Here are photo galleries of my latest guitar models with a short description of each unique project. Click any thumbnail to open the slideshow for that guitar.
The Soundport
This guitar was made for a musician who wanted a slightly thinner body for comfort, but still wanted a good acoustic tonal range and a good acoustic volume as well. The customer also wanted the guitar to be electric as well, after rejecting the floating humbucker idea, we agreed on a body mounted pickup made by Seymour Duncan. So I started to make an oversized ebony pickup ring and from there took it down to height as I needed. What I ended up with is a body mounted pickup, but with no hole cut in the top plate. So the integrity of the top plate and the acoustics of the guitar were never altered. Also to give the player more of a direct monitor of the acoustics I built the guitar with a soundport in the players side on the upper bout, plus its cool to be able to see inside the guitar! The guitar has a comfortable 25″ scale, a nut width of 1.75″ and body width is 17″. Surprisingly to many the thinner body actualy still sounds like a deep, articulated, classic archtop.
The Archtop
The Express
The “Express” is based on my “Soloist” model the only differences are that the “Express” is fitted with a floating humbucker so not to disturb the acoustics of the guitar and still give it that fat warm round jazz tone through amplification. The solid ebony fingerboard has a 25\” scale with a solid ebony bridge and fittings. There are eight layers of purfling and flame maple binding that is hand fitted. The master-grade German spruce top plate is a very rare piece of wood with exceptional wood grain properties and a superb tap-tone. The back and sides are fitted with a rare piece of European maple that comes from the old country of Northern Italy where many great violin and cello builders have been getting their wood from for centuries. These pieces of wood are so rare that to find something like this someone has to sort through a thousand pieces of wood before they find one that is of the quality these tonewoods are at. Truly an instrument for a lifetime of creative enjoyment!
17-inch Soloist
Finely tuned, hand-carved big leaf maple back, sides and a master-grade sitka spruce top x-braced. Top qaulity macassar ebony fingerboard, headplate and fittings. Responds beautifully for the fingerstyle player. An instrument designed for studio qaulity mic’d recordings.
16-inch Euro
A 16″ wide body with parallel bracing and a lower arching height with specific thickness graduations carved in the top and back tone woods all combined to capture the essence of a true classic archtop that is very articulate and and plays like a dream. The sound holes are from my love for European design. It is made with a master-grade German spruce top plate with big leaf quilt maple back and sides and also is fitted with a 5-piece northeastern hard maple neck.
Triple O
Figured Clairo Walnut and figured Hawaiian Koa and a Adirondack spruce top adorns this guitar. The warmth and clarity of the walnut seems to lend easily to articulated finger style playing, as well as the Adirondack spruce top brings that vintage 1930\’s tone to the forefront! The guitar has a Paduk rosette bridge and headstock fittings and the bindings, end graft, headstock are made from Hawaiian Koa. There is a very thin red purfling underlying the Koa that really makes the bindings “pop” without being garish. This guitar is perfect for mic’d studio recordings or just sitting on the porch and jamming with some friends.
17-inch Genteel Archtop
This 17 in. cutaway archtop features hand graduated solid spruce top with quilted maple back and sides. The finger board includes custom Abalone inlay shaped like a rose vine. This is an eye-caching piece that is not only beautiful in it lavish cosmetics, but its tonewoods are 1 out-of 1,000 in rarity and qaulity pieces of wood that are carved to allow optimum performance for the guitarist. This guitar was sold at Lark Street Music in Teaneck, New Jersey. Visit Lark Street Music to view more information about this archtop.
18-inch Archtop
This is a classic 18inch archtop guitar that shines with an appeal for the old Stromberg guitars of the late 40’s. With a volume that will cut through any band and a tone that can be articulated into being an expressive solo instrument. This guitar is a true investment! The top is constructed from the finest hand-graduated sitka spruce and features hand fitted x-bracing that is shape for the ultimate tone from the top. The back and sides are hand-graduated with the same attention to detail and joined together with meticulous care. The neck is shaped by hand using precision tools to ensure the smoothest feel for any musician. The neck, headstock and body feature ebony appointments and Mother-of-Pearl inlay to make your archtop look and feel like a true work of art.
Howler
This signature guitar features a beautifully contoured body, hand-shaped with accentuated shoulders and powerfully resonating tone holes. The plates were hand-carved to provide more versatility in tonal options. The Lindy Fralin hand-wound hum bucker pickups give you power, grace and total clarity. This guitar is completely hollow, but I do make them semi-hollow bodies as well, which is suitable for loud live performances to really fight feedback. This guitar is finished with a multi-shaded stain and nitrocellulose lacquer, giving it a “wet” like appearance and gives superior protection.
Electric Tele
The solid ash body of this classic telecaster was cut and shaped by hand with ample cut-away space under the neck to crank those high notes during your solo. The neck is hand turned and plays silky smooth even after years of play. This telecaster features a traditional single coil pickup on the bridge with a humbucking pickup on the neck, giving you power and elegance even at the highest volumes so you can fill up that stadium with a wall of sound or bring it down for an electric serenade. The solid body on this telecaster features a unique stained finish giving it a striped appearance as though it were three pieces of wood joined together. The stain can be replaced with your choice of color or even with a sunburst finish like the classic Fender tele played by so many famous musicians. A pick guard is optional, according to your playing style and needs.
Archtop Classic
This is a classic archtop guitar perfect for any jazz enthusiast from beginner to advanced. The top is constructed from the finest hand-graduated spruce and features a beautiful hand-carved tone hole design that helps keep the instrument perfectly tuned even in the most extreme conditions. The back and sides are hand-graduated with the same attention to detail and joined together with meticulous care. The neck is shaped by hand using precision tools to ensure the smoothest feel for any musician. The neck, headstock and body feature ebony appointments and abalone inlay to make your archtop look and feel like a true work of art. The beautiful sunburst finish on this archtop was mixed in a small batch and the color can be customized to reflect your unique personality, needs, or desires. The specially formulated nitrocellulose lacquer is designed to dry crystal clear with enough rigidity to protect your instrument and enough flexbility to allow the wood to vibrate freely.
Garvey Guitars 