Guitar Gear

Work – my day job as a software engineering manager – as of late has been quite busy with deadlines to meet and annual reviews to do, though I somehow find time to sniff around for new gear. A few days ago, I was perusing craigslist.org, and ran across this guitar (by the way, that CL guitar weighs a very light 7 lbs. 8 oz.). Intrigued, I contacted the seller who happened to be the luthier and who also happened to be based in Palo Alto, CA, about 15 minutes away from where I live! Russell, owner and luthier of Barron Wesley Guitars, emailed me back and directed me to his brand-new site.

After looking through the pictures he has available and listening to the sound clips, I really dig what Russell is doing!

Now you might ask, “Why go custom?” Well, from personal experience, custom guitars sound unique in addition to being built to order. For instance, Saint Guitars have a certain sensuous ring about them – at least to me – that is absolutely incredible. From the sound clips I heard on Russell’s site, while the tone is VERY similar to a Les Paul vintage re-issue (due to the PAFs Russell uses), there’s definitely a uniqueness about the tone that is very pleasing to me. I love it! Plus, with coil taps on both pickups, we’re talking some serious versatility!

The Barron Wesley guitars also look fantastic. The double-cut to the left is a fine example of Russell’s work (though it has been sold, Russell will hook you up!). What a stunning guitar. Here are general specs of the guitars:

25″ scale Length
-22 or 24 frets (Medium)
-12″ fretboard radius
-1-11/16″ nut width ***
-2-1/4″ width at last fret
-Cocobolo Rosewood fingerboard ***
-Dot fretboard inlays ***
-Block inlays *** + $365
-TonePros AVT2 wraparound bridge with locking studs
-CTS, Dimarzio or Bourns Volume with treble bleed
-Bourns push/pull tone control with tone cap
-Matching wood speed knobs (plastic available also)
-Switchcraft 3 way toggle
-Bone nut
-Gotoh Magnum Locking tuners
-Manlius Modern Vintage PAF+ humbuckers (proven very versatile) ***
-Double action truss-rod
-Carbon fiber neck reinforcements
-1 or 2 piece mahogany back (depending on stock)
-1 piece mahogany neck
-1 or 2 piece book-matched maple or redwood top (natural) (depending on stock)
-Form fit plush lined hard case

Price: ~$3200 (the one on craiglist is only $1445, and only weighs 8.5 lbs – I’m very interested!)

Cool stuff, folks! For more information, go to the Barron Wesley Guitars web site!