Lunch Report 2012-12-03

[Brock]

Hello and welcome to Lunch Week. Thanks go out meowmix for going beyond the call of duty. Not only did he send me his old Erlewine book to lure me into lunch reporting, but he threw in a super-nice guitar stand and a pile of picks. I was surprised and a little humbled. The pic assortment is nice and the guitar stand is now the best one in the house. So, "Thank You!"

Lunch
Bowtie pasta with red sauce, turkey meatballs, and Brooke Bond Taj Mahal tea.

G&L
Old vs. new. I guess that's the theme for the day. Something I really admire about the Leo-era of G&L was that there was all these new designs. The MFDs, the bridges, etc.

My favorite G&L is the L-1000 and it came about in that era. I actually don't own one of those, but I do have an El Toro Fretless, an L-5000, and a first-style SB-2. All of these models disappeared not to long after Leo Fender died (the early SB-2 had long since morphed into the Lynx Bass).

Do you have any discontinued G&L models? In my case, that's all I own.

Bicycles
What a day. I bought a bicycle. I was a victim of Craigslist... ...again. Here's a picture of it (hopefully it's still up):



That's a (I'm told) 2005-era Dahon folding bicycle with an aluminum frame. It's replacing my 1984-era steel Dahon that I've had for less than a year. My old Dahon is way cooler than this new one, but it's heavier and not as nice. So, it was a cool old vs. more practical new battle and new won out (this time). Here's a look at a similar Dahon to my old one.



The strut is pretty cool, but again, less practical, and they don't do that anymore. On one level I'm happy about the "upgrade" but on another I'm kinda bummed about the step down in style. The old Dahon is widely considered to be the first modern folding bike. It also has a 3 speed internel shifting hub (my preference) whereas the new one is external gears. But, the new one weighs maybe 2/3 what the old one did, so there you go.

Anyone else have a folding bike?

Craigslist
It's where I get bicycles. I've bought three bikes and a pedicab off there, and a huge Wald bicycle rack used for $10. I'm glad Leo-era G&L are a rarety in Boise! Do you frequent the craigslist? Do you fear the craigslist? I fear that I frequent the craigslist!

More here:
http://www.rickshawseason.com/craigslist-boise/

Today's screenshot
I played some emulated Apple ][ somewhat recently and ended up on the Oregon Trail.



Of course facebook can't leave things alone, so it automatically added a different picture from the same recent 1848 trip via APPLE ][ Oregon Trail to the Willamette Valley as a recent location including screenshot.



Thanks again to meomix for the box of awesome!

[darwinohm]

Brock, I had mac and cheese noodles with the grand daughter today. she just turned one. She really likes them so guess what I get when she is here!

Unfortunately, I do not have any old G&Ls. You are lucky to have these discontinued models. They will no doubt increase in value. I do have quite a few discontinued models in several brands. I like to get something that is limited in numbers as that is makes them more interesting to own. Unfortunately I became aware of G&L to late to take advantage of these models.

The bikes in your picture are well built. I also had an internal 3 speed at one time and much preferred it to todays external sprocket shifting. The3 3 speeds were bulletproof. I wish I could recall the brand that they were but I seem to recall Bendix. Most of our bikes had a New Departure hub and we would smoke the brake friction discs going down big hills. I do watch Craigslist every day for guitars and gear. Once in a while you come across some good stuff. Many of the listings are overpriced and you see them around for weeks.

I will review the videos tomorrow as I am leaving for the evening. Hope we get some lunch reporters for the rest of December and thanks for stepping up. Maybe you can bribe someone! -- Darwin

[meowmix]

Hey Brock, Thanks for picking up LR duties for the week.

I am a "latest and greatest" type of person. The new G&L's are perfectly fine. No need to go back to the past.
The Climax bass is no longer being made, but mine is broken. Still debating what to do with it.

Those vintage bikes you have do look cool. I think the yellow and red reflectors give it that something special.

No folding bikes for me. But I did buy 2 new bikes this year. I'm like you, I had to get a deal otherwise forget it.
This one for $200

And my new used Mountain

Great deal on both. I just happen to know someone who knows someone who knows......that works for Specialized.

Now I need to get rid of the other 2 that are no longer being used. A Beach comber and a horrible mountain bike that gives a feeling like you are riding a pogo stick, it isn't worth $25.

[Aussie]

Do you have any discontinued G&L models? No, but I came close (well not really) about 5 years ago when a local seller put a Climax guitar on Ebay. Unfortunately he was asking $2,600 for it because "his guitar tech" had told him it was a $4,000 guitar. I couldn't convince him to move the price down. He listed it a few times without selling and I don't know what happened to it.

