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I had a great opportunity this year to work on a very special project. My client approached me with a special request: he wanted twin heirloom guitars built for his grandkids. But more than that, he wanted to use walnut that he and his father had felled on their family farm in the early 90s. The wood was "sub par" for normal lutherie wood, but the project made this one a no brainer for me. I have a very close relationship with my grandfather and seeing where his heart was with this project really hit home with me.

So I traveled up to his place to dig through the piles of rough lumber and burls. He originally wanted solid burled walnut back & sides, but the burls were too small and filled with defects that made them unstable for such important parts. Instead, I assured him that I would work in the burl in as many accent places as I could. When I left his place, I had a car full of large boards of walnut, burls, and little bit of quartersawn white oak.

He had insisted that the guitars be as close to identical as possible, so I carefully resawed the walnut so as to be able to get both guitars' back & sides from the same billet. Throughout the process I often held the guitars next to one another to transfer the location of one detail to the other.

I am extremely happy with how these guitars turned out. It was a very rewarding process and one that I am proud to have been a part of. The draw of lutherie for me is the ability to take a tree that has been cut down and give it new life. This project went one step further and allowed me to be a part of something so much larger than myself.

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ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Very cool Chris. It's great to be able to do something with unique wood like that. What's going on on the side? Looks like an inlay. Just curious. How wide is the Walnut purfling on the top? Looks great with the rosette. You did a good job of getting the aesthetics tied together.

I'd not call that walnut sub par looks real nice to me. So... Which one sounds better?

Danny,
The sides have a small burl inlay that is outlined in ebony. One of the guitars had a defect in the sides, so I used it as an opportunity to incorporate some more burl. The walnut purfling is .085 wide.

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ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Actually, there is a very slight difference between the two- mostly in volume.

As for the quality of the wood, there were knots, voids, and cracks that all had to be stabilized. It made it very difficult to bend the sides.

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ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Ah ok I see. Well you made them look quite nice.

I love these kind of stories. My phone just keeps buffering so I haven't got a chance to see them yet. Has to do with a rock concert that just left town. Out towers are turned the wrong way.


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Wow!

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wah
Wah-wah-wah-wah
Wah

Wow indeed. Nice duo there Chris. I really like the aesthetics, kinda been a good project all round, Congrats.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

Here is a video of the guitars being played:

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ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Beautiful guitars. Its cool how they hover in the photos

Very very nice Chris.

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Thank You and Best To All

Absolutely amazing looking and sounding. Great job!!

Rad.

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sweat the small stuff.

I would say your client got the heirlooms he wanted. Very nice guitars and story. Thanks for sharing.

A great project that turned out great!

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Expectation is the source of all misery; comparison the thief of joy.
http://redrivercanoe.ca/

I finally got to see them and hear them. Great job great story.


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Thanks for all the nice words everyone. This was a very rewarding project.

Quine,
The hovering guitar option is becoming very popular with my clients.

_________________
ELEVATE || Next Level Lutherie
http://elevatelutherie.com
&
http://ensorguitars.com

Very nice Chris.


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Chris

Great story. Great craftsmanship. Great legacy.

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Doug

Don't let fear or common sense stop you from trying to build something

They are outstanding, Chris. Wonderful job bringing your client's wish to life!

They certainly are a great looking pair of guitars.

Steve

It looks great, bravo

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久保
美智え

I bet! Congratulations on making such a success of it!

They both look and sound great. What a great project. Congratulations on a successful completion.

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http://www.Harvestmoonguitars.com