My guitar collection - Acoustics
This is Collings’ smallest guitar, what they call their “¾-size OM”, with a lower bout width of 12½”, body length of 17⅛”, body depth of 315⁄16”, a scale length of 24⅛” with 14 frets to the body, and a total length of 36⅛”. The size of the ebony small-belly style bridge, which has a bone saddle, and the headstock, adorned with an ebony veneer, MOP logo, and Waverly nickel-plated tuning machines, have both been scaled to match the overall appearance. It has all the 1-style appointments in the form of tortoise binding with B/W/B/W purfling, tortoise pickguard, B/W rosette, walnut backstrip, Honduran mahogany neck with modified V profile, and a 14”-26” compound radius ebony fingerboard with MOP short dots. But it has some important customizations: a German (European) spruce top, Adirondack spruce pre-war scalloped X-bracing (no tongue brace), walnut back and sides, and a wider 1¾” bone nut. For more info on the standard Baby 1, visit:
Collings Baby 1 Walnut G
The story behind this guitar
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Although certainly not the first Collings acquired, the first guitar of this brand being covered on this site is this one, for the simple reason it is the smallest. Every subsequent guitar will be a little bigger. And another Baby but a Collings this time. When comparing to the Taylor Baby, the lower bout width is the same but overall this guitar is about an inch or 2 shorter in all other measurements. Still suitable as a travel guitar but much more high-end than the Taylor. So likely this will not become a globetrotter. The German spruce top sits nicely between an Adirondack and Sitka spruce top in terms of dynamic response and how hard it can be driven. Of course German spruce is the species found on all high-valued instruments in the violin family. The walnut back and sides provide a great compromise between the default mahogany found on a 1-style and Indian rosewood found on a 2-style. Whereas the former has a slightly “sad” looking EQ-curve, emphasizing the mid frequencies, and the latter a “happy” shape, i.e. more lows and highs, the EQ-curve for walnut is rather flat and extends over a wider frequency range compared to both. Not as warm but also not as booming and sparkling. A wonderful balance. With the more spacious string spacing at the saddle and the wider nut, my big hands have no problem finding their place. And it is easy to carry around the house, play on the couch, or even in bed. It was acquired from Rob Cavil on Reverb on August 6, 2025, the 80th anniversary of dropping the first A-bomb in anger on Hiroshima. That bomb was named ‘Little Boy’. To commemorate this event in a more peaceful way, I will call this guitar ‘Little Boy‘ from here on out too.
The story behind this guitar
September 21, 2018
28877
German spruce top, Adirondack spruce braces, Walnut back & sides, 1¾” nut
