May Guitar of the Month

[pablopepper]

Oh wow, fantastic line up this month!

[Wayne.Mumford]

Some top builds this month,good luck to all,and the judges.

[Brendan]

Okay - that time again - comp closed - will open a new one soon and get the results in as soon as we can!

[Brendan]

Results are in and its been a hot month! Two really stand out guitars, but first to the adjudicator's comments. Please bear in mind that the judges are all volunteers from the forum, so deserve our thanks in being judges each month!

1. Paul_B's ES-1
Nicely finished, good looking spalt, gold hardware compliments stain/clear. Could the 'f' holes be blacked out with paint?
Lovely natural coloured spalted top well complimented with the deep red sides, back & headstock. I like the Led Zep inspired headstock graphic but not a fan of the stock kit truss rod cover. Finish on headstock and back also look not as smooth as the top.
Very sexy ES. A subtle but lovely flame evident in the spalt top, so a clear finish was the right choice. Matching the back, sides, neck, headstock and pickguard with the same shade of red is also an excellent choice. Lovely looking guitar, well done.
I like the colour choice on this, reminds me of Gretches more than Gibsons but that’s not a bad thing at all!. Good choice on the gold hardware to go with it and the head stock decal and custom pickguard are very nice touches.
Finish looks great. Love to see a curvy truss rod cover to suit the body. Also maybe look at upgrading the pickup surrounds, I find the cream colour jars with the white binding.

2. BassTapp's PBA-4
Nicely made bass with upgraded pups, love the headstock even without a logo, the grain on the back is unreal.
Great effort for a first build. Elegantly sexy in an understated way where the wicked grain and earthy colour tones blend perfectly. Unique headstock shape with part of a recycled scratch plate for added effect seems to work but not my cup of tea.
Oh man, the grain is crazy! Love the headstock shape and piece of pickguard accent. Fretboard markers are another nice highlight. Well put together. A quality build.
Super clean build, clever use of a piece of pickguard on the head stock. The grain is bought up very nicely. This would definitely catch my eye in a shop or on stage.
Good, clean, workingman's bass. Love the headstock idea.

3. Fuzzbeard's SG-1F
Sharp looking axe, interesting 'distressed' looking finish actually works and helps the flame. lacking logo.
Nailed the faded denim meets acid wash look. Love the gold trimmings including bling truss rod cover but headstock logo is missing.
Really hits the 'worn denim' look. Digging the extra carves and cool headstock shape. All gold hardware is spot on.
I like the dirty denim finish to a guitar that probably sounds like it looks.11's, Darkstars and C tuning I bet she can growl.
The worn denim look strikes again. In a few years when the hardware is showing signs of use and wear it will be perfect.

4. Rook's RCA-4
Such a classy looking bass, everything is so well done, I would gladly have that in my herd. Is the logo slightly crooked against the nut?
Superb burst finish and love the colours used. Scratch plate looks to be custom made and solid chrome knobs don’t look out of place. Initially was unsure about bridge pickup surround and still think it looks a bit large and drawing too much attention away from the rest of an awesome build. Top horn front edge showing a bit of Ash grain contours which can be hard to completely fill.
Right here we have, no exaggeration, the best looking RC kit that has come through this competition. Fantastic burst, great finish, tons of model appropriate upgrades and tweaks. I want it.
If you told me this was store bought I'd not argue. great burst/fade work, great upgrades on the hardware, that headstock logo... Class act.
Great burst, glossy finish, clever use of a 3D printer. Very impressive

5. TRV's LP-1SS
What a stunning looker, immaculate and attention to detail is awesome. this is eye-candy! Wish it was mine!!
Professionally finished guitar that looks better than most Gibbo’s. Perfect score and would probably win GOTY.
All hail Halcyon. This is, no doubt, right up there with the best builds this site has seen. From the inlaid and silk screened headstock down to the flawless tru oil finish. Stunning burst, great colour, excellent hardware choices. I would own this one in a heartbeat.
Another class act. Great upgrades and attention to detail. Not often we see a spalted top done with a burst. A good decision and very well executed.
If the big G made guitars this well it wouldn't be facing bankruptcy. Great job.

6. Adam Barnes' ES-1s
The limed effect on back and sides is finished so well with magical grain, super glossy all over, lovely unique fretboard colouring, top job.
Parched back and sides blends in well with beach themed photo background. Another nice natural finished spalted top with black hardware and chrome covered P90’s and would have expected black tuners to match. Great to see your personalised logo on front & rear of headstock, just not a fan of the kit supplied truss rod cover.
Unique finish, almost stone look on the back. Nice touches with the clear finished top and P90s. Mix of black and chrome hardware is a bit of a drawback, but a quality entrant. Great job.
This is a really interesting finish. it's although the whole guitar was worn and faded and just the top has been refinished. Very cool. Nice choice on the pickups, a pleasant change from the typical humbuckers we see on these.
A novel approach to the finish.

7. Andyxlh (Macklay Vocational College's) JBA-4
Very inspiring build, great cause and great artwork, 1 of a kind, well done all who helped.
Great concept and back story behind this build which looks fantastic. As acknowledged there are a few brush marks evident in the base purple coat but otherwise it is a stunning piece of art that can also make noise. Awesome.
Love the artwork and the colour scheme. Don't think I've seen a dot painting in purple and blue before, but it works well. Impressive effort by all involved.
I cannot begin to imagine the concentration and patience required to achieve that paint work. Bravo!
An inspiring project. The students have done a great job on the painting. I hope it spurs them on to further creative endeavours.

8. l_ukas' DM-1
Flaming awesome, nicely popped!. Quality clean and simple looking guitar. Needs a logo.
Very nice aged antique looking finish with great choice of colours used to highlight the gorgeous flame top. Pointy truss rod cover suits the headstock shape but missing a logo.
Oh I really like this one. Fantastic colours and the flame has been brought out so well with the satin finish. Everything suits this model perfectly.
Another one that I could believe was store bought. Outstanding finish ,the burst almost glows, understatement at its best.
The subtle burst colours work really well. This is a nice looking guitar.

9. Greg's TL-1
Tidy looking Tele, nice contrast with body and pickguard, deserves a name/logo, hard to see if the top has a flame grain or not?
Classic looking Tele with a black pearloid scratch plate instead of typical black 3 ply. Rear shot showing some interesting Ash grain too. String through ferrules look like they may have been a challenge. No headstock logo and felt a couple of the harsh straight edges either side of E string tuners would have benefitted from being more rounded off. Overall a top effort.
Keeping it clean and simple. Black pearl pickguard is a nice offset to the clear finish. Tidy effort.
A very tasteful Tele! You've nailed that transparent yellow/cream finish. Needs a headstock logo and nothing more.
Would love to know the details of this guitar. It almost looks like it has a spruce top. Your name on the headstock would have been nice.

[Brendan]

And the runner up for May GOTM - Congratulations to Rook and a stunning RCA-4. These seem to come out special, and this is a great example...



But the winner, with an absolute standout guitar - take a bow TRV! Your LP is amazing...

[FrankenWashie]

Tough call but can’t argue it, Congrats TRV and Rook and well done to everybody. I don’t think there’s an axe in this months comp I wouldn’t give a home to, take a bow everybody.👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[blinddrew]

Great selection of entries, congrats to the winners

[Dedman]

Congrats guys. The build level has been pushed up several notches.

[Guvna19]

Well done Rook and Trv, and congrats to all other entrants this month. Thanks for sharing the builds with us all.

regards
Guvna

[DarkMark]

Congratulations everyone. I’m blown away by this months entry’s. I’m sure some of these entry’s could of won on any other month.