Who makes acoustic archtops for under $5500?

[Larry Pattis]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

Oh, I like that Steve Holst, Larry! Very nice!

- Glenn

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Holst just made a guitar for a cat I know on jazzguitar.be...it's absolutley stunning.
I'll try find a picture without the guy holding it, it'd be weird if he saw his face here!

Here's a build-thread in the Custom Shop sub-forum for a Holst mandolin that is in-progress.

Steve is a neighbor...I'm lucky, sometimes!

[mr. beaumont]

here's that Holst...get a napkin ready for the inevitable drool.

[msr13]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

here's that Holst...get a napkin ready for the inevitable drool.

That is so beautiful! Holst Guitars sound just as amazing as they look. His classical guitars have really caught my eye.

[Larry Pattis]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

here's that Holst...get a napkin ready for the inevitable drool.

Photo link not working for me...

[Bern]

Check out Stefan Sonntag. I've played some of his guitars at a guitar show...excellent ! I almost pulled the trigger on one of them.

[RichM752]

http://www.joedragony.com/archtops/

[Ed422]

Here is who I'd call...

http://www.flowersguitars.com/about_flowers.html

Ed

[Archtop Guy]

I'm a big fan of Bryant Trenier (2 guitars now, one on order), but I'll make another point about buying a "guitar for a lifetime."

Before I got my most recent guitar from Bryant I visited his shop on a Saturday morning for a few hours. We jammed on a few of his guitars, I sang some songs, we jammed some more, drank coffee, talked about music and stuff, and generally had a good time. As a result, when he worked on my guitar he new exactly what I wanted and what would fit my style.

Now that I have the guitar I feel like it's a perfect fit every time I pick it up. I feel a connection to the guitar and to Bryant.

In your search for a great archtop I would value personal contact and connection highly. See if there is anyone in your neighborhood, to make it easier. Or budget some money and time to visit your chosen luthier. Enjoy the trip.