So to the comments:
Overview: GOTM is getting so tough – the core judging criteria of body/neck prep, appropriate finish and quality of application, and component installation are these days almost always going to be about the same for everyone – fantastic! It means the “wow” factor is increasingly the decider.
Scott Davis' TL-1
Modern styled Tele with a barbed-wire twist. Great job with the pin-striping to achieve the barbed-wire, and generally very clean edges. Nice custom headstock and pleasing overall look.
Just a rock-solid build. I love the paintwork too – the barbed wire is a fantastic touch. About the only thing that bothers me a little is the headstock which looks a little rough (maybe just the pictures) and the fact the string trees are on top of the logo!
awesome looking tele with the barbed wire sides and looks like the paint has flake in it. I'm sure it's hard to photograph but would have liked so see a clear shot of the flaked paint.
Really dig the colour combo. Black with a black pearl pickguard is super stylish. The pearl switch tip is an excellent detail. Setup needs work, saddles seem to be maxed out leading to a very high action. Overall, very nice.
Classic black T-style. The barbed wire pattern & headstock shape are great customisations.
ThreeBBass' PBA-5
Clean, mellow and stylish. The subtle colouring of body really suits it, and the mods and hardware upgrades take it to the next level. Changing the headstock from a 4+1 to 2+3 with extender is particularly nice and looks fantastic. P plus Piezo, love it.
Clean and stylish build with some wonderful touches around the hardware choice to make an instrument I’d love to try.
love the mods and the hardware used for this build. Would like this bass in my collection !
Seriously top shelf fit out on this one. Great finish and well put together. A class act.
A workhorse bass. I find the new headstock shape at odds with the body though.
DJP's LP-1S
No matter how many spalted LP's you see, it's never enough. This is really letting the material speak for itself. The mahogany of the body and neck look amazing and the spalt just sings under the DT clear. Headstock looks great with the underlying flame, and an excellent overall quality of finish.
Nice work DJP, I particularly like how well you’ve looked after the spalted top.
lovely spalt and you really made the most of it. Great example how cool these kits look.
Very pretty spalt. The amber works very well and your logo is spot on. Keep up the good work.
All round great job.
Fuzzbeard's ES-1G
A truly stunning ES. Great choice of colours emphasising the classic styling of this kit. The flame of the top and even the grain of the back has come up beautifully with the finish, and resulted in something I'd instantly be drawn to. Some of the photos make the burst transition look a little less gradual than I suspect it is, and I love the colours. The only detractions for me is the headstock looks a little dark in comparison and maybe a missed glue spot on the leading edge of the neck heel?
Beautifully finished with all the extra attention to detail that you could want. Such a nice burst too.
top looking ES Fuzz, love the mods and the burst is well executed.
This appeals to me greatly. Nice even burst, great colours. Quality upgrades. A keeper, for sure.
Pure & classic. Understated as an ES-style should be, with just a touch of bling on the headstock.
Gee-Gal's TL-1
Arachnophobes beware! The carving on this just blows my mind. The effect achieved on the headstock alone is spectacular, but with the body too I'm just lost for words. Nightmare inducing, but utterly spectacular. The hardware and fittings only compliment it further. The only thing that err bugs me slightly, and only slightly, is the exposed neck lippy humbucker. Although, I'm not sure even a custom embedded pup ring of some sort wouldn't just detract from this incredible build. Well done.
Love the unique approach, and while carving isn’t my personal thing you’ve done an outstanding job!
love the carving and hardware upgrades. You nailed the theme this is an uber cool tele well done
Spooky! Love a good theme guitar. Really nicely done.
A great vision, well executed. Unique and original.
Kawaokie's RC-1
Black and pearl RC with Bigsby... wow. This finish looks very nice, although the headstock photo suggests a little more surface prep may have helped (it could just be the photo). Nice choices for hardware and upgrades and the overall result is pretty special. I'm not normally partial to RC's but this catches my eye.
A little hard to really get a feel for this one with the pic quality, but a very tight build with no glaring issues.
well finished Riccy and some nice hardware mods. Sure it's a pleasure to play, top job
Really like this one. Black is the hardest colour to get right, but you've done it here. Beautiful upgrades, those pickups looks rather special. Sleek and sexy.
The pearloid and the replacement pickups add up to a unique take on the RC.
Nekogen's PB-1
All of the time and effort spent sanding, applying and polishing has truly really created a finish you could dive into. Great body colour and works nicely with the pearloid pickguard. Definitely a labour of love and the result shows it. An excellent bass and something to be proud of.
There’s a lot to be said for keeping things simple when you achieve results like this. The depth to the colour is fantastic and it really looks like something that should be hanging in a high-end shop.
really cool p-bass Toshi, I know how much work went into this and you hung in there and produced a very nice axe, well done
Love that purple burst! Excellent fit and finish, like up to professional standards. All the right moves.
A great result for all your hard work. Love the colour.
Steve's ES-5V
Clean, classic and appealing. I'd have to pick it up just to hear its mellow tone. The bridge height worries me somewhat, but I really love the way it looks with the butterscotch. Natural, but not. I can only imagine how good this thing will look as it gets some years on it.
Clean and simple – I really want to come back and look at this guitar in 30 years when it has aged gracefully!!
looks well put together but the colour looks almost natural and plain in the photos. Would have like to see a contrast of colours on the sides maybe would have lifted the look.
A classic take. Straight forward and simple, not that there's anything wrong with that. Let the wood speak for itself. I like it.
Simple and unadorned.
Dedman's ES-2V
I'll have 6 fingers of EX-2V, please. It's not how I'd expect to see an ES-2, but then he's not a normal builder. Dark and brooding with striking and impressive hardware upgrades. The ebony fretboard and bridge base only further enhance this custom creation. And, that finger tailpiece, wow. It may be black, but it's anything but boring. Not exactly my taste, but I love it anyway.
Stunning build of the highest professional quality with a wonderful choice of components to highlight the guitar – that tailpiece choice is the stuff of genius!
usual Dedman cool hardware upgrades and to the usual high level of finish. Another axe I'd be very happy to have in my collection
I love everything about this. This would be my go to of the bunch. Great attention to detail, and what details! That tailpiece is a work of art on it's own. Lovely stuff, Dedman.
Sleek, original & very, very Dedman!
Zeromick's LP-1
I'm not normally a fan of relics, but this... this is something else entirely. It instantly conjures an imagined history of use and abuse, good times and bad, many hands and many notes, and where music itself has left its imprint. It would be the 'worst' looking guitar in the shop and I'd immediately reach for it. The planning, forethought, care and execution to create this masterpiece of grime and wear is just astonishing. I really wish I could just pick it up and admire all the little elements that have been applied to achieve this result. The scratches, the crazing, the wear, the grime, the double finish (double finish!!!), the bridge, and that pickup... that pickup! For me, this is simply stunning.
Simply breathtaking. A good relic needs to start from a great build, and your attention to detail is superb – the scratches on the headstock face, the cracks in the pickup cover etc. A clear winner in the toughest GOTM in a long time.
I'm not usually a fan of relic'd guitars but Mick you have absolutely nailed it. Looks like its been gigged for 20-30 years and may not have had a case ! You have raised the bar even higher Mick !
Ok, look, I don't like relics. Not at all. Until now. Bloody hell, just amazing. This thing could easily pass for a heavily toured, well loved, 60 year old beater. The sunburst under a solid colour is a great tribute to the early unsatisfactory bursts of Fender heritage. Tons of attitude and heaps of mojo.
Wow! Just wow! Not usually fond of artificial road-wear, but this is eye-catchingly awesome.
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