Sumbro PS1

Here you can discuss details about instruments, equipment and all those other bits that non-musicians won't understand !

Moderator: GORDON

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Sumbro PS1

Postby Richard716 » Wed May 19, 2010 10:46 pm

Hi,

I passed a charity shop, it was closed :( , that had a Sumbro PS1 guitar in the window looking very much unwanted. I have never heard of the make but it looked OK, has anyone played one? Should I make the trip back when its open?

Thanks Richard :D

User avatar
GORDON
Site Admin
Posts: 1350
Joined: Tue Mar 27, 2007 1:05 pm
Location: SUTTON COLDFIELD

Postby GORDON » Wed May 19, 2010 11:20 pm

RICHARD...SLEEP ON THE DOORSTEP UNTIL THEY OPEN AND BUY IT :D

G.

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Postby Richard716 » Thu May 20, 2010 8:47 am

Thanks for the reply Gordon. Are you saying buy it because all guitars deserve a good home or because you have heard of them and that they are good. I walked down to my highstreet to have a closer look last night and have done some homework on it. It turns out my wife knows the brother of the guy that makes the guitar who is local to us so I really fancy it now. Only problem is that it is a leftie. Should this put me off? Have youplayed one Gordon?

I am on jury service today but hope to be back in time to have a proper look.


Cheers, Richard

User avatar
Roger
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:02 pm
Location: Southsea

Postby Roger » Thu May 20, 2010 11:14 am

Wow! A decent "leftie" in a charity shop :shock: The stuff that dreams are made of (if you're a "leftie" of course :wink: ).

User avatar
Bob Wilson
Posts: 228
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:42 pm
Location: Trowbridge, Wiltshire

Postby Bob Wilson » Thu May 20, 2010 12:23 pm

Sumbro, built in Japan during the ‘70s. The trademark is a brand name of UK importer Summerfield Brothers. Usually based on classical American favourites. Mid range but well made. Nice guitars.
Lives touch and paths cross for a reason - be grateful for these meetings and grow as a person

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Postby Richard716 » Thu May 20, 2010 4:45 pm

Hi Roger/Bob

I do love this forum, thanks for the feadback. Question is how easy to switch it to right hand? If its not too difficult to do myself I will get it as it is only £14.99 and would be an intersting project.

Cheers Richard

P.S. Gordon, any chance of a concert in the Newcastle area again? Saw you at Alnwick at loved it, fingers crossed.

User avatar
Roger
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:02 pm
Location: Southsea

Postby Roger » Thu May 20, 2010 11:35 pm

Richard,

I'm not familiar with this particular guitar, but being a "leftie" I've had to switch several right hand acoustics over the years! The main areas that I think you will need to look at are the nut and the bridge.

My starting point would be to change the strings to right hand. You will then be able to see what needs to be done regarding the nut, which could range from a little filing to a complete replacement. Then check the intonation. If it's out it might mean adjusting (if possible) or repositioning the bridge. Then there are things to consider like the fret markers (mainly classical guitars) and the scratch plate. I guess it comes down to on how much you want to spend on the guitar to get it to right hand appearance and playability. If the guitar is of reasonable value it may be worth geting a reputable luthier to set it up.

By the way I'm no expert and I'm sure that the forum "gurus" such as Bob and Russ will be able to advise you, like they have me in the past!

Hope this helps Richard.

Roger

User avatar
Bob Wilson
Posts: 228
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:42 pm
Location: Trowbridge, Wiltshire

Postby Bob Wilson » Fri May 21, 2010 11:39 am

That is a brilliant price for this guitar. Everything Roger says is spot on, and being a lefty he has obviously met the problems before, the only other thing that can help with intonation is getting a lefty bridge if it is needed. As I’m more of an electric player this is the main thing on certain guitars. It sometimes pays to renew the top nut completely when you change from right to left as, if it’s an older guitar, there is a good chance of buzzing. If you have any problems along the way just holler as the forum members here are brilliant and always have a remedy of some sort.
Good luck with the alterations
Bob
Lives touch and paths cross for a reason - be grateful for these meetings and grow as a person

User avatar
Roger
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:02 pm
Location: Southsea

Postby Roger » Fri May 21, 2010 6:21 pm

Bob/Richard,

I hope to meet the same problems again when I've won the GG Signature Guitar :D :D :D

Roger :wink:

User avatar
Russ Gannicott
Posts: 222
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:28 pm

