Custom Jazzmaster Build

Custom Jazzmaster Build - 1 piece mahogany body with bookmatched flame/quilt maple cap. Danish oil finish (pic shows the body with 1st coat applied)

Setup's are now £55

I am sorry to have to do this but I have to raise the price for my Guitar setup's to £55. I have been charging £45 for the past two and a half years. With the VAT increase and everything else costing more these days I just have to do it.

I strongly believe my setups are the most comprehensive available in the UK - researching other Luthier's services I see that a fret dress (i.e. Stoning ~ if required) is never included in the price of the setup, neither is servicing the electronics, shaping and filing existing nuts, etc. A comparable setup from other Luthiers is in excess of £70 (try parking in Cardiff for free..)

Again, sorry to have to raise my prices - I hope you understand. Also don't forget its free to park at my workshop!

Mantis II in Black and Gold

Just finished up this build for a customer - its one of my Mantis II in Black and Gold. Mahogany body and neck - flame maple cap in trans black. Tree of Life inlay in the fretboard. Set up with Bare Knuckle single coils in the neck and middle with a Gibson P94T in the bridge. Its wired like a Strat and it sounds and plays better than I could have expected.

White Flame Les Paul Style with Bare Knuckle Emeralds

Just finished this guitar for a good customer of mine - its a Les Paul style in white - all mahogany construction with a fantastic ebony fretboard with mother of pearl and abalone flames inlay.

Bare Knuckle Emeralds, CTS Pots, Orange drop Caps, and a push pull to coil tap. NIce chrome surrounds, bone nut,

All the binding on the bosy and neck was done in Abalone for a really custom look.

A really sweet guitar, and a very happy customer.

TC Ellis Guitars Mantis Hollowbody Review

Just got this from a happy customer:

Review:

I used to play a PRS Custom 24 that cost me £2,400. It actually took me a fair while to find that one, a guitar that really suited me, via trial and error, you know... I was in a shop one day, picked the thing up and it felt really comfortable, nice size etc. I gave it a go and sure it sounded better than anything I had at the time.


Then, years later, I happened upon Tim via the net and his shop was only a few miles down the road so I popped in. The guitar that grabbed me straight away was his Mantis hollow body, the same shape as my PRS so playing it felt natural. It's a good size, nice balance, I know it's a personal preference thing but they sure are easy to play.

Cut a long story short, I bought one for an incredibly reasonable price and took it home to use as a spare. Anyhow, and this is kind of odd if not a major point when it comes to choosing a guitar these days.

It actually took me about six to eight months to realise the obvious truth; My cheap spare was way better than my expensive guitar. And it's funny because it should have been obvious from the get go, it's just that my stupid preset brain kept getting in the way.

Yeah, it's funny how you look at something that cost a lot and tend to see what may or may not even be there. The plain fact of the matter is that for what ever reason, and I know guitar anoraks love to talk about the wood and the build, and this and that, but the plain fact is that this guitar can sing! The tone is so warm and ...err....organic... it's hard to describe.

Okay the two guitars are not like for like, one solid one hollow, but I have played hundreds of guitars and this one is the best yet. It rocks out with that cool Brit overtone but then when you slow it all down it's full of surprises as you play around with the volume and tone. It's fun and inspires you to find new progressions, but then some of the cool licks I have come up with played back on the PRS sound, well.... okay I guess.....

I got the 'Tree of Life' fret inlay and again, I have to say, I never want to go back to dots, or birds whatever. If you write your own stuff it's great because the pattern is like map, it helps you to remember what you played when you're jamming, and yet it's really clever how the pattern also easily highlights what is usually marked so you always know where you are.

And it all leaves me feeling pretty ripped off for paying so much for something that is now going to gather dust.

So, if you are thinking of buying one just plug one in, remove your logical capitalistic brain and listen, really listen......

On the QT, d'yer know what I think? No one really knows how to build a 'good' guitar, they just go at it and sometimes magic happens. Then they try to improve them via loads of money and endless brain farting, but they end up making them sound worse.

If it ain't broke don't fix it, and Tim's guitars sound great, and they are cheap.....what the....

Black Strat Heavy Relic

This started as a nearly new Mexican Strat - full relic to all hardware, neck, pickup covers, plastics etc

Just had to do the cigarette burn

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN Esquire / Telecaster Relic

I just finished this build for a customer - Its a Bruce Springsteen Esquire / Telecaster relic. Fitted with "The Boss" Bare Knuckle Pickups. Reliced like Bruce's Esquire. CTS Pots - a vintage 1960's nos oil capacitor and treble bleed. I put a light tint on the neck to get an authentic vintage vibe. Nice setup and its a great player with perfect tone as always from the Bare Knuckles.

EVH Style Strat.

Just finished this build - nice guitar.

Lemmy Inspired Guitar

Lemmy of Motorhead inspired guitar - we just finished this guitar for a customer - we are very proud of this truly unique guitar.

