Originally from Stratford, Connecticut, luthier Jim DeCava is still based in Southwestern Connecticut, and the Stratford is a traditional archtop guitar that pays homagee to DeCava's home town. Completed in 2008, this Stratford Special measures 16-1/2 inches across the lower bout, and it features a carved Spruce top with gorgeous Curly Maple back and sides. Under the hood, it has a parallel braces for a traditional archtop voicing.
This 2008 Stratford Special sports a nice amber sunburst with hardwood Walnut binding. The tailpiece is elaborate and hand-carved from Walnut, which matches the Walnut pickguard and Walnut peghead overlay. While the finish around the body is neat and consistent, there are finish blemishes across the front and back of headstock, especially around the inlays.
This 2008 Stratford Special measures 25-1/2 inches, and the nut width is 1-3/4 inches. At the bridge, the string spacing is 2-3/16 inches. While the bridge may look like it's at a funny angle in the photos, that's actually where it needs to be for proper intonation. The ebony fingerboard is understated with a classy inlay at the 12th fret, and there is matching wood binding and purfling with side markers to guide the way along the fingerboard. The neck profile is slim and rounded, and the depth stays consistent up to the heel. Because of that, it's easy to stretch out and move laterally up and down the neck.
Although it is already 16 years old, this 2008 DeCava Stratford Special is in excellent cosmetic condition. Over the years, the neck became back-bowed, and the truss rod was able to effectively add relief. Fortunately, Durango-based luthier Dave Farmer of Turtle Lake Instruments was able to get it right. He replaned the fingerboard so that there is no longer a high spot/bow around the 7th-8th fret, and then he re-fretted it with Medium Jumbo fretwire. He also reinforced the bridge to optimize the tone as well as make room for future action adjustments down the road. As a result, it plays nicely with low action, and all the strings ring out clear and true with no buzzing.
This 2008 DeCava Stratford Special includes its original hardshell case.