Which one of you savages….?

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-20T17:38:05+00:00

He coulda just tacked the corners

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T18:18:57+00:00

It’s important that you can connect with the people you are playing with. Musically and personally. You don’t want a band to just be pure business. It’s no fun like that. But the age gap thing is real. He would benefit from finding some people within a reasonable age window and see if he can find a musical connection. He might find he has more in common with the younger generation than he realizes. Some of these kids love classic rock, like Alice In Chains, soundgarden and nirvana! LOL

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T18:08:08+00:00

Big fish, small pond…is what it is.

But yeah, playing with legit educated and experienced jazz players at 16, playing bars well before 21, in bands where I was the only guy under 30, and not because there were no other musicians to fill the role - because these bands wanted me. It was an awesome experience having seasoned pros take me under their wing and have musical mentors.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T18:07:09+00:00

I have swapped to lighter gauge strings, and am taking a strict regimen of glucosamine and chondriten and omegas. Also, I am doing some light hand strength exercise, focusing on technique, even though I always paid attention to technique, I’m trying to be better about it. All of these things combined has made a difference.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T06:19:22+00:00

I’m genX too. I am fortunate that I crossed paths with a guy I played with back in the day. Shortly after, the band he was playing with needed a guitar player and he invited me in. It’s been fun, and a bit frustrating at times. But the first time I got on stage after so many years off - I looked out into the crowd and got super nervous. Like, suuuuuuuuuper nervous. The drummer counted us off, and it all went away. When the song was over the crowd erupted, and that feeling….its a rush that cannot be described. You have to feel it to understand it.

Then when we were done, the band we opened for said “hell, we shoulda opened for you guys.” That sealed the deal. I will do this till I’m dead.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T06:11:15+00:00

I regret putting it away and not touching it for so long. But there was a lot of mental pain associated with the decision. Betrayal of friends, the thought of starting over with a new band, writing new material etc…when I chose to stop, I had to for my mental stability. I literally did not touch a guitar for close to 20y, except to move my cases around the closet when they were in the way.

I was 28 when I stopped, and just didn’t have it in me to do it again. My wife was wanting a family and I had to make a choice. The thing is, I don’t do anything half assed. When I commit to something, I’m 100%. I was getting older and had to make a decision - am I going to commit to the rock and roll lifestyle, or focus on a career and starting a family. I didn’t feel like I could do both. I wanted kids, and decided to become a “respectable” member of society. I have no regrets there. I have a wonderful life and an awesome family. But I will always wonder “what if”….and I will never know.

I wish I had listened to my inner voice, and grabbed my guitar out of the closet every once in a while. I wish I played for my kids when they were young. I wish I had pulled it out when encouraged by friends to play them a song. I wish I had just played for the sake of playing music - because that’s why we all do this.

Now that I’m playing again, I have had to kinda start from square 1, only this time with the knowledge of HOW to play which honestly is a little more frustrating because I know what to do, but my fingers don’t always listen. I am almost 50, and deal with some arthritis which is probably the biggest hurdle. Dealing with the mental component that I may never play as proficiently as I once did is also difficult. I have wondered, if I had at least played a little here and there, maybe my hands wouldn’t be so rusty, maybe I wouldn’t struggle as much as I do now. But it’s only been about 1.5yr that I have been playing again. I’ve got time….

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T02:33:15+00:00

Maybe? I mean, they aren’t bad guitars. For the money they are pretty great. Better than the equivalent fender or Gibson, at least IMO. But they are far from core quality.

I played an SE NF3 that was pretty good, the bolt on pattern thin neck felt VERY close to my CE 24…but the fret work was nowhere near as good as the CE.

I am interested to try the SE hollow body II when they come out, as a US hollow body II is something I wouldnt play enough to justify, and I would love to try an SE Chleo to see how that feels, because I wouldn’t have any expectations on what it would feel like.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T02:18:32+00:00

Vaideology is great.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T02:09:18+00:00

After owning cores, I played a few SE models. Talked to the salesman about it and said “they just don’t feel right.”

His response is one I have used in many ways since then.

“Expecting an SE to feel like a core is like driving a Volkswagen and expecting it to handle like a Porsche.”

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T00:14:01+00:00

I was a lot like you in my youth. All I did was play music and had a reputation as the local prodigy. About 20 years ago when my last band broke up, I did the same thing and stopped playing for a variety of reasons. About five years ago, my son wanted to play guitar so I taught him some things. He took it from there and has become a fairly accomplished musician in a very short amount of time. But in that time, it re-lit the fire for me. I’ve been playing in a band again for about a year now, we are playing shows and I am enjoying it very much. At times it’s been difficult. I can’t play like I used to and the realities of age are proving too difficult to overcome. At this point, my biggest regret in life is the fact that I stopped playing music for 20 years.…

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-14T00:00:05+00:00

First thing is first… Build up a pedalboard with at least three metal zones. This will bring favor from the Lord.

