I was strolling on the North Shore of Chattanooga, Tennessee today with my wonderful wife. It was a beautiful, sunny day, but a bit brisk due to the windy conditions. Still, many people were out and we stopped at a number of shops. One shop we stopped at was an art supply store, Art Creations, located on Cherokee Drive on the North Shore. This is a wonderful store, stocked with absolutely everything a budding artist would possibly need. They also have a small gallery of paintings, although the mainstay of the store is supplies and all the neat things that people who work with almost any medium would need.
I got to thinking while looking for ideas in the store. How do I make my guitars more unique? Am I building guitars, or am I building art?
I thought it a fair question, so I asked my wife. She said, in her practical manner, that she thought each guitar I built had art in it, and certainly as time has gone by, they are more and more artistic.
So the question begs itself. Could I build a guitar as a piece of framed art? A unit that would be framed, hang on a wall, but be allowed to be detached from its frame when you wanted to play it, and then become a piece of art in a frame when done? A centerpiece in a home of music, and yet a piece of art to describe the owner, to project them as musicians? Why not?
The question is not so far out there, if you have looked into my gallery of creations on the www.tsunamiguitars.com website. To put some of those guitars in frames would be almost natural, an extension of the artistic talent, so to speak. Originally, when I started, I wanted pieces of art, instruments that people would be proud to hold and play, while others looked on and admired the woodworking and colors of the exotic woods I use. Really, such a small step to frame them for hanging in a proper place in a home.
I think this deserves more attention. I think that Tsunami Guitars, as a piece of art, like a lot of luthier's works, is not much different than an actual piece of art designed to hang on a wall. The major difference is my work would actually play when the owner found the need. So in the future, you may see a Tsunami Guitar hanging in a gallery somewhere in Tennessee. I intend to pursue this, as I do believe I build art! So many have told me...What a piece of art! Maybe they are right, and the thing to do is design a way to mount a Tsunami Guitar into a frame, with the capability to pull it down when you want to play, then put it back up for your friends and family to admire when done. Certainly the bracket systems are already readily available to mount a guitar at a suggestive angle inside a frame. I cannot imagine a better calling for a guitar. Dual purpose - music and art, which go so well together. Stay tuned to Tsunami Guitars on Facebook and my website. You just may see my guitars hanging somewhere, framed, for sale as working art...I think it's an idea whose time may be near.
Tsunami
Tsunami SUT Ultra
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Some new things, some exciting things! 02/17/2012
I finished the first Tsunami Floyd Rose guitar a few days ago. It featured a Zebrawood front, Black Limba back, Old Growth Tennessee Dark Walnut pickguard, and maple neck with rosewood fretboard. The pickups were Seymour Duncan style, humbuckers, salt/pepper, four wire, rated at 10Kohms at the neck, and 14K0hms at the bridge. The Floyd was black, along with the nut and tuners. It floated wonderfully, holding tune nicely. I strung it up with Dunlop .010's, and three springs in the back cavity. The cover for the back cavity was made of the same Dark Walnut as the pickguard. Overall, it was just a beautiful guitar, and the owner loved it. The nitro lacquer hand rubbed to a nice, mirror shine.
The day before, Vintage Guitar Price Guide asked me if I would like to have an inclusion into the 2013 Vintage Guitar Price Guide. They asked a lot of questions, and also for pictures. I was happy to send all this along! Although my guitars can hardly be called "vintage", just getting asked to be in the publication is a wonderful thing, and more growth for Tsunami Guitars. You don't get breaks like that everyday.
Sometimes I am just amazed at the way this has taken off. We'll be erecting a formal company this quarter, as sales demand that I now have to become a Sole Proprietor or LLC. Under the laws of my state, I no longer can do this as additional income, it has to become a free standing business, even though I am still part-time. Meet with the lawyer in a couple days. But that is a good thing, since now I will be able to open even more doors and gain access to more of the industry. It's amazing how it all works. When you have a product that people want, you will do well, as long as you keep the Voice of the Customer in mind. So important to listen to your customers. I sometimes run across people who think they know better than their customers. Maybe my doctors, but it probably stops there! I also have watched more than a few of these folks suffer and even go under. The Customer is everything!
People, (customers), have constantly pushed me further and further into making more and more difficult guitars as time has gone by. I look at Number One, which hangs in my basement studio, and I am glad that I kept it because it is number one, and glad I kept it because I am so much better now. I would have to completely rebuild that guitar should I ever sell it. That will not happen, but the quality of that unit is limited to the wonderful sound and sustain, and the cosmetics and quality are not too hot. Boy, have things changed...noise shielding systems, inlaid pickguards, neck chrome bolt washers vs. plates, higher quality wire, capacitors, details down the the thousandths of an inch. It all adds up to better quality, easier to play, and overall, just a better looking instrument.
In this world of beautiful instruments and wonderful sound, you must provide the whole package.
