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#16
04-16-2024, 02:02 PM
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I enjoyed that, thanks  OP: With one notable exception, most custom guitars I've played have had some tonal aspect that is "better" than the factory counterpart. Whether that's sustain, volume, bass, accentuated mids, smooth trebles, etc. And in the "modern" style build you're gonna get boatloads of overtones IME. I see most customs as being specialized, because many are built for a particular client who have a specified sound in mind. However, I own both custom and factory guitars, and I get just as much enjoyment playing each. The customs are a bit easier to coax music out of though. I do think buying a custom guitar increases your odds dramatically in finding an excellent guitar. But, also, make no mistake about it, there are great factory guitars out there if you go on the hunt! Last edited by BlueBowman; 04-16-2024 at 02:08 PM. 
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#17
04-16-2024, 02:29 PM
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It's my view that the small shop builders custom build for their dealers. A high end dealer will call up Santa Cruz and order all kinds of custom features tailored to their clientele. So you get exotic woods matched with 400 year old reclaimed redwood tops they know they can sell for a large margin. I wonder how many entry level D PWs they make with no alterations. There are a lot of boxes to check that are no extra cost options. Mine was ordered with bear claw and herringbone and mahogany back and sides.
I guess every small shop has their own way of dealing. Comparable to Martin is not a concept these builders want to think about, for their existence depends on the perception of better.
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2007 Martin D 35 Custom 1970 Guild D 35 1965 Epiphone Texan 2011 Santa Cruz D P/W Pono OP 30 D parlor Pono OP12-30 Pono MT uke Goldtone Paul Beard squareneck resophonic Fluke tenor ukulele Boatload of home rolled telecasters "Shut up and play ur guitar" Frank Zappa
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#18
04-16-2024, 03:25 PM
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Why buy a custom guitar from a small builder or single luthier? It could be:
As others have pointed out, the cost difference between this route and a high end Martin may not be much. Here is an interesting thread on the topic from the custom page - https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=589449
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#19
04-16-2024, 03:38 PM
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+1 on this, and nicely said. I'm going through this right now after starting with a very nice Yamaha four years ago, then passing through ten Martins on my way to what I thought was my lifetime instrument, which was a 2023 Bourgeois 00. After that I put a deposit down to get into position for one of Matthew Arcara's next batch of custom builds. Matt is a Maine-based guitar maker, who is friends with Dana Bourgeois, but never actually worked for him. He currently shares some space with John Slobod, another highly-regarded and acclaimed guitar maker. While totally enjoying my new Bourgeois 00, and while ruminating on what exactly I want Matt to build for me, I came across and bought an irresistible Bourgeois "Custom" O that was built a decade ago (it had been consigned). The "Custom" in this case was a custom order for a music shop in Wisconsin that liked Bearclaw Italian and Madagascar Rosewood in its "custom" orders. It was and is not a custom-built guitar like the one I am working with Matt on, where I get to choose the tonewoods, the rosette style, the binding and purfling, the tuners, the headstock and veneer ... everything, and all of it. Matt emailed me the other day and said it was time to begin to settle in on what I wanted because his current batch of custom guitars is nearing completion. All of a sudden the excitement kicked into the next gear. Do I want Figured Mahogany, or Cuban Mahogany, and do I want it with Lutz, Adirondack, Sitka, or any of the Euro Spruces? It is way different than bumping into a great Bourgeois, which all by itself is a totally different experience. Both experiences, for me, are like finding a great Martin, and one you fall in love with, like I did ten times, and then taking the feel and tones and build quality to the next, if not exponential level. I can't wait to see what my adventure with Matthew Arcara brings! Last edited by FretMuse; 04-16-2024 at 06:04 PM.
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#20
04-16-2024, 03:39 PM
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I think you can have great experiences either way, going the luthier route or just buying a guitar from a great small-shop company. In general, it seems to me, the small-shop builders have just stepped up their games incredibly over the last dozen years or so, more designs, more precision, more thoughtfulness, more customer service. I won't go the solo luthier route again, not because I've had bad experiences, but because I think the general quality of a Collings, a Bourgeois, a Santa Cruz, a Custom Shop Martin is about all the guitar I could ever need. Not sure this was true 10-15 years ago. But when I look at the offerings from, say, Collings now, I'm incredibly impressed. The newer Collings Traditional Series guitars are just amazing in every respect--the selection of materials, the design, the fit-and finish, just top shelf in every way.
