Build a guitar with me.
Commissioning a guitar allows you to create your ideal instrument. After consulting with you on your sound and aesthetic preferences, I will design a one-of-a-kind guitar for you, custom made to fit your playing. Throughout the design and build process I will stay in close contact, consulting with you and guiding you through each design decision with my years of experience as a luthier, as a classical guitar performing artist, and as a teacher who has worked with thousands of students.
My guitars are typically braced in a hybrid lattice pattern that allows for increased volume and sustain without the loss of that warm, traditional classical guitar sound. Wood quality is of utmost importance to me, and I have a large collection of well aged, master grade tone woods ready to chose from. Aesthetically, I aim to strike a balance in each guitar between modern and traditional. I prefer clean, simple lines and graceful hand carved touches on the heel and the end of the fretboard extension to accent the natural beauty of the wood. I craft all of the decorative accents such as the rosette and headstock faceplates on each guitar from one unique piece of burl wood for visual unity.
I usually build with a slightly thinner-than-traditional nut, a thin round neck profile, and with a very slight compound radius on the fretboard for an effortless left hand playing experience. While I can build any neck profile you wish, I know you will love my neck design. I can put you in touch with multiple professional classical guitarists who currently own my instruments that I am certain will back up my claims about effortless playability and superior tone.
My commission process looks like this:
Meeting to get to know one another and to discuss your playing style, personal aesthetic taste, and other instruments that you have either loved or hated in your past. If you are in the Phoenix area I would love to meet in person at my shop, but we can also talk over the phone or Zoom.
Once I have an instrument designed based on our conversation, I will send you a complete list of specs with pictures of the wood to be used and a final quote reflecting any upgrades you requested.
If my proposed build looks good to you, I require a non-refundable deposit of $500 to hold your spot on my waitlist, and to cover my materials as I begin cutting and shaping the wood to your specs.
I will send you regular updates and photos during the build process.
When the guitar is complete - usually 4-5 months from beginning the work - I will contact you to arrange a pickup or shipping to your location. I require payment in full before the guitar leaves my shop, but do I offer a 1 week grace period to return the instrument for a refund minus the $500 deposit if you are not completely satisfied. Scratched or otherwise damaged instruments are non-returnable.
I offer lifetime discounted repairs for my instruments, and free repairs in the unlikely case any issues arise due my workmanship. Each guitar is unique and special to me, and I want to see them well cared for!
My commission model starts at $5000. This includes:
Top: German Spruce, Englemann Spruce, or Western Red Cedar
- double top construction available at additional cost
Back and Sides: Indian Rosewood
- many other tonewoods in my collection also available at varied price points
Neck: Mahogany
Fingerboard: Ebony
- Elevated fingerboard available at additional cost
Bridge: Indian Rosewood, or matching back and sides if appropriate.
Decorative accents (rosette, end graft, headstock, heel cap) - burl wood as preferred
Braced with sustainably harvested Sitka Spruce in a hybrid lattice pattern
Bone nut and saddle
Sloane tuners (many alternate tuners available at varied price points)
French polished finish
650 mm scale length (wider or narrower scales available)
50 mm neck width @ the nut (or as preferred)
Jescar EVO-gold frets (or as preferred)
Brass fret dot at 7th fret (or material and locations as preferred)
D'addario strings (or as preferred)
Inquire here for more information.