What does a custom guitar builder do that a factory doesn't?

One person builds the whole guitar, to a spec worked out from how you play. The finish is nitro, relic'd by hand, so it goes on ageing with you, and the wear goes where you'd wear it. The details a production line skips, like rolled board edges and a bare neck, come on every one.

How does a commission start, and what will I be asked?

With eleven questions about you and none about the spec: what makes you play, the first riff you reach for, who blows your mind, what you can't stand, the colour in your head and how far to take the relic. Your answers become a build sheet with a from-price and a lead time. Then you send it to John, leave it for a while, or pay the deposit.

How much does a custom guitar cost, and how long does it take?

The three models start at £1,875. Half is paid at order and the rest when the guitar is finished, before it ships. The build takes 12–16 weeks from the deposit, plus the carriage.

Can I choose the model, the colour and the spec?

Start from one of the three models and change what it lets you, or start from nothing and describe the guitar you want. The colour, the relic and where it goes are yours. Rolled edges and a bare neck come on every one, and we don't do Floyds.

Commission

What's your dream guitar? What do you see yourself playing?

Start your sound How it works

A few questions about how you play. Ten minutes, and nothing is booked until you say so.

How it works

What a commission looks like, start to finish.

We're a custom guitar builder of one: John, in a shed in Hopton, Suffolk, building fewer than ten guitars a year. This is everything between the first question and the guitar arriving in its case, with what it costs and how long it takes.

Let's be honest: most of us have had dreams about owning a genuine '57 Strat or a burst Les Paul. But they're rare — we'll skip over the cost — and the truth is that they may not be what you want, because they would not be yours in a way a custom guitar can be. So we build relics: finishes you'd swear were 70 years old — some look like they've been dug up, some like they've aged 50 years and never seen air, and everything in between.

A conversation costs nothing, and we're always happy to chew the fat about your ideas. If you can dream it, we can build it. But it's your guitar, so ask anything. Just don't ask for a Floyd.

The questionsEleven, about how you play, what you can't stand, the colour and the relic, and not one about the spec. Skip any, or say it your way. Ten minutes, and nothing to pay.

The build sheetIt fills in as you answer: the spec in plain words, a from-price and the lead time, with the reason next to every line. Anything we've guessed, you change.

Where it's goingAsked on the sheet, with the carriage and the transit insurance shown before you commit.

Your callSend it to John, sit on it, or pay the deposit. Nothing is booked until you say so.

Our replyWe read every one and write back within a day.

The deposit50% of the price, through Stripe's own checkout. The building starts when it lands.

ChangesAsk within seven days of ordering, as long as work hasn't started and the materials aren't ordered.

The build12–16 weeks at the bench. If it's going to be longer, we tell you, with a new date.

The balanceInvoiced when the guitar is finished and set up, with the carriage and the insurance, before it ships.

ShippingUPS, tracked and insured for the full value: three to five days in the UK, usually ten to twenty-one abroad. Import duties and taxes are yours. Or collect it from the shed.

A new neck, named and not yet lacquered.

John, on relics
If we're building you a guitar, you're going to fill it with your stories. We don't know what they are, and quite frankly we don't care. They're yours.

What's yours to choose, and what comes on every one.

Where to startOne of the three models, or nothing at all: tell us the guitar in your head. A Raven or a Magpie, on request.

The colourFifty in the library, Fender's, Gibson's, Gretsch's and a few of our own, or pretty much any RAL colour in nitro.

The relicFrom dug up out of a field to fifty years in a case, and everything in between.

The timberOn the DeVille, four bodies and four tops to choose from. Set on the Thickline and the Gateway Drug Line.

Where it goesAnywhere. Commissions are open to every country.

On every oneRolled fingerboard edges and a bare, waxed neck. Not a choice.

Not at allFloyds, fan frets, seven- and eight-strings, acoustics, fakes, and the same guitar twice.

What it costs.

The price on the site is the price: we're not VAT registered, so nothing is added at the end. The from-price is on your build sheet before you pay anything.

The Gateway Drug Line	from £1,875
The Thickline	from £2,375
The DeVille	from £3,225
Deposit	Half, at order
Lead time	12–16 weeks
Carriage, the United Kingdom	£60
Carriage, the United States	£220
Carriage, Canada	£220
Carriage, the European Union	£80
Transit insurance	1.25% of the price

John's hands holding a magnifier and a blade over the sonic blue finish of Echo — The relic work on Echo, under the glass.

Common questions.

What does a custom guitar builder do that a factory doesn't?: One person builds the whole guitar, to a spec worked out from how you play. The finish is nitro, relic'd by hand, so it goes on ageing with you, and the wear goes where you'd wear it. The details a production line skips, like rolled board edges and a bare neck, come on every one.
How does a commission start, and what will I be asked?: With eleven questions about you and none about the spec: what makes you play, the first riff you reach for, who blows your mind, what you can't stand, the colour in your head and how far to take the relic. Your answers become a build sheet with a from-price and a lead time. Then you send it to John, leave it for a while, or pay the deposit.
How much does a custom guitar cost, and how long does it take?: The three models start at £1,875. Half is paid at order and the rest when the guitar is finished, before it ships. The build takes 12–16 weeks from the deposit, plus the carriage.
Can I choose the model, the colour and the spec?: Start from one of the three models and change what it lets you, or start from nothing and describe the guitar you want. The colour, the relic and where it goes are yours. Rolled edges and a bare neck come on every one, and we don't do Floyds.

Start with the questions, write to John, or come and play one.

Start your soundWrite to John Play one

The relic'd edge of the Runaway, bare korina showing through pale green paint — The Runaway's edge, korina through the green.