Craig Bumgarner

A hundred guitars out the door, kind of mile stone. Very pleased to make #100 in collaboration with Brad Brose who wanted to see if we could get more mojo out of it and to avail himself of the Stauffer adjustable neck system*. Brad plays with very low action (2.0mm+/-) with his great technique but action that low is right on the edge of buzzing and the ability to make fine adjustments in seconds complements his style of playing. Brad suggested the lovely rosette based on an old Busato he had seen and specified the unique diamond snowflake and crescent moon fret markers. What a fun project for #100. Here’s a slide show:

The top is Lutz spruce, with the distinctive red (red heart), white (holly) and black (ebony) rosette. Birdseye maple back and sides. 660mm scale, Mahogany neck w/ walnut spline, Indian ebony fingerboard, EVO Gold frets. Custom CB tailpiece, Miller tuners, Sanduri bridge w/ ebony cap. French polish.

* Johann Stauffer is credited with the invention of this style of adjustable neck circa 1820. There are now many different designs of adjustable necks but the Stauffer joint remains one of the simplest and effective designs. Josh Greenberg of Larkspur Lutherie was, I believe, the first to use an adjustable neck system on a gypsy guitar and he uses a design based on the Stauffer joint. Josh generously shared the details of this joint with me and consulted during my first one. Thanks Josh!

This is my first attempt at a Stauffer adjustable angle neck all Josh Greenberg, Larkspur Lutherie*. It allows the action to adjusted with a hex key wrench in only a few seconds. Adjustments as precise as 0.1mm can be easily achieved. Retuning is required if the adjustment is more than a few tenths of a millimeter. The system also allows the neck to be removed very quickly.

*Johann Stauffer is credited with the invention of this style of adjustable neck circa 1820. There are now many different designs of adjustable necks but the Stauffer joint remains one of the simplest and effective designs. Josh Greenberg of Larkspur Lutherie was, I believe, the first to use an adjustable neck system on a gypsy guitar and he uses a design based on the Stauffer joint. Josh generously shared the details of this joint with me at Django in June this year and consulted during my first one. Thanks Josh! Pictures first, followed by video.

A fairly standard Corazón,but this one really had the sound! Lutz spruce top, birdseye back and sides. Butternut neck w/ walnut center spline. Sanduri fingerboard, 660mm scale, nickel silver frets. Custom CB tailpiece, Schaller tuners, Sanduri bridge with ebony cap. French polish.

Here are a couple videos of how the neck operates:

New, built to bring to Django in June 2023 where Romain Vuillemin play it in his Friday evening concert. Selmer size, petite bouche, torrefied Sitka Spruce top, curly walnut back and sides. Butternut neck with walnut center spline. Adjustable dual action truss rod with easy access at the head. Sanduri fingerboard, 660mm scale, EVO Gold frets. Miller tuners and tailpiece. French polish finish. Hard Shell Case. For Sale

New, Lutz spruce top, waterfall bubinga back and sides (laminated). Butternut neck, , 670mm scale, adjustable dual action truss rod w/ easy head access, ebony fingerboard, mother of pearl fret makers, EVO Gold frets, Schaller tuners, Miller tail and tuners. French polish. For Sale

A new Selmer size petite bouche in my current style. Torrefied sitka spruce top, claro walnut back and sides. Butternut neck, Sanduri fingerboard, 670mm scale, stainless frets. Ebano bridge & mustaches. Miller hardware and French polish finish. For Sale.

Torrefied Sitka spruce top, curly mahogany back and sides. Mahogany, walnut and ebony neck, 670 scale, modern shape, EVO Gold frets, French polish finish.

A Selmer size gypsy guitar for Vlad Tobin. Torrefied sitka spruce top, walnut back and sides. Walnut neck, 670mm scale, Nickel Silver frets, ebony fingerboard, Miller hardware, French polish finish.

A new one for James Key. Selmer size, petite bouche. Torrefied sitka spruce top, curly makore back and sides. Mahogany neck with walnut center spline. Adjustable truss rod and carbon rod stiffeners. Indian Ebony fingerboard, nickel silver frets. Miller tuners and tail. French polish tint and finish.

A new petite bouche for Mike Horan. Mike is no stranger to my guitars, this is his fourth one! Selmer size petite bouche, Lutz spruce top with a colorful rosette, CB bracing and top tuning. Straight grain walnut back and sides (laminated). Walnut neck, Indian ebony fingerboard and head plate. 670 scale, EVO Gold frets, Miller tuners and tail. Ebano bridge and mustaches. French polish finish.

I feel like I’m zeroing in on my ideal for these guitars. Very strong highs balanced with solid but not woofy bass, crisp, clean notes with good tonal separation in chords, loud but capable of a wide dynamic range providing the player with the horsepower that can be throttled up or down as needed and a large pallet of tones. All this contributes to a “high gain” guitar that mics well.

#91 was a collaboration with Joe Barko that started at Django in June 2022. Joe wanted a Selmer size petite bouche with an ebony theme. The back and sides are Amara Ebony (laminated). Other elements include an Indian Ebony fingerboard, Ebano bindings and bridge/moustaches, ebony neck spline, ebony head plate and rosette key. Topping it off is a torrefied Sitka spruce top, EVO Gold frets, Miller tuners and tailpiece, Argentine strings and an untainted French polish finish. This is the third CB for the Barko family. Joe previously owned a Corazón and Becca owns a Selmer style octave mandolin we collaborated in 2020.