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#21
04-16-2024, 04:21 PM
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Meanwhile, Mainer is full of terrific single-luthier shops. The closest to me, my guit whisperer, is Dennis Patkus. He's been at it for years — easing into retirement, in fact. His guitars are fairly magical and start at around $2k. So, Rounder, there are bound to be some good luthiers within a day's drive of you, too. You might visit some and pick one you click with. Last edited by Charlie Bernstein; 04-16-2024 at 06:25 PM.
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#22
04-16-2024, 05:36 PM
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This post is very timely because just this morning I received a guitar from a luthier in Germany that I ordered about a year and a half ago. I've owned guitars from the major manufacturers and from the "boutiques" as well (Bourgeois, Huss & Dalton and Collings) and played many of the others.
This was my first custom guitar. For me there is a big difference between guitars built by a single luthier vs boutiques, etc. I was able to customize just about every aspect of the guitar that's important to me. Not everything of course - most luthiers have specific body sizes and shapes they'll build. So, if you know what you like you're more likely to get that from a luthier. I knew what sound I wanted, which narrowed down the tone woods and bracing. I don't have big hands and it's usually hard for me to thumb-fret the E string. To help with that, I asked for a certain nut width, string spacing, and neck shape. I wanted a sound port and a Manzer wedge, a certain spacing between the outer strings and the edge fretboard, and a roundoff of the fretboard edges. And then there's the visual candy if you like that stuff. When I picked the guitar up for the first time today I knew right away it fit like a glove. It's surprising how much of a difference all that can make. And it's nice to build a relationship with the person that's making your guitar. Last edited by KevinH; 04-16-2024 at 08:41 PM.
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#23
04-16-2024, 05:53 PM
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 This is great advice, and I think many people easily overlook custom guitars being built within their own region. Doesn't mean they are the right fit for you, but seems like a good idea to take a drive one weekend and play as many as you can to decide for yourself. And you could get a great guitar at a very good price.
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#24
04-16-2024, 06:16 PM
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I haven’t purchased a custom from a boutique builder but I have two unique guitars that I purchased for milestone events.
Turning 50 (2005) I purchased a 12 string for my 50th birthday from Larrivee based on an L03 model. I added a mahogany top, Venetian cutaway, bone nut and saddle. This guitar is now 19 years old and does everything I want in a 12 string. Turning 60 (2015) I ordered a 000 from Martin’s Custom Shop using a combination of the best features from Martin’s 00018, D35S and HD35 models. These included: 12 fret, short scale neck with a slotted head stock and gold Grover open tuners 1 & 3/4 inch, low profile neck width with old style decal Premium Sitka Spruce top with 3 piece mahogany back and sides Scalloped bracing Herringbone border with Tortoise trim on neck, body, heel cap, end piece, teardrop pick guard and bridge pins. 18 style fret markers, rosette and back stripes Archtop case This is truly a one of a kind Martin. Turning 70 in 2025 I found a company in Montana (see attached link) that makes really nice guitars including a mini-dreadnought which has captured my attention. I’ll make a decision this fall to see if this would be the route I want to pursue. Check them out. https://www.benttwigguitars.com/
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#25
04-16-2024, 06:28 PM
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Heh heh. Yeah, I saw that and fixed it before I saw your post. Keep me honest! Quote:
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#26
04-16-2024, 06:52 PM
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If I hadn't already committed to a custom-build with South Portland, Maine-based Matt Arcara, I would've likely done so with Ron Pinkham, also of Maine. He has a shop, I discovered, only four miles from my cottage in Midcoast Maine. I didn't discover Ron until after I discovered Matt. Ron, now 74-years old, or maybe 73, runs Woodsound Studios in Rockport, Maine. The way I understand it, he learned how to build classical instruments. Over the years, he opened a shop focused on classical and other stringed instruments, like cellos, violins, etc. That's pretty much what his Woodsound Studios is focused on. A few weeks ago I brought my newly bought 10-year old Bourgeois in for a set-up. That's when I started to get to know Ron, who is as passionate about guitar making as I am to any of my passions, which include re-learning the guitar and drinking good beer and wine. After about twenty minutes of strumming a few of his guitars, which are among the best I've ever had in my hands, he offered to let me "tour" his shop on Easter Sunday. His guitar making shop is two towns further up the coast of Maine. I took him up on his generous offer, and at about 2 PM on Easter Sunday he showed me how he makes his guitars. Truth be told, I also discovered, he has only made about 200 steel-stringed instruments in his career, but he's eager to "start" building more. How could this be?! Well, life is funny. While passionate about making guitars, his violin and cello repair business took control. Then, some other life issues came into play. Then, a shoulder injury, then the pandemic. And suddenly he's 74. In the meantime, he's amassed a Fort Knox-like inventory of 100-year-old Brazilian Rosewood (and some other highly-coveted tone-woods) that he'll never have the orders or time left in his life to build into new instruments. I'd argue every corner of our land has folks like Ron who're capable of building a custom instrument to personal specifications for a reasonable price. Trust me, I still miss my CEO-7, 000-18, and 000-28EC. They were wonderful, well-built instruments, but not one of them was built for me. My experience tells me there must be dozens of folks like Ron Pinkham, Matt Arcara, John Slobod, and John Osthoff ... and these are guitar makers I'm familiar with in New England alone ... spread out across the land, who are as passionate about building guitars as we are about learning about them, and playing them. To me, a big part of the joy in my journey is getting to know the people whose hands actually shape and build and voice the instruments I get to enjoy.
