Eastwood Airline H44 std

[Louthunder]

Really thinking about buying one. Who owns one or have played one? I know they're not a lot like the original,but they seem like a decent guitar on their own,what say you?

 

[SPROING!]

I want to like the eastwoods...
But they always feel an sound like any other import guitar and not like the originals. They get the look right but not the feel or the sound.

Not that they're bad guitars...in fact in most cases they're built better than the originals but without the quirks and the warts that made the originals cool, these are just another import. Might as well say Ibanez on it.

 

[simonm]

The H44 is closer than most of their offerings - fat through neck with two pieces on either side is an easy formula to follow, but they are different woods - heavier than the originals. The worst things about them can be changed - the mini humbucker pickup and the tailpiece which does not provide any downward pressure on the bridge.Then there would be the issue of the finish - the black is quite cool compared to the orangey copper, but I would be sanding it off or at least thinning it out considerably on the neck, but that's just me.
If you swapped in some vintage parts (spending about another $150?) you would be getting closer, but I would suggest holding out for a refin'd original that you could probably get for about $800.

 

[Louthunder]

I am still going to buy one. I don't mind adding a few improvements if needed. Any other people own or played one ?

 

[thrashmetl]

Yup, used to own one. It was right around the time they came out, honestly liked it quite a bit. The neck is honestly a beast, biggest neck BY FAR I have ever played and I've played some massive necks, it's HUUUUGE! The pickups aren't too bad either, I just hate those bridges. I thought about pcking another one up and putting a hard tail bridge on it or doing this:

 

[Louthunder]

Ok, I pulled the trigger on it, but still want to hear more of your opinions on it .

 

[supercreep]

so how do you like it? I'm considering one

 

[Serdontos]

Man, for the same price get you a Kay, Custom Kraft or Old Kraftsman Sizzler. They are late 50's neck thru construction and are awesome guitars, one just sold on eBay for $250. They will blow away Eastwood's import junk.

 

[burntumbers]

every Eastwood I check out feels cheap to me.

unless you can find a used one at a real inexpensive price,
just save up a few more bills and get the real thing.

 

[Serdontos]

every Eastwood I check out feels cheap to me.

unless you can find a used one at a real inexpensive price,
just save up a few more bills and get the real thing.

Exactly!

The original Harmony do go for some big bucks, around 1G.

I'm telling you you can can the the same vibe from those old Kay Sizzlers or Value Leaders for a fraction of the price

 

[burntumbers]

Exactly!

The original Harmony do go for some big bucks, around 1G.

I'm telling you you can can the the same vibe from those old Kay Sizzlers or Value Leaders forva fracteof the price

don't Eastwoods go for 600-800 or so?
I haven't been on their site in ages.

you can just save up 1 or 2 more paydays and hunt down the real mac coy
or get it now and live off ramen noodles for a month.

 

[teleman1]

I tried that guitar and it was awesome and didn't feel cheap at all. I put my slide on and that thing rang well. It is like a small Les Paul.

 

[DustyRhodesJr]

I had one. It wasnt bad at all.

I sold it to a semi-famous blues guitarist and I saw him playing it in concert in a video or two, so
he must have thought it was pretty good. And he (and myself for that matter) has a lot of
expensive guitars to choose from.

 

[Louthunder]

Ok, I am finally posting about the guitar! Glad I bought it,but I will need to do a few things to her to play slide on it ! It came with very low action and it plays very well ! I will raise the action a bit and that's all ! It sounds great with a slide on it, but it easily frets out ! Conclusion, It was a good purchase for me ! I'll report back when I get it set up properly !

 

[e???]

I've played some cool sounding, feeling eastwoods. That Barney Kessel style that is hollow but no f holes is nice. Some of them do feel cheap, but not all. Also played a Stormbird that was pretty cool.

 

[bmack]

I bought one of these guitars shortly after they came out. I love it! It's a small guitar with a huge personality. The neck is very fat, but comfortable to my smallish hands. The pickups are hot and pump out huge sounds. If I want to play some crushing riffs or sustainy, violin like solos, this is the axe I reach for.
Sure, it's not perfect, and I could find some faults with the finish or the bridge, but if I'm making that kind of music, I don't want a guitar that is perfect in every way.

Hope you enjoy it.

 

[misterturtlehead]

I had an original H42, an original H44, and an Eastwood H44. The originals weren't versatile guitars but had a very distinctive sound that reminded me of 1950s blues records with electric guitar. The Eastwood H44 did not have a distinctive sound but was more versatile than the originals.

I had those guitars during a time when I was doing a lot of buying, selling, and trading. If I was more of a 1950s blues guitar tone junky I might have kept one of the originals. I enjoyed having and playing them. But I didn't play them very much. I traded one of the original Stratotones plus a couple less expensive guitars for a very clean 1952 Gibson ES-150. I sold the other original and a few other guitars and bought a 1974 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe, a 1967 Epiphone Riviera, a 1976 Fender Jazzmaster, and a 1979 Gretsch Country Club, guitars that I play often. I still have some Danelectro-made Silvertones that don't sound like the Stratotones but have their own distinctive old school sounds. One of those Silvertones belonged to Dexter Romweber.

I only kept the Eastwood a few months. It was a good travel guitar. All things considered, I wouldn't buy one with the idea that I was getting a more affordable alternative to an original Stratotone. But it still is a decent guitar that is easy to play, sounds pretty good, and looks cool.