Home / Instruments /Accessories / Ordering / Tips / Friends
archtop.com
2014 Roger Borys B-120
Price and Status: For pricing and hold status of this instrument, please check here. If this instrument does not appear on the Instruments page it has been sold. To be notified of examples of this or any other model in the future, please email your specific requests to [email protected].
Serial #: 222-394-2014, signed by the maker
Finish: Sunburst, nitrocellulose type
Body size at lower bout: 16" Scale length: 24 3/4" Nut width: 1 3/4" Body depth: 2 1/2"
Materials: Arched tiger flame maple laminate-plate body; one-piece solid maple neck with adjustable truss rod; curly maple body binding, polished bone nut; solid pearl fingerboard and peghead inlay.
Hardware: Solid ebony hardware includes fingerboard, pickguard, compensated adjustable bridge, volume and tone knobs; gold cast tailpiece; gold Grover Rotomatic tuners.
Notes: New Jersey based luthier Roger Borys is a legend among contemporary archtop builders, with celebrity players including Jim Hall, Joe Pass, Emily Remler, Jimmy Wyble and many more. Borys worked closely with D'Aquisto for a number of years, and when Jimmy needed soundboard plates for his Jim Hall guitar, he turned to Roger. The soundboards Borys delivered were cold molded from sheets of feather light veneer. Stiff, lightweight, and tonally sensitive, they possessed a notably bright tap tone and high feedback resistance. These original D'Aquisto electrics became highly prized by working players for their versatility and durability, and have become one of the most popular of modern guitar designs, as produced by makers as diverse as Sadowsky, Buscarino, Moll, Unger and other top builders.
The body of the Borys B-120 is constructed of these highly figured tiger maple plates, mated with a solid curly maple neck with solid ebony fingerboard and hardware. An Armstrong Adjustable PAF provides seamless depth and tonal range, and the gentle D neck profile is elegantly tapered to the hand. The overall fit and finish of the instrument is superb, with a lustrous golden sunburst, with a handsome rosewood facing in the back of the peghead.
At just 6lb 2oz the guitar is nicely lightweight and well balanced, and is in fine condition, with all original hardware and finish, and no cracks, pick, buckle, thumb or fingerboard wear. The guitar has smooth low action over a comfy gentle D neck profile, and a fine warm voice with excellent detail. Roger builds his creations one at a time, and it can take years to take delivery of one of his instruments. The instrument is supplied with its original ebony pickguard, as well as a solid maple damper block. Designed to reduce feedback and increase sustain, the damper can be placed beneath the soundboard via the access panel in the back.
For the serious player seeking an elegant, hard-working jazz box, our advice is: take a page from Jimmy himself, and go right to the source. One only: call now.
Setup: This instrument is strung with medium gauge flatwound nickel strings. The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according to preference. String action is set at 4/64" to 5/64" at the 12th fret, with moderate relief for acoustic playing with medium strings. The action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable bridge.
Case: Original deluxe black arched plush lined hardshell case.
