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Merry Christmas NGD: It's a Wild one!

Discussion in 'Other Guitars, other instruments' started by tbb007, Dec 28, 2017.

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  1. Dec 28, 2017 #1
    tbb007

    tbb007 Tele-Meister Gold Supporter

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    wildkat1a.jpg

    Merry Christmas to me, from my amazing family: an Epiphone Wildkat. Glad I restrained my GAS til after Christmas.

    This is one of the guitars I was considering when thinking of adding a hollow/semi-hollow to the collection.

    I played a couple at my local GCs, liked them, and had only two reservations:

    1. The only ones they had in stock were yellow, and while they looked OK, the color wasn’t speaking to me the way that this wine-red does (and the photo barely does it justice).

    2. I’ve never had a guitar with a Bigsby (or a trem of any kind), and I’ve read plenty of horror stories about tuning issues with them.

    If I’d been the one to make the choice, I’d probably have bought the hardtail version, but since this was a gift, it seems like an ideal opportunity to learn to play with a Bigsby. I’ve seen any number of suggestions about dealing with tuning issues (lubing or changing the nut, different strings, roller bridge, etc.), but I’ve also seen people in various guitar forums indicate that they’ve never had any problems keeping their Bigsby-equipped guitars in tune. I’ll see how it goes.

    I saw one review that said the Wildkat was for those who think of themselves as more Eddie Cochran than Eddie Van Halen… which means this is the perfect choice for me!
     
    bcarter_1, OlRedNeckHippy, zippofan and 13 others like this.
  2. Dec 28, 2017 #2
    brookdalebill

    brookdalebill Tele Axpert Ad Free Member

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    Cool!
    Wildkats and Alleykats are great guitars.
    Enjoy it!
     
  3. Dec 28, 2017 #3
    AAT65

    AAT65 Friend of Leo's

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    Congrats, on the guitar and the family:)! I’ve tried a couple of Wildkats in guitar shops (always the yellow ones), they play nice. And a semi-hollow with Bigsby is certainly a good thing to have!
     
  4. Dec 28, 2017 #4
    6stringcowboy

    6stringcowboy Friend of Leo's

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    Congrats! And as a Bigsby lover, the problem is usually the nut.
     
  5. Dec 28, 2017 #5
    hemingway

    hemingway Poster Extraordinaire

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    Yep, get the nut properly filed. And after you've used the Bigsby for a little vibrato (downward motion), give it a little wee upward nudge and it will ease those strings back to where they are supposed to be.
     
    tbb007 likes this.
  6. Dec 28, 2017 #6
    drf64

    drf64 Poster Extraordinaire

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    What is this "family buys me guitars" of which you speak? It is completely foreign to me.
     
    thecakeguru, 3fngrs, Mississippi_Kid and 3 others like this.
  7. Dec 28, 2017 #7
    Mayas caster

    Mayas caster Tele-Holic

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    That's a cooooool looking guitar!!!! I'm sure it sounds good.
     
  8. Dec 28, 2017 #8
    Big Burly

    Big Burly Tele-Meister

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    Bigsby issues are usually the nut, as mentioned previously here, but don't neglect the bridge! Be sure the bridge and nut slots are sized correctly for your strings, and then lubricate them to keep the strings from binding.
     
    tbb007 likes this.
  9. Dec 29, 2017 #9
    Serenity23

    Serenity23 Tele-Holic

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    Congrats. Always liked the look of the Wildkat. Don't be scared of the bigsby. It can be a bit of a pain changing strings until you get used to it, just takes a bit of practice.
     
  10. Dec 29, 2017 #10
    Jupiter

    Jupiter Telefied Silver Supporter

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    Yeah, what's up with that??
     
    drf64 likes this.
  11. Dec 29, 2017 #11
    Vespa_One

    Vespa_One Tele-Holic

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    I built a guitar with a Bigsby. Beginners luck because once the strings are stretched you don't have to tune it again. In and out of the case, dive bombs and what have you... still in perfect tune. I cut the nut as best I could and lubed the bridge and nut as I would on a hardtail.

    I LOVE the Bigsby and all my hardtail guitars now sit as a result. You know what they say, Once you go Bigsby...
     
  12. Dec 29, 2017 #12
    ramonet

    ramonet Tele-Meister

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    If you don't like the Bigsby take tre sping out, turn the tremolo arm to the back and voilà! It's a hardtail!
     
  13. Dec 29, 2017 #13
    ramonet

    ramonet Tele-Meister

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    Sorry: take the spring out
     
  14. Dec 29, 2017 #14
    djh22

    djh22 Tele-Afflicted Silver Supporter

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    [​IMG]
     
    tbb007 and OlRedNeckHippy like this.
  15. Dec 29, 2017 #15
    Mississippi_Kid

    Mississippi_Kid Tele-Meister

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    I need to try one of these...congrats.
     
  16. Dec 29, 2017 #16
    Paul in Colorado

    Paul in Colorado Telefied Ad Free Member

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    What a nice gift! I have a Gretsch with a Bigsby. It does fine. Take it to a tech and have it set up with your favorite strings making sure the nut and saddles are attended to. Twang on, Brother!
     
  17. Dec 29, 2017 #17
    haggardfan1

    haggardfan1 Friend of Leo's

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    Nice guitar!! Red is a great color for those. Congratulations!

    Your tree looks nice too.
     
    tbb007 likes this.
  18. Dec 29, 2017 #18
    Macrogats

    Macrogats Friend of Leo's

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    Awesome stuff dude! You have a great family! Enjoy the guitar.
     
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