June GOTM

[Simon Barden]

To make it easier for the judges, and considering the number of builds coming out, can we change the comp to Guitar of the Week?

[Brendan]

An opening salvo – from the Mod
Each month as I look at the guitars it’s a: “Oooh its an RC bass month or ST guitar month”. Never before can I say it’s been a hybrid Stra-le / Te-rat month… until now…

SamMoor's RC-1
This RC-1 has a burst finish and headstock shape that's true to it's inspiration. The X-Trem and the rollerbridge are excellent upgrades and their installation looks clean. The Minitrons have that cool look that suits the guitar perfectly; and the name on the headstock is a nice nod to the original.
Very nice burst, good colour choices. For me the shaky writing detracts from the purity of the body. Maybe look at replacing the truss rod cover later.
Fantastic cherry burst! Good looking, well suited upgrades. Logo is a bit rough, but otherwise a solid build. Well done.
Well blended burst finish that looks great. Interesting upgrades including the master volume mod. B style trem doesn’t look out of place.
Love the burst finish and completeness of the build – it all seems to come together nicely… Great job!

ChefBrianNYC's HBB-5
The classy dark wood finish give it a high-end boutique bass appearance. The speed hole in the headstock is unique and well executed. The custom decals are great, especially the subtle headstock logo. The thumbs up in the picture is ridiculously funny. My only critique is the selector switch is labelled backwards; 'coq' should be for the bridge pickup and 'poule' should be the neck.
This is an absolute glamour. The detail of the headstock, the pickguard and the sticker in the f-hole sets the bar very high for anyone else making one of these.
Super sexy 5 string tricked out with some beautiful additions. Great looking finish and the headstock design is superb. All the little details handled masterfully.
Nice colour scheme with a seriously Rad headstock. Like the lighter contrasting scratch plate. Some of the block fret markers don’t look centred and not sure if that was done deliberately. Stereo wiring plus the printed diagram inside control cavity is a brilliant idea. Sounded good in the demo video too.
There’s nothing I don’t like about this build! It’s a bass, its classic and its beautifully finished.

Nitroburner1000's JM-1
This is a straight up hot rod. Really clean job filling the rout on the back for the original trem. From the pickups to the bridge and the control switches, there are so many great upgrades. This looks like the tailpiece that this guitar is meant to have. My only critique is the placement of the upper strap button looks a little high; other than that this guitar is flawless.
Great upgrades & mods on this. The finish is beautiful. Probably my favourite guitar made from one of these kits ever.
So shiny!! Stunning finish, great mods. Personally, I wouldn't have gone with red tortoiseshell pickguard on a candy apple red guitar, but personal taste is just that. Very well thought out and put together.
Wow, wow, wow. I thought we had seen GOTY last month and then this comes along. This looks showroom quality. Personally not a fan of the red scratch plate but will not deduct points. Perfect score.
Lipstick red and beautiful. Can’t believe that this hasn’t just come out of a shop where they handle all guitars in cotton gloves…

Ozo's AG-1F
An absolutely stunning and unique colour choice. The green is perfectly complimented by the black and chrome hardware. The flamed veneer pops nicely and the maple neck has a great contrast to the body. The logo on the headstock is clean & classy.
I love the colour on this guitar, and it's a real shame the issues with the back weren't discovered earlier so they could be fixed. The front is truly gorgeous though.
You don't see many green SGs, but damn, maybe you should. Great colour choice, subtle burst looks fantastic, I think the clear finished neck suits too. Yellow logo script is a very nice offset.
Nice tropical cool green looking SG where flame maple top has blended well into the basswood bezel edges. My only pet hates are the stock kit truss rod cover that always looks a bit out of place with the squared off edges and also reckon set necks should always be the same colour as where it joins the body. In this case the natural neck finish is good, just an abrupt contrast.
Nicely executed – finish has been nicely completed and the colours come together well.

Spychocyco's JK-1
This metal machine speaks to my heart. The colour flip paint is rad and the custom coloured pickups & rings complete the look. The locking tuners are a nice upgrade, but the truss rod cover is missing a screw.
Everytime I see this guitar I think of '80s era Danny Spitz. It's like a time capsule to my youth. The perfect kit to use that colour scheme on.
Whoa, subtle this is not. Straight out of a glam rockers dream. Colour change, sparkles, hot pink pickups on a pointy guitar. All you need now is a sweet mullet and some leopard print leggings!
Takes us back to the big hair 1980’s era where one of these was a must have axe. 2 tone paint looks great and ties in the purple faced pups and mounting rings. Cool headstock logo but slightly let down with the stock kit truss rod cover.
Sweet colour changing guitar – fits with the big hair and 90’s. Great job!

