Who gigs with your Custom Shop guitar?
 

In the past dozen years I have played Wingert, Kinnaird, Merrill, and Brondel.

Since the Wingert and Kinnaird are both gone ( sigh...) I use the Brondel with a K&K.

Who else is in the deep musical waters with expensive, handmade guitars?

I haven't "gigged" in a very long time but, I wouldn't hesitate to bring my Bonanzinga on stage if I felt it were the right instrument for the right song.

Gigging with a custom...
 

I don't gig all that often, but I've used my Doerr at gigs before, and I plan on using my upcoming Stehr to gig with when it's completed. Guitars are works of art that are meant to be shared...IMHO...

Hmmm.... I play in church with my Michaud Made "Lucky Tree". Does that count? :p

Counts in my book--One of the best gigs going on!

I ONLY gig w/ Hand-Made Guitars
 

Aloha,

For over 38 years, I have ONLY gigged w/ three self-made Koa 00/000 -size guitars. Even my "beach" guitar is an all-Koa 00 sized beauty with almost no acoutrements. They've only gotten better sounding with time & regular playing.

I made them because I needed smaller bodied guitars (less feedback live) that would fit my huge hands. Factory-made never worked for me, how they feel or sound.

Before custom & luthier-made guitars became (by necessity) these precious & very expensive gems that are rarely played by many regular gigging players (because of the cost), I saw more of them being played by my generation of giggers. Of course, here at AGF, I'm sure that most seasoned veterans who gig w/ custom guitars play them without fear & with much love.

It's too bad the ever-increasing prices are placing custom-built guitars beyond the means of younger & average, sometime giggers because I still think they are the best guitars ever made. And I suspect that the bulk go to collectors, dealers & occasional players who can afford this generation of great instruments. Too bad really. They'll never reach their sonic potential in the air-tight vaults of collectors. By pricing contrast, when I was in my 20's (1970's), I could get all the 1920's & 30's vintage small-bodied Martins I could ever want for under $500 & many custom luthiers offered base models starting at the same price.

That's why I often encourage players here to try & make their own guitars & play them all the time whereever.

A great guitar doesn't become great - unless it is played all the time. That's the fallacy of having too many guitars or a "quiver" (Ha!) of guitars or of keeping your more expensive, hand-made guitars at home for recording only. Most will not get played often enough in that equation to become & stay great sounding guitars. Guitars MUST be played to reach their potential. So, no limitations or reservations here about which of my hand-made guitars I gig out with or where.

alohachris

Playing a fine handmade instrument in church helps spread the joy your instrument makes.

Jim Earp of San Diego has been gigging with the guitar he made for 20 or more years.

Peter Finger plays guitars, outstanding guitars,that he has built.

My lowly Martin Custom Shop guitar gigs with me... My bass player's Greven Brazilian 1935 D-28 clone gigs with him... My dead buddy's Moonstone Norman Blake gigged with him.

I tend to have a circle of musician friends who play their instruments out, taking the best out: new, vintage, custom, etc.

I doubt I'll ever have one, but if I had a Henderson D-28 or a Arnold D-28, you bet your bippie I'd be playing it out!!

I play onstage/tour with the guitars I own...Simon Fay steel-strings and Anders Sterner on the classical/nylon side.

My custom Edwinson EPS is my main player. I intended it to be that when I had it built and it has remained so to this day...and hopefully forever. :D

Indoors, in certain cases, I play my Stehr. Sometimes I don't feel comfortable...too many other musicians on stage, and such. If I am hesitant, I'll bring my Takamine (still sounds nice plugged in), and if I am going to be outside with questionable humidity levels and/or temperatures, I'll bring the Rainsong.

I wouldn't even consider gigging without my Mannix 000.

For fingerstyle gigs I use my 2009 Bashkin 00 in LS redwood & Panamanian rosewood, or sometimes my 2010 Circa 00 in Italian spruce & Macassar ebony.

When I'm backing up a lead instrumentalist, I use my 2007 Circa OM in red spruce & Madagascar rosewood.

These are the only guitars I own. They're all superb, and it makes no sense to me to play with a lesser 'gig guitar' that isn't the best-sounding guitar possible.

http://www.magills.net/Assets/Bashkin00/00Bfront.jpg http://www.magills.net/Assets/Circas...n/00Rfront.jpg http://www.magills.net/Assets/33/33front.jpg

I won't own a guitar I won't gig with. So I play a lot of gigs with some really nice guitars...I haven't done any busking with my McKnight though or any of my "Tree" guitars though...when your Santa Cruz is the guitar to take to the campfire you have done something either terribly right or wrong in your life.

I'll take my Goodall to coffee shops and open mics but it's never out of my sight. My three McKnight guitars, however, only go to church worship service with me -- one per Sunday, of course -- and no where else outside my house (except the McJam).