1965 Goya (Levin) T-16 000-Size Guitar

My friend Michael has been asking me -- for a while - about what sort of 000 instruments I have up here that he might be into. He's tried all sorts of 000s and tends to enjoy the offbeat varieties. He's gone through H1203 Harmony Sovereigns, Regals, Kays, Japanese imports from the '70s and '80s, and Martins, too. I'm not sure exactly what it is he's going for, but I think this Swedish, Levin-made Goya he scrounged-up is pretty close to it.

The T-16 models are sometimes ladder-braced but this one is x-braced and features a quick, easy-handling neck and a short, Gibson-like scale length. It has a woody, clean, punchy tone that works equally well with a pick or with the fingers. I finished this yesterday and another friend of mine (also a Mike, by chance) gave it a test-drive in open D and standard and I've gotta say that this guitar sounds a lot better out front than it does from "the driver's seat." When you're playing it the perception is that it's a little thin but as soon as you're in a reflective room you can hear that it's got some nice guts in the lower-mids.

Repairs included: cleats for hairline cracks on the back, a fret level/dress, recut of the saddle slot, new bone saddle (comp'd), tightening of the neck bolts (yes, these have a bolted neck), cleaning, and setup.

Top wood: solid spruce

Back & sides wood: solid mahogany

Bracing type: x

Bridge: rosewood (replacement)

Fretboard: rosewood

Neck wood: mahogany

Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
String gauges: 54w-12 lights

Neck shape: medium C

Board radius: ~14"

Truss rod: adjustable

Neck relief: straight

Fret style: medium

Scale length: 24 3/4"

Nut width: 1 5/8"

Body width: 14 7/8"

Body depth: 3 3/4"

Weight: 3 lbs 15 oz

Condition notes: aside from some repaired hairline cracks on the back and a newer, replacement bridge, it's in fairly good order. The finish has weather-check throughout but has aged into a pretty, buttery-yellow on the top. There are small scratches and dings here and there but the worst (visual) damage is at the rear of the bridge, where the top is a little chewed-up from the gluing footprint of the original bridge. The replacement bridge was glued-down decently by whoever put it on, though, so it's just a visual flaw.