My first guitar was a Stella guitar I probably got it for free or near free and it was of course unplayable. But I did learn a single note version of s Sunshine Of Your Love a Cream tune and of course House Of The Rising Sun on it.

My first acoustic guitar was an old Kay that my uncle refurbished for me to get started. He was a piano player & repairer, but I guess new enough... The fret ends were horrible, though, and I did get a couple of cuts from them. The bridge was also cracked, which he glued, but by 2 years of playing it had cracked again and would barely hold a couple of the pins. Fortunately, my guitar teacher was able to explain it to my parents that I really needed a new guitar, and they bought me my Kaman Matrix.

My first electric guitar was a Kramer Striker Strat-style. It had a half-Floyd Rose tremolo, with the string clamps with tubes that needed an allen wrench to change the strings, but no fine tuners. It worked for a while until I sold it to a friend and bought the ES 335.

My first bass was also from the Kramer Striker series, a P/J model. Bought it with a Fender Bassman Ten silverface combo (50 watts, 4x10), which I still have.

First Acoustic was a Truetone, bought from Lafayette Electronics, around 1963/64? First Electric was some no-name semi-hollow, with a hideous faux-Bigsby Vibrato bar on it? Can barely remember the thing, it's been gone so long. The old Truetone, however, lived long enough to be passed down to one of my nieces, about 7 years ago; for all I know, it's gathering dust in some closet or attic, by now, but it served its purpose. She still plays, and sings, quite nicely, in fact.

The very first guitar that I owned was TERRIBLE, vaguely a Jaguar/Jazzmaster rip-off. I paid someone $27 for it, and still paid too much. I believe that it was an early '60s Ibanez, although it had no brand or model names anywhere- I put blaze-orange "Thank you for shopping at Acme" stickers on it!


The first decently playing guitar that I bought was a Peavey T-15, a very short 23.5" scale-length double-cutaway with a hard-rock maple neck, ash (or maple?) body, an axe that took most of its cues from Fender Teles and Strats.

It had some rather unique "Super Ferrite" blade-poled single-coil pickups that sounded somewhere between P-90's and Fender Tele/Strat styles- and were fantastic with fuzzes like a rare JAX FY-2 "Companion" or an "IC/Op-Amp" V4 or V5 EH Big Muff Pi.

It had an adjustable micro-tilt neck feature, and a metal nut, knobs, and string-tree.

Due to the extra short scale-length, I began my long running use of .011" - .050" gauge string-sets. Those heavier strings and the short scale-length made for very fat, warm, round tones from the plain/treble strings!

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Like DBM I started on a Stella, borrowed from my brother. Made by Harmony, may have been branded by Sears as a Silvertone. A real cheap piece of junk. Then I got a Melody, which I believe was made by Teisco, another cheap-ass piece of junk, 2 pickup solid body electric. It was a start. This was probably 1965.

I started off with a cheap, entry-level Alvarez acoustic. 12 months later, I had played it to death: the tech told me it was cheaper to replace than repair.

I replaced it with an Ovation Elite AND a fretless Washburn a/e bass, both of which I still have.

That was it for a few years until I decided to try electrics, and bought a Dean Special Select EVO and a Time Capsule Cadillac.

On Christmas Eve, 1983, I received my first guitar- a Bently acoustic. I still have it.

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Like DBM and Scott, I too started out on an old Stella acoustic guitar my uncle gave me. Later, one of my other uncles gave me my 1st electric guitar which was a Sears Silvertone. A couple of years ago I gave my nephew one of my Deluxe Strats, so I paid it forward!

I'm not gonna go through all that mention of the all plastic EMINEE again.
Whitefang

Grandpa got my a Japanese copy of a Gibson Hummingbird when I was five years old from a local pawn store. They got tired of me playing air guitar on Grandma's fly swatter. The brand name was Hy Lo.

I was close to 10 when I actually started playing on of one of Dad's parlor sized guitars. That thing was hard to play but sounded great.

My first electric was a 65 Fender Mustang. I still have it. It is at Mom and Dad's house in the case under my old bed still.

My first acoustic was an old beat up Harmony that one of my dad's friends gave me. My first electric was a new Harmony.