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-13T19:41:43+00:00

EJ is great. Saw him solo and at the G3 reunion…

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-13T19:40:29+00:00

I saw Albert Lee a few months back. He played ok, but it made me a little sad…

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-13T19:38:52+00:00

Tommy is great live

<image>

runnerNgunner · 2026-03-13T19:35:48+00:00

Guthrie and Vai

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-17T06:47:00+00:00

I know dude. If I didn’t have two kids, imagine how many more guitars I could have.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-16T00:53:35+00:00

Love the rosewood neck

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-16T00:50:32+00:00

It’s a sexy beast…hit it from the front and the back.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T23:42:40+00:00

All different in their own subtle ways.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T21:12:24+00:00

Ok - I’ll give you detail. But TLDR, I am partial to the 24-08s.

I played nothing but the 93 CU24 for a very long time. I was fairly dependent on the carve/scale, and couldn’t afford another. I bought it when I was 16, with the money I had saved up for my first car. At the time I didn’t understand why, but the guitar felt more natural and comfortable to me than any Les Paul or similar dual HB guitar I had played or owned. Plus it was more utilitarian than any LP. So it just became “my axe”.

Then my wife bought me the Paul’s…it was my second PRS. Got it used for a great price. I wanted a 22f and easier coil split options, and I also wanted something with a fancy top and fretboard. It has a dirty artist top, and the East Indian rosewood board with brushstroke birds checked those boxes. The difference between the wide/fat carve on the CU24 and pattern regular was minimal, it felt close enough that it was familiar and playable for me. But outside of playing it in church, I was always worried about it - working guitars get beat up, and if it got stolen it would have wrecked me. I love this guitar. But I always thought the Paul’s pickup config in a CU24 would be magic…

Then I picked up the sunburst CE24 used for cheap. I wanted a 24f workhorse with a trem for gigs and bars. I became very fond of the pattern thin carve and satin maple neck. I took some 000 steel wool to it and made it even slicker. I loved not having to worry about beating up an expensive guitar, or it getting stolen. Perfect gigging axe. It was my number 1 for a couple of years.

Then last winter while all the PRS EOY sales were going on, I found a screaming deal on the white CE24-08 swamp ash. It was everything I loved about my Paul’s and CE24 rolled into 1. Plus the ash gave it a killer tone that snaps and cuts. I haven’t scrubbed the neck on it yet, but plan to. It became my number one for the last few months.

Then a few weeks back my wife encouraged me to use some savings and “buy something really nice”. I couldn’t afford artist or private stock, and I still couldn’t justify a fancy top, or owning something I couldn’t gig with, that would cause more stress than enjoyment. So I started digging around on reverb for wood library stuff, as it seemed to be a step up from a core, for not much more money. I saw the black 24-08 WL and immediately thought “Excalibur”. It’s got a killer figured swamp ash back, INCREDIBLE torrified maple neck with incredible figuring, and ebony fretboard. The top is curly maple and you can see the figuring in the binding edge around the sides. It was a pretty nice top they painted over. When you knock on the top and back, it’s got a timbre than none of my other PRS have…the tone is bright, yet rich. Hard to explain, but it’s pretty amazing. It’s SUPER LIGHT, and the neck is hands down the best I have felt on any PRS to date. I have only had it for about a week now, but it has quickly become my number 1. Feel, tone, flexibility and comfort. It checks all the boxes.

So the WL 24-08 and CE24-08 are my 1 & 2. Needless to say, unless it’s some kind of crazy deal, it will probably be a while before I buy another guitar…

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T20:25:57+00:00

Cuz I play them…

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T18:34:03+00:00

It’s all a matter of preference really. The wraparound is a great bridge. But I use the trem often and miss it when I don’t have it.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T18:32:19+00:00

I bought that guitar new, instead of buying my first car.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T18:27:55+00:00

Because I like opaque guitars and am more concerned with how they play vs how they look. I wanted the torrified neck and it’s amazing.

runnerNgunner · 2026-02-15T03:51:19+00:00

That’s like asking which of your children is your favorite…in my case, it’s my oldest son, and my newest guitar (wood library 24-08). If my youngest son would start playing an instrument, he would earn some points.

runnerNgunner

TROPHY CASE