Tottnes School Of Guitar Making

[jt]

:D Over the past few months we`ve seen members of this forum appearing with some great looking guitars having just completed time at the formentioned Guitar making course. What do we think ?

To those of you that have done the course what was it like ? Was it worth the £5000. + for the course ? Do you feel confident enough now to build any guitar you want to ? What were the teachers like ? What was the whole experience like good/bad indifferent ?

 :D  8)

[WezV]

personally i feel the only way to learn to build 'any' guitar is to practice at building them...there is so muh to learn and even as intensive as the 12 weeks is you are surely going to be focused on the design of your choice and things which relate to that.

i see the course as a fantastic opportunity for those that have the money and its obviously a great headstart.... but the people who finish the course and want to do it for a living need to make a few more instruments before they start selling them for real profit.    I would advise most aspiring luthier to make at leat 15-20 guitars before they started aiming for profit , maybe if they had done this course it would be more like 5-8.

they also need to focus on instrument maintenance and repair as well as construction if you are selling guitars - because you never know if one is going to come back with a fault and you need to be able to sort it out if you are going to keep happy customers

[rahnooo]

I think the course is an absolutely stellar way to learn, I certainly had an amazing time there.

I think while Wez is right to some extent, the amount of general knowledge you come away with is entirely upto you - I've got pages and pages of notes on various building techniques and different instruments that I'm pretty sure I could have a good go at building something other than another 12 string. Phil the tutor has 20 years experience in building and repairing guitars, but i suppsoe the onus is o nthe student to take advantage of that.

I would agree that it'd be brave to go straight into building instruments for cash having come straight of the cours,e but I know of a few people who have done it successfully. I've got a few instruments to build for mates before I get stuck into it for real, clearly I'm not as brave as some ;)

I think the main strength of the course is that it is recognised by a lot of people in the industry (previous students now work at Fender Custom Shop, Patrick Eggle, PRS, not to mention Organic Guitars which was founded by an ex student), and your CV is effectively the instrument you build on the course.

The quality of tuition is frankly superb - Phil is one of the nicest men imaginable and is not only incredibly knowledgeable but also has the patience of a saint.

I think finally, going on the course will tell you whether luthiery is what yo uwant to do - 12 weeks isn't all that long, but it's very intensive and so you quickly wrack up a hefty number of hours in the workshop (mine took me over 500 hours). I went on the course for my GAP year as it had been something I've been interested in for years, but having done it I now can't wait to do my next build, and maybe would consider swapping corporate law for luthiery.

It's an expensive cours,e but definatly value for money. Given half a chance I'd enroll for another term there :)

*Rahnooo*

[WezV]

I would agree that it'd be brave to go straight into building instruments for cash having come straight of the cours,e but I know of a few people who have done it successfully.

those are the ones that worry me.  I suppose its not so bad if you make guitars that turn out good and decide to sell them but how could these people honestly take a deposit from  someone for a bespoke instrument knowing full well they have only built one guitar, and how can they garantee longevity, reliability and more importantly good customer service (i.e. being able to solve the problems that will arise on the instruments they have built).  

Also, hopefully they will get better as a luthier the more guitars they build..  but those early instruments will still be out in the world and will be way below the luthiers current standard which makes them poor adverts for that persons skills.  

This is an issue i have with a guitar i made for my father a few years ago, my brother kept borrowing it to show people who were interested in my guitars.  Nice thought i know but it didnt really help because that guitar was not worth the prices i ask now. so people were interested - untill  gave them a quote. I told my brother i would send photos of the haircuts he used to give me to all his clients if he did anything like that again.  He now borrows something better when he wants to do it!!  Now my father keeps the guitar for himself as it was meant to be, and it is a nice guitar - just not up to current standards.

I quite often get asked if i make acoustics.  I have made an acoustic and re-topped a few beaters.  I know exactly how to do it, many different techniques to help and many different ways of building them.  the stuff i have built has sounded great, but i dont have the experience of making enough acoustics to know exactly why it sounds great so i dont sell acoustics.  Which means i cant build one aiming to achieve a certain sound.  So maybe if i make one that sounds good i would sell it but i feel it would be wrong for me to take on a commision when i cant garanteee at the start how it will sound.  lets not even start talking about well seasoned tonewood

anyway - thats my random thoughts about selling guitars after someone has made only one!!

I really would have loved to do this course at one time and it might be a good thing if i ever decide i want to get into artchtops, which i have considered...i suppose i am a bit jealous of people that get to do it - but nothing makes up for the experinece of dealing with customers guitars - which is where all your guitar playing friends come in really handy

[noodleplugerine]

I would agree that it'd be brave to go straight into building instruments for cash having come straight of the cours,e but I know of a few people who have done it successfully.

those are the ones that worry me.  I suppose its not so bad if you make guitars that turn out good and decide to sell them but how could these people honestly take a deposit from  someone for a bespoke instrument knowing full well they have only built one guitar, and how can they garantee longevity, reliability and more importantly good customer service (i.e. being able to solve the problems that will arise on the instruments they have built).  

Also, hopefully they will get better as a luthier the more guitars they build..  but those early instruments will still be out in the world and will be way below the luthiers current standard which makes them poor adverts for that persons skills.  

This is an issue i have with a guitar i made for my father a few years ago, my brother kept borrowing it to show people who were interested in my guitars.  Nice thought i know but it didnt really help because that guitar was not worth the prices i ask now. so people were interested - untill  gave them a quote. I told my brother i would send photos of the haircuts he used to give me to all his clients if he did anything like that again.  He now borrows something better when he wants to do it!!  Now my father keeps the guitar for himself as it was meant to be, and it is a nice guitar - just not up to current standards.

I quite often get asked if i make acoustics.  I have made an acoustic and re-topped a few beaters.  I know exactly how to do it, many different techniques to help and many different ways of building them.  the stuff i have built has sounded great, but i dont have the experience of making enough acoustics to know exactly why it sounds great so i dont sell acoustics.  Which means i cant build one aiming to achieve a certain sound.  So maybe if i make one that sounds good i would sell it but i feel it would be wrong for me to take on a commision when i cant garanteee at the start how it will sound.  lets not even start talking about well seasoned tonewood

anyway - thats my random thoughts about selling guitars after someone has made only one!!

I really would have loved to do this course at one time and it might be a good thing if i ever decide i want to get into artchtops, which i have considered...i suppose i am a bit jealous of people that get to do it - but nothing makes up for the experinece of dealing with customers guitars - which is where all your guitar playing friends come in really handy

Enough of that Wez!

It's perfectly normal to sell your first build and expect many more orders.

Just look how succesful Superbass is.

[WezV]

sorry!!! - my morals keep getting in the way  :P