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2001 DeCava Mark Elf Model
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SN#: 1067, dated 2/22/01, hand signed by the maker
Nut Width: 1 3/4" Scale Length: 25.5" Body size: 17" Body depth: 3"
Finish: Vintage amber blonde finish, nitrocellulose type
Materials: Solid bookmatched handcarved spruce top; solid tiger flame maple body; one-piece tiger flame maple neck; solid ebony fingerboard; multi-ply binding; polished bone nut
Hardware: All original hardware includes contoured grained ebony tailpiece, compensated adjustable ebony bridge, Gold Grover Imperial tuners, Kent Armstrong floating PAF humbucking pickup, volume and tone controls with full size 1/4" jack under pickguard.
Notes: Performer, clinician and recording artist Mark Elf has played alongside jazz greats Dizzy Gillespie, Clark Terry, Jimmy Heath, Wynton Marsalis, Jon Hendricks and many more. Connecticut luthier James DeCava has been building presentation quality stringed instruments since the 1970's. Together, they created the DeCava Mark Elf Model, a fully contemporary performer's instrument with the voice of an old-school acoustic boomer. Handcrafted of smartly bookmatched tiger flame maple, the mark Elf has a full-depth 17" X-braced Venetian cutaway body that's exceptionally lightweight, a mere 5lb. 13 oz. fully loaded. DeCava's careful graduation of the soundboard and braces has given this guitar an unusually vibrant acoustic voice, with volume, sustain and natural reverb more comparable to a fine older noncutaway than a typical modern jazz box.
Body and neck are hand carved of AAA tiger flame maple, and the Kent Armstrong PAF humbucking pickup provides warm, accurate amplification and superior feedback resistance. Designer touches include all handmade ebony hardware, grained ivoroid body binding and art-deco Grover Imperial tuners. This example is in fine shape, 100% original, without cracks, checking, pick, buckle, thumb or fingerboard wear. Apart from a single finish ding in the lower treble bout, the instrument has otherwise been expertly maintained. The 1 3/4" neck offers easy fingering, with a slim, gently curved D profile neck. With a new cost of $8700, and a considerable build time, the DeCava Mark Elf is rarely seen on the vintage market. This open throated beauty combines modern cutaway playability with the projection of the classic noncuts, at a price for the serious player.
Case: Original black plushlined hardshell case.
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