AndyXLH's TLA-1
Congratulations, this is perfectly equal parts Strat and Tele; it takes a minute to fully appreciate all the subtle nuances. The custom headstock is incredibly original and well executed. The string ferules are near perfect considering they were done by hand. The finish colour was an excellent choice and compliments the maple neck nicely.
Too clever by half! Well conceived and executed from top to bottom. I'd love to own this guitar.
A guitar having an identity crisis. The effort put in to this is remarkable. The headstock by itself is outstanding. Tons of planning and time are evident. Just amazing.
Very interesting take on 2 iconic shapes from the same maker all blended into one. Visually appealing from every angle and impressed with the attention to detail shown on the headstock. Cool demo video too.
I like the hybrid, but a few minor things that don’t do it for me – love the classic brown and off white pickguard, but would have loved to see the chrome and off white carried through the pickups and knobs.

Dedman's FTD-1M
This guitar should be hanging up in a shop it looks so professional. The colour choice is perfectly suited to the body style as well as the maple neck. The upgraded bridge and knobs look like they're meant for this guitar. The chrome pickup rings also add nicely to the overall aesthetic.
Typical Dedman quirkiness. Great finish. The customisations improve the overall design.
Unusual, but tasty. Once again, stacks of effort on show here. Beautifully finished and put together. Unique and quirky. Dedman strikes again.
Another Dedman masterpiece. Nice shade of French Bic lighter blue and top job with the trem mod in hiding the bum dip. Additional points for Union Jack TRC and custom script on neck.
Stunning build by the Dedster again… Can’t understand how he can pull these out at will it seems… Continued great work from the maestro.

MarkAllan's TBJ-5
A really interesting combination of two very different basses. The finish is clean and professional looking with a stunning contrast between the dark stain on the body and the maple neck. The Thunderbird logo and bullet knob are nice custom features.
A very fine job, but it was professional finished and assembled. Like the Fender/Gibson mashup. The string tree arrangement looks ungainly and an alternative style of string retainer would have looked better.
Flamey goodness. Tidy work. Excellent logo and an interesting mash up.
Body looks nice and clean with just the one shot gun cartridge control knob and traditional FB logo. Nice custom headstock logo but geez those large tuners make things look a bit cluttered. I like the chunky bridge.
Nice work. Hope that its great to play!

King Casey's STA-1HT
Another unique combination that's slightly more Strat-forward. The headstock has a great shape that is equal parts unique and familiar. The ferule plate gives the back a nice clean look. Without a third knob on the pickguard the volume and tone knobs look a bit too close together.
Great job. Reminds me of an old school Fender Bullet. Classic colour. Great finish.
Love a hard tail strat. Lovely colour combo, nice features. A solid build. Don't sell yourself short, Mark. This one's a pearler.
Nice work done here converting a Strat body into a Tele configuration. Colour scheme works well and love that headstock logo. Cool demo video too.
Like the hybrid – nicely executed and a nice way to blend the two styles of guitar.

[Brendan]

And to the second top score:
Congratulations AndyXLH! Your hybrid is tres chiq and wonderfully executed.


And the winner - Nitroburner1000 - take a bow! The lipstick red JM has all the judges desiring one!

[nitroburner1000]

Just want to say thanks Judges, youve made my year!

Great job AndyXLH, such a clean machine.

[wazkelly]

Congrats to all entrants. It was a hard field to judge and kudos to Nitro & Andy for coming in as winner & runner up.

Sent from my SM-A520F using Tapatalk

[FrankenWashie]

Congrats to all, well done Nitro!

[blinddrew]

Well done everyone, some cracking guitars there. Congratulations Nitro!

[Spychocyco]

Congrats, Nitro. That was one of the sweetest finishes I've seen. Just like it rolled off a custom shop floor.

BTW, Brendan, I once had the sweet mullet, but never the leopard-skin leggings.

[trv]

Well done to all the entrants, there were some stunning builds this month. Congrats to AndyXLH & Nitroburner1000 for the win!

[ChefBrianNYC]

Thanks for the great feedback!! Congrats to the winners, well deserved indeed.