# Show us your campfire/beater acoustic!



## Merlin (Feb 23, 2009)

@Mooh gave me the idea for this thread. Let’s see your campfire/beater/cottage acoustics!

Mine is a Simon & Patrick spruce CW.


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## Guncho (Jun 16, 2015)

Up until a few years ago this was my only acoustic.

Yamaha FG441s

Now it's the least expensive of three.


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## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Bought this to be my campfire/travel guitar last spring:










Tanglewood TW-173, cedar, 14-fret parlour.


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## Kerry Brown (Mar 31, 2014)

My Taylor GS-Mini, not really a beater but because it's relatively inexpensive and laminate sides and body it goes everywhere with me. It lives behind my chair in the living room. I play it in the backyard, at jams, picnics, etc. It's pretty much always with me.


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## Guest (May 7, 2018)

'79 F-35
Comes with a cigarette burn


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

Kerry Brown said:


> My Taylor GS-Mini, not really a beater but because it's relatively inexpensive and laminate sides and body it goes everywhere with me. It lives behind my chair in the living room. I play it in the backyard, at jams, picnics, etc. It's pretty much always with me.


I like that. Played a couple at L&M that I liked too. 

What do you have for a case?


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

This is my only acoustic at the moment. So it's my everything acoustic. It's an Alvarez Masterworks MD60. I would have no problem taking it to a campfire but it would go in the case and back in when I was finished with it.


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## marcos (Jan 13, 2009)

No pics but i just bought a 70's Mansfield MIJ acoustic a few weeks ago and its pretty much a campfire guitar.


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## NashvilleDeluxe (Feb 7, 2018)

Seagull S6 gloss-top. Great for when Brenda spills a drink on it while yelling, "CAN YOU PLAY PIANO MAN?" Or marshamallow-finger Bob asks if he can play "House of the Rising Sun" (in G major).


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## Adcandour (Apr 21, 2013)




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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

I threw an acoustic guitar on a campfire during a may two four weekend at Sibyls Point way back when. It went up like a celluloid collar. I was really drunk at the time.


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## jdto (Sep 30, 2015)

adcandour said:


> View attachment 202257


Psst...he said “beater”, not “beat off”.


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## Frenchy99 (Oct 15, 2016)

I got this 1981 Aria Pro II for $5.00 with case at a garage sale...

That's permanent marker on it... So its a real Camp guitar now...


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## Steadfastly (Nov 14, 2008)

Frenchy99 said:


> I got this 1981 Aria Pro II for $5.00 with case at a garage sale...
> 
> That's permanent marker on it... So its a real Camp guitar now...


Not quite as permanent as one might think. How to remove marker from wood floors


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

This is the official beater/campfire guitar, and it generally gets left at the family cottage all summer for folks to play. It's convenient, but regardless I'll often carry another instrument. Also pictured is the Outdoor Ukulele I got this year for the same use.


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## AlBDarned (Jun 29, 2017)

Norman B20, main acoustic machine, will happily do campfires if called on & its owner has had at least a few:


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## Guest (May 9, 2018)

I have a B20 as well. Cutaway.
Beautiful sound to my ears.


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## Blind Dog (Mar 4, 2016)

RK ROS-A9M

(Bow to Norman B20, and Seagull S6 as imo the quintessential Canuck Campfire Guitars.)


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## Wardo (Feb 5, 2010)

This is the actual B20 that Norman took with him when he sailed the North West Passage. It's actually in pretty good shape and I scalloped the braces a bit with a thumb plane and a six pack to give it more bottom end.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

I had a Simon and Patrick 6 CW Cedar (or something like that). Looked like this .....










Hated it. The badly shaped cutaway caused the guitar to constantly walk off my leg - even before I got through the first few beer. And it only got worse the further I got into the case. I won't get into the fact that it sounded like it was made out of cardboard and didn't play very well either. I was glad to be rid of it.

