Michigan – Claro Walnut w/Italian Spruce top – Commission:
I wanted to give you an early appraisal of the custom Casper, as this next week I am going to be so very busy. I literally won’t have much time to slow down starting Monday the 10th through Monday the 17th, and I felt you would not be best served by my waiting till then to give you some comments about the guitar. The fact is, all that is good about this guitar, will only improve by then, so, I feel confident that what is now the truth about this instrument will only become more so in a week or in a year. So, while I have time, I thought it good to give you my opinion of the instrument based on now having played it enough to know what it’s all about.
First let’s talk about the intrinsic value of the guitar. One of the first things I noticed about this instrument was that it’s fun to play. It’s a lot of fun to play, and that is kinda rare, as most guitars I’ve ever owned, with the exception of the rare 4 or 5 out of about 80, have not been fun to play – but rather they required work to play and that was after they were tweeked and tweeked to be playable at all…The fact is, most guitars are just not that playable, and it’s so rare to pick up an instrument and have that “yeah, this is RIGHT”, experience. Your instrument is built to such a high standard of loving care and craftsmanship that it allows easy translation and transmission of beautiful sounds from the fingers into the air. Of course, this instrument is brand new to my ears, my fingers, and my soul, however, it seems to have already acclimated itself quite well to my musical point of view.
Then there is the build quality of this instrument. Well, you are a long time carpenter with high skill standards and a desire to glean as much perfection out of your woodworking as you can squeeze out of it, and it definitely has been squeezed out of this custom guitar. The lovely lines, the lock tight joinery, the perfect fretwork, the spot on intonation, the dedication to creating a seamless “oneness” to the overall look and feel of the guitar, is just masterfully accomplished. A custom guitar like this one can’t be created by some budding builder with a new Fox bender, a Somogyi book set, some figured wood, and lots of ambition……no no…..This type of world class instrument can only come from the hands of someone who has master class woodworking skills.
Let’s talk about the look of this guitar. Well, it’s just beautiful. Well, I asked for some specific aesthetic details, which were ambitious, and you delivered what I asked for right on the money. The inlay, the binding, the purfling, the rosette, the unique neck, the finish, the custom shape of the instrument’s body, were all created and delivered as ordered. This guitar visually, is like looking at a beautiful landscape painting which depicts springtime flowers dancing together in a beautiful mountain valley where every colored part of floral nature contrasts beautifully within the golden frame.
The special Tone of this guitar is what I would describe as ” gentle and kind”. There is a sweet richness to the mid range that is very appealing. The highs are round and the lows are balanced and the overall effect on the ears is that you are hearing a sweet, lush, sensitive singing tone that caresses your ears when you hear it. Some guitars aim to knock you down with punch, but this guitar wants to hug you with its ample sustain and warm Lovetone.
Thank you for building this guitar for me.
— Larry / Pensacola, Florida / June 2013