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#27
04-16-2024, 06:53 PM
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Mr mustache, sorry your customs experience was so disappointing .. good though if you know where you want to go if you win the lottery! My experience couldn't have been more different, for me the experience of receiving an instrument that's so new that she's still getting used to the strings, raw and looking to be tamed was beyond magical.
On that day one, the "newness" was apparent (and expected, I'd played two newly received similar Santa Cruz builds prior to finalizing my decision). She had mellowed radically in the first month as I played her obsessively, fingers sore and happy, and my 2019 OM-28 has since sat barely played except for the occasional contrast to a fully played in guitar. That Martin is one of the good ones, she opened up beautifully over 3 years, and everyone who picks her up remarks on the quality. Some people probably like her better than her Santa Cruz cousin. Having acquired the Martin for $2550 new early in pandemic, I expect I'll get my money back, and then some. OP, I've also owned and ridden a custom bike, mine is a Serotta Legend, fit with help by a friend and amazingly skilled rider and biomechanic, she's a joy to ride, contact points perfect, and geometry so precise I can take hands off the bars at 30+ mph in perfect confidence she'll not wobble. Being skilled in the arts, I copied those contact points and built myself a fixed gear frame (so bottom bracket moved up to accommodate safe turning of a fixie). She's built of lugged 531 cr-mo steel. My alignments aren't quite as perfect as Ben's shop did so consistently, however, they're definitely good enough for a fixie. Painted locally in cream, I detailed the carved lugs with cobalt blue pin striping. The two bikes are a close match in weight and are both joyful to ride ascending, descending and on the flats. My Santa Cruz 1934 OM has been every bit as magical, with an Adi top and now approaching 1½ years old, she's a remarkable guitar, with another few years to go to as mature as the Martin felt after 2-3 years. Again, being skilled in the arts, I've now built a cousin OM, Sitka > maple that sounds well enough as an experimental first (I like her better than the Martin). I'm now going on to build more guitars, in the build queue I'm planning a cedar top, maybe a redwood top, and guitars with backs and sides of mahogany, another Maple, and black locust (and have most of these woods in hand now .. combinations TBD.
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#28
04-16-2024, 07:48 PM
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Beautiful post Sadie-f. I do not want to buy a new custom guitar. I would not know what to get. I have two Martins that I like...an HD-28 that I have had for about 25 years and a D-18 sinker mahogany that I got a few months ago. I do not know what I would change if I wanted to buy a custom.
I have two Serottas and two Kelly Bedford bikes. I bought all of them when I thought that I knew bikes and could get what I want. Going custom was worth it for me in bikes. I love this thread and appreciate everyone's comments. I do not want or need a custom guitar right now. But, if I ever decided that I wanted one or needed one, I would definitely take everyone here's opinions into account.
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#29
04-16-2024, 08:47 PM
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I had a custom Bourgeois built 3 years ago for two reasons:
1) I wanted a combination of specifications I was unlikely to find "off the rack", and 2) I wanted the experience (once) of picking out the sets of rosewood, specific inlay, binding and other features and then seeing/hearing it all come together in the finished instrument. I'm still thrilled with the result. *Specifications: 12-fret 00 size cutaway, torrefied spruce over Panamanian Rosewood, protein glue, the same neck profile and 1-23/32" nut I have on another Bourgeois.
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“The tapestry of life is more important than a single thread.” R. Daneel Olivaw in I. Asimov's Robots and Empire.
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