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Guest Luthier Series - Matt Artinger

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  • #61
    Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

    Hey Ex!

    I haven't....but it's not to say that it's not in my future!!!! ;-)

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    • #62
      Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

      I believe saw an old gibson archtop that you rebuilt. The top was smashed in and you carved a new one out of mahogany. I have always wondered why you chose that wood to use on that application. what makes a mahogany hollow body different to your ears?
      Cleveland Guitars

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      • #63
        Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

        Hi Mrfjones!-

        Yes....You know what? Pure instinct, and it proved to be right in the end result. For some reason, I envisioned a bit 'spankier', more articulate guitar, and because I increased the scale length, I decided to go with mahogany rather than spruce to accentuate the longer scale.

        Mahogany is a truly magical wood for archtop guitars when it's carved properly. It's a much more 3-dimensional sounding wood than the traditional spruce/maple combo, and it's extremely dynamically sensitive. With all mahogany construction, you can completely change the attitude of the guitar by your right hand...it can be backed off and be smooth as butter, but can be dug into and it'll bark on command...it's very underrated in my opinion, and I think alot of makers shy away from it first-because it's non traditional, and they're afraid that the marketplace won't understand, and secondly-because it's not as visually striking as the traditional combo. For total performance though, it runs circles around most other woods I use...it's amazing

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        • #64
          Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

          thank you very much for the insight, and of course thank you for being here today. You have made some wonderful instruments and one day I hope to play well enough to be able to justify having one.
          Cleveland Guitars

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          • #65
            Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

            I sincerely appreciate that, and thank you for participating with me!!!!!

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            • #66
              Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

              I spent some time looking at your gallery and this guitar really caught my eye. I'm not a big "graphics" kind of guy, but the design is just stunning. Can you tell me a bit about it? Thanks!

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              • #67
                Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                Have you thought of doing an import line of designs of yours? What kind of pluses and minuses do you think there would be if you went ahead with something like that? What do you think the next steps business wise would be?
                My Bands -
                https://kamikazechoir.hearnow.com/
                www.instagram.com/kamikazechoir
                www.reverbnation.com/theheartlessdevils

                Just some fun guitar stuff from time to time
                GUITAR KULTURE

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                • #68
                  Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                  Also, who would you say have been your favorite people you've had the pleasure to meet because of your position?
                  Thanks,
                  David

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                  • #69
                    Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                    Hey dd!

                    It's my 'chopper 1' and was purely inspired by the custom motorcycle builders who started to pop up on tv several years ago. The greatest part about those flames is that they're done in prismatic flip paint...so depending on what angle the guitar is held, the flames can turn from red, to yellow, to blue, to purple!!!!

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                    • #70
                      Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                      Man oh man......it's crossed my mind SOOOO many times to do an import line, but i think the main thing holding that back is that there is already a glut of import guitars out there, so it would have tons of competition at it's pricepoint...distribution would also be a rough road....a bigger fantasy would be to see an american guitar company adopt my designs and put them out at a higher pricepoint to compete with the big boys...I think we could really do some damage if everything was done right!

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                      • #71
                        Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                        It's been a whilrwind dd....i've gotten the chance to meet some of my guitar heroes, to sports figures, to actors, etc....guitarmaking is definitely a career that intersects with alot of different types of famous people who are unsuspecting guitar enthisiasts!!!

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                        • #72
                          Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                          You mentioned the importance of the inside of the house - and that you love mahogany (I mean, it's 80% of a Les Paul - who wouldn't?!?!?).

                          How do you go about finding the right piece of wood (mahogany). What says tone to you in a log/slab? Can you tell a piece that will drive a build one way or the other, such as one that would work for a semi hollow vs one that screams make me into a solidbody?

                          Is it getting tougher to find good wood?
                          Originally posted by Bad City
                          He's got the crowd on his side and the blue jean lights in his eyes...

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                          • #73
                            Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                            it definitely is getting trickier, and it's coming in from different countries and slightly different climate zones. I can't tell from the log form, but can tell from the rough sawn form.....if in it's roughsawn form, it's fuzzy and stringy looking---no good...these boards tend to thud when they hit the concrete floor. If it looks cleanly roughsawn and makes a ringing kabong sound as it hits the floor, it's the good stuff! This carries through for use in all applications of mahogany.....hard to explain in any other way, but at a lumberyard, you can tell pretty quickly which are the quality boards and which are the junkier ones. I luckily still have the luxury of going to a lumberyard within an hour of me to hand select my mahogany...I don't know what I would do if I had to buy it sight unseen because it varies SO much....

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                            • #74
                              Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                              Hey Matt,

                              You're guitars are stunning, it's great to see a younger luthier pumping out such pieces of art. As someone who likes modding guitars and has always wanted to get into building guitars, my question is how did you get started with building guitars? Did you just grab a saw and start cutting away and learn what you liked by trial and error?
                              77 Gibson Les Paul Custom (70's DiMarzios)
                              Gibson Les Paul (Duncan Distortion, Pearly Gates)
                              Fuchs Blackjack 21
                              -Fuchs Plush Cream
                              -Boss DD7 Delay

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                              • #75
                                Re: LIVE NOW - Guest Luthier Matt Artinger

                                Hey BeeGee!!

                                Thank you SO much!

                                To answer your question, Yes----you nailed it....I started by taking apart old kays, harmonys, and import strat styled guitars apart in my early teens, and progressed throughout my teens using the school of hard knocks! I started to gradually purchase and accumulate tools beyond the screwdrivers and rusty butter knives I used as a kid, and with the addition of every tool, things got a little easier, ideas got a bit more plentiful, and I started to improve!

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