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Description

Offered for sale:

Used 2012 Laplante Feather I archtop guitar serial number 291012.

This guitar is in very good to excellent condition showing limited playing time.

Jean-Pierre Laplante:

“Located in Kingston [Ontario], a stone's throw from the shores of beautiful Lake Ontario, Laplante Guitars is a "boutique" lutherie shop specializing in "one of a kind" instruments. Like a lot of small lutherie shops, its org chart is fairly simple : one owner, me, and one employee, me. So, whether I'm building an archtop, an acoustic, or a solid-body, each instrument gets my full attention, and the same high standards are applied to all of my projects.”

More about the “Feather”:

“The archtop guitar has evolved quite a bit in the last 50 years or so. Still, It remains mostly associated with Jazz.
Since the very first day in my archtop building career, I've always believed that this type if guitar had more to offer than the typical mid-rangy tone associated with this type of instrument, hence my quest to come up with an archtop that would retain some of its characteristic traditional tone but could also appeal to those who are looking for an instrument that could also deliver a tone closer to a more traditional steel-string guitar.”

“My initial objective when I started designing this instrument was to focus on improving the "acoustic tone" of my laminated archtops. Well, it turns out that it indeed does so very well, but as a bonus, ended up as an amazingly versatile instrument when amplified, delivering crisp highs as well as a very competent jazzy tone as the highs are rolled off.”

"Inside the Box"

Some of you might be interested in knowing a bit more about this instrument and perhaps
curious about what's inside the box. If so, then this section is for you!

Let me first start by saying that, because of the small plate thickness (1/16"), this guitar presented some interesting challenges from both the structural and tone point of view:

Structural: Both the top and back plates are so thin that the conventional construction methods would likely have resulted in the neck folding in within a few months (weeks?). The idea was to use a hollowed-out center block as a buffer to the neck folding pressure. With such a block (here made out of light Douglas Fir), most of the neck folding pressure is handled by this block, leaving the top and back to vibrate according to the string input. I also used a cross-dowel to prevent any unwanted vibrations from the sides.

Tone: Traditional archtop X- and parallel bracings would likely not work with such a thin top plate as the top would end up with large floppy and unfocused areas. So, a different bracing pattern had to be used. Classical guitar builders will immediately recognize some kind of hybrid Hauser/Bouchet bracing, often used on classical guitars. This bracing provides adequate support at the bridge location and nicely divides the top into localized vibrating sections.

Weight balance: With such a light body, I wanted to make sure that the guitar wouldn't end up neck heavy. So, maple and mahogany were out of the question. A lighter wood had to be used, here Douglas Fir.

The neck is here made out of a 2-piece bookmatched Douglas Fir stock: Light and strong.
Two Carbon Fiber rods are used to help keeping this neck straight but most importantly to
guarantee that the tone will be even from the nut to the very last fret.

Electronics: From the very start I decided that I would use a suspended Bartolini pickup.
But without a pickguard, where do we locate the controls. Definitely not on the top! The controls are here located in the upper bout.
(Schatten Vol & Tone pots)

Imperial Guitar says:

Wow, wow, what a beautiful guitar! Words and pictures do not do it justice, just fabulous!
LaPlante certainly met his goal. This guitar has “more to offer than the typical mid-rangy tone associated with this type of instrument” with noticeably more depth and roundness.

Gretsch hard shell case included.

“We carefully inspect every instrument when we buy it and bring it up to our standards before we offer it for sale. We also do a full set up before we ship. If you decide to purchase this guitar, please let us know what gauge strings you prefer.”

GUITAR SPECS:

Year: 2012

Serial number: 291012

Body: Maple Laminate with Spruce laminate top

Neck: Douglas Fir reinforced with two carbon fiber rods

Finish: Edge Burst

Fingerboard: Ebony

Scale Length: 25”

Number of Frets: 21

Bridge: Adjustable compensated

Tuners: Gotoh ST31-SB5 6 in line Stealth

Pickup: Bartolini

Controls: Schatten Vol & Tone pots

Width at Nut: 1 11/16”

Radius: 12”

Body Width at Lower Bout: 15 7/8"

Weight: 4.8 lbs.

*Please note: we do our best giving descriptions of used pieces. We have found it impossible to describe every mark on an instrument or amp that is not in the "mint" category. Also, what's important to you may not be important to someone else. For example, you may say, "I don't care what it looks like as long as it plays or sounds well." Another person may say, "Body cosmetics are very important to me so tell me about every scratch, nick and blemish." So, please ask the questions that are most important to you. If you ask they will be answered. They are free and there's no limit. Additional photos can also be made available.

This is a specific item that is also being offered for sale in our brick & mortar location. It is possible that it has just been sold. Please ask if it is still available before purchasing.

*It is our policy to require a signature on delivery of all musical instruments. Please let us know if you prefer no signature required when ordering or we will automatically require a signature.

If you prefer your item to be sent without a required signature Imperial Guitar and the selected carrier can no longer be responsible for the security of the package once it has been delivered.

Imperial Guitar & Soundworks

Imperial Guitar & Soundworks

2012
Laplante
Very Good
Edge Burst
Hard
27 Years
Imperial Guitar & Soundworks
New Paltz, NY
6:06 PM
10:00 am - 6:00 pm Tues. - Fri. 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Sat. Mondays by appointment only

We accept VISA, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express, as well as certified checks and bank-to-bank wire transfers. Trades and consignments also welcome. Bank to bank wire transfers seem to work best on foreign orders.

All shipments made by us are fully insured. Also, all new products are fully covered by the manufacturer's warranty and used gear usually carries our 30 day mail order warranty. Most stringed instruments sold by IGS are shipped UPS Ground service for $50.00 to $100.00 for the 48 Contiguous states. (Overnight Red Label is also available). Please call on each item. GUITAR FREIGHT (Foreign) We ship instruments world wide. Our shipping department prides itself in its ability to safely deliver guitars anywhere in the world. We use Fex Ex Great Rates service, wherever possible. You are responsible for any import duties, V.A.T., etc. on delivery. It is advisable to consult with your local customs office.

48-hour approval on most items