. If you want a good comparison...

The Eastman T386 was €935 shipped with hard case, NEW. Nitro? Yup. Bone nut? Yup. AlNiCo pickups? Yup. Gotoh hardware? Yes. Hardcase? Yep.

Same thing from Gibson would be $2500, not €935.00

[BoringPostcards]

$2499???

Awful pricey for a guitar that's essentially a Gibson copy with an ugly headstock and weird sounding brand name.

I would feel bad dropping that much money on a real Gibson.

Dumb post is dumb. Sorry. Gibson don't make an all solid wood 335 thing, no comparison. If you want a good comparison...

The Eastman T386 was €935 shipped with hard case, NEW. Nitro? Yup. Bone nut? Yup. AlNiCo pickups? Yup. Gotoh hardware? Yes. Hardcase? Yep.

Same thing from Gibson would be $2500, not €935.00

Yea, I spoke too soon and this was pointed out to me and I did some research and admitted I was being harsh.
Maybe if you read the thread, you'd have seen that and not made this pointless jab.

[Larry Mal]

$2499???

Awful pricey for a guitar that's essentially a Gibson copy with an ugly headstock and weird sounding brand name.

I would feel bad dropping that much money on a real Gibson.

Dumb post is dumb. Sorry. Gibson don't make an all solid wood 335 thing, no comparison. If you want a good comparison...

The Eastman T386 was €935 shipped with hard case, NEW. Nitro? Yup. Bone nut? Yup. AlNiCo pickups? Yup. Gotoh hardware? Yes. Hardcase? Yep.

Same thing from Gibson would be $2500, not €935.00

Well, Mr. Postcards and I talked about the solid wood adding to the cost upthread, and he acknowledged that. Not sure if you read that far before calling him dumb.

Gibson actually has all that stuff also, but it costs more. That's because Gibson employs Americans, which cost more than Chinese copying American heritage. It's a price I'm happy to pay since in a nation with 20% unemployment at the moment and a looming recession that will hurt all Americans, you tend to learn not to take the jobs of your countrymen for granted.

In the long run, giving my money to China does not actually benefit me.

[cincinnatiharry]

$2499???

Awful pricey for a guitar that's essentially a Gibson copy with an ugly headstock and weird sounding brand name.

I would feel bad dropping that much money on a real Gibson.

Dumb post is dumb. Sorry. Gibson don't make an all solid wood 335 thing, no comparison. If you want a good comparison...

The Eastman T386 was €935 shipped with hard case, NEW. Nitro? Yup. Bone nut? Yup. AlNiCo pickups? Yup. Gotoh hardware? Yes. Hardcase? Yep.

Same thing from Gibson would be $2500, not €935.00

Well, Mr. Postcards and I talked about the solid wood adding to the cost upthread, and he acknowledged that. Not sure if you read that far before calling him dumb.

Gibson actually has all that stuff also, but it costs more. That's because Gibson employs Americans, which cost more than Chinese copying American heritage. It's a price I'm happy to pay since in a nation with 20% unemployment at the moment and a looming recession that will hurt all Americans, you tend to learn not to take the jobs of your countrymen for granted.

In the long run, giving my money to China does not actually benefit me.

Didn't call him dumb, called his post dumb.

Doesn't benefit you? Don't buy one. Easy as.

[Larry Mal]

Well, as long as we are calling posts dumb, I'll dismiss your "easy as" thing as the nothing that it is. Of course it's a much more complex issue than that.

Look, man, manufacturing is important to any nation. I think you live in Ireland?

In Ireland, Manufacturing is the most important sector and its biggest segments are: Basic pharmaceutical products and preparations (37 percent of total production); food products (18 percent); chemicals and chemical products (15 percent); computer,electronic,optical and electrical equipment (11 percent); other manufacturing, repair and installation of machinery and equipment, and tobacco (7 percent); and basic metals and fabricated metal products,machinery and equipment (5 percent).

Ireland works like a demon to be strong in manufacturing, as you all should.

So no, it's not just as easy as "not buying one" because I think it's important that my fellow citizens are aware of how important it is to keep manufacturing jobs in the United States. For a long time we took it for granted and that is a big mistake for us to keep making. Buying a knockoff Gibson from China is no different than going to Walmart and buying cheap garbage from there.

Things that make your countrymen poorer do not save you money in the long run. A strong manufacturing base benefits everyone.

Cheap products from China is a lie and an illusion that ultimately makes your nation poorer.