Postby Russ Gannicott » Wed May 26, 2010 11:40 pm

What happened Richard, did you get it? A couple more bits of info - Sumbro's, CSL's etc were often made in the Fujigen factory and are therefor Ibanez in origin. Needless to say all these guitars are notable for their superb necks which quite often have a zero fret......useful if you are converting left to right etc as it makes the top nut far more tolerant. As far as the bridge goes, you can get a compensated converter (looks like a plastic double sided off-set saddle) which reverses the slant of the bridge saddle. These are useful as you don't have to permanently modify the guitar.
To be honest though, there is a big demand for early '70's Japanese 'lefties' as they are really hard to find. I would be tempted to sell this (via Ebay?) to a left handed player and use the resulting somewhat hefty profit to buy a guitar that doesn't need modifying!
Cheers,
Russ

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Postby Richard716 » Thu May 27, 2010 7:55 pm

Hi Russ,

I'm gutted, I went to get it the day after I got the posted messages, you've guessed it was SOLD. :(
I was a real shame as it has some local interest, the brothers that imported them live at either end of my street, small world eh.

Thanks for your advice all the same.

Cheers, Richard

User avatar
Roger
Posts: 565
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2007 8:02 pm
Location: Southsea

Postby Roger » Mon May 31, 2010 8:51 pm

Richard,

What terrible bad luck - I can only sympathise. I too have had a couple of charity shop disasters over the years. About two years ago I was in a charity shop in Bridport. There in the book section were about fifty guitar mags from the 70's and I should have bought them there and then. I didn't and when I went back shortly afterwards they had gone! More recently I was standing behind a guy who was looking at the videos in a local charity shop. I spotted a video called "Regan", which was the original pilot for "The Sweeney". It was only 20p and a must, but guess what - the guy in front got it!!

I've also been pipped on a guitar recently, a Vintage LVS6 (Gibson SG copy). It was on ebay with a buy it now price of £45 - pretty good for a £250 guitar which was 6 months old! While I was thinking about whether I need another guitar etc it went - lesson learned!

Anyway, really sorry Richard - just keep your eyes open!

All the best,

Roger

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Re: Sumbro PS1

Postby Richard716 » Sun Aug 30, 2015 9:13 am

Hi,

You said keep your eyes open and I did :D . I found one on ebay nearly 5 years later for £9.99 and won!!!!!!! I have not got it yet but will do shortly. This will be my first classical guitar. I will do a clean up, give it some TLC and then fit some new strings. What do you recommend?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUMBRO-Guitar ... true&rt=nc

I got a CSL Jazzmaster early this year and love it

Really excited :)

Thanks, Richard

Richard716
Posts: 43
Joined: Thu Apr 23, 2009 11:36 pm

Re: Sumbro PS1

Postby Richard716 » Fri Oct 23, 2015 7:47 pm

Hi All,

Firstly, and most importantly, may I give my very best wishes to Gordon. I was very shocked and saddened to hear his recent news. It was great to read Gordon's positive words on what has happened and am sure this can only help on his road to being back on the road. Perhaps a song in there somewhere that you can work on!! I know this is not your plan at this stage but I can hope :D

I finally got the Sumbro PS1 guitar after it was collected by my cousin who lived nearby the winning auction. It made its final journey up north and is now in my hands. So, what to do. It need cleaning, a lot of cleaning!!!!!! She is now, considering her age, gleaming. I have cleaned and polished up the frets, you would never have known that they were brass as they were black. The tuners worked but were stiff, they are now free running. I plan to get new strings tomorrow:-

D'Addario EJ27N Student Classics Normal (.028-.043) Classical Guitar Strings

http://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/guitarstr ... t-overview

I have not had a classical guitar before so this is the plan unless there are any better suggestions?

The action is BEYOND HIGH!!!!!! The wooden bridge is held on by the pressure of the strings. Not sure what I can really do about getting a better action but hey, she only cost £9.99 delivered :)

Once again, best wishes to Gordon

Cheers Richard

User avatar
AndrewD
Posts: 212
Joined: Mon Jun 02, 2008 4:19 pm
Location: North Somerset
Contact:

Re: Sumbro PS1

Postby AndrewD » Sat Nov 07, 2015 9:23 am

You will find every instrument reacts and sounds differently to a given type of string, so the best thing to do is for the first half dozen times you change strings try something new each time. Good strings are made by many firms including Martin, Savarez and Hannabach as well as D'Addario, but try different ones and you will eventually find something that sounds and plays best on your instrument. My Alhambra has Hannabach Goldins on it but these are hard to find and getting stupidly expensive so I may go back to D'Addario EJ45s, my second favourite. My least favourite is Augustine - they are like rubber bands, just awful.


Return to “Guitar Anoraks Forum”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 38 guests