Well... not exactly. I FINISHED twelve guitars, because I started some of them way, way back in 2021. Do we remember 2021? COVID was rampant, you guys had a president who didn't need a diaper, and life? life seemed fine at the time.
I prepared fretboards, tops, bodies, necks, but hadn't had the time to complete any of it. It took me a while to get it all together. Some ideas changed, but mostly, the ideas stayed put.
Top row, left to right
*Solid swamp ash body, faux F-hole (there is a hole, yes, but it doesn't go deep in the body). roasted maple neck, richlite fretboard, MoP split block inlay, Dimarzio Chopper T & Twang King pickups
*Roasted flamed carved maple top on swamp ash back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony board with maple binding, PATB1&2 Hybrid Alnico8/PASTK1n/PATB1n pickup config
*Sycamore top on fully chambered swamp ash back, custom wiring, BKP flat 50ies neck and bridge, BKP Flat 52 mid, brass bridge, canary neck, black richlite board with MoP block inlay
Bottom row, left to right
*Swamp ash body, roasted flamed maple neck, maple board, custom dot inlay (Look closely; do you see it?), BKP Piledriver pickups, custom Hipshot bridge (steel with barrel saddles)
*Swamp ash body, roasted flamed maple neck, maple board, custom dot inlay, BKP Apache pickups with metal gold covers (grounded, so these pickups are quiet!), Hipshot US Contour bridge with steel saddles
*Roasted flamed carved maple top on swamp ash back, 17pcs ziricote/wenge/ebony neck, ebony board with maple binding, PATB3/PASTK1n/PATSTK1n pickup config
Top Row, left to right
* Flamed maple top on roasted chambered ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs roasted flamed maple/walnut neck, olivewood fretboard with Abalone block inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, Seymour Duncan Customshop 'Burns Trisonic' with a custom wiring by @Artie
* Figured koa top and back on a chambered rosewood body and multiply binding on top and back, 9pcs rosewood neck, pale moon ebony fretboard with abalone block inlay, bound headstock, and Graphtech bridge and tailpiece, Hipshot tuners, and BKP PolyPAF pickups
* Flamed maple top on roasted chambered ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs roasted flamed maple/walnut neck, olivewood fretboard with MoP/Abalone block inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, Seymour Duncan Customshop Concept set
Bottom row, left to right
*Figured mahogany top and back on figured ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony fretboard with Star Trek inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, BKP Custom pickups (Custom Starship Etch) - VH2 model bridge and neck
*Wenge top, walnut back on black korina and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony fretboard with Star Trek inlay, Hipshot 'Tone o Matic' bridge and tailpiece, BKP Custom pickups (Custom Starship Etch) - PG Blues model bridge and neck
* Roasted quilt maple top on swamp ash, wenge/maple/bocote 5pcs neck, indian rosewood fretboard with pearloid trapezoid inlay, Graphtech Tune O Matic bridge, and custom pickups designed by me and made by Johan Lundgren.
The Star Trek guitars I originally made in 2016 but when I wanted to refret them in stainless steel frets, I sanded through the inlay so I decided to chop off the necks and repurpose the bodies. That was a bit of a nightmare to be honest. The guitars are done but I'm never going to do this again. I had to have custom made jackplates made because the side holes were so large because I had a toggle on the side for splits. BIG mistake, hated it from day 1. Originally, the LP had 3 pickups but I installed a block to fill it up, matching the original pinstripes. I controled the 3 pickups via a 5 way blade and I had it installed on a small wenge plate recessed in the top. I wanted a toggle this time around, so I had to make a cover to cover the hole. I will be making the Starfleet chevron in aluminium, though, as a spacer ring between the toggle and that plate, so act as a gold field for the aluminium chevron, so the chevron pops. That way the thing makes sense.
The 3 pickup tele is just sick. It is so, so good. But I will bring its wiring back into what I have done on the lilac LP because I prefer that by a mile. To get there, though, I'll gut the guitar and craft a pearloid pickguard.
The two carved top F-guitars (strat and tele) are siblings in a way. And YES, the neck features solid ebony strips inside of it. And no, I'll never do that either. It's a total nightmare to get that stuff shaped without creating dips in the neck shape! But the trem is not locked, floats, and stays in tune like a champ, and SOUNDS killer.
But the winner of it all, is the blue strat. I never thought I'd have that strat, ever. My very first strat in 2004 was a made in mexico Daphne Blue 50ies style and I loved that guitar but sold it because I wanted METALLLLL. Now, 20+ years, I managed to make it how I wanted it. Threaded inserts and steel bolts to literally bolt down the neck instead of screws, a trem that stays in tune, AMAZING pickups, a neck shape I want (fat and asymmetrical), compound radius fretboard, stainless steel frets, maple binding, and a custom dot inlay. Look closely. If you need pointers, the carved top strat and tele have the same inlay. It's an MoP open dot with a walnut dot inlaid in it, with 3mm MoP dots on the side at the 12th fret. I mixed the blue myself. This is not any other blue you can find. This is MINE. I also added 2 layers of pearl to it. One mint green and one layer of gold pearl.
The semihollow burgundy tele that looks like a thinline is anything but. It's a solid body but with a fake F-Hole. I cut it straight down with a template, and then with a 10mm undercut, where the large router bit rides against the edge of the wood that I just routed out. Works like a charm. Was supposed to be a project in between projects, like a summer holiday thing but it ended up a PITA.
I'm not 10000% done. Some need backplates, others need a tweak of the nut. But all in all... this is it, folks.
After this, just seven more. I have for seven guitars wood, pickups, neck blanks, fretboards, but I have pickups for 11. I need to make choices and I hate doing that.
