Guitars

12-fret Slope Shoulder
Dreadnought
Brazilian rosewood
Adirondack spruce

I typically have a few spec guitars for sale, and a couple in production. If you see something you like, contact me.

You might also consider a custom guitar: A custom guitar does not cost any more than a spec guitar, but it does allow you to select the exact model, wood (see the materials I use), nut width, scale length, trim package, etc., that you want. For example, you can purchase a no-frills guitar made with good grade woods (e.g., the back & sides can be built with sapele, padauk, or unfigured bubinga; AA Sitka spruce top; Martin 2nd mahogany neck; and rosewood fingerboard and bridge), bone nut and saddle, Grover StaTite Style 98 tuners, and water borne finish for about $500 (without a case). Or you can choose the components you want to upgrade, e.g., you might want a TorTis pickguard instead of a plastic one, or Waverly tuners instead of the Grover tuners. In today's market, the higher cost upgrades are usually the tonewoods (back and side set and the top). The best investment, in terms of sound (but not necessarily appearance) is an Adirondack spruce top. East India rosewood does not add much cost to the basic model, Palo Escrito is a little more expensive, and then the price of rosewood increases rapidly for Honduran, Amazon, Madagascar, and Brazilian rosewood.

Currently Available Guitars
In Production
Previously Owned Guitars
Gallery

Currently Available Guitars

D-21, 14-fret dreadnought. Palo Escrito rosewood back and sides with a Sitka spruce top. Rosewood and maple binding, ebony fingerboard and bridge. The neck width at the nut is just a little over 1 3/4". Very nice sounding guitar with good action. It can be played fingerstyle or with a pick. Water-borne lacquer finish. Hard shell case included. $549.50

In Production

12-fret slope shoulder Dreadnought, a body shape inspired by the 1931 Martin D-2 (which evolved into the 14-fret D-28 in 1934). It has a slotted head, 1 3/4" neck width at the nut, and 25.4" scale. This guitar is built with the very nice (and very popular) Madagascar rosewood back and sides, and a Carpathian spruce top. It is trimmed similar to a prewar Style 21. On Hold
00-21 (12-fret slot head). Dark Honduran rosewood, Adirondack spruce top, inspired by the prewar Martin 00-21 guitar. It will have a 1 7/8" neck width at the nut, 24.9" scale, ebony fretboard and pyramid bridge, and Grover StaTite tuners. The back is partially quarter cut, but with runout and some small knots. The wood is old, dry, and stable, so these tiny knots will be a visual feature rather than a structural bug. 00-21 guitars are wonderful, lightly built, steel string finger style guitars that are similar in size to a classical guitar, but which have their own unique sound. Martin kept this 12-fret 00 in their catalog from 1931 to 1994 (and now it has been released as a Vintage series guitar), although with a belly bridge instead of a pyramid bridge. Bob Dylan reinvigorated interest in the 00-21 in the 1960s, and today it is highly sought after for its size, playability, tone, and (in many of these guitars) its surprising volume. Hard shell case. Pre completion price: $925.00
Best buy Honduran rosewood set. I acquired this back and side set along with a companion set that was used to build an OM-21 that is pictured in the gallery below. There are two factors that make this a "best buy" set: (1) it is light colored Honduran rosewood with little figure, and (2) my cost on this set was considerably less than the current market price. This set could be used to make a dreadnought or smaller guitar. My plan is to eventually use it with an Englemann top to make a 000 12-fret slot head guitar — a 12-fret sibling to the OM-21. The OM-21 has great tone and volume, so I have similar expectations for a 12-fret version. The cost of such a guitar will depend on the exact materials used, but it is possible to build to a value-based profile the would result in a cost less than $800 with a hardshell case.

Other Previously Owned Guitars For Sale

These guitars are ones that I have purchased and played, but which I do not play enough to justify keeping. Someone else can have a great, lightly-played guitar at a great price.

1999 Martin D-18V (S/N 720xxx, mahogany back and sides, Sitka spruce top). I bought this guitar from Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto in 2000. It has not been played much, so it looks like a brand new Martin (no scratches or dings). Since it is a Martin Vintage Series guitar, it is carefully constructed ... and it sounds great. It is built in the style of a pre-war D-18 — including forward shifted, scalloped bracing; ebony fretboard and bridge; long saddle; V neck profile; open style vintage Martin tuners; and 1 11/16" nut. The back and sides are beautiful mahogany (there really are no scratches or other flaws in the wood), and the top is Sitka spruce with aging toner. This is a mint D-18V. It will be hard for you to find a pre-war style D-18 in this condition for less than a couple of grand. It comes with a Martin Model 640 molded case. The Martin list price for this guitar is $3,199 (street price for a new guitar is about $2,400). $1,695, offer.

