I have just started work on a new custom guitar – this one is an archtop design similar to a Les Paul but with a double cutaway of my own design. I reached the design by combining a Les Paul and a Telecaster shape and tweaking them until I liked the shape. I use Photoshop on my Mac to do this and it’s a great way to finalise a shape before committing to cutting timber.
The guitar body is made from 17 strips of hardwood machined from the remnants of a garden table so the timber is probably either mahogany or iroko. There is quite a bit of variation in the colour and density of the strips which creates a great design for the back and sides of the guitar. The timber is pretty heavy so before gluing on the ripple maple cap I routed multiple chambers in the body to reduce weight. Even so it is going to be quite a weight on your shoulders while playing, but it should mean some meaty tones!
I have a pair of hand-wound humbuckers from Amdusias Devices which I will install along with a tone-pros bridge and through body stringing. If you are interested in purchasing this guitar it should be ready in about 6 weeks, so get in touch and let me know.