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Collings CJ35 MRGSS-SB Dreadnought #17819  From Collings

German spruce/ Madagascar rosewood dread, customized head to toe with appointments like tortoise binding and Brazilian bridge and fingerboard!

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Collings Guitars

"Gone, Baby, Gone"

This one is sold. Don't miss the next one. Some things never even make it to the site so stay up to date on our used collection.

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What We Think

A Sultan of slope shoulders!  Seriously, it's unreal how all of the various custom upgrades to this CJ have elevated it into new and rarefied territory.  Supremely comfortable playability thanks to that short scale and absolutely gorgeous in voice thanks to the always rich and expressive combination of German Spruce and Madagascar Rosewood.  A Brazilian board and bridge?! What?!  Not your old J-45, that's for sure!  And, after Collings' decision to not continue building with Madgascar going forward, not something you'll see from them ever again!

Manufacturer's Description from Collings

The pre-war era of American flattop guitar making has come to be known as "golden" for a reason. Lauded for its short but brilliant periods of construction innovation, the years from 1930-1942 were filled with new instrument runs that featured bracing, fret access and body dimension changes that would define the features and sounds of the modern acoustic guitar. Emerging out of our fascination with this era of guitar making history, Collings is proud to introduce the CJ35. Available with a mahogany back and slope-shouldered body, this new variation of our CJ model incorporates a non-scalloped bracing configuration featuring three tone bars and a short 24 7/8" scale length. This new design provides the CJ35 with a beautiful balance of deep piano-like bass and powerful full-bodied highs, complimented by a focused dynamic range for exceptionally even note projection. As a result, the CJ35 is one of our most versatile large-bodied guitars, well suited to both fingerstyle and strumming techniques.

 

Bill Collings moved from Ohio to Houston, Texas in the mid-1970s.  More interested in guitars and engineering than in medical school, he took a job at a machine shop and began building guitars on his kitchen table with just a few hand tools.  Coming from a family of engineers, Bill’s experience as a craftsman and his natural curiosity equipped him to experiment and quickly improve his craft.  Before long his instruments were in the hands of local talents Rick Gordon and Lyle Lovett, which led more Texas players to seek out Bill for custom guitars. After building about fifty guitars and a few banjos in Houston, he headed west to pursue lutherie in southern California. Along the way, he befriended Austin luthiers Tom Ellis and Mike Stevens.  Having found like-minded instrument makers, Bill decided to stay and share space in Tom’s shop.  By the mid-1980s, Bill was building flattop and archtop acoustic guitars in his own small shop. His reputation for outstanding quality and meticulous attention to detail quickly spread.  In 1989, he rented a 1,000-square-foot space and hired two helpers.That same year, George Gruhn, the acclaimed collector and purveyor of vintage fretted instruments and owner of Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, asked Bill to make 24 custom “Gruhn” guitars, giving the Austin luthier national exposure.  In the spring of 1992, Bill moved his guitar-making operation into a 3,200-square-foot feed store he purchased on the outskirts of Austin.  By this time musicians such as Pete Townshend, Joni Mitchell and Brian May were playing Collings instruments and demand continued to grow. The existing shop tripled in size and its staff increased to 50 full-time employees. By 2005, Bill broke ground for a new 27,000-square-foot shop featuring CNC technology that modernized machining processes and made parts production more consistent, accurate and safe. As the business grew and processes were refined, one thing remained the same: Bill Collings’ commitment to build the finest stringed instruments available.

Fueled by his fascination with the construction and design of a variety of instruments, Bill soon began crafting more than just acoustic guitars.  In 1999, he introduced the first Collings mandolins, which like his guitars, quickly set new standards for the industry.  In 2006 his interest in carved top instruments led him to introduce a line of electric guitars that players quickly embraced because of the instruments’ exceptional craftsmanship and tone.  In 2009, with a nod to the tradition of some other high-end acoustic guitar makers, Bill created a line of concert and tenor ukuleles that have been hugely popular with professional and hobbyist players alike.

For the past 30 years, Collings Guitars have been the choice of musicians who seek the finest handmade instruments available.  You owe it to yourself to try a Collings.

