Glad To Be Back

[Skip Ellis]

I haven't spent a whole lot of time on here in the last few years as I was doing other things, musically, but I'll be getting a new (to me) 2008 L-05 delivered next Tuesday so I'll be jumping into the fray pretty regularly. I play mostly Chet, Merle, Eddie and some Doc Watson and Norman Blake. I've always played dreadnaughts (mostly Martins) but I came back to Larrivee because of the price and quality. I chose the 'L' because it seems to be sort of a 'do-it-all' guitar - works great for fingerstyle but also stands up well to flatpicking. I had an L-10 a few years ago and remembered it being a fine guitar (traded it for a D28 Herringbone). Another box that MUST be checked for me is and ebony fingerboard - I just can't stand rosewood. I love maple for my Teles but my acoustics MUST have ebony. I also much prefer a buffed over satin finish which is why I went with the '05' instead of the '03' which is a fine guitar in it's own right. I almost pulled the trigger on a 2005 OM-03 but found this 'L' instead. Anyhow, I'm looking forward to talking with any other 'L' owners out there, especially L-05's. My seller has replaced the saddle with bone from Bob Colosi and I'll be ordering some bone bridge pins in the next couple days. Any thought on strings? My seller says Martin Monel work very well on this particular guitar and I've also been wanting to try John Pearse but I have to order them - none available locally. I really don't like Elixir strings at all - they may last a little longer but I just don't care for the tone.
Oh, and I'll see if I can scare up some donuts for you guys and gals.

[George]

Pearse makes great strings, but you need to change them frequently.  I love Martin Monel, or any other nickel acoustic string for that matter, the vintage tone is killer and they last forever...

[Walkerman]

My preference is d'adderio pb lights. Jmo

[Mikeymac]

Pearse makes great strings, but you need to change them frequently.  I love Martin Monel, or any other nickel acoustic string for that matter, the vintage tone is killer and they last forever...

I'll second the vote to try the Martin Monels - of the several brands of this "new nickel" acoustic string, I don't care for the D'Addario's (feel hard and sound harsh) or the Ernie Ball Aluminum - the Martin's just feel and sound great (after breaking in for a few hours) and do last forever.

I also like John Pearse - try the New Medium Phosphor Bronze (and maybe even 80/20,  which do sound best on my J-45): the gauge on the New Medium set is 13, 17, 24, 32, 42, 55. I also have found that they don't stay nice looking as long, but I think the tone lasts after they look "old".

[mike in lytle]

I'll be getting a new (to me) 2008 L-05 delivered next Tuesday so I'll be jumping into the fray pretty regularly.
My seller has replaced the saddle with bone from Bob Colosi and I'll be ordering some bone bridge pins in the next couple days. Any thought on strings? My seller says Martin Monel work very well on this particular guitar and I've also been wanting to try John Pearse but I have to order them - none available locally. I really don't like Elixir strings at all - they may last a little longer but I just don't care for the tone.
Oh, and I'll see if I can scare up some donuts for you guys and gals.

Skip,
Are you the Skip Ellis from the Steel Guitar Forum?
Anyhow, my first Larrivee was a 2010 L-05, purchased in October 2014.
I mostly use Curt Mangan 11-52 PBs on the L-05 cause they don't cost a lot and hold up for a month or so.
Right now I have D'Addario EXP16 PB coated strings on the L-05 as an experiment. Been on since May 19.
Cleartone coated 12-53 PBs  have been on my old C-05 since May 9 and still going good.
Have also used Martin Acoustic SP 12-54 PB on the old C-05 and will use them again.
I "kind of like" Elixer nano PB lights, they had been strung up on my second C-05 ('98) just before I got it late in 2016 and they were outrageous at first, but I have never changed them out (8 months!) and they still sound good.
Am going to stick a set of Martin Retros on an L-10, but haven't yet.
I also like the L-bodies, I have five 6 string L-bodies now. I play most of them daily.
Mike

[Skip Ellis]

Yeah, Mike, that would be me

[mattwood]

Skip's good people and he bought my L-05 which I'm hoping he is going to love as much as I have.  Got some serious seller's remorse but I know she's in good hands with Skip.

[Skip Ellis]

Thanks for the kind words, Matt!! Looking forward to it getting here on Tuesday - already shopping for a new mic and USB interface to go with it. Folks, Matt's a good guy to deal with so remember that next time he has something listed for sale.

[Chicago]

Where did you purchase these buttons? I've been looking for some wooden pear shaped buttons for my gotoh 510s but they are hard to find and are typically made for the mini 510's. The mini 510 buttons would fit the full sized 510s but I love the look of the larger buttons!

[Skip Ellis]

Chicago: I just checked and Luthier's Mercantile has them but they're pretty pricey, at least for my budget. I also heard that someone in Canada stocks a bunch of different woods that fir the 510. I'm sure somebody will jump in with the info.

[markj]

Gotoh buttons...

https://www.charisacoustic.com/tuner-button-store/

[Zohn]

I've been gone for a while too, welcome back I say!