First one was a xmas present a Teisco hollow body - really crap but I did not know it then. Next was what I call my first real one a Fender Cononado II hollow body. Loved it except for the feed back ended up stuffing it with foam. Still have it. Jim

My first electric was a late 50's or early 60's Fender Telecaster which I bought after giving the Stella away, and buying several acoustics, one Guild dreadnought shaped instrument and a classical guitar. I later sold those acoustics, and bought an Ovation Balladeer. I bought my first Gibson a late 60's SG, and sold the Telecaster. From there it was Gibson's, a Firebird, an ES345, a couple of Les Paul Customs, An Epiphone solid body electric which was a great guitar, very light, had humbuckers. I sold that to one of my students for a hundred fifty bucks which is near what I paid for it. Then I got my Ibanez Artist which was my main axe for many many years. And on and on with many instruments bought and sold until today. I only have 4 guitars now, and that is satisfactory, all of them solid body electrics.

Air guitar with a FLY SWATTER!

I guess then MY first guitar would be that old toy M-14 of mine with TWINE tied at the stock and end of the barrel for a STRAP!

I used to WAIL away on that "axe"!
Whitefang

Mine was a great gtr.
Harmony Moneterey model shown here...
https://reverb.com/item/4059961-harmony-...P8HAQ&pla=1
Sweet , mellow tone; very playable.

Nice axe d. I'd of HUNG ON to that one.

Did you?
Whitefang

My first was a no name Chinese Strat copy I got in 2010 for $100 USD. I got my MIM Strat when I came to the US for college in 2012.

Not too bad JuJu. A "no-name" Chinese Strat HAS to be better than an all plastic American made TOY!
Whitefang

Mine was a plywood Sears Silvertone acoustic with strings about 1/2" off the fretboard. Pretty terrible guitar!

Here is a page from the catalog that I think I ordered that Silvertone from. It's dated 1971 which is the correct year. I'm almost certain it was the $31.95 model in the lower right corner. I remember lusting after that guitar, it looked like the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. That was a lot of money for me back then!

" 1/2" off the fretboard"?

A friend of mine used to call guitars like that "egg slicers".
Whitefang

Pretty funny! 1/2" might be a slight exaggeration, still pretty painful though! What I remember is how I thought it sounded so beautiful. Thinking back on it, it probably didn't but it seemed pretty awesome to me, it being the first guitar I ever played. I remember the first song I tried in the book that came with the guitar was "Red River Valley".

Come to think of it, I DO know a guy( haven't seen in years) who always kept a guitar like that around. He put heavy guage strings on it and would "practice" with it for an hour before he'd switch to his "better" guitar for finger strengthening and callus hardening. Me, I'd rather use a rubber ball and keep my calluses in shape the regular way.
Whitefang

I remember my egg slicer 1st Stella guitar. I was too young to be a luthier and the guitar had no truss rod! So, I took the strings off, moistened the neck, and piled some books on the end near the headstock and on the top near the other end for balance. The action actually came down enough that I could play the guitar. About once a year did the trick for awhile when I could afford to change the strings LOL!

@ Larryz The things we did when we were young learners. Paying the dues is what they call that, and we paid'em.

Right on brother DBM!

A BIG "Ditto" from me TOO, bro!
Whitefang

Giannini nylon string, new for Xmas '79. Still have it, but it needs a new saddle bad.

When I was four years old I heard the Beatles on the radio. When I was seven Imade a guitar out of a shoe box and a piece of wood and rubber bands.I was very proud and showed my dad ho was not impressed.
Now my mom , who I never met , sent a drum kit for Christmas probably just to annoy my dad. That worked out great, he was very annoyed. I wanted a guitar, and he bought me one ,apparently because he told me he did one day while I was in the midst of throwing a fit , and that he was going to take it back out of layaway.
Then he bought me a plastic guitar for Christmas. And a Mel bay guitar book.
Then one night we were visiting a family who my dad knew . He had an electric guitar like a mustang copy. I played it all night and when were leaving he said ,do you like that guitar ? I said yes and he said I could have it ! He gave me the guitar. Free.

Some people are wonderful. I want o be just like him too.

Several question arise from that tale, Scotty, but I'll wait til you reveal more of yerself.

Meanwhile, How's it look to ya here at MPlayer ?

Welcome aboard Paul Scott Rock!

If you really want to be like that guy you mentioned Paul then let me help.

I'll take any cool guitar you're willing to give me!
Whitefang