Collings 470 JL Julian Lage Antiqued Blonde Hardtail (USED, 2024)

The Collings 470 JL is the second model built by our talented friends in Austin, TX to bear the Julian Lage name, and it's every bit as wonderful as his heralded OM1. Careful planning, design, and crafting has come to life in this Gretsch-inspired beauty, capturing the essence of a Golden Age vintage electric guitar while maximizing its potential. Refined but familiar, delicate but powerful, and dare we say one of the most expressive and lyrical sounding electrics we've heard in years.

There may be no better fit than Ron Ellis to pair up with this project, responsible for the design and manufacturing of the custom wound 'Ellisonic' pickups outfitted in each 470 JL. All of the sparkle, definition, and clarity you'd want in a vintage Dynasonic pickup, but with a more extended frequency response and greater harmonic content. Lows are lower, highs are more robust, and the midrange is well-defined without being too overbearing or lean. Paired with a hollow mahogany body and laminated maple top, you're afforded a tremendous amount of acoustic response and liveliness that is magnificently captured by the twin single coils.

Playability is top-notch, with a unique V/C neck profile that sits somewhere between a Collings 60s neck depth and their standard medium neck depth. The fixed "hardtail" tailpiece paired with a pinned rosewood bridge and nylon-saddle ABR accentuates the archtop-like qualities of the build without compromising sustain and reponse.

It's quite clean, and shows only minor signs of use from prior ownership. Frets are in great shape and the setup is spot-on.