daniboy Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 hi guys, pardon me if i post this in the wrong department. i am looking for a luthier/guitar builder who can build a custom guitar at reasonable prices. thanks as always, dani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanKirk Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 I'd be careful and check the credentials of anyone who offers or accepts a commissioned job for you. There has been 1 incident that I know of where an ex-PG member/so-called "luthier" commissioned a job to build a guitar but took the money and split. It doesn't take too much research to find out who the skilled builders are around here that can actually commission work but most of the people around here would just tell ya to read up and build it yourself! hehe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 "Reasonable price" is a pretty loaded phrase. For custom work like that of Myka, Ormsby, or LGM (just the first 3 to come to mind-- apologies to those I didn't mention!) multi-thousands of dollars is reasonable. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniboy Posted June 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 I'd be careful and check the credentials of anyone who offers or accepts a commissioned job for you. There has been 1 incident that I know of where an ex-PG member/so-called "luthier" commissioned a job to build a guitar but took the money and split. It doesn't take too much research to find out who the skilled builders are around here that can actually commission work but most of the people around here would just tell ya to read up and build it yourself! hehe ← thanks for the warning vankirk! as for building my own, i very much would love to do it but i do not have the necessary tools to pull it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniboy Posted June 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 "Reasonable price" is a pretty loaded phrase. For custom work like that of Myka, Ormsby, or LGM (just the first 3 to come to mind-- apologies to those I didn't mention!) multi-thousands of dollars is reasonable. Greg ← thanks for the reply greg. i am not looking for any 10-top or such. just a plain plank of honduran mahogany or white limba with a set-in neck of maybe wenge/ebony. shape would be a flattop tele body with double cutaways like a les paul dc. hardware to be confirmed. what will be a reasonable price for such a project? cheers! dani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 I couldn't even begin to price it, so I'm hesitant to venture much of a guess, but I'm thinking that just the cost of the materials and labour (ie. the profit margin being enough to cover the hours spent working on it) you're looking at a base price of anywhere between $1,500 and $2,500. Keep in mind that's totally a guess and I'm not a luthier. But I thought I'd throw it out there just so you'd know the ballpark. The more specialized the parts the more it's going to be, of course. I don't know if any of the well-known luthiers are taking contracts for basic guitars with budget parts. In other words, even if you're willing to just get generic pickups, bridge, and so forth, I'm not sure that all the luthiers would do such a thing in order to save costs, since part of what they're doing is marketing a premium brand name. I have to re-emphasize that I can't speak for anyone, though. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setch Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 You'd be welladvised to tell folks where you are too, since this is a pretty international forum. If you ordered (for example) from Perry Ormsby in Australia, the shipping could easily vary by a couple of hundred $$ depending on which side of the globe you're on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primal Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 If you mean a solid wenge or ebony neck, that would cost quite a pretty penny in materials alone, not to mention wenge and ebony are hard and more difficult to work with and machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MOJO Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 You could try Soulmate guitars http://www.soulmateguitars.com/ his prices seem very reasonable for the quality of the materials and workmanship Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyldbil Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 Hiya Dani- This suggestion is totally out of left field, BUT, does the guitar in your head look anything like the guitar at the other end of this link? http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/g=home...ase_pid/515207/ Be sure and look at a blowup of the pic. You could upgrade electronics, hardware, etc., and STILL come out way cheap on this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted June 13, 2005 Report Share Posted June 13, 2005 Yeah, I have this one and I love it. I bought it way before the MF special came out, but if it's anything like mine, it's worth the $$$. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jay5 Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 Any "one off" guitar is hardly going to fall into the realm of reasonably priced im afraid. Like Greg said, several thousands of dollars (1,500+ at least). For that money, you could buy most if not all of the tools needed to make that type of guitar as well as wood. A tele is a pretty easy guitar to build with the right tools and a little knowhow. I would certainly spend the money that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M_A_T_T Posted June 14, 2005 Report Share Posted June 14, 2005 "I'd be careful and check the credentials of anyone who offers or accepts a commissioned job for you." Dido. I've seen three separate cases of 'luthiers' making their first sales through forums, with not so pleasant outcomes. I wouldn't see it a problem to start a thread (or just use this one) to ask us if a particular member is a good choice for the job. Also, be aware that even if someone has '*******Guitars' as their name, that doesn't necessarily make them a professional, ask any of the older members... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wyldbil Posted June 23, 2005 Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 Whatever happened to this guy? I would like to know what he came up with! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackburncustomguitars Posted June 23, 2005 Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 Hi, I'll help you out. I'm reputable, I know what I'm doing, and this isn't my day job, so I'm very affordable. Check out my feedback on Harmony Central, or I can provide references. I also work with you to use your design ideasPeace, Davehi guys, pardon me if i post this in the wrong department. i am looking for a luthier/guitar builder who can build a custom guitar at reasonable prices. thanks as always, dani ← Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primal Posted June 23, 2005 Report Share Posted June 23, 2005 26 posts? Unfortunately I don't think anyone here at the forum can give any insight on blackburncustomguitars' reputability. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlGeeEater Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Yeah do you have a website blackburncustomguitars? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
!!METAL MATT!! Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 I Found This http://www.blackburncustomguitars.com/ !!METAL MATT!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniboy Posted June 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 hey guys! thanks for the kind advice! was out of town for awhile. i will need to rethink on the custom guitar route if its going to be in excess of $1000. thanks again! dani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhoads56 Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 it will most definately be DOUBLE that from any reputable, registered business. Yes, that is important, as they are less likely to do a runner when it all goes to ****, and can be chased up by government departments over their business practises if need be. Can you get that same service from a backyard operator? Would you get a backyarder to rebuild your engine from your beloved car if he only has a small garage and not enough tools? Same thing dude.... IF its too good to be true, it probably is. Do a search for "litchfield" as an exacmple of a backyard operator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdguitars Posted June 24, 2005 Report Share Posted June 24, 2005 Hold on boys... I know david blackburn. he has built I would have to say 50-100+ guitars. He was one of my first customers on ebay almost 4-5 years ago. He has built some really nice guitars. look at how many users are registered on this board.... Do you think all of them want to put up with the BS sometimes? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Primal Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 No one ever said that he didn't make great guitars, nor did we say he wasn't reputable. I merely commented on how we wouldn't be able to give any info about him. I also checked out that website. He needs to put up some larger pictures. I would be very wary of having a guitar made because of small pictures he has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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