I use my Tak EF360SC now. A much, much better guitar - but to be fair probably worth twice as much. The built in tuner is one of the best for acoustic I've ever used. And the cutaway isn't a design flaw.


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## Ronbeast (Nov 11, 2008)

My Gretsch Jim Dandy; I don’t play enough acoustic to justify a pricier guitar, and I find myself jumping across the country at random times, so the smaller size and weight is a god send. 

It gets weird looks, but just try and pry it from your friends hands at a jam.


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## BMW-KTM (Apr 7, 2015)

2005 Taylor 214
Before they started using ply tops on the 200 series.
This one is a solid top.
This is an older pic.
There's a lot of Willie Nelson style wear on it now around the sound hole.
I've been pretty rough on it.
It goes to jobs with me.
It gets exposed to the uneven heating of a campfire on a cool night.
It gets passed around to people who've had a few.
It plays very well though.


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## jdto (Sep 30, 2015)

BMW-KTM said:


> Before they started using ply tops on the 200 series.


They still use solid wood tops on the 200 series (and the 100, for that matter).


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## BMW-KTM (Apr 7, 2015)

Hmmm. 
I think it was the following year, 2006 I saw one (214) in L&M with a ply top and $200 higher price.
I paid $800.

I haven't looked at them since then because I'm kind of set for a camper/party guitar.


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## jdto (Sep 30, 2015)

BMW-KTM said:


> Hmmm.
> I think it was the following year, 2006 I saw one (214) in L&M with a ply top and $200 higher price.
> I paid $800.
> 
> I haven't looked at them since then because I'm kind of set for a camper/party guitar.


Maybe they put one out that year. They currently state right on the product page “solid Sitka spruce”.








Either way, yours is cool.

On the subject of a campfire guitar, I currently only have my Halcyon, but I played a Yamaha FG800m today that had no business sounding as good as it did for that ridiculously low price. I will likely pick it up tomorrow or on the weekend. It will make a great cottage/campfire/loaner. With a good setup, it should play quite nicely and it sounds really good.


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## John Reilly (Apr 7, 2018)

This is my Norman B














15 , bought it new in 86 or so new and has never let me down . I played and let it down pretty hard a few times but it`s very forgiving and i`m great-full for that . Plays and sounds nice , low action stays in tune , life is good !


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## madhermit (Dec 31, 2017)

Mooh said:


> I like that. Played a couple at L&M that I liked too.
> 
> What do you have for a case?


I think GS Mini’s come with a gigbag that has fairly stiff sides. Big pocket, and backpack style straps too. Great case.

I had a GS mini when they first came out, and now have the koa version. Both had the gigbag.


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## butterknucket (Feb 5, 2006)

No pics, but an older Art & Luthrie Ami nylon.

I bought it a long time ago, used it for a while, then tried to sell it, then ended up using it a ton for travel and rehearsals. There's also stains on the gigbag from having beer spilled on it while chatting up a nice young lady on a patio many years ago.

I can't remember who spilled the beer, but it wasn't me.


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## BC Mike (Mar 28, 2018)

It's a '73 D-18 I recently bid on and won on ebay for a good price. Not great yet but being worked on. Neck reset, bridge saddle realign, refret etc. Lesson learned for me when something seems a bit too good but blessing in disguise as it will be a pretty nice beach guitar.


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## dbouchard (Nov 29, 2015)

Ronbeast said:


> My Gretsch Jim Dandy; I don’t play enough acoustic to justify a pricier guitar, and I find myself jumping across the country at random times, so the smaller size and weight is a god send.
> 
> It gets weird looks, but just try and pry it from your friends hands at a jam.


My beater is a Jim Dandy too! I play that guitar 90% of the time because it's always around . Love the neck & sound of that thing.


