Case Study – Antique Pine Tempest

Client: Angus Mather, UK

The Brief

Angus is a guitar enthusiast who was in search of a custom UK guitar builder that used primarily UK-sourced components. “I was looking for a UK guitar builder who used primarily locally sourced materials. Call me old fashioned but I have a huge amount of faith in British manufacturing because I am old enough to remember when we had a huge industrial base and UK products were seen by the world as a sign of quality and durability. I already have Gibson and Fender guitars and I bought the USA made versions for similar reasons.”

After some research, Angus was attracted to Munson Guitars, a boutique custom guitar manufacturer located in an industrial area in Norfolk where Angus had spent much of his working life. He felt a personal attachment to the area, and it piqued his interest in Munson Guitars.

“When I visited Carl, he showed me some of his other custom projects, truly amazing!”

Angus shared his desire for a pine guitar with P90 pickups. “When I mentioned this to Carl he said that he had recently sourced some pine from a 160-year old building that had been demolished in Lowestoft and for me that sealed the deal, how cool is that? Guitars are very personal items, and I can honestly say that I obtain pleasure every time I pick up a beautiful guitar, there is something very soulful about a good guitar.”

The Design

Angus loved our process, being brought into the workshop virtually to be involved in all facets of the design, and seeing the guitar develop from raw wood into a beautiful instrument. “We live 300 miles apart and it was easy to communicate via zoom.”

“Working with Carl was a delight. I was set on a pine guitar with P90 pick ups and, between us, we worked from there.  Appearance is important so we settled on black hardware to set off the vintage pine and at Carl’s suggestion we opted for a RichLite fretboard.  This rather appealed to me, the mix of antique wood with a very modern alternative to traditional fretboard materials. As it worked out, the RichLite makes a lovely smooth fretboard so sliding from one end of the fretboard to the other is a dream and very easy on the fingers, good call!” RichLite is an engineered product made from paper. It has some really cool benefits, such as being really stable, being impervious to humidity and temperature, it has similar tonal properties as ebony, and is eco-friendly.  

For the kind of music Angus played, we eventually opted for a humbucker in the bridge position, and a P90 at the neck. Both were handwound in the UK by Bare Knuckle Pickups. The humbucker provides a thick, warm tone with reduced noise, while the P90 adds some grit and midrange bite to the sound. Overall, the resulting sound is unique and versatile; and, with the addition of a push/pull pot to split the humbucker, Angus has a range of tonal options at his disposal.

3D CAD Modeling

All custom guitars start in the computer in the CAD system. Angus was able to visualise a 3D model of his guitar using the 3D portal, from the comfort of his own home. This enabled him to make some design tweaks prior to actually cutting of any wood.

The Build

The Antique Pine Tempest

“As you might expect, a pine bodied guitar is going to sound a little different to the heavier woods used by other manufacturers. And it really does, the sustain is amazing. I have already mentioned the fretboard and the bridge Carl chose is low and compact and is by far the easiest to use of all my guitars for palm muting.”

The finish was carefully selected to bring out the depth and beauty of the grain. The imperfections that come with using reclaimed wood make the instrument really unique. “I just love the look of the guitar. Pine is a very warm material and the finish on the guitar suits the warmth of the pine and is very different to the high gloss effect of [my] American [guitars].” Angus particularly loves the guitar’s character, which sets it apart from the flawless, clinical perfection of modern mass-produced guitars: “If anything, the perfection they achieve perhaps makes them a little too clinical. Take a look at Stevie Ray Vaughn’s Strat or Rick Parfitt’s Telecaster, they have character. “

Benefits of a Custom Guitar

Munson Guitars, a UK Custom guitar builder, create one off custom instruments designed specifically for each client. We were able to build a guitar to meet Angus’s specific requirements. and he was able to experience the build from beginning to end.

“I have to say that I am no Jeff Beck and there isn’t a guitar made that is going to make me sound like him.  What I will say is that the Munson stands next to me at the dining room table and it is my go-to instrument. It makes such a sweet sound without the need to fiddle with the amp for special effects, I love it.”

“I wanted something a little different that would also have that something special that would link me to a very large part of my life spent in the vicinity of Carl’s workshop. I can honestly say that Carl provided that something and when all said and done Carl produces something special at a price the large manufacturers can not come anywhere near.  They are a small company and don’t have to satisfy shareholders so you get a lot of bang for your bucks as the Americans would say.”

“Payment is made in stages as the guitar progresses against payment milestones and Carl and I spoke regularly throughout the build process.”

“I damaged my left wrist quite badly playing football many years ago so as a right handed person I suddenly became a left-handed guitarist.  This wasn’t a problem to Carl and he even gives a discount to lefties as he is also left handed. “

The Finished Antique Pine Tempest

What Next?

Does this Antique Pine Tempest inspire you to start your own guitar build? Click here to find out more.