The Ultra-Light, with Natural Satin Finish, comes with a nicely padded, form-fitting gig-b
If you’re a guitar player or want to become a traveling moto-minstrel it’s not always easy to pack most guitars on a motorcycle. Most are too big, bulky, or fragile to bring on the road. Airplanes also pose a problem, and I’d rather not have my vintage axe in the freezing underbelly of a plane or worse yet have it gorilla-handled by baggage handlers.
There are a few travel guitar options, and I actually own two other brands of these instruments. One is a bit delicate and too large to easily bring on a bike and the other doesn’t really play well, and again, it’s too big for my liking.
T-Money (T$) jamming in the Virgin River Gorge, in Arizona, close to the Utah and Nevada b
I saw Joel Felty of Moto-Camp playing a sweet little axe on a plane, and when we landed I got the 4-1-1 on the instrument. It was a Traveler Ultra-Light that can be plugged into any amp or even use headphones, as Joel did on the plane.
The Traveler is no amateur instrument, it plays and feels like a larger, quality-made instrument. In fact when it arrived from UPS, I opened the box and the guitar was in tune. I strapped it to a motorcycle for 1,500 miles in the heat and subfreezing temps, and the guitar stayed in tune. There is no locking nut so that is just unbelievable; if you already play you know how important and surprising this is.
Everyone loves to jam on the Ultra-Light even when at home entertaining. Chicks love music
OK—some nitty-gritty on the Ultra-Light. Although it’s compact, it features a full-scale fretboard (24¾-inch scale length), and although it sounds better amplified through the built-in Shadow acoustic piezo pickup, it can be used as an acoustic (other models and styles are available as well). The guitar weighs less than 3 pounds and is only 28 inches long. Check out Moto-Camp for the Ultra-Light. They have the best prices on the internet (MSRP: $428.99, $284.95 at moto-camp.net), and Joel is a real player and biker.
The inside of the hardshell case is plush and perfectly fits the Ultra-Light guitar. There’s a large storage compartment as well as a keyed lock and gold hardware and hinges. It’s made from top-notch five-ply wood construction with protective deluxe end caps and a Traveler Guitar logo plate.
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The Ultra-Light uses standard guitar strings, with the ball-end at the top of the neck ins
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An optional Tweed hardshell case (shown; a little more than 100 bucks) or Black Tolex is a
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The Fender Mini-Deluxe amp ($35.95) uses a 9-volt battery or an optional cig lighter power