A lot of people like to travel with their friends, bringing all they can think of to make the trip even livelier, especially ones that help with the music and dance.
Bringing your own instruments to a trip with your friends increases your chances to bond with each other better, especially when you can sing and dance along to the music you play.
However, instruments can be quite bulky and take up too much of the storage space when travelling, be it in cars, boats, or airplanes, which is why a lot of people would rather leave their instruments behind for the sake of bringing much more important things.
With today’s technology and innovation, it’s not hard to come across portable music players, like speakers and other devices, and quite surprisingly, instruments!
Sure, instruments like guitars have already been portable from the start, but as mentioned, they can be quite too bulky and a hassle to bring along during road trips or plane rides.
If you think that all guitars share the same problem, then you clearly haven’t heard of the Puddle Jumper by Journey Instruments, a collapsible guitar that works just as well as any other guitar!
In this article, we will be listing down some of the features and pros and cons of the Puddle Jumper to give you a better understanding of the product!
Contents
Pros
Detachable Neck
The best and number one pro about the Puddle Jumper is Journey Instruments’ patented detachable neck, as you can easily remove the neck of the guitar to be able to keep it in its bag, much like the folding bike trend.
This way, if you’re looking for a guitar that you can easily bring with you on trips, the Puddle Jumper works out well because its detachable neck reduces it in size so it’s not too hassling or bulky to carry.
Great Travel Bag
At first glance, you can easily tell that the travel bag is made for more than just the guitar itself, as it has outer pockets for storing your guitar accessories, so you can play well and with comfort at any time.
The interior design of the bag supports the fragility of the guitar when it’s detached, as the body itself has a designated spot to fit in, the neck has a pocket in the lid you can store it in, and the strings have a flap you can place to keep all of them protected and safe.
Easily Portable
With the detachable neck and the travel bag, Journey Instruments could not make it easier to travel with their Puddle Jumper, as they did all that they could to help alleviate all your travel concerns when bringing a guitar.
Furthermore, you can play with both comfort and ease as you can bring most – if not all – of your accessories safely in the bag, making the trip even more enjoyable for you and your friends!
Amazing Woodwork
Journey Instruments could not easily come up with an idea to help minimize guitar space without having to consider a multitude of factors, one of them including the woodwork of the Puddle Jumper.
This “folding” guitar (if I may call it) is made of solid Sitka and strong African mahogany, one of the finest and most durable wooden materials that any guitar can be made in, ensuring that as you bring the guitar with you, there is less to worry about it cracking and breaking apart easily.
Cons
String Tension
The string faces much more tension and stress when detaching the neck of the guitar, making it prone to breaking much more easily as compared to other acoustic guitars, especially when you overlook the proper storage of the Puddle Jumper.
It is wise to always have some tools and spare strings ready – which could very easily fit in the travel bag – just in case the strings break as you try to reattach the neck.
Requires Tuning with Every Disassembly
As mentioned earlier, the strings of the guitar face much more altering tension when attaching and detaching the neck of the Puddle Jumper, which is why you’d find that most of the time you successfully reattach the neck, the strings become out of tune.
This shouldn’t be that much of a problem, as many tuning devices, even your mobile phones(I’m using GuitarTuna, which is really handy btw), can easily help you tune your guitar in a couple of minutes.
Assembling can be Challenging
Facing new things is always an adventure, which is why it can be quite challenging when you’d want to try out the detachable neck of the Puddle Jumper, especially when you’re too scared to make any grave mistakes lest you’d end up ruining it before even getting to use it.
Before you do actually try to disassemble the Puddle Jumper, make sure you’ve read the manual to know how to assemble and disassemble it the proper way.
Features
Detachable Neck
The neck of the Puddle Jumper comes with a screw-on mechanism that allows you to attach and remove it from the body anytime, making it much easier to carry and travel within its bag.
Travel Bag
The Puddle Jumper comes with a case that has different compartments for when you want to store the guitar in it as you travel, as well as separate compartments on the exterior to add storage for your accessories and tools.
Light-Gauge Strings
The guitar comes with a set of light-gauge strings to help you go, but like most other guitars, they can also be easily replaced with the right tools, just in case the light-gauged strings are not your style.
Woodwork
The guitar is made of solid Sitka spruce for the front and African mahogany for the sides and the back, making it one of the most durable guitars in the market, especially when it’s advised as portable.
The wood and design also allow the guitar to produce a rich sound while not compromising the portability of the Puddle Jumper.
Conclusion
The Puddle Jumper by Journey Instruments is a guitar made for those who like to travel without having their guitar take up most of their space.
It has great woodwork that supports both its detachable neck mechanism and rich sound, as the detachable neck is really just an additional feature to the naturally great guitars at Journey Instruments.
Check out the Puddle Jumper here.