Developed using Paul Geremia's 1939 J-35 as a template, the Fairbanks F-35 is as versatile a guitar you will ever play, equally suited for solo fingerstyle and old-time music or hard-driving flatpicking. The original examples, built during the 1930s and early 1940s, employed various top bracing configurations: two tone bar, scalloped or unscalloped, and 3 tone bar, scalloped or unscalloped. They've all come through Dale's shop at one point or another, and the very best—the serious bone crushers—have all had three unscalloped tone bars and a relatively thin (~.100") top. These are what Dale has tried to emulate with the Fairbanks F-35. Strong mids are combined with an incredible low register and fat trebles, which are helped along by the tall top bracing. If you're looking for a dry, booming guitar that's light as a feather, sounds older than you, and takes no prisoners, you just can't go wrong.

TNAG sold this guitar new last year, and now it's available again in excellent condition.