Custom Builds

I build custom guitars on a limited basis, sticking to my own specialties and ideas, and woods that I have saved over the years and are special to me — these include:

Replica black walnut Flying V's

As I made for Albert King in 1972. Right or left handed. These are made from the original black walnut that I bought in the mid sixties and made Albert's guitar from. I have enough left, rough-cut into pieces, to make eight more. First come, first served!

Pearl and abalone inlay, just as Albert wanted (except this one is a right-handed model).	Albert, 1975.
Long tenon.
Two lefties (they never met).
The Lucy peghead inlay in walnut burl.

Custom Strat or Tele

Custom Strat or Tele with woods of my choice — special combinations

Rodrigo Gomes custom

My dear friend and associate Rodrigo Gomes from São Paolo, Brazil, has visited me and worked with me for over seven years, coming and going to and from Brazil. He came as a student, stayed as a friend, and has come back to visit several times, and I miss him when he's not here. Rod builds super electric and archtop guitars. On his last visit, he made this beautiful Koa tele with herringbone binding and a curly maple neck as a gift for me. He wants to make more. Anyone interested? Let me know.

Jerry Garcia tribute guitar

In 1971, Jerry commissioned me to make this strat-style guitar from my Albert King stash of black walnut. He liked the numeral inlays that I had installed in one of my own guitars so that I'd never forget what fret I was at. It was a joke, but he liked it. He wanted a maple neck and a black walnut body, but no tremolo — hard-tail, with an ABR-1 bridge, a stop-tailpiece, and a rosewood pickguard. Recently, I was commissioned to make a tribute guitar. I'd be happy to make another, if a Deadhead wanted one. I already have the walnut body, as I made two.

Custom capos

My capo design is unique and super comfortable for your fretting hand. Threaded inserts accept custom capos — one, wider capo covers the entire fretboard width, a second, narrower capo is placed a whole step above the wider capo and holds down the middle four strings — used in tandem up and down the fretboard your bass and treble E-strings are one whole step below (a combination open tuning/standard tuning that is super for blues, country, and folk-music, and just as importantly something new to add to your playing. 

I also offer Bolton replacement necks with my custom capo installation, or capo installation on existing necks — electric or acoustic (threaded inserts installed in the neck).