Tacoma DM18 Reviews 5

I had been in the market for an American made acoustic. I looked at Taylors and Guilds. A friend(Taylor player)told me to check out the Tacoma line. I purchased this instrument from a dealer that was going out of business. I had played a couple of DM10's at another dealer and liked them, but could't afford them. This dealer told me he'd sell me the guitar for $550. I bought it!!!

First, the guitar has a different look to it. You can look at a Tacoma and recognize them instantly. The sound was bright and punchy, which I like. It has sustain for days. The tortise shell binding is really cool, as is the satin finish neck. The thin neck makes for easy playing.

I would like to see strap buttons on the necks of future guitars.

Well, when I bought it, it had been hanging in the guy's store for some time. Apparently it suffered some damage from hanging there for a while. I didn't know this when I bought it. The action was high and had been adjusted all it could be. I had noticed some bubbles in the finish along the binding. Ended up sending the guitar back to the factory in August. Got it back 12/19/03. New neck, new top, refinished, all under warranty. I think the turn-around time was fair due to the extensive work that had to be done. I don't blame the company for the defective unit, but the dealer for not taking care of it. It plays like a dream now, nary a blemish in the finish. Leith at Tacoma was a pleasure to deal with.

It's a quality product that the company stands behind. This instrument was built in 2000, bought in 2003. The company didn't give me the FIRST problem when I sent it back to them. From my experience, if you have a problem with one of these guitars, they'll fix it.

Stuart Talbot rated this unit 5 on 2003-12-21.

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