and a tip of the hat to the D'Addario folks for re-stringing my mandolin for free! I told them I switched to their guitar strings when they quit making Nashville Straights, it's true. That had to have been 30 years ago.
I also got a free set of phosphor bronze mediums for my guitar at the LaBella booth, I will try these at some point in the future as well.
I lusted after many guitars there, including a sweet Martin D-41 and a D-42 they had on display. Interestingly, no D-45 there. Of course, I think those go for about $10K now.
There was a like brand new old (95?) Rickenbacher Fireglo 6-string with OSC and all original case candy in the swap meet tent for $1,600.00, that was real tempting but I
resisted.
I also had to resist buying the vintage '69 Kustom 500 head and tall cabinet, black padded, $600.00. Wouldn't have fit in the car, LOL. If it were blue I might have strapped the cab to the top of the car, LOL.
What a huge place! And they have another even bigger warehouse under construction on-site right now. They're hiring like crazy, and what's not to like about more jobs?
And kudos to Sweetwater for providing multiple stations with free bottled water on ice. And nice, inexpensive lunches, 6-8 bucks.
I think I shall go back next year.