Specifications:

Individually Serial Numbered for the production of 50

Premium Mahogany Body with 5 Piece Maple Neck

Width at Nut: 42mm

Width at 12th Fret: 52mm

Scale Length: Strat

Premium Hand Made Binding

Premium Ebony Fretboards

Star Inlays in Mother of Pearl

Bare Knuckle War Pig Pickups (1V + 1T)

CTS Pots, Sprague Orange drop Capacitors, hand wired

Premium Hardware

Bone Nut

Certificate of Authenticity

Hard Case

Pro Setup by both myself and Tim Butcher (Lemmys tech for the past 30 years)

More pix and info at this link: http://www.tcellisguitars.com/lemmy.html

Horton Heat Guitar

Just finished this 335 style guitar for the Rev. Horton Heat - check out this link for more info:

http://www.reverendhortonheat.com/

We have done this guitar as a gift to the Rev - we dont have any endorsement deals etc. Horton Heat supported Motorhead in the USA last year and this was a way of saying thank you for the hospitality.

The guitar itself is a 335 style mahogany body / neck with a maple top - finished in black - ebony fretboard with no inlays, Les Paul style hardware with the 3 way switch on the upper horn. We fitted a nice set of Bare Knuckle Mississippi Queen Humbucker sized P-90's - CTS Pots and Orange drop caps.

 

Phil Campbell of Motorhead playing a Lemmy Inspired Guitar

We are working on a limited run of Lemmy Inspired Guitars - Phil Campbell of Motorhead picked up a new guitar from us last week and tried out the design prototype for the guitar:



Specifications:

Individually Serial Numbered for the production of 50
Premium Mahogany Body with 5 Piece Maple Neck
Width at Nut: 42
Width at 12th Fret: 52mm
Scale Length: 626mm
Exclusive body shape with hand carved "Oak leaf" relief
Premium Hand Made Binding
Premium Ebony Fretboards
Star Inlays in Mother of Pearl
Bare Knuckle War Pig Pickups (1V + 1T)
CTS Pots, Sprague Orange drop Capacitors, hand wired
Premium Hardware
Bone Nut
Certificate of Authenticity
Hard Case
Pro Setup

Price: £850 + V.A.T. If the guitar is going to any non-European Union Country then its £850 and you will be responsible for your own import taxes etc.

Mantis 2 with EMG's and Schaller Hannes

Just finished this build:

TC Ellis Guitars Mantis 2 in Mahogany with 1" Flame Maple Cap - faux Binding
Tree of Life in Mother of Pearl
Schaller Hannes Bridge
Schaller Tuners
EMG Zakk Wylde Set

Finished Phil Campbells New Guitar

I have finally finished Phil's new Strat:


The guitar is built as a twin to the Series 2 Les Paul Style that we built for him earlier this year - its translucent white over Flame Maple with Gold Hardware.

Here are the specs:

Body: 1 Piece Ash with Flame Maple top. Routed for H/S/S

Neck: High Quality Flame Maple with Premium Rosewood Fretboard 22 Frets (medium Jumbo), 16" radius - "Spade" symbol fret markers in Abalone with "Wanker" at the 12th fret. Hand carved bone nut (0.023" to 0.018" E to E) 42.6mm at the nut / 52mm at the 12th fret. Very slim neck profile (20mm at 12th fret) - soft shoulders with a fairly "flat" back - think FAST. Vintage Pin-up decal on the headstock, finished in high gloss Nitro with Danish Oil finish on the back of the neck.

Hardware: EMG 81/S/S with 1 volume and 1 tone (ceramic) Callaham Vintage S bridge and trem block (blocked off) - no trem claw or springs - the trem cavity has 2 9v batteries for 18v mod to the EMG circuitry) Hardware has been selectivly 24 carat gold plated for a Gold / Nickel look. Hand made Gold Mirror pickguard and matching back plate - Vintage split post tuners again selectivly plated in gold. And finally a nice Welsh Flag button.

The guitars neck is set with a very very small amount of relief, Earnie Ball Super Slinky 10's with the action at 0.055 at the 12th fret on the Bass E going to 0.045 on the trebel E.

This had turned out to be yet another sweet guitar - I actually took a break yesterday and just played it for the sheer enjoyment it sounded and played that good. Phil is in Moscow today for the last gig of the 2009 Motorizer tour - we will hook up over Xmas and the New Year - I will try and get some pics and video of him with the guitar.

I can build this same guitar for around £850 - Fender Custom Shop quality at a fraction of the price.

Click on the pictures for bigger versions:

Lemmy Bass - Update & Pictures

Here are a few pictures of the Bass we are building for Lemmy - Once Lemmy approves we will begin production:

Vincent Motorbike Guitar

Working on this PRS Style Guitar - it is themed around the classic Vincent Motorbike's of the 50's. We are working on a few Stratocasters based around classic Triumph, BSA, Ducatti, Yahaha, etc. motorbike colour schemes.