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

BC Mike said:


> It's a '73 D-18 I recently bid on and won on ebay for a good price. Not great yet but being worked on. Neck reset, bridge saddle realign, refret etc. Lesson learned for me when something seems a bit too good but blessing in disguise as it will be a pretty nice beach guitar.
> View attachment 204225


Nice! I quite like 70s Martins


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## Ronbeast (Nov 11, 2008)

dbouchard said:


> My beater is a Jim Dandy too! I play that guitar 90% of the time because it's always around . Love the neck & sound of that thing.


I love mine too. I’m thinking of adding a sound hole pickup soon to add some versatility.


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## Dorian2 (Jun 9, 2015)

Not sure if this is my campfire guitar or not, since it's my main acoustic. I use it for everything. Played it for the neighborhood a few minutes aggo with my small repetoire of:

- Can't find my way Home
- Wish You were here
- Over The Hills and Far Away
- Gallows Pole
- Hole Hearted

I really should play it outside more often. Sounds great in the open air.


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## Guest (May 14, 2018)

I have one of those too.
Haven't taken it out yet, bought it this past winter.


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## madhermit (Dec 31, 2017)

Here’s my runabout guitar. Got it on sale before they changed the pickup. It has the original es-2 and 3 controls, not the new style. Built in tuner would have been handy, but I saved $300, so cannot complain!


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## Mr Uttley (Mar 24, 2017)

Merlin said:


> @Mooh gave me the idea for this thread. Let’s see your campfire/beater/cottage acoustics!
> 
> Mine is a Simon & Patrick spruce CW.
> 
> View attachment 202001


Picked up this Alvarez RF20 SM as my campfire beater. Needs a setup but it should do the job!


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## qantor (Nov 19, 2014)

I think it would be this one... a Lys L-50, she has seen a lot this past 30 years.


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## berniebee (Oct 14, 2014)

Hey Qantor, 

LYS guitars are fairly rare. And that's the first one I've ever seen that doesn't have the 
"Fleur de Lys" shaped headstock. Was it modified? If not, you probably have a bit of a collector's item on your hands.


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## berniebee (Oct 14, 2014)

I bought this Art & Lutherie Cedar about 8 years ago in Ottawa's tiny Chinatown for $135. Complete with some serious pick wear alongside the pick guard and a tuner key that falls out if you are not careful when replacing the strings. Since then, it has gone through three teenagers (and their many friends) as our house guitar, and seen many camping trips and jams. Check out the fade wear on the neck. The wear and tear just makes the "Antique burst" (A&L's name for it) finish look all the more authentic. I have a couple of more expensive guitars, but I still play the A&L regularly, because it sounds great and feels good in my hands. But looking at it, would you guess it's only 12 years old?


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## berniebee (Oct 14, 2014)

Martins and Taylors as "campfire" guitars? You guys are kidding, right?


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## Guest (May 23, 2018)

berniebee said:


> some serious pick wear


Sheet mon! That quite the arm sweep y'all doing there.
Playing a lot of Townshend, eh!? lol.


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## qantor (Nov 19, 2014)

berniebee said:


> Hey Qantor,
> 
> LYS guitars are fairly rare. And that's the first one I've ever seen that doesn't have the
> "Fleur de Lys" shaped headstock. Was it modified? If not, you probably have a bit of a collector's item on your hands.


Hi, no it was not modified. I’ve bought this guitar at La Tosca on St-Hubert street in Montreal in the 80’s but the store wasn’t owned by Robert Godin anymore.

A bit of history from the guitar blue book: Lys guitars were produced by Unisonic who was founded by Robert Godin (Godin Guitars) and Claude Boucher (Boucher guitars). Boucher is the son of Normand Boucher who founded Norman Guitars. The guitars were designed by Claude Boucher and the team at Unisonic. In 1982, the Unisonic facilities closed and LaSiDo, Inc.(Godin) bought the trademark. Guitars were produced into 1983 when the design was modified to become Seagull guitars.

As you can see on picture below, it was probably a headstock design transition from the old headstock to eventually what would become Seagull.









Here’s another “LaSiDo-Godin” brand from the pre-Seagull era that we don’t see often: Minstrel acoustic guitar.


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