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Whether it is your your first or 50th or 100th, what has been your very favorite guitar. And what was the single biggest factor that makes it stand out in your mind?

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

So far, it would be my number 1. Why? It sounds great and it's my #1. What other reason do I need?

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Waddy

Photobucket Build Album Library

Sound Clips of most of my guitars

My current strat. It's Fiesta Red with some Daphne Blue showing through the contours, birdseye neck and mad. rose fretboard. I've really invested and taken my setup skills to a new level on it. Same with electronics. After working with four sets in it, I've gotten to the point of being able to change pickups in under 20 minutes. I'm still shy about showing off my instruments to gigging musicians and pros, but this one has gotten really nice compliments and remarks from them. Just the most positive experience I've had with a guitar to date.

This one comes to mind although I like most all of them. This is my road trip demo guitar and has made a couple trips around the US and has been played well by many people so it has been "played in" so to speak. I like it because it reminds me of an old Froggy Bottom that I played years ago in Gryphon Music, Palo Alto, Ca. That guitar was so responsive and light, it just felt very good in my hands and this one feels like that too. Currently it resides next to my easy chair.
Here is a little tune by Doug Young, one of the road trip participants.
http://www.dougyoungguitar.com/apm/Ragpickin_on_How.mp3

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Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

All 300 + are my favorites.
But ,I made a Flamenco (Flammer) for a elderly Spanish man living in this country with family and he cried when he tried his new guitar!
He had some Spanish ones here !
He said it was like the sound he remembered growing up in Spain!

Not fancy ;but it moved the new owner to tears !!
nothing better than that!

Mike

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Mike Collins

Funny you should mention that. I was just playing this one, and thinking, "this is my favorite guitar that I've made."



I'm not sure what makes it my favorite. I hand-wound the pickups, and love the sound of them, so that's probably it. The neck is perfect for me too. Ok, so I guess I know why it's my favorite.

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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

And what is yours, Lance?

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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

Yeah Lance bro give-it-up will ya? Let's see your favorite?

As for my favorite it would be one of the twins which are identical except for the tonewoods and headstock shape. One is Koa/Carp and the other is BRW/Adi and both are OMs.





What makes it tough is that this one is also a favorite and seems to get most of the attention from people other than me. This is the Black Tiger with Tasmanian Tiger Myrtle back and sides and one of Shane's Lutz tops. This is the loudest guitar that I have ever made.... but the BRW OM above is a very close second.





Sorry to post more than one pic/guitar - this question to me is not unlike being asked which is your favorite kid - you have to love them all...

GREAT thread!!!

Id have to say a guitar I made for a fella in Ohio, LS Cocobolo.

It has the sweetest voice.


For looks, its my 000-OM Fingerstylist LS Koa.

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

This one, because it plays like butter.

The one FedEx destroyed

The next one!



Last year, it was..... The next one!

Pat

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formerly known around here as burbank
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http://www.patfosterguitars.com

With apologies for the awful photos, my favourite would be this one, a 12 fret OOO.

Why is it my favourite? It was the first one which gave some hint that I was on the right track in terms of sound. I was also lucky enough to see it in the hands of its new owner, a gifted player who invited me to a concert where he played for a small but appreciative audience. I clearly remember feeling at that time that all the trials and tribulations involved in learning this craft had been worthwhile.

Cheers
Pete

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Cheers
Pete

I have only completed 3 so far and the 1st (000 cutaway) and 3rd ( Martin size Jumbo) get all the playing time, but the 1st has a nostalgia about it and the small body is comfortable. I think #5 the Manzer wedge that will get the box closed this weekend will become my go to guitar as with a bad shoulder I can't wait for some comfort while playing. The Dread and Jumbo will be looking for a new home real soon.

Fred

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Fred Tellier
http://www.fetellierguitars.com
Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/FE-Tellier-Guitars/163451547003866

It's hard to pick between these two but,
I'd say the L-00 Mahogany/Adi followed closely by the 00 12 fret Blackwood/Euro

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Anderson Guitars
Clearwater,Fl. 33755

I haven't built enough to call one of them my favorite. I'm sure it's going to be the next one though a Taz Blackwood/Lutz SJ with lots of abalone inlays.

Close second it "Grace" my maple/ceder GC

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My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

I'm with Dave on liking the little guys. This one is probably my favorite so far.
TJK

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

For now it's this one; a cherry/sitka classical with flamed makore bindings. But I got a feeling the new classical I'm about to put strings on today will be my new favorite!

It seems as I'm getting more experienced, I'm always a little more proud of the more recent build.

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Alain Moisan
Former full time builder of Acoustics, Classicals and Flamencos.
(Now building just for fun!)

Nice geeters guys!
Still one of my favs is “Gabe” mostly because of its unique tone.
It started as an experiment inspired by Colin to make a flattop with a pierced sound hole.
However, throwing a lute-like sound hole onto a conventional guitar shape just didn’t look right. Starting with the rosette design, I attempted to incorporate design elements into the rest of the instrument. There was a lot of back-and-forth in the design stages to get it to look right by my eye. I was happy with the result and still reach for Gabe over most of my other builds. Thanks again Colin for your guidance.

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Wade
Nashua, NH
http://www.wadefx.com

Wade, I agree, it looks amazing Do you by chance have any close-up shots? I'd love to see the details on the upper bout "horns"

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Olivier Gauthier
Montreal, QC

My first one since I'm still working on it and making jigs at the same time.

Vince

Thanks Oli,

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Wade
Nashua, NH
http://www.wadefx.com

Wade, thank you for the shot, it is lovely what medium did you use for that? ink, paint...? and did you treat the top with anything prior, to prevent any bleeding? I once used color pencils on a bass I was refinishing, out of knowledge/options/abilities to use anything else... the result was a mess fortunately it was a personnal project... anyway!

nice job

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Olivier Gauthier
Montreal, QC

Oli,
I cut into the top with various blades, knifes and tools to make the appropriate indentations and sharp lines, then filled them with an epoxy and dark rosewood dust mix.
When the epoxy cures, you sand it back until it looks right.
I don't think I treated the top prior to the prosses but it may be a good idea.
The trick is not going too far or too deep in this case.
Some experimenting on test pieces of wood may be necessary if you want to try this!

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Wade
Nashua, NH
http://www.wadefx.com

Yes still one of my favourites as well Wade, a true work of art.

My favourite is my La lena, my Torres homage. Looking back on it it was the culmination of ten years of guitar building, kind of what I had been leading up to making. It was two years in the planning, and involved a lot of discussion with Joshua, it kept as close as possible to the spirit of a first epoch Torres, including the use of hand tools only in its construction. It was built to play the music of Tarrega, and I worked as hard on the music as I did on the guitar, so that the two could come together at the same time. It would have been a disaster if I could play the music, but the guitar didn't match it, or if the guitar was ideal but the playing stank. To my ears the guitar worked (indeed the professor of guitar at the RCM had me make him an exact copy) the playing, if I say so myself, wasn't too bad. Specifically it was built with this one piece of Tarrega in mind. Caprichio Arabe






Colin

PS I quite liked my Redwood/Cuban mahogany OOO as well

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.