Official Luthiers Forum!

As some of you know Dave has owned all of Ann Arbor Guitars since last December. I wanted him to have smooth sailing if anything happens to me since he's the real talent at our shop so I sold out to him last December. But our deal lets me continue to work as much as I want as long as I want as a contractor and that's what I have been doing all of 2023 and enjoying the hell out of it.

No more management or ownership responsibilities for me and that's pretty OK with me. The good part, the part I absolutely love more than nearly anything else these days working on guitars and making folks happy as clams I still get to do all I want of. So I go in in the mornings for several hours, give treats to Kibbeh the black lab in Dave's family and fix stuff and enjoy the hell out of it.

I found out that I qualify for a Martin employee/vendor guitar which is a very cool program for Martin employees and vendors. I can have something, anything built for me and they are giving me a huge discount. So much so that I could not resist.

One of the occupational hazards of repairing over 600 guitars annually which I am on track to do this year is I see stuff I like all of the time. Then I want one for myself.... and since my Lutherie income is free and clear I'm dangerous....

In the last few years here is a list of guitars that I acquired because I worked on one, played it, liked it and wanted one:

Collings I-35
Collings 290
Sadowski Semi Hollow body
Suhr Strat
Suhr Tele
Suhr Tele with humbucker in the neck position

So the latest edition to my family here will be a Martin CEO-7 that is being built for me soon and I expect delivery in about 6 months. I've worked on a lot of these and always liked them. They remind me of the 30's L-OOs only with better build quality and materials. The CEO-7s are also my kind of acoustic with a proper dovetail neck joint, Adi top, hog sides, small, light enough that when you pick it up you hit yourself in the face with it...

And it's what started a huge fight here on the OLF in 2007 it's a proper sunburst, my favorite.

I'm excited to get mine and will likely be putting a K&K in it since it's that kind of guitar to me and how I play mostly flat picking.

In a couple of years when I retire completely I will have come to the OLF 20+ years ago as a corporate executive and learned to build guitars. Then having met Rick "you ain't **** unless you learn the repair business" Turner RIP I did indeed with Dave Collin's help learn the repair business. We've serviced to date well over 10,000 guitars many of them Martins. And then I will go home to retire completely and likely be a Smurf in my pjs crapping on myself wishing I was younger and waiting for meals on wheels to feed me. You can see why I'm hanging on..... I hate PJs.... Especially with feet in them OMG....

Anyway meet my latest episode of GAS and something, a vendor guitar that I am proud to have qualified for.

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Ann Arbor Guitars

A dream guitar for sure.

Hard to get a guitar built by someone else after two decades of rolling your own. I just bought my first guitar since 1999. Not near as nice, of course. It’s odd playing it, but refreshing. I find I’m much more forgiving and just play the dang thing instead of planning my new build around minor complaints.


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Great story, and nice guitar. Can't hardly wait to hear about it after you get it!

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Measure Twice,

Karl Borum

Hesh Onsies are the best Pj's lol

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Just try to avoid sandals, with black knee socks

No worries I tossed my Birkenstocks years ago

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Congratulations, Hesh. I hope this guitar does combine everything you like in an instrument, and truly become yours once striking the first notes. I sincerely believe that musician are often attracted to specs because of their eyes, but believe a career repair person may go beyond that and truly experience their soulmate instrument.

Hope it sounds great. Keep us informed!

Thanks Fred and you're right repair folks have the opportunity to be inside and outside of an instrument through the ones we see before we commit. That's what happened with these. For several years now when I work on one of these it gets my attention.

My retirement plan is MUCH more strumming with my friends so this one will be a favorite I'm sure.

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Congrats Hesh, thats an absolute sweetie unit to be sure.
I also notice you have a couple Collings listed there, they've always been a company thats on my peripheral as we dont seem to have so many distributers up here but dang they are getting a lot of my attention lately, especially their Collings 470JL
I know its not an acoustic but seeing your Wishlist made me think of it. Definitely one Im lusting after at the moment.

Hey Charlie I hope you are doing great!

Yes the 470 is a real looker and with a Bixby too. I've had my eye on those as well.

I've been collecting the last 5 years or so and buying a lot of guitars. Two makers deliver guitars in my experience that are superbly set-up when they leave the factory and they have been Collings and Sadowsky. I always set-up what is added to the collection here but on these two makers what I have to do to set them up is very minimal along with string changes to what I use and like. Really nice to see this level of quality control.

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Ann Arbor Guitars