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"Just finished in time and with the smell of varnish still lingering - I present to you the Swift Lite Mark 2 This is the latest incarnation following my personal curiosity about 6 string electrics. That is, "do electric guitars have to be so heavy to play well and sound good?" I'm a hobby builder and I've been modding and refinishing guitars and basses for 7-8 years. I did my first scratch build around 6 years ago. I do occasional commissions, generally for fellow band members and friends / family, but sometimes build requests that interest or intrigue me Having gained a bit of a reputation in two or three bass and guitar forums for being a teeny bit crazy and willing to try anything (at least once), I ended up with some really interesting and unusual build commissions. And some of those have led me to question my acceptance of some of the long-standing 'conventions' your see in features of many electric guitar designs - one being that they tend to be so heavy! I've also got to that 'certain age' And I've realised how many guitar players I know personally who have given up because of neck, back, shoulder issues and just can't stand with that weight for a full gig-length anymore. Over a couple of builds, I have used the combination of thru-neck and slimness to reduce weight. This has given an unplanned but very welcome additional benefit of eliminating the usually abrupt encounter of the playing thumb with the heel and body when playing the upper frets. This particular build has sought to exploit that with full access up to the 24th fret, including a thumb anchor point for three or more semitone bends at the top frets. And Mark 2? Well, the original Swift Lite - same basic construction but quite different in shape and other aspects - I built at the back end of last year for my own use. This one, the Swift Lite Mark 2, I have built for Jane, my sister-in-law. In the build I have incorporated a piece of an oak mantlepiece rescued from her late mother's recently demolished house. Here is the spec: 25" Scale; 24 frets Amboyna top; oak back Maple/purpleheart laminated thru neck Macassar ebony fretboard Tonerider Alnico IV Classic humbuckers Master tone / master volume and three-way toggle, wired '50's style' Total finished weight 5lbs 4oz Home-made knobs (oak and macassar) The full build thread is here It balances beautifully both on the strap and over the knee. I'll try to post some sound clips before the entry closes but trust me - it will do anything and everything! And here it is:

Hi Beautiful though @Pariahrob's Raycaster is (and it IS very beautiful ) it seems a shame for him to be breezing along here lonely and unopposed I present, therefore, the 'Swift Lite' In terms of my building background, I started modding guitars and basses around 6 years ago and soon embarked on my first foray into the world of working with wood, producing my first scratch-build instrument about 4 years ago. Over that time, I've gained a bit of a reputation for 'liking a challenge' - hence some of the weird and wonderful builds elsewhere on the site, and a reputation for 'you do it HOW????' - hence my standard disclaimer of 'I'll describe how I myself do it...not necessarily the same as this is how it should be done'. Spec of this 6-string electric, built for my own use is: 25" scale Camphor laurel top; sapele back; wenge demarcation veneer Maple/purpleheart/mahogany neck Snakewood fretboard Tonerider Alnico IV Classic humbuckers Vol/Vol/Tone/3-way/2off split coil toggles It is the latest stage of a progressive set of builds exploring lightening guitars and basses while enhancing upper fret playability through slim body sections while not sacrificing playability or sound Presently a touch under 6lbs. When I have replaced the three brass knobs with wooden ones, it will end at c 5-3/4 lbs. The background to the build is that it is a 6 string electric version of this piccolo bass I made for Pete (our band's bassist): And using the same woods as that used for the recent Alembic-esque electric built for Tim: And here it is - the 'Swift Lite': The build thread is here - Andy

ProjectGuitar.com Chris - again, warm congratulations on both your second Guitar Of The Month win and now Guitar Of The Year for 2017....great work! Would you like to introduce yourself a little? skyjerk Thank you Well, I'm 53 years old. I live in Chester County PA in the USA. I work in IT for my "day job" as a UNIX engineer. Happily married for 20 years to a wonderful woman that has always been very supportive of my extracurricular passions like skydiving and more recently building guitars. We have 3 hairless dogs (Chinese crested) not for showing or breeding, but just because we love them. I've been playing guitar since I was 12 years old, always been musically inclined. Ive been in many bands, and I've built a recording studio in my house. I came into the guitar building world because I commissioned a guitar build from a local builder about 7 years ago. It took