If this is my final collection, I'm okay with that.
I prepared fretboards, tops, bodies, necks, but hadn't had the time to complete any of it. It took me a while to get it all together. Some ideas changed, but mostly, the ideas stayed put.
Top row, left to right
*Solid swamp ash body, faux F-hole (there is a hole, yes, but it doesn't go deep in the body). roasted maple neck, richlite fretboard, MoP split block inlay, Dimarzio Chopper T & Twang King pickups
*Roasted flamed carved maple top on swamp ash back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony board with maple binding, PATB1&2 Hybrid Alnico8/PASTK1n/PATB1n pickup config
*Sycamore top on fully chambered swamp ash back, custom wiring, BKP flat 50ies neck and bridge, BKP Flat 52 mid, brass bridge, canary neck, black richlite board with MoP block inlay
Bottom row, left to right
*Swamp ash body, roasted flamed maple neck, maple board, custom dot inlay (Look closely; do you see it?), BKP Piledriver pickups, custom Hipshot bridge (steel with barrel saddles)
*Swamp ash body, roasted flamed maple neck, maple board, custom dot inlay, BKP Apache pickups with metal gold covers (grounded, so these pickups are quiet!), Hipshot US Contour bridge with steel saddles
*Roasted flamed carved maple top on swamp ash back, 17pcs ziricote/wenge/ebony neck, ebony board with maple binding, PATB3/PASTK1n/PATSTK1n pickup config
Top Row, left to right
* Flamed maple top on roasted chambered ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs roasted flamed maple/walnut neck, olivewood fretboard with Abalone block inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, Seymour Duncan Customshop 'Burns Trisonic' with a custom wiring by @Artie
* Figured koa top and back on a chambered rosewood body and multiply binding on top and back, 9pcs rosewood neck, pale moon ebony fretboard with abalone block inlay, bound headstock, and Graphtech bridge and tailpiece, Hipshot tuners, and BKP PolyPAF pickups
* Flamed maple top on roasted chambered ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs roasted flamed maple/walnut neck, olivewood fretboard with MoP/Abalone block inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, Seymour Duncan Customshop Concept set
Bottom row, left to right
*Figured mahogany top and back on figured ash and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony fretboard with Star Trek inlay, non-finetuner Floyd Rose, BKP Custom pickups (Custom Starship Etch) - VH2 model bridge and neck
*Wenge top, walnut back on black korina and multiply binding on top and back, 17pcs purpleheart/wenge/ovangkol neck, ebony fretboard with Star Trek inlay, Hipshot 'Tone o Matic' bridge and tailpiece, BKP Custom pickups (Custom Starship Etch) - PG Blues model bridge and neck
* Roasted quilt maple top on swamp ash, wenge/maple/bocote 5pcs neck, indian rosewood fretboard with pearloid trapezoid inlay, Graphtech Tune O Matic bridge, and custom pickups designed by me and made by Johan Lundgren.
The Star Trek guitars I originally made in 2016 but when I wanted to refret them in stainless steel frets, I sanded through the inlay so I decided to chop off the necks and repurpose the bodies. That was a bit of a nightmare to be honest. The guitars are done but I'm never going to do this again. I had to have custom made jackplates made because the side holes were so large because I had a toggle on the side for splits. BIG mistake, hated it from day 1. Originally, the LP had 3 pickups but I installed a block to fill it up, matching the original pinstripes. I controled the 3 pickups via a 5 way blade and I had it installed on a small wenge plate recessed in the top. I wanted a toggle this time around, so I had to make a cover to cover the hole. I will be making the Starfleet chevron in aluminium, though, as a spacer ring between the toggle and that plate, so act as a gold field for the aluminium chevron, so the chevron pops. That way the thing makes sense.
The 3 pickup tele is just sick. It is so, so good. But I will bring its wiring back into what I have done on the lilac LP because I prefer that by a mile. To get there, though, I'll gut the guitar and craft a pearloid pickguard.
The two carved top F-guitars (strat and tele) are siblings in a way. And YES, the neck features solid ebony strips inside of it. And no, I'll never do that either. It's a total nightmare to get that stuff shaped without creating dips in the neck shape! But the trem is not locked, floats, and stays in tune like a champ, and SOUNDS killer.
But the winner of it all, is the blue strat. I never thought I'd have that strat, ever. My very first strat in 2004 was a made in mexico Daphne Blue 50ies style and I loved that guitar but sold it because I wanted METALLLLL. Now, 20+ years, I managed to make it how I wanted it. Threaded inserts and steel bolts to literally bolt down the neck instead of screws, a trem that stays in tune, AMAZING pickups, a neck shape I want (fat and asymmetrical), compound radius fretboard, stainless steel frets, maple binding, and a custom dot inlay. Look closely. If you need pointers, the carved top strat and tele have the same inlay. It's an MoP open dot with a walnut dot inlaid in it, with 3mm MoP dots on the side at the 12th fret. I mixed the blue myself. This is not any other blue you can find. This is MINE. I also added 2 layers of pearl to it. One mint green and one layer of gold pearl.
The semihollow burgundy tele that looks like a thinline is anything but. It's a solid body but with a fake F-Hole. I cut it straight down with a template, and then with a 10mm undercut, where the large router bit rides against the edge of the wood that I just routed out. Works like a charm. Was supposed to be a project in between projects, like a summer holiday thing but it ended up a PITA.
I'm not 10000% done. Some need backplates, others need a tweak of the nut. But all in all... this is it, folks.
After this, just seven more. I have for seven guitars wood, pickups, neck blanks, fretboards, but I have pickups for 11. I need to make choices and I hate doing that.
If this is my final collection, I'm okay with that.