So I listen to what my customers want...and if I cannot provide it, I offer some options, but if they are not willing, I don't push it. You cannot please everybody. That is why there are so many choices out there. We all want to be number one in providing what people want, but that can never happen. There are also many minds, different thoughts, beliefs, and wishes, and no one product or instrument company can satisfy all.
Well, it's about time to go down and work in the shop. I have two on the bench now. Trying to make up the backlog a little. Twenty-one months straight with some kind of backlog. It boggles me.
Thanks so much to everyone........
Tsunami
The day before, Vintage Guitar Price Guide asked me if I would like to have an inclusion into the 2013 Vintage Guitar Price Guide. They asked a lot of questions, and also for pictures. I was happy to send all this along! Although my guitars can hardly be called "vintage", just getting asked to be in the publication is a wonderful thing, and more growth for Tsunami Guitars. You don't get breaks like that everyday.
Sometimes I am just amazed at the way this has taken off. We'll be erecting a formal company this quarter, as sales demand that I now have to become a Sole Proprietor or LLC. Under the laws of my state, I no longer can do this as additional income, it has to become a free standing business, even though I am still part-time. Meet with the lawyer in a couple days. But that is a good thing, since now I will be able to open even more doors and gain access to more of the industry. It's amazing how it all works. When you have a product that people want, you will do well, as long as you keep the Voice of the Customer in mind. So important to listen to your customers. I sometimes run across people who think they know better than their customers. Maybe my doctors, but it probably stops there! I also have watched more than a few of these folks suffer and even go under. The Customer is everything!
People, (customers), have constantly pushed me further and further into making more and more difficult guitars as time has gone by. I look at Number One, which hangs in my basement studio, and I am glad that I kept it because it is number one, and glad I kept it because I am so much better now. I would have to completely rebuild that guitar should I ever sell it. That will not happen, but the quality of that unit is limited to the wonderful sound and sustain, and the cosmetics and quality are not too hot. Boy, have things changed...noise shielding systems, inlaid pickguards, neck chrome bolt washers vs. plates, higher quality wire, capacitors, details down the the thousandths of an inch. It all adds up to better quality, easier to play, and overall, just a better looking instrument.
In this world of beautiful instruments and wonderful sound, you must provide the whole package.
So I listen to what my customers want...and if I cannot provide it, I offer some options, but if they are not willing, I don't push it. You cannot please everybody. That is why there are so many choices out there. We all want to be number one in providing what people want, but that can never happen. There are also many minds, different thoughts, beliefs, and wishes, and no one product or instrument company can satisfy all.
Well, it's about time to go down and work in the shop. I have two on the bench now. Trying to make up the backlog a little. Twenty-one months straight with some kind of backlog. It boggles me.
Thanks so much to everyone........
Tsunami
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Knowledge, Old and Young. 2/1/2012
Last week, I had a great lunch with an up-and-coming luthier from the North Georgia area. He is young and restless, but his talent is undeniable. He is still finding himself in this difficult business, and had asked to meet with me for a little marketing advice at the "cheap and dirty" level. In previous years, he had spent a lot of money on some different types of advertising, but none of it worked, and he wanted to know what I thought, since I've had a backlog of some type for a little over 20 months.
I prepared a small list with definitions of what I thought he should do, and we met for about two hours. At the end, he was impressed, and did find that there are definite areas he needed to work on. I also showed him how to create an online presence without spending the bank. He just shook his head in amazement when I told him what my website cost, and how many hits I take a week. He paid way more for his, and gets way less hits...
Being older, and not too rich myself, I was always taught to do things myself. I can remember my parents telling me that knowing how to speak and write correctly would carry me further than almost anything I could do. Well, maybe not be an M.D., but certainly in most worlds, one of the first things people recognize is your ability to communicate correctly, and how you communicate with folks. It has always been tough for me to listen. I still fight that. But on the other hand, I am pretty good these days at keeping myself in a positive mood, no matter what. That goes a long ways in working with customers, and for sure, when performing detailed tasks on building guitars, it often helps me get it right. I also am well schooled, at least at this point in my life, at working my way through things in a logical step-like manner. Even things I might not be an expert in.
It's funny, but these days, I meet a lot of young people who are very smart in one arena, but once they get into another discipline, they are totally lost. Like programming a website, really good. Changing a tire or learning what noises in a car are bad, not so good.
A long, long time ago, I can remember it not being that way. People had to do things for themselves. At least people without much money, like my family. With no cell phones, pagers, or any advanced communications sometimes it was just all up to you. Here's a good example. If your car acted up, you could walk, hope for someone to come along and help you, or fix it yourself enough to keep going.
I can remember one time, traveling with my parents, we had trouble with our car between Wickenburg, Arizona, and Phoenix. I can tell you back then, that was sheer desert, no interstate, not a good place to be stranded. And we found ourselves a little short on gas, since it turned out our gas gauge was wrong on our Oldsmobile. We needed about ten miles, best that I could tell with our Shell gas station map. (No GPS, either)
My father, MacGiver that he was, remembered that he had a couple gallons of whiskey in the trunk he had bought at a discount. You guessed it - as much as he hated to do it, in the tank it went!