him 4 years to deliver the guitar, and I wasnt very happy with the result. To make amends for the long wait he gave me a partially completed build as a bonus, and I started looking into what I would need to do to finish it and eventually decided to try a build from scratch about 3 years ago. I never did finish that partial build the other guy gave me. Its still sitting in my basement. I think I would never have been happy claiming it as mine since someone else did most of the work. On-line communities like this one (ProjectGuitar.com) have been a wealth of both information, advice, support, (and even friendship) in my quest for knowledge. I really love building guitars and the people on this forum and others are exceedingly generous in sharing their knowledge rather than hoarding it and calling it proprietary or trade secret. ProjectGuitar.com It sounds that at least you can thank the other guy for helping you getting bitten by the builder's bug! The (very detailed) forum build thread you developed shows a very uncompromising approach to material choices and solid working methods which clearly shows in the quality of the end result. It's pretty apparent that your backstory and reasonings behind this build were fundamental in distilling focus and providing drive to create something deeply personal and unique. How many builds have you got under your belt to this point? It goes without saying that this isn't your first! skyjerk Well, this is my first build of this model. A prototype if you will, which I'm calling the "24 Magnum". In the order of all guitars built it's actually the twelfth guitar I've built from scratch. My very first was a slightly modified Les Paul design. Visually it resembled a 59 Les Paul in shape and dimensions, but was neck-through-body, I reduced the neck angle, and had some other design alterations that suited my taste and style, so it wasn't a counterfeit or copy. I made no effort to be "vintage correct" and of course I inlayed "Addict" on the headstock rather than the G name. That build turned out so well that I retired my real LP and the one I built became my main player in my band. My very next build was of my own design as were the ones I've built since. It wasn't my goal to build replicas or copies, but to realize my own tastes and desires. I did have some experience working with wood before I started building guitars, and my first career was in construction. I used to build houses. I already had a lot of tools and was good at using them. Of course building guitars requires a lot more precision and care, and I had to learn a lot of specialized knowledge about how guitars actually work and what makes one guitar better than another, etc, but I didn't come in 100% cold. Of course you can't help but work in the things you love about the classics, so this 24 Magnum model has features that I've loved in other guitars, like the PRS custom 24, Fender Stratocaster, etc. although overlaying my design with any other guitar model shows that it's absolutely not a copy of any of them, nor do my specs align with any of them. The back story is fairly straightforward. My 24 year old son Chris passed away just shy of a year ago from an overdose of fentanyl. I built this guitar in his memory. The inlays on the back of the body, a Phoenix (mythological bird) and an Aries symbol (zodiac) were taken directly from tattoo's that Chris had on his chest and shoulder, and the inlays on the fretboard and headstock are simplified versions of those same symbols. I was with Chris when he got those tattoos (I actually paid for them) and it's a very fond memory. Additionally, the model was originally envisioned as a 22 fret design. I built a prototype of that 22 fret model (there is a build thread for it right here on projectguitar.com), I never actually finished that 22 fret version because Chris died and it was a little while before I felt like working in my shop as you can imagine. When I did start working again, I set aside the 22 fret build and started from scratch with this 24 fret version in his honor. 24 frets because he was 24 years old. ProjectGuitar.com Phoenix must be a very profound part of reconciling yourself with that loss, whilst also keeping your memories of Chris close to heart. It's difficult to think of a more fitting tribute, and the fact that the guitar itself is plain stunning in every aspect underlines that. Coming into instrument-making with a neck-through Les Paul is no small task. Even somebody that has existing knowledge and skills would find that sort of build a very high target to meet. Over your twelve builds, what have been the major hurdles, discoveries and skills gained? I presume that there's always been plenty of new things to take onboard with each new project. skyjerk Well, all the house building in the world doesn't provide any knowledge into how to make a perfect joint. It's just not a requirement to make two pieces of wood perfectly flat so that when you put them together you have 100% contact and no visible seam Clean, tight