Journey Instruments PJ410NE Puddle Jumper Travel Guitar – Solid Sitka Spruce, African Mahogany, Removable Neck, 23 Inch Scale, Includes Premium EP001K Passive Pickup with German Piezo Elements

I love this little guitar. It looks and feels like a well made instrument. Is competitively priced. It has a good tone and is very LOUD. (Compares well to my 00028 Martin or Gibson acoustic). Action is a little high but adjustable, and otherwise very playable. The bag does (just) fit under the seat in front so this works as hand luggage on BA. Most importantly it stays in tune once constructed and is easy to assemble and dis-assemble. Just a super bit of kit for a travelling guitarist. Mine has just accompanied me to Greece and will be heading to the US shortly.

The concept of this guitar is fantastic, and enough to sell me on it. As an instrument, I was expecting it to be competent, based on youtube reviews, but not more than that. However, this thing has tone for days. It sustains better than my full size gigging acoustic which cost double, and the harmonics ring out like a bell. This is a flat out good guitar, and the beautifully designed neck join and carry case make it an exceptional travel guitar.

I wanted an acoustic guitar to give me something I can take with me on an aircraft that came vaguely close to what I have at home. I’ve played nothing else since it arrived weeks ago and I’m not due to go on holiday until next week 😂. Always a big decision to spend this kind of money on a guitar but it is perfect for me, at very least as playable as any guitar that I own, a few minutes to attach the neck to the guitar and will fit nicely in my case leaving loads of room for less essential stuff like clothes and toiletries 🤣

Ok I am a beginner plus 3 years when it comes to playing the guitar. I have about 10 acoustic and electro acoustic guitars in my collection. I wanted a guitar that I could take away on holiday with me. Being 73 years old sitting under a tree on holiday with my guitar is my idea of relaxation. I’d looked around at various options and found this guitar The Journey Instruments Solid Sitka Travel Guitar PJ410N Traveler Acoustic Guitar. The reviews looked good and what sold it to me was the fact the arm detaches and it can then be stored in a travel bag which fits the dimensions of most airlines for being cabin baggage size. The guitar arrived and in the box it was inside its travel bag. That alone was surprisingly good quality with pockets for various bits and pieces like capos, picks, etc. There’s a larger pocket that contained instructions and a spare set of Elixir Phosphor bronze strings. This pocket would be fine for carrying a laptop or tablet and also passports and papers etc. Some of the bags the supply also has wheels and an extendable handle. My bag didn’t have wheels just a carry handle and straps on the back to carry it as a back pack. The guitar was in the bag and the arm sitting in a long nearby pocket. A fold over part of the bag protects the guitar from string scratches. The guitar had a set of Elixir Phosphor bronze coated strings 13 gauge in place. First impression was the guitar looked well made and with nice rounded edges. I did note the arm needed a better finish, maybe a better coat of stain or polish and one or two of the frets had slightly sharp edges. Ok not the end of the world but should be better on a £400 guitar. But its Chinese made. The quick instructions are easy to follow. Put the arm into the slot on the guitar box and then pull the arm upwards until the locking mechanism locks in place then using the large screw in the back of the sound box, screw this until tight. Easy. Its been said by many that its amazing how much in tune the guitar remains when taking off and putting the arm back on and this is true but it does need a retune each time. The action on the guitar at the 12th fret was quite high for me but they do supply in the tool kit a second saddle to lower the action height and this worked for me. If you wanted it even lower then it is not a difficult job to buy another bone compensated saddle and file it down maybe a mm further. But with the second saddle I found my action height at about 2.5-3 mm. The guitar has a quite amazing sound from such a small sound box. It played surprising well it has 17 frets (icl the nut) in a 15 inch long arm. It takes s a bit of getting used to and if like me you have fat fingers it can be a learning curve. I have played it with strumming fingers and a pick and finger picking notes and it does sound good. Being a small acoustic guitar it does take some getting used to. I’m used to full size guitars so this is new to me. The instructions, the reviews say you can just put the arm on and off at will retaining its tune. Partly true. But my recommendation is to slacken off the strings when you want to take the arm off or put it back on. This reduces the chance of a string snapping and it means far less strain is placed on the locking mechanism. When putting the arm back on this is important as it means you get the arm correctly into position and it makes tightening the locking screw far easier. In addition to remove the arm you undo the locking screw un til completely undone and then press a small button to release the arm from its catch. Again this processis made far easier if the strings are loose first. If there is a weak point for future damage its in the locking mechanism so I strongly recommend slackening the satrings before taking apart and before putting together again. I really think the manufacturers/retailers should advise customers to do this. After all any guitarist worth their salt is going to tune or retune their guitar before playing it. The instrument is supplied with 13 gauge strings. I did contact Journey UK Ltd to ask if other lower gauge strings can be used and the reply I received was yes but they recommend 13 gauge to avoid breaking a string. Well this is not going to be a problem if you do as I suggest and slack the strings before replacing or removing the arm. I prefer 11 gauge strings and may change to this next time. Strings are held in place near the nut with a small plastic retainer and strings thread through it. I have yet to go on holiday with it. Maybe August and It’ll be interesting to see if I get it on ok as cabin baggage. I’ve measured it and it seems ok. So in summary its great travel guitar that folds into a travel bag. Easily and quickly reassembled. It sounds good. Powerful for its size with good clear crisp tomes that ring out. Plays well with a capo though I found it worked better one fret less than on my full size acoustics if the song required a capo on a particular fret. Whilst it’s good travel bag I’d also add some bubble wrap inside for added protection.

