1960s Favilla F-12H Bajo Cuarto/8-String Acoustic Bass Guitar Conversion

The last time I saw this beast was in 2014 after I had salvaged it from its 12-string fate and turned it into a mandocello. It then went out into the world for a decade. It's now back and since it's come back I've solved some setup issues and converted it into an 8-string bass guitar -- sort of like a bajo sexto but with only the low EADG strings in use and all in octaves. I was going to call it a bajo cuarto but it looks like that name has been taken for a variant of a bajo quinto without the low A course. Oh well!

This time around I also replaced the original pickguard (which was curling-up like crazy) with a new one (same shape), knocked the neck angle a little farther back, and did a little bit of cleanup and adjustment to the fretboard extension. The last bit of icing on the cake is that I installed a K&K acoustic pickup under the hood so it's ready to plug-in and go!

It's a fun instrument and especially useful if you're into norteno and border music sounds. It will fit into any genre you can think of if you play it in different styles but I think this guy is especially useful for "boom-chuck, boom-chuck" traditional music backup. I think they're best used with a flatpick but if you up-pick with your bare fingers and you're plugged in, you can get a pretty warm, full, acoustic bass guitar sort-of voice from it.

Repairs included: a fret level/dress, new fully-compensated saddle, new pickguard, and various adjustments. Previously, it had a neck reset/bolt-on neck conversion done before my time and then I shored that up and made it stable back in 2014. I nudged the angle just a little farther back again this time. The tailpiece and adjustable bridge setup are not original and neither are the mandolin-style tuners.

• Weight: 5 lbs 8 oz
• Scale length: 25 1/4"
• Nut width: 2 1/16"
• Neck shape: medium D
• Board radius: flat
• Body width: 15 3/4"
• Body depth: 4 1/8"
• Top wood: ply spruce
• Back & sides wood: ply mahogany
• Bracing type: ladder
• Bridge: rosewood
• Fretboard: rosewood
• Neck wood: mahogany
• Action height at 12th fret: 3/32” bass 1/16” treble (fast, spot-on)
• String gauges: 54w/100w, 42w/80w, 32w/65w, 24w/45w
• Truss rod: adjustable
• Neck relief: straight
• Fret style: medium

Condition notes: it's obviously fairly funky throughout. There's some finish disturbance around the heel area from when someone worked on this before I did. There's a repaired hairline crack in the headstock but it's all good to go. There's lots of wear and tear to the finish and plenty of finish weather-check and crackling. There's a little grossness around the fretboard extension/top of the guitar seam. The pickguard is replaced. The pinholes in the bridge have been filled and the bridge modified. It has an adjustable-style bridge/saddle fit. The tailpiece ('30s) is unoriginal. The tuners are a little stiff but serve.

It comes with: sorry, no case.

Consignor tag: RC