On X-O, the relic finish is done with a water-based stain straight to wood, natural shellac and very slight amount of nitrocellulose to neck, back and sides. No sealers or fillers are used. Compared to a normal finish, vibrating mass is reduced, and the guitar is more sensitive, clear and crispy. It really feels like an old Selmer.
Appointments:
Scale length: 640 mm or 670 mm on short scale
Body size: 410 mm at lower bout
Top: Solid European spruce
Back & sides: Hand laminated straigh-grain Brazilian rosewood
Neck: Three piece European walnut with original headstock joint, reinforced with two unidirectional carbonfiber rods
Neck dimensions: 45 mm at the 0-fret, 57 mm at the 14 th fret OR 48 - 60 on short scale D-hole guitars
Fingerboard: Ebony with MOP-dots
Tuners: Selmer-style AJL-tuners
Truss-rod: Two-way adjustable
Frets: Jescar (18% N/S Hard Height 1,40mm Width 2.290 mm)
The Top:
"The top woods on the XO guitar are like old aged tonewoods, thanks to the modified heat treatment process called Thermotimber, of which you can read more elsewhere on this site.If you've seen any vintage Selmers, you must have noticed, how the old nitrocellulose finish has shrunk and there's hardly any varnish left. In order to reduce vibrating mass, the coating of Model XO is also very thin. It's made of shellac - like violins - and topped with a very slight amount of matt nitrocellulose.Top plates are sanded uneven to maximise the vibrating area and strengthen the neck joint region. It takes experience and great skill to tune the soundbox to it fullest potential.Finally, the extremely stable carbon-fiber reinforced neck ensures that all the energy from the vibrating strings go straight to the soundbox, as apposed to being absorbed by a flexible neck."
The Sound:
"There's certain special crispness, clarity and volume that you only find in Old Selmers - and AJL Model XO. But AJL is comfortable to play, easy to tune, better workmanship, better woods and stable construction that you can trust in professional use. It has that Selmer sound and feel in a new guitar that sounds and feels like old."
*This instrument has been setup in accordance to DjangoGuitars.com's exacting shop standards for optimum playability and projection. We personally set up each guitar with pride. *
