Bob Dylan acoustic strings and gauge?

Advanced Notice: This coming August,  I will be teaching fingerstyle arrangements of Bob Dylan songs at my Fur Peace Ranch workshop. I'll work with some of the songs from my current DVD, but I'll have some different songs as well. My aim is to use these great songs as a tool for improving your overall guitar skills. (I'm hoping to record a "Volume 2" DVD in the coming year as well.)

If you're interested, I'd suggest signing up soon as this session will probably sell out. 

http://furpeaceranch.com/workshops.html

I'm with you - I've never heard a more beautiful sounding guitar.  A HUGE part of that sound is because he was playing a '40s J-50 that was (besides being completely hand built out of better raw materials than are used today) already nearly 20 years old when he recorded those first couple of records.  It was very much played.

I do own a modern J-45 which gets me as close as I can afford guitar-wise.  You're right in assuming the strings play a role in that sound.  What gets it even closer is using medium gauge round core strings.  I've experimented with 12 gauge lights and they just don't have the same sound as the 13s.  And the round cores absolutely make a difference.  Modern hexagonal core strings just don't have the same attack or balance.  I understand that companies moved to hex cores because they were faster, therefore cheaper, to wind but as you'll know, cheaper usually isn't better for anyone but the manufacturer.  

The good news is that there are companies still making them.  Pyramid, DR and DeanMarkley.  My money's on the DeanMarkley Formula 82/R.  Not overly expensive and they last quite a while.  I didn't care for theDRs and have never tried the Pyramids.

If you're talking about the recordings, that's an entirely different story.  Columbia studios had an incredible recording room not to mention a hand built valve console and the bestmics bar none (Neumannkm56 is what Dylan is photographed using the most on guitar).

He did play a Martin D-18 on those first couple of records too.  Which songs he was playing with which guitar, I don't know.  Of course, the largest part of the sound has to do with being BobDylan.  Give that guitar to anyone else and it wouldn't sound the same.  Have at it!   

Frank, there are websites that track the sort of things you ask about.  One of the internet's first sites, in fact, has links to Dylan's guitar uses, songs, lyrics, tablature, etc...In fact, it is where I first learned of Homespun!

www.expectingrain.com   

do you have the "Songs of Bob Dylan" from Homespun?  It remains my favorite. 

In retrospect, I wasn't paying as much attention as I should have about these things when I was spending time with Bob. I do remember him playing both Gibsons and Martins, but the string brands and gauges got past me. Hopefully, someone else will have more knowledge about these things than I do.

I'm trying to replicate the kind of guitar setup that Bob Dylan might have used on the early albums (Bob Dylan, Freewheelin etc). I have a Gibson AJ which will have to do, but which strings (or at least gauge and general setup)? 

I posted this on acousticguitarforum which yielded some fun answers ("back then we didn't have gauges, it was just strings") but over at Stefan Grossmans forum I got a much more productive discussion. Someone suggested that Happy might know a thing or two about this. So... any idea?