Just buy a damn electric guitar, already!

I'm not much of a poster but have enjoyed this thread so figured it was time to try and contribute. I've played in a few local bar bands over the years and am a half decent rhythm player but stink at most other stuff.

I'm mainly an acoustic player but, given a real admiration for Jimmy Page, also enjoy the electric side on occasion. If I could only play like one person, I'd play like Jimmy Reed.

On the electric side, I've got two Fender Telesa '52 and a '55 (both reissues). They're my go-tos. I've got an SRV strat for that awesome Texas blues sound and keep it tuned to e flat. I've got a Gibson SG '61 reissue for the straight rock (think AC/DC) stuff but mine is hard to stay in tune as I know I need to swap out the whammy bar for a stop bar or tailpiece. I also enjoy (note the Page connection) a Dano '59 model. I use that one to test out a lot of the alternate tunings that I love and it's a great backup guitar for a gig. Also, I have a lot of fun with the Epiphone double neck and usually keep the different necks in different tunings just to challenge my playing (for example, the 12 string right now is in a open d tuning and the six string is in a drop d). It's heavy as all get out thoughI played it at two gigs and my back hurt all day the next day so it stays home.

Two amps, both Fenders, one a relatively newer Reverb Deluxe and one an old Twin ReverbI'll run a chorus or overdrive pedal through on occasion but for the most part keep it simple.

On the acoustic side, I've got a Gibson Hummingbird ('92) that I love to play and use that one for nice middle ranges in gigs but it's not my first option. I've got a Taylor 5 series (one of those bear claw tops that I bought in Dallas years ago…we live in a rural area with a few bears around so reminds me of home) for most of my gigs and a Taylor eight-string baritone my wife gave me as a present several years ago. I've also got a Gallagher Doc Watson ('03) model that I use a lot for different tunings (I like Tennessee and got that one in Nashville at Gruhn when they were on Broadway). That one usually stays in open e.

My wife gave me, as a wedding present more than 20 years ago, an old Gibson SJ-200 ('73) that stays in the roomI'll play it as a practice guitar but have never played it live. I got, about ten years ago, a '73 Gibson banjo for it to have some company. Lastly, I've got a Martin HD-28 for just playing in the living room to the wife and girls (it's in an open C tuning at the moment). That one stays close to home too.

There's a little dulcimer thing in there too as well as one of those quiet Yamaha nylon strings that I take with my if I'm on the road for work and have the time.

I know I'm fortunate to have a story with most of them. If I only had two, it'd be the '52 tele and the Martin. If only one, I'd take the Martin. My dream would be to write a half decent song one day and hear it on the local radio.

My cool music story is one day I was at the GC in North Dallas (I'm from North Carolina but my wife is from Dallas) and staring at an old ragged amp near the door…some guy came in and carried it up to the register and then out the door. I never looked up at the dude carrying it as I was standing there next to him crouched over looking at all the old knobs. Turns out the guy who carried it out was Billy Gibbons but I had no idea.

Thanks for reading…hopefully worth the time. Thanks for the great thread.

Thanks again for reading. Here's a better look at the two teles...the one on the left is a custom shop '55 reissue and the one on the right is one of those vintage '52 reissues. I like them both, but my favorite is the '52 although I think that fuzzy neck position pickup isn't very versatile. I use the middle position almost all the time and the bridge position on occasion. I call the blonde one Honey.

DallasTele, thanks for your thoughts. This SG, as I understand it, has one of those floating bridges (I'll try to include a photo). I've taken off the whammy bar to try to flex the bridge less but every time I hit the bridge with my hand sure enough I have to tune something up. What little research I've done suggests Gibson didn't stick with this approach for long for that reason. While I'm slow to alter the vintage vibe, I think a stout stop bar might solve the problem but will also try your suggestions. On a positive note, when it's right it's right. I call it the Tesseract (of whatever that thing was from the Marvel movies).

Again, I'm not all that good and just enjoy guitars and their stories.