Official Luthiers Forum!

“Doing Business As” This is the simplest singular proprietor or partnership business entity. Where the propiator or partners are the entity and assume all liability.

I build guitars because I love to. For me it is a passion. I didn't start this business , it more of less started me. As I started to get successful and I found that I could take this hobby to the next level I learned early the value of my labor. I also discovered how to get my business diversified so I can work one side of the business when the other side is slow.
Should you believe you want to make it a business, you have to love what you do. I often cannot wait to get in the shop. Take it as far as you want but you have to realize to make a living at this , you can forget an 8 hour day.
Those that know me and visited my shop can see that time is not to be wasted . I can tell you that learning how to use your capital and utilize cash flow. It isn't easy but it can be very rewarding. Invest back into your business
Good luck in your venture
john hall

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John Hall
blues creek guitars
Authorized CF Martin Repair
Co President of ASIA
You Don't know what you don't know until you know it

reminds of that old joke I've heard a lot as a musician....but probably has some relevence in all facets of the industry
anyway,


Q: How do you make a million dollars in the music industry?


A: Well, First you start off with $2 Million.

(Kevin Ryan mentored me through a lot of the early stages of my business, before I got the Fadal even. In timeline, this is back when his website didn't have a single picture of his face on it, so the only pictures I'd seen of him were very grainy tradeshow clips.)

The first time I visited Kevin, and the first time I actually saw him, I said something to the effect of "Ahh, so this is what the luthier looks like!".

Kevin said "Naw, this is what some guy looks like", then he inverted his pockets and said "THIS is what a luthier looks like!"

Great guy

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

Personally? Never. I estimate I've probably ploughed close to 15,000 dollars into this hobby (18,000 dollars?) over the course of about 5 years - earned first mowing lawns, then small 'on the side' jobs, then freelance translating (which paid really good money in a time when I had pretty minimal other expenses). This leaves me with tooling and wood that should keep me going for decades to come at the current rate, with the occasional acquisition of a bit more wood (short on fingerboards and necks right now) and hardware now and then. My goal is to be able to stop adding money to the hobby, and finance whatever tool upgrades I want/need with funds garnered from building guitars. Right now, I'm largely working in the 'friends market', and the friends-of-friends market, at my own very, very slow pace.

In part, this is because I have a demanding, exciting, fantastic job (I'm really loving cardiology, the trick now is to specialise) which takes up a lot of time, other hobbies I also enjoy (photography in particular) that are easier to fit into a hectic schedule. Guitarbuilding is a true passion for me, but I don't really want to turn it into a carreer.

Many don't consider other avenues of $.
Here in the states there is the Small Business Administration which is famous for loans but also is a well of grants, you know, free money.
Many universities house an SBA office and are staffed by college kids who would be glad to help you find and apply for grants dealing with the arts.
Many take in repairs on the sides but. don't consider teaching. Trained student + jigs = labor that pays to work there.( in a perfect world)
There may even be grants for taking on students or apprentices.
Luthiers are a friendly community as evidenced by the forums I participate in. It is surprising to me that consolidation of luthieries is not happening yet. New companies could be formed based on the talents of multiple luthiers. There could be many assets to be explored by this arrangement.
Not interested in playing nice with others? How about mass producing a particular instrument part? Bridges, sides & back sets. I see a company represented here that does pre-fab inlay.
Find a niche and mine the hell out of it.

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Anything too stupid to be said is sung. -Voltaire

Or if you don't want to or aren't good enough to teach lutherie then you might be able to apply your woodworking skills in other areas like furniture restoration, renovations, you know things that have a much bigger market compared to building guitars. Like in Taiwan the market for renovations is big, considering the number of contractors and businesses going in and out of business... (the street I live in constantly has someone remodeling... it gets annoying!)

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

I don't know the answer on how to make money...I've been doing this 13 years, and I just lost the best paying job I've ever had due to layoffs! But I've gotta figure out a way to make some money!

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

John, that sucks. I'm sorry to hear that.

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Mike

"The Dude abides. I don't know about you but I take comfort in that. It's good knowin' he's out there. The Dude. Takin' 'er easy for all us sinners. Shoosh." The Stranger

John, how many aspiring luthiers are there in the world? I received your Advanced Voicing DVD last week and I can recommend to every one of them that they order a copy for themselves. Despite reading everything I could on the subject, it still seemed like a black art - until I watched your DVD. Perhaps it's marketing that's the black art.

Cheers
Pete

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Cheers
Pete

Sorry to hear this John, this seems very unfair but your a talented man so something is bound to turn up trumps for you pretty quick M8.

Good luck with it, hope it's a turn for the better.

Cheers

Kim

Thanks for the nice words Pete. I'm glad you've enjoyed the videos.
There are lots of aspiring luthiers. I sell a couple sets of videos a month give or take. It helps for sure.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

Where can I buy them? how much for the DVD?

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Thanks Kim. I'm going back out on my own. It was a interesting experience working for McPherson, but they just couldn't sell enough guitars to keep it going in this economy. It's all good. I'm not looking for any pity party here, but this thread is rather timely! I just launched my new website and such and I've already taken a few orders in. I'm lucky I have a decent name to fall back on and it's cool cause I build better guitars than I ever have. I'm actually excited about the future. Plus I have quite a number of my electrics on order as well....anyway thanks for the best wishes. I know better things are down the road.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

It's a set of 14 DVD's on various aspects of guitar making. You can see them and purchase them if you're inclined too from http://www.cncguitarparts.com It doesn't show the two newest videos on his site but the set DOES come with them. John just has not updated his site yet. He has the best price on the web right now for my videos. here is a direct link: http://www.cncguitarparts.com/product_i ... cts_id=276

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

I only need the video on voicing the guitar... is it possible to get just that and not the whole set? I only need to know what to listen for when tapping the soundboard...

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Cat-gut strings are made from kitten guts, stretched out to near breaking point and then hardened with grue saliva. As a result these give a feeling of Pain and anguish whenever played, and often end up playing themselves backwards as part of satanic rituals.

Typhoon Guitars
http://www.typhoon-guitars.com

Sure e-mail me at johnm@mayesguitars.com and we'll sort it out.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com