 
Collings Guitars

About Manufacturer

Sound Pure is a proud dealer of Collings Acoustics, Electrics, and Mandolins, with a large inventory and new guitars arriving regularly.  Each instrument in stock is professionally photographed, and we have video reviews with studio-quality sound and HD video quality.

Bill Collings has been inspiring generations of guitarists with his fine guitars and mandolins since the 1970s. After dropping out of medical school to pursue his interest in guitar building, he moved to Austin, Texas where he and his company, Collings Guitars, operate to this day.  From his humble beginnings as a one-man operation in a two-bedroom apartment to his current 22,000 square-foot facility and approximately 70 employees, Collings has built a reputation for producing high quality instruments with care and precision. 

Perhaps best known for flat-top acoustic guitars, Collings excels in a variety of classic-inspired designs and modern build concepts. Their D series guitars represent their take on the iconic 14-fret square-shouldered dreadnought and include the highly-favored D1 and D2H models with mahogany and rosewood back and sides respectively. These guitars are extremely well-balanced and have a strong reputation for reliability and consistently becoming stronger as the woods open up over time. The CW models in this series feature Adirondack tops, larger sound holes, and other specs especially coveted by bluegrass flat pickers for their volume and responsiveness. The Collings OM series guitars tend to be lively, balanced, and lyrical. These guitars are hugely popular amongst fingerstyle players for their dynamic sensitivity, size, and playability. One of the most versatile acoustic guitar designs, Collings OMs can also handle heavy strumming and flat picking easily when the player needs to dig in. The CJ is a fantastic slope-shouldered dreadnought, and the SJ is their incredible small jumbo design. Collings also makes astounding parlor-style 0, 00, 000, and Baby guitars, which are perfect for performance or travel and offered with the same variety of options as the larger lines for true customization of tone and appearance. Rounding out Collings’ acoustic lines is the C10, which is modeled after a parlor guitar but with a design concept that makes it a favorite of electric players.

Collings is ahead of the pack in the acoustic guitar game, but it certainly does not end there. Their electric guitars are highly regarded amongst players across the entire spectrum of musical traditions. Designed and built with the same knowledge and attention to detail as the flat-tops, Collings electrics are quickly gaining recognition as contending with the best of the best of electric guitars. Hard rockers and country pickers and everyone in between can find a Collings electric to fit their style, from the Les Paul-inspired shapes of the 290, 360, and CL series to the semi-hollow I-35s and SoCo Deluxe models. Collings also offers A and T-style mandolins, as well as concert and tenor ukuleles. 

 

Every Collings instrument has been built with the same standard of craftsmanship and quality that any discerning musician deserves to experience in the tools they select for their musical journey. At Sound Pure, we believe that the tools you equip yourself with can either enhance or hinder you on your journey, so we make it our job to research and choose what we find to be the very best instruments for our clients. We are confident that any Collings guitar that leaves the shop will meet their standards, as well as ours. If you find that we do not currently have the exact specs you need we are happy to make custom orders for our customers to build their own dream guitar.

 

Specifications

Serial Number: 17819

Year: 2010

Top: German Spruce

Back & Sides: Madagascar Rosewood

Neck: Honduran mahogany

Body Binding: Tortoise

Fingerboard Binding: Tortoise

Peghead Binding: Tortoise

Bridge: Brazilian

Fingerboard: Brazilian

Bridge Pins/End Pin: Ivoroid with no dot

Nut: Bone, 1 3/4"

Saddle: Bone, cutthrough

Neck Profile: Vintage Now

Peghead Profile: Haircut

Neck Joint: Mortise & tenon hybrid

Truss Rod: Fully adjustable

Frets: Medium 18% nickel-silver

Peghead Veneer: Ebony with Ivoroid Collings Logo

Tuners: Nickel Waverly w/ Ivoroid buttons (16:1 ratio)

Backstrip: 3-Style

Rosette: Abalone 

Scale Length: 24 7/8"

Brace Material: Adirondack spruce

Brace Pattern: Pre-war scalloped X-brace (3 tone bars)

Fingerboard Radius: 14" - 26" compound

Body Finish: High gloss nitrocellulose lacquer

Neck Finish: High gloss polyester resin

Pickguard: Tigerstripe

Hardshell Case