joints are everything when building a musical instrument. Not just for aesthetics, but for good transmission of vibrations. Air spaces and thick glue seams dampen vibrations and make the instrument less resonant, and they look terrible too. Learning how to use hand planes to make perfectly flat, glass smooth surfaces for joining was absolutely my biggest hurdle. Just joining the bookmatched top for that first Les Paul took me about 6 hours and made me feel like an imbecile! Everything about that first build took me 50 times longer than it does today....I'm something of a perfectionist, and I wasn't willing to accept a less than perfect result even though it was my first attempt. Fretwork was another biggie. Nothing in construction prepares you to level, crown, and polish frets either! When I finished that build I was very happy with the outcome, but even now every guitar I build leaves me feeling like "This was good, but I could do it better". This is what keeps me learning and improving. ProjectGuitar.com After having made yourself a profoundly personal instrument, you have to wonder....what could be next? You're definitely not the type to call it a day on anything! skyjerk Well, looking forward to the future, my next build, (which I've already begun collecting materials for), is a re-re-imagining of the original 22 Magnum (if that makes sense). It will be a shorter scale (25"), fixed bridge (TOM), and re-implementing the bird inlays I used on the first 22 fret model. It will have the same type of top carve I did for the 24 magnum, but rather than a flame figure I have a totally gorgeous piece of quilted maple for the top on this one as opposed to a flame, and I'll be finishing it with a tiger-eye burst and matching headstock overlay. I have a terrible weakness for transparent finishes and figured maple. I have yet to do an opaque finish, and don't see any coming in the immediate future. I'm planning to do a build thread here on ProjectGuitar.com once I start, and if it turns out half as nice as I hope I'm sure I'll be entering it as another GOTM contender once it's all finished! ProjectGuitar.com Looking forward to it Chris. I'm sure people will continue to take a lot of inspiration from all of your builds, past and present. Thanks for sharing your work, and again, congratulations on taking 2018's Guitar Of The Year! ----==---- click for larger click for larger click for larger click for larger click for larger click for larger click for larger click for larger

Being last GOTM winner for 2017, Norris completes the lineup of winners competing for Guitar Of The Year! “My first ever guitar build, my first ever entry in GOTM. It's been a long time coming, but it's finally here! The Nozcaster Thinline telecaster Carved ash/flamed maple body Birdseye maple neck & maple fretboard Bound body, neck, headstock and rear access cover Fender Custom Shop '51 "Nocaster" pickups Kluson tuners Thanks to everyone who has followed my build thread for the last two years and given me so much encouragement! Build thread here Demo video: First public airing: (My son playing bass)

I decided to give a second chance to this guitar: this is my eighth build so far and was intended to be a sum of all things I've learnt in three years of guitar building. I decided to call her Ladybug, or Coccinella in Italian, because of the inlay on the twelfth fret. The guitar has been built following the plan of a '59 Gibson Les Paul, but woods and decorations are all customised. The body is made of european ash with a big weight relief chamber, while the top is Indonesian ebony, a wood really similar to Makassar ebony, but more porous and lighter. The guitar has a full curly maple binding on body, fretboard and headstock with a thin ebony purfling between the binding and the body. The body has a real golden mother of pearl purfling made with the traditional teflon strip technique. The fretboard and the headstock are inlayed by hand with a rose themed layout. The full inlay is made of almost 300 tiles and the materials used are white mother of pearl, abalone paua, australian greenlip abalone, green abalone, rosewood, and red dino recon stone. On the headstock the writing Delky (a joke from my surname Del Col ) is inlaid in golden mother of pearl. The neck is a five parts laminated (Indonesian ebony/hard rock maple) with a 15° scarf joint and a volute. The finish is high gloss poly. All the hardware is golden: Gotoh TOM bridge and tailpiece; Hipshot open machine heads with tulip button, SD covers on pickups, Freeway 6 positions toggle switch (traditional positions + split coils). Seymour Duncan Jazz + JB pickups. CTS pots and Orange Drop caps. Here is the building thread on the ProjectGuitar.com forums for this guitar This is my FB page Massimo Del Col where you can see other builds and inlays and this is the official page of my guitars Delky Guitars and Inlays. Let me know your opinions! And finally a video of the guitar running through a EVH 5150 made by the young but talented guitarist Marco Bruni.