The Island of Misfit Toys

Alas, I have an Island of Misfit Toys — guitars that I have built that no one wants. In each case, these guitars have visual flaws in the fit or finish (in some case, they look pretty bad), but unless noted they have good volume and tone. Some have been sold and returned because of fit and finish (I have never had a guitar returned for poor sound), others were never sold, so I just play them myself. If you really do care about sound but not much about appearance you can get a heck of a deal on these Misfit Toys. I have substantially discounted the prices on these guitars (the price is close to, or even below, the cost of materials); even so I will still consider offers. These prices do not include a a case, but I do have inexpensive cases available if you want one. Finally, all sales on these guitars are final — no returns on Misfit Toys.

D-28 style Dreadnought. East Indian rosewood with Engelmann top. Cocobolo fingerboard (No inlay) and bridge, and ivoroid purfling and binding. The neck width at the nut is 1 23/32" (wider than 1 11/16", but smaller than 1 3/4"). This guitar has very nice tone. Water-borne lacquer finish with some problems. An excellent deal on a rosewood/Engelmann dreadnought. $295.

Gallery

These are guitars that I have built, but that have moved on to happy homes.

D-21S (12-fret slot head dreadnought), (click for a gallery of images) Brazilian rosewood back and sides, Adirondack spruce top, style 21 herringbone.

The owner reports: "[The] finish work is a ways from being professional level, but he did manage to really get the sound right. The guitar is definitely loud. Pat thinks it sounds as good as any of my other guitars, which is pretty impressive, considering that I have some very good guitars." He owns two Proulx guitars, a Circa, a Posch, a Webber, a Brock archtop, and a gypsy jazz guitar made by Shelley Park. In another note he remarks "... the guitar sounds good and the neck is pretty close to my ideal."
D-21S (12-fret slot head dreadnought) Palo Escrito rosewood back and sides with an Adirondack spruce top. Nitro cellulose lacquer finish. Nice sounding and easy to play.

A few months after buying the guitar, the owner wrote back to ask about another guitar. Regarding this guitar he wrote: "I love the D-21S" Ultimately he bought two more guitars.
000-21 (12-fret slot head), Madagascar rosewood, Adirondack spruce top, one-piece mahogany bolt-on (25.4" scale) neck, 1 3/4" nut width, ebony fingerboard and pyramid bridge, bone nut and saddle. Setup with low action for finger style, but also can also be played with a pick. The Adirondack top and Madagascar rosewood really influence the sound — in my opinion, this is a great sounding guitar.

Upon receiving this guitar, the owner reported: "[The guitar is] So fine, in fact, that I'm thinking about commissioning a 000 with the same neck profile but with a 1 7/8 nut width."
OM-21 Honduran Rosewood Honduran rosewood back and sides with an Engelmann spruce top. It has a 24.9" scale, cocobolo fretboard and bridge, bone nut and saddle, Grover vintage tuners, Water-borne lacquer finish. This is a great sounding guitar that is very easy to play.

The owner reported: "The guitar just arrived. It is wonderful: extremely playable and the sound is fantastic. Nice work."

OM-21, Indian Rosewood Sitka spruce top, one-piece mahogany bolt-on (25.4" scale) neck, rosewood fingerboard and bridge. The buyer ordered this guitar without finish (as it is shown in these images) so he could apply it himself.
00-28 (12-fret slot head) Indian Rosewood Indian rosewood back and sides with a Sitka spruce top. Water-borne lacquer finish. This is a nice looking guitar — check out the pattern on the back. It has a bluesy tone and is is very easy to play.

"I really like the sound and it is ... very playable. I also love the headstock inlay."
00-21 (12-fret slot head) Palo Escrito Palo Escrito rosewood back and sides with an Engelmann spruce top. Water-borne lacquer finish. In the style of the prewar 00-21, the neck width at the nut is just under 1 7/8". This is a sweet little 12-fret slot head guitar.
G-100, maple/Engelmann Gibson style Jumbo. Curly maple back and sides, Engelmann spruce top. Rosewood trim. Lacquer finish. This is my first handmade guitar. It is not pretty, but it is a great sounding guitar.
AJ, Honduran rosewood back and sides with an Engelmann spruce top. Water-borne lacquer finish. An early guitar that has a unique (in a positive way) sound. The combination of Honduran rosewood, Engelmann top and the shape and bracing of a Gibson prewar Advanced Jumbo give this guitar a unique sound that is a cross between a Gibson and a Martin. On the downside, the guitar has fit and finish glitches, and average action.