NGD - John Walker - Well, 6 Months Ago

[brijas99]

Well better late than never. I experienced a NGD at the end of May this year.
My 1st ever build. Mr John Walker was my builder of choice. Excellent choice for me.
We spent about 3 months working out all the details. The build started out as a Ruby River Elite, (small jumbo), but slowly morphed into this Lochsa beauty. I can tell you, John is a very patient man, I sure put him thru a couple of changes and he was more than helpful with sharing his knowledge and expertise so that my build would be a success.
John had also sent plenty of progress photos of the build and communicated with me quite a bit along the way.
I ended up going with a his Locsha model with Red Spruce top and Sacha back and sides. The top was very easy for me to pick, I told John I wanted the widest and darkest grained Red Spruce he had for the top.
Selecting the back and sides was not as easy as I thought, but after John had mentioned to me 3 times that Sacha would be a very good choice for the back and sides, and would be an excellent choice for the type of voice I was looking for,, I thought I had better listen to what he was telling me. And he sure was right about that. It was a great choice !
He built an instrument that will stay with me forever. The fit and finish are outstanding. It's such a tight and clean a build, it's simple and just absolutely beautiful. He did an outstanding job with the Hawk inlay on the headstock too.
It's taken a few months for it to begin to loosen and open up, but the voice is really starting to shine. It has such a bold and warm voice with plenty of power. Excellent balance and its so crisp and clear. It's just going to keep on getting better an better. Thanks John!

[brijas99]

Wanted to add some of the progress photos, but I'm having trouble uploading the photos. I'll see if I can't get that figured out.

[llew]

Big congrats! John is a great builder. I have one of his Wise River slope shoulder dreads in Adirondack/Maple. Got it second hand thru AMW. Wonderful guitar. Enjoy that Walker...it's definitely a lifetime guitar.

[Ncbandit]

Stunning guitar!! How exciting that had to be through the entire process, and it will never end.

[RP]

Nice guitar. Easier to see now...

[hairpuller]

That looks killer! Congrats on your own special build! Hoping someday I can do the same.
Happy playin'!
scott

[Dbone]

I’m not familiar with this brand at all, but wow is it a looker...

If it sounds half as good as it looks you got it made in the shade.

Congrats!

[brijas99]

Thanks everyone, yep I couldn't be happier with how it all worked out. It sounds soooo wonderful

Hey RP, thanks for fixing the sideway photos. How in the world did you do that ?

[RP]

Originally Posted by brijas99

...Hey RP, thanks for fixing the sideway photos. How in the world did you do that ?

You're welcome. I downloaded them to my computer and then rotated them and then uploaded them to my post...

[guitar george]

Congratulations. It's a beauty! Enjoy your new guitar.

[Wild Bill Jones]

I have been in love with my Lochsa since the day I got it. BRW with Italian Spruce top. Lovely guitar. John is everything you sat he is and more. Enjoy your guitar.

[Red_Label]

I really need to buckle-down, save some $$$, and order a JW... since I share his name and state of residence.

[Wade Hampton]

John is an excellent builder. I first met him when he was working as one of the two R&D luthiers at the Tacoma Guitar Company, the other being my friend Duane Waterman.

Prior to being hired by Tacoma, John worked for quite some time for the Gibson Guitar Company in their Gibson Custom Shop. If you have a copy of Gibson's Fabulous Flattops, which is probably the best book that deals with Gibson's non-archtop acoustic guitars, most of the guitars shown in the color plates were built by John Walker.

Congratulations on your cool new John Walker guitar. I could say that I'm not deeply envious, but then I'd be lying.


Wade Hampton Miller

[Allentown]

Beautiful guitar! Thrilled to see the pictures and happy to hear your Lochsa is settling into a tone you love. Really nice wood selections and clean inlay. Hope it brings you years of enjoyment!

[memphis1]

Love the appointments, love the wide grain Adi, love sacha rosewood on examples I've played....You and John nailed it! John Walker is one of my favorite builders. I've owned two of his, both spectacular. And this one just looks amazing! Congrats