| Richard Mott |
09-15-2015 07:26 PM |
Gilchrist 16" archtop
How the years have flown! Well over a decade ago, I got on the build-list of mandolin-maker extraordinaire Steve Gilchrist for a 16” acoustic archtop guitar, an instrument he was scarcely making at the time. Wait-time back then was more than 7 years. For those who may be unfamiliar with the name, Steve Gilchrist is an Australian luthier who came to the US in the early ‘80s, worked for a year in Nashville at Gruhn’s, with whom he had a long association, then returned to his native Australia to build mandolins full-time. His instruments are widely regarded as among the finest ever made, and his approach has been to come as close as tonally possible to the great Loars of the early 1920s. His purely acoustic archtop guitars were rumored to be every bit as good his mandolins, if not better, but were scarce as hen’s teeth—for years it was virtually impossible even to locate a picture on the internet, let alone hear one or find one for sale. (Even today, the last time I checked, YouTube gives you nothing if you look for a Gilchrist archtop.) Yet he is listed as an influence by no less than Kim Walker, and folks I talked to over the years who'd owned or played his guitars just raved about them. In recent years, Steve began making archtops with somewhat greater regularity, seeming to include a few in every “batch” of instruments he turns out. Rather than proceeding start-to-finish one instrument at a time, he works by building up to 18 instruments in parallel, an approach that allows comparing a group of instruments in mid-build and tweaking them individually so that they begin to converge on the most responsive in the bunch. He is said to be extraordinarily efficient in roughing out instruments and superb at varnish and French polishing. In contrast to much of the “modern” luthery world, especially where archtops are concerned, Gilchrist’s instruments are visually conservative—they look like very much like the mandolins and guitars of nearly a century ago, minus the dust (most of them are finished in classic sunburst), he tends not to build in exotic woods (preferring Eastern hard maple and often Adirondack spruce for more uniform or predictable results), and without the kinds of dramatic visual design departures some of the contemporary guitar market favors. Everything in his approach is aimed at achieving the optimal tone, and while fit, finish, and playability are also said to be unparalleled, his is a highly focused approach.
After getting on his waitlist, I forwarded my new e-mail address to him after I changed jobs, and just generally put it out of my mind and got on with life. About 7 and a half years later, I got an e-mail from Christie Carter of Carter Vintage Guitars, who now represents Steve in the US. She said my build slot was soon going to come up, and that Steve could put a 16" archtop in his upcoming 2011 Fall batch. For various reasons, including the fact that I had long since purchased a lovely acoustic archtop by CB Hill, I ended up deferring until Spring of 2014, when I finally felt “Now or never”, that Steve’s build list was not going to be open forever, and that if I had a chance to commission an archtop from one of the true luminaries of carved instruments, I ought to do it. (I often think of folks who knew D’Aquisto and did not get around to having him build them a guitar …) So in May 2014 I sent in my order to Christie Carter, essentially for his standard 16” acoustic archtop but with a special amber finish he had used on his “classical” F5C mandolins. Steve currently builds two basic archtop models, both 16”—the no frills “Junior” which is an antique-tinted spruce top and walnut-stained maple back-and-sides, very reminiscent of the Junior model mandolin produced by the Gibson team working under Lloyd Loar in the early 1920s, and an upper level model in sunburst, with an inlaid pearl logo and a fancier headstock. In keeping with the early ‘20s Loar vibe, I asked for a non-cutaway instrument. Besides the amber finish, the only real specs added to my build were that I requested parallel bracing, rather than X-bracing, with a view to perhaps giving up a little bit of early smoothness or finesse in the sound in exchange for more energetic “push” with maybe a somewhat longer break-in time. Other departures were that Steve kindly used a piece of Italian cello spruce from the Val di Fiemme that had been up in my attic for years and which I’d sent him for possible use on a mandocello, plus I provided a set of blackened brass Rodgers tuners, reminiscent of the black tuners Steve had used on his classical mandolins. So that’s the 11+ year history, and this was written with guitar still in the varnishing stages. Steve has been great to work with and very responsive on e-mail. In return, I’ve tried largely to stay out of the way and respect his approach to building. It has been a terrific experience thus far and delivery should be middle to late September. Pics hopefully to follow.
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