Where it all started…
These guitars have all seen a bunch of use and abuse and hardware has been robbed to feed other builds. They now hang on the wall in the shop as decoration and as a reminder that each build offers an opportunity to improve.
First up, the grey guitar, the very first build. This is actually a 34” scale Kiesel unfinished 5-string bass neck that had roughly the same nut/24th fret dimensions as a typical 8-string guitar. The neck woods are walnut and purpleheart, the body wings are swamp ash. I had absolutely no idea what to do with the neck heel…so yeah, the heel you see is definitely a thing. This had a Bareknuckle Black Dog humbucker with a Hipshot high mass Ibby bridge and Hipshot locking open gear tuners.
Next was the figured walnut guitar. I wanted to play around with a bolt-on and used a Warmoth Gecko 5-string bass neck for this build. The neck pocket is a MESS and I tried using threaded inserts in the neck for attachment (it didn’t go well). Bridge placement was a little off and I was never able to properly intonate. Body wood is black limba with a figured walnut top. Neck is wenge with padauk accents. This guitar had a Hannes Schaller bridge, Hipshot locking open gear tuners, and a Lace X-Bar and Deathbar humbucker set with a “single coil” in the middle position. Rotary 5 way switch, coil tap via mini switches, and a single volume and tone.
Third up is the flamed European ash guitar. This is the first build from scratch, making my own neck with zero experience. The body ended up too thin for my taste and the lower horn is a thigh-killer in the seated position. The neck is surprisingly comfortable despite atrocious fretwork. Originally there were a set of Fishman Fluence modern humbuckers, which were changed for a set of Instrumental SFTY3/Decomp humbuckers…which were then changed again for a set of Instrumental P90s. This guitar has seen the most use and was used exclusively to track the majority of guitars for my band DUST’s debut release (thanks to the tens of you who have heard it). Body is black limba with wenge accents and a flamed European ash top. Neck is Macassar ebony with purpleheart and ovangkol accents.
Finally, the birdseye purpleheart guitar. This was the first finished guitar to feature my current neck construction process and open headstock. I had not yet added the volute to the headstock and was still accessing the truss rod via a removable cover (not at the end of the fretboard like current builds). My biggest issue was the purpleheart on the body, which was questionable when I was building. I mistakenly pushed forward anyway which resulted in some splitting/cracking (sap veins). This guitar had a Hannes Schaller bridge, Hipshot locking open gear tuners, and a single Instrumental P90 in the bridge. Body is a swamp ash/wenge/purplheart laminate with a birdseye purpleheart top and back. Neck is bubinga with wenge, purpleheart, and swamp ash accents and birdseye purpleheart exterior.