After much choking and spitting, the motor adjusted well enough to the "blend", and we got going, just far enough to make the next gas station. Little herky-jerky, but we smoked and choked that car right up to a gas pump!
My father filled up completely with hi-test gas, enough to dilute the remaining whiskey, and we sailed on home, safe and sound. Total lost time? Maybe 45 minutes.
How many would do that today? Or would you just simply dial 911 on your handy-dandy cell, or hit the Onstar button? It may sound safer, but that technology we depend on has taken away our ability to help ourselves out of pickles, and that is bad.
In my shop, I often do these kinds of strange things. When I told my luthier friend that I cut my neck pockets with a hand router and carving tools, he could not believe it. No jig? Blasphemy!! A few days later, holding my latest build up by the neck, with no screw holes even in the body yet, he finally believed. He pretty much didn't think I could do it...until he held it. Because he can't do it. At least not yet.
He asked me how long it took to make that pocket. Amazed again when I told him about 40 minutes, start to finish. But when you've designed ways to do things for years, and you handle multiple types of necks, it's almost reverse to have to build multiple jigs to do the same thing. So doing it by hand, learning to cut it straight and true, in the end is more rewarding and more valuable than depending on a jig.
So every time you get a chance to learn a little something new...take it.
Every time you see something that slightly interests you...take a look, get curious!
Even in today's world, Knowledge is Power. And being multi-talented is way better than being a one-trick pony.
Tsunami
I prepared a small list with definitions of what I thought he should do, and we met for about two hours. At the end, he was impressed, and did find that there are definite areas he needed to work on. I also showed him how to create an online presence without spending the bank. He just shook his head in amazement when I told him what my website cost, and how many hits I take a week. He paid way more for his, and gets way less hits...
Being older, and not too rich myself, I was always taught to do things myself. I can remember my parents telling me that knowing how to speak and write correctly would carry me further than almost anything I could do. Well, maybe not be an M.D., but certainly in most worlds, one of the first things people recognize is your ability to communicate correctly, and how you communicate with folks. It has always been tough for me to listen. I still fight that. But on the other hand, I am pretty good these days at keeping myself in a positive mood, no matter what. That goes a long ways in working with customers, and for sure, when performing detailed tasks on building guitars, it often helps me get it right. I also am well schooled, at least at this point in my life, at working my way through things in a logical step-like manner. Even things I might not be an expert in.
It's funny, but these days, I meet a lot of young people who are very smart in one arena, but once they get into another discipline, they are totally lost. Like programming a website, really good. Changing a tire or learning what noises in a car are bad, not so good.
A long, long time ago, I can remember it not being that way. People had to do things for themselves. At least people without much money, like my family. With no cell phones, pagers, or any advanced communications sometimes it was just all up to you. Here's a good example. If your car acted up, you could walk, hope for someone to come along and help you, or fix it yourself enough to keep going.
I can remember one time, traveling with my parents, we had trouble with our car between Wickenburg, Arizona, and Phoenix. I can tell you back then, that was sheer desert, no interstate, not a good place to be stranded. And we found ourselves a little short on gas, since it turned out our gas gauge was wrong on our Oldsmobile. We needed about ten miles, best that I could tell with our Shell gas station map. (No GPS, either)
My father, MacGiver that he was, remembered that he had a couple gallons of whiskey in the trunk he had bought at a discount. You guessed it - as much as he hated to do it, in the tank it went!
After much choking and spitting, the motor adjusted well enough to the "blend", and we got going, just far enough to make the next gas station. Little herky-jerky, but we smoked and choked that car right up to a gas pump!
My father filled up completely with hi-test gas, enough to dilute the remaining whiskey, and we sailed on home, safe and sound. Total lost time? Maybe 45 minutes.
How many would do that today? Or would you just simply dial 911 on your handy-dandy cell, or hit the Onstar button? It may sound safer, but that technology we depend on has taken away our ability to help ourselves out of pickles, and that is bad.
In my shop, I often do these kinds of strange things. When I told my luthier friend that I cut my neck pockets with a hand router and carving tools, he could not believe it. No jig? Blasphemy!! A few days later, holding my latest build up by the neck, with no screw holes even in the body yet, he finally believed. He pretty much didn't think I could do it...until he held it. Because he can't do it. At least not yet.
He asked me how long it took to make that pocket. Amazed again when I told him about 40 minutes, start to finish. But when you've designed ways to do things for years, and you handle multiple types of necks, it's almost reverse to have to build multiple jigs to do the same thing. So doing it by hand, learning to cut it straight and true, in the end is more rewarding and more valuable than depending on a jig.
So every time you get a chance to learn a little something new...take it.
Every time you see something that slightly interests you...take a look, get curious!
Even in today's world, Knowledge is Power. And being multi-talented is way better than being a one-trick pony.
Tsunami
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