This month's review is of the recently improved Jetslide. My good friend Gary Romero, creator of the Jetslide, was kind enough to send me two of the improved Jetslides recently, one in traditional brass and the other in stainless steel. It was a good thing he did too, cause the one I had was one of his previous designs and it wasn't the right size for me either.

First Thought
As I anxiously opened the package that Gary sent me the first thing that I noticed was the drastically larger slide bar on both slides. They also had a very glossy buffed out finish, which was a nice esthetic change from the original. The overall design was consistent with the original, which I liked since I was already fairly familiar with how it worked. I guess the old saying is true "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" Well, there was no fixing involved in the change made to the Jetslide, just an improvement or two.

Features
Instead of the traditional "sleeve style" slides that most people are familiar with, this product has a very original design. The Jetslide fits onto your finger like a ring with the bent portion of the slide bar resting on the flesh between the two adjoining fingers. That is extremely useful since it prevents the slide from rotating to far towards the underside of your finger. On top of the slide bar is the jet like portion of the slide with one "wing" pointer to the left. This is also how the adjustable ring is attached. It is designed to be worn on the ring finger although it can be worn on any finger you like. For instance, I am used to playing slide with my middle finger, so that is where I wear mine. The way that it works is while you're wearing it, you can play normal chords and when you want to play slide, just rest your adjoining finger on the finger tab (the thing that looks like a wing) and apply pressure as you normally would when playing slide. So, now I get to see how the change in diameter makes a difference.

Testin' the Water
Being the acoustic junkie that I am, the only instrument that I had in the office at the time was my custom Takamine 6-string. I quickly tuned Sadie (yes, I name my guitars) to open-D and put on the brass slide. You know, you never realize how much size matters until you get the right size, then everything else just seems wrong! Between having the right ring size and the thicker slide bar, the Jetslide felt and sounded great! I played that brass slide for about half an hour switching between traditional 12 bar and some down home Delta Blues before I realized that I had another slide sitting there waiting its turn. Ok, sounds cool on acoustic guitar, but can they scream? Oh yeah! After getting home, I plugged in my no-name Les Paul knock-off. I don¹t know why, but this guitar just feels great for playing slide, so that¹s what I use her for. I run her through my vintage Music Man RP112 that I plug into a vintage Fender 4x12 cabinet and crank the gain baby! All right, the brass was cool; lets see what the stainless steel can do. I didn¹t play more than two bars before I realized this was a whole different ballgame. The stainless steel created some really piercing lead tones along with some very cool undertones while playing rhythm. I continued to switch back and forth between the brass and the stainless steel for the next three to four hours before I was reminded by my neighbors that it was approaching midnight, and fast.

Overall
Whether you prefer the classic tone of the brass or the sharp gritty tone of the stainless steel, the Jetslide is the most versatile slide for switch playing that I've ever used. It is easy to learn and once you've played it for a few minutes, you¹ll be switching between chords and leads like never before. Gary has made a smart move by switching from a 1/4" diameter to a 5/16" diameter slide bar and each Jetslide is still handmade with excellent quality, evident by a lifetime warranty. Best of all, at just $30 each or $50 for both, these things are worth the money.

Information
Jet Slide
PO Box 968
Antonito, CO 81120
888-244-0252
www.jetslide.com