1985 Juan Orozco "Artesano" Flamenco-style Classical Guitar

The label reads as "Artesano" but made by a Juan Orozco in Valencia, Spain. It has a Matt Umanov shop label on the back of the headstock and was previously owned by the father of the consignor. I don't see a lot of flamenco-style guitars up here so it was interesting to have this walk in the door. It's solid spruce over solid cypress in the body and very lightly ladder-braced. Clearly, it's well-made. The body and top are cut super-thin and it's very lightweight.

The owner put some wear and tear into it and it has three repaired hairline cracks (one on the back -- smaller -- and two on the center seam on the top) which are clearly visible. It's had pickguards installed and has geared banjo tuners at the headstock in lieu of original (frustrating) friction pegs.

I went over it and now it's playing spot-on. The sound is full, balanced, clean, and loud. It pops right out and I love the way you can lean-into classicals with maple or cypress (as in this case) back and sides and not have them get too woofy or indistinct. The neck is also fast and easy to navigate despite its 2 1/8" nut width. It's thinner front-to-back in the first 5-7 frets than your average classical and handles more like an old '60s Levin/Goya classical because of that.

Repairs included: fret level dress, setup, cleaning

Made by: Juan Orozco

Made in: Valencia, Spain

Top wood: solid spruce

Back & sides wood: solid cypress

Bracing type: fan (very light)

Bridge: rosewood

Fretboard: ebony

Neck wood: Spanish cedar or similar

Tone: clean, bright, loud, direct, sweet

Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” overall (spot-on)
String gauges: medium bronze-wrapped basses, plain nylon trebles

Neck shape: medium C/D, thinner front/back near 1st position

Board radius: flat

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: medium

Scale length: 26"

Nut width: 2 1/8"

Body length: 19 3/8"

Body width: 14 1/2"

Body depth: 3 5/8"

Weight: 3 lb 6 oz

Condition notes: it has some discolored finish on the sides from some vinyl "grabber" strips that had been taped to it -- not obvious but I did photo it. There are also the repaired cracks mentioned above -- two along the center-seam on the top (all kept in order by bracing anyhow) and one smaller hairline on the back. Those are discolored from grime and sealer, unfortunately, but are good to go. Pickguards were added at some point and the tuners are non-original and recessed into the back of the extra-thick headstock.

It comes with: an era-correct, nice TKL hard case.