"Hi, I´m Sebastian, 31 years old, living in Germany near Cologne. I have started building electric basses 2 years ago. This one shown here is my first electric guitar. As most of us, I'm already completely obsessed with the topic. Currently I'm building in a small 4sqm cellar room at home. My past and actual build projects are shown on my Facebook page. Do not hesitate to have a look and to tell me what you think: https://www.facebook.com/KaemmerGuitars/ 'Model 222' is a special guitar dedicated to a special person. On February 22nd my first son was born and my grandfather died. With that in mind I've designed and built this guitar with great passion and dedication. The idea of the design was to combine the following aspects: classical, but not a thoughtless carry over of old habits elegant appearance, but not overloaded ergonomic playability and lightweight, without a "freaked out" ergonomic shape expressive and flexible tone range Building time: 02/17 to 08/17 ProjectGuitar.com forum thread of the building process 'Model 222' specifications in short: Scale length: 25.5" Body: Mahogony, chambered Neck: Mahogony, 3 pieces, scarf joint headstock Fretboard: Mahogony, 12" radius, hardened, pore filled and lacquered Top: "flamed" pear wood Pickups: handwound Tuner: Schaller M6 Bridge: Hipshot hardtail, string through Nut: Bone, compensated Pickguard: Aluminium Finish: 2K PUR high gloss Total weight: 2.9kg / 6.4lbs ---- Flamed pear wood top Mahogony fretboard Custom '222' inlay at the 12th fret, aluminium fret dots Aluminium pickguard ---- Drop top at the armrest: Thickest part of the body is 37mm ---- Custom control knobs recessed in the aluminium pickguard Volume pot with push-pull for SC split Tone pot with push-pull as cap switch (gives a warmer, mellower mid range tone) ---- Contour shaped backside for a pleasant feeling Matched electronics cavity cover ---- Three piece mahogony neck, the middle strip is turned over for a improved neck robustness towards weather changes Asymmetric medium v-shaped neck profile Scarf jointed headstock with volute and veneer on the backside ---- Compensated bone nut Matched headstock veneer Aluminium trussrod cover Photographs made by Martin Christ ---- I've filmed myself assemblying the guitar and made a short time lapse video of it - enjoy: Let me know if you like the guitar. Best regards! Sebastian

"For those that might not have seen my build thread, I built this guitar in memory of my firstborn son Chris who passed away 7 months ago, Feb 18, 2017. He was 24 years old. The guitar has special inlays on the back that represent tattoo's that my son had on his chest and shoulder. A Phoenix (mythological bird) symbol, and an Aries (ram). Chris was an Aries and we both have Phoenix tattoo's on our chests for personal reasons. Also smaller versions of each on fretboard and headstock to match This guitar is named "Phoenix" The model is one of my own designs, called "24 Magnum". Its my 12th build to date, I build in my garage/shop at my home. This model, as with most of my builds, has the following notable features: Neck-through-body construction 3-piece laminate neck (all mahogany) carbon fiber neck reinforcement Specs: 25.5″ scale length 24 stainless steel frets 12″ fretboard radius Genuine South American mahogany ( Swietenia macrophylla ) body and neck Bookmatched, flamed maple top Ebony headstock overlay Natural “faux” binding Macassar Ebony Fretboard Original Floyd Rose Tremolo w/ tungsten sustain block Custom white mother-of-pearl phoenix 12th fret and Aries headstock inlays Custom white mother-of-pearl in ebony Aries symbol inlay on back Custom paua abalone and select blue paua Phoenix inlay on back Planet Waves 3×3 locking tuning machines Seymour Duncan pickups – Custom Custom (TB-11) bridge, and Sentient neck 5-way Oak Grigsby super switch (n, n-split, n/br, br-split, br) CTS pots, orange drop caps Nitrocellulose Lacquer The photo of my son Chris is included to show the tattoo's on his chest and shoulder that are the inspiration for the inlays....