[Anyone else have a folding bike? No, but just this morning I bought a unicycle for my 18yo for Christmas. he wants it to throw in the back of the car and ride it on campus.

Do you frequent the craigslist? No Craigslist in Aus but I guess Gumtree is its equivalent (actually owned and operated by Ebay though). ...and yes it can be addictive.

cheers, Robbie

[blargfromouterspace]

Hey Brock.
Old stuff is definitely cool, but comes with headaches. I'll take new in most cases. I've been given the task of restoring and repairing my girlfriends bike this week. It's been left outside in the weather for the last 4 years so its very weathered.

[willross]

No discontinued G&L's so far. Passed-up a few years ago, but considering a blue swirl Special w/ DFV & 3 bolt too... Although, I'm a bit scared of the peeling.

No folding bikes, but I have two of these:



This one's a 55 and also a 52.

I check-in on Craig's List for Lefties now & then. I've sold a few items successfully through it with no problems; just never at my home.


Cheers,

Will

[Brock]

Looks like my Dahon is a 2003 Helios P8. The tires and wheels are a match with this description.
http://web.archive.org/web/200308060543 ... liosp8.htm

I don't have any Specialized anything, but one of my wife's bikes is a Specialized.

I'll have to show off the $5 (now $10) bike tomorrow. Not the greatest thing ever, but worth the not quite $10 I have in it (including the batteries for the LED lights).

[KenC]

Great start, Brock!

Folding bikes:
None of my bicycles fold, although I have folded a couple of wheels over the years. The worst was an encounter with a pothole in Del Mar CA turning into a flight over the handlebars. I must have been going about twenty at the time. I completely destroyed a pair of very nice leather-palm gloves (the good ones from back in the 80s) and just about wore through the toes of my shoes, but somehow I managed to keep all of the friction on those points and had no road rash to speak of. Somehow I got the front wheel close enough to round with my emergency spoke wrench to get back to my apartment.

G&Ls:
Most of mine are discontinued. Not counting models that have maintained the same name over the years despite minor design changes (S-500, ASATs and L-2000s), my discontinued G&Ls are: F-100, Nighthawk, Skyhawk, Superhawk, SC-1, SC-2, L-1000, SB-1, SB-2 (first style), El Toro, Lynx, and Interceptor Bass. If I include the ones that have changed significantly, I would have to add my 'hog S-500 (metal pickguard and square pickup ends), 'hog L-2000 Series E, and maple-bodied ASATs.

The easier answer is what's not discontinued: an ASAT Classic, ASAT Bass and fretless L-2000.

Ken

[Boogie Bill]

I have two Music Man Sabre IIs, but no Leo-era G&Ls. I have a Legacy and an S-500 from around 1993, and they are my oldest G&Ls. For the most part I prefer the BBE models.

Bill

[yowhatsshakin]

Howdy Brock,

While my internal clock is off after returning from Europe earlier on Monday, here I find myself in the middle of the night. At least there is always this forum to keep me busy for a while.

Most of my G&L's are discontinued: not only all Leo-era instruments (although where do we tally the SC-2 nowadays), but also all the Limited Editions, John Jorgenson Sig, JD5, Fullerton Sig, Z-2, ASAT '50, and Trinity. You could include all the CCD Special Build guitars too but strictly speaking they are not off the books and may be produced in the future. Four are certainly not discontinued: L-2500, ASAT Classic, Bluesboy SH, and Legacy Special.

Bikes: no folding bikes. I still use my Bianchi bike.

Craigslist is OK as long as you use local listings. You can come over and see the item for yourself in person if need be. For listings elsewhere, many times I have noticed that sellers do not want to ship which would be a deal-breaker in manny, if not all, cases.

- Jos

[Dave_P]

Hey Brock, nice snag from CL!

I frequent CL just about daily, lots of wheelin' and dealin'. Most recently I've managed to end up with a '65 Bandmaster 2x12 cab loaded with EV SRO's for free

I don't have any discontinued G&L's, I did have a Leo era ASAT that I loved the sound of just couldn't get used to the neck on it.

As for bikes, I picked up my mountain bike off of craigslist last year for $65



and here's my triathlon/road bike...that one was a lot more than $65




-Dave

[Brock]

That Trek hardtail for $65 is a SCORE!

The Dahon I picked up yesterday was only $75. Probably a $500-$600 rig new. I also picked up (on earlier occasions) a Coker Monster Cruiser for $275 (less of a score) and a beat up USA made Main Street pedicab for $670. Never thought I'd have a western grade rickshaw (they are $3400 new), but one came up local and so there I was...