I originally had a problem with the strings being high. I emailed Journey guitars who promptly sent me troubleshooting videos I was a little worried so went to my luthier He explained i had not tightened the large dial enough. He said it was the best travel guitar he had seen and would recommend it to customers and said it had a great sound

Once you get the knack of taking it apart etc it’s a great wee guitar. I’m taking mine on holiday and I cannot wait! The aftersales service is amazing also. Have no doubts about purchasing this travel guitar it’s great.

Nice bright guitar. Amazing sound for the size. Support very helpful - I will use this company again.

Needed a travel guitar. Thought it would be crap, but I was wrong. It’s brilliant. Comes with spare strings, pegs, and a lower bridge. The only naff thing is that it comes with a pick up which you have to fit yourself. You have to drill holes in the body and faff around with glue etc. No instructions included, you have to search on YouTube for instructions. Minus one star for that.

Sounds great and it’s ultra portable! Can’t wait until the next trip to bring it along!

Wow! Thoroughly impressed! Beautiful little guitar with a good sound and with an electric pick as well. It was easy to re-attach the neck. Nice action, good sound. Not like my Martin D28, but heck way better than My Martin Travel Guitar in sound and projection. Almost in perfect tune right out of the box with minor tweaks on the low E and A otherwise in tune , amazing. Well done! Really happy. I will be taking it overseas soon and it can be a carry on. Whoo Hoo!

We tested out small travel guitars by Martin and Gibson in a range of high end wood types, and nothing came close to the tone and playability for such a compact size. Assembled, this is larger than the smallest size travel guitar, thus generating higher quality sound, but folded it is even more compact, making it perfect for air travel overhead bins, camping trips and space limited road trips. We were skeptical that the carbon fiber would sound as warm as our favorite full size Martins, but this came close, just at a quieter volume. It definitely sounded less banjo-ish than the 000 or taylor baby. Add in a tiny pocket amp like the Blackstar Fly, and you get the bonus of both electric and acoustic options while on the road! Absolutely perfect for a travel.

The design is great, guitar folds quick, it looks great, the back pack is very practical, however the guitar itself was not tuning properly on the third fret, and 12th. It is practically unless. The action is very high and it is difficult to press the strings in higher frets, anything above 7th. However on a closer look in to the manual video the problem was solve. The nob at the back of the guitar had to be screwed very hard. The guitar has very nice reverb / overtone and is an excellent instrument for the price.

I travel a lot, but I found it difficult to travel with a guitar. I love playing guitar, but the biggest issue was taking one of my prized guitars with me. I found one guitar that came with an indestructible guitar case by off chance I would have to check it in. Most if the time, I could put it in the overhead or there was a coat compartment that I could tuck it in. Some airlines are better at accommodating musicians with an instrument. It worked for a while, but I was finding the guitar with case were too heavy. I found Journey instruments. I had never heard of them before. I took a chance. My back was killing me too. I was desperate so I bought the acoustic version. It fit my budget. I started traveling with this guitar. It is light to carry as a back pack. I don’t have a problem putting it in the overhead or under the seat. It’s great! As far as playability, It is a fine instrument. I wasn’t expecting a great sound, but to my surprise, the acoustic sound is incredible. The construction and finish is nice and it seems to hold up very well with the bumping and jostling of travel. It still looks great after a year of travel. What I particularly like are the locking tuning keys. I didn’t expect with this guitar. Overall, I’m pleased with my purchase.