Questions About D-05-12....just Arrived!

[guitargeorge]

Hello everybody.

My first post...just found this site recently and love it as I am a HUGE Larrivee fan.

I just received a D-05-12 today  :D (I've had my D-10 for 4 years  :) ), and I have a couple of questions.  I went to the Larrivee site to find out when it was made and no luck using the form there...computer goes to a search the web page...tried several times.  The serial number is 46485.  Anyone know when it was started?

2nd question: I was under the impression from the seller that this was a new guitar and it looks nearly mint...no fret wear...made in Canada with the abalone rosette.  But this surprises me...the top is quite dark and looks aged...my D-10 is much lighter...the start date might explain this or does Larrivee ever use an aging finish on the tops (to make them look golden brown rather than white)?  Or it could be that my D-10 is not Sitka...I showed it the D-10 to someone with a large Martin and Gibson collection and he remarked what a nice top it had and I said it was Sitka, and he shook his head no.

Final question: the saddle on the 12 string is quite low and the seller said he never lowered it nor adjusted the neck...could it have come from the factor this way?  It is especially low on the high end with the e and b strings very close to the bridge.  It plays fine and sounds great but the low saddle worries me.  I have to take it to a guitar tech and ask these questions but I thought I would post here first and see what wisdom I can find.

Thanks,

George

[el guitana]

You can get your production info by e-mail if you cliuck the contact link on the site. My sitka top looks pretty dark but it's not stained. I think it's just aged well.

[Randy_R]

I was under the impression from the seller that this was a new guitar and it looks nearly mint...no fret wear...made in Canada with the abalone rosette. But this surprises me...the top is quite dark and looks aged.

The guitar could have been what is called new old-stock. Since -05's haven't been made in Canada for a couple of years, thats a safe assumption. The serial number also indicates a probability of it being made several years ago.

for instance, a show room guitar that sat in a display case or window might have darkened without ever having been played, and be trully new.