Hell Guitars

[syo]

Hello...
Just received some photographs of the first real round of prototypes of my new guitars in progress.
This lot is fairly straightforward. Each basically inspired by ES-335, SG, and Strat in terms of rough dimensions and playing styles.

Anyway, would love to hear what anyone thinks. Although there are a few issues I can see already (oval fret markers for one), I am generally quite excited about the whole thing. Finished samples should be delivered in about 2 weeks...!

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff25c35da.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff2611b3c.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff25e5d74.jpg

[hubberjub]

Those are really interesting. I can't wait to see the finished product. The first seems inspired by Trey Anistasio's guitar.

[Kodiak3D]

All 3 look great, but I'm really liking the middle one (SG). I'm thinking flat black (or matte crimson) and gold hardware...a real Hell guitar :D

[sumitomo]

Hell they look like hunks of wood to me!Sumi:D

[deeaa]

I like the middle one a LOt that could be one seriously cool looking axe... 1. looks nice too, but the last one is only 'OK' for my taste, kinda looks a tad like Yamaha Pacifica...might look better with finish and all...all in all, a very nice line of guitar shapes.

Overall, it must be really great to do this, have your own guitar line! I'd love to some day build another one like my Davette...there was this local luthier who liked the shape, size and the construction combination very much and we even discussed him building a few copies for sale, but since that he's pretty much concentrated on non-luthier work and relocated, and that project never took off...too bad...sorry not wanting to hijack the thread, it's just that I'm a big fan of non-standards-conforming guitar shapes and new ideas along those lines.

http://deeaa.pp.fi/Charv/c1.jpg

[bigG]

VERY cool, syo! Man, do I envy you! You have a very exciting thing happening there, man! Keep us posted, eh! :bravo:

[syo]

I like the middle one a LOt that could be one seriously cool looking axe...
http://deeaa.pp.fi/Charv/c1.jpg

Thanks. I'm especially looking forward to trying this one out. Here's one of my later designs before production. The first will be in a metallic red hopefully like the classic SG red (with flakes added).

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaf8c354245e.jpg


VERY cool, syo! Man, do I envy you! You have a very exciting thing happening there, man! Keep us posted, eh! :bravo:

Thanks bigG. I'm interested in making my own guitars myself, but practically speaking I don't have the time to acheive the expertise I want. I have found some very good people in the industry however who can help me to realise my ideas. It really is quite a rush to see things moving the way I envisioned.

And of course, I'll keep you posted. It's not like my wife is Childbride. "Is that good? I don't really know anything about guitars", isn't really what I want to hear...;)

[Kodiak3D]

Nice color!

Uh...if you need anyone to take one of those prototypes and try it out, I officially offer to do so. :rockon:

[deeaa]

Yeah, that SG does look good also in red...I envisioned it black.

Since the upper horn is so big, I'd have located the mic switch on it for easier access...it's what I really dig about LP's and hate about all other gibson-esque designs...the switch position.

[syo]

By the way Dee...
Your "Davette" is exceptionally cool. I came across your "overhaul" post and saw all the pics. Very nice indeed...

[Suhnton]

Those guitars are going to look good. I especially like the first (with the maple top?), dare I say "The thinking person's metal guitar". Who did you get to make them for you?

[syo]

Those guitars are going to look good. I especially like the first (with the maple top?), dare I say "The thinking person's metal guitar". Who did you get to make them for you?
Thanks. I'm hopeful they will not only look good but play well too. I am working with two makers right now but the one who is producing these three seems the most promising. As I may go commercial with these I'm afraid I'd rather not say who is making them. They are an established company who has manufactured OEM guitars for some of the big and middle guys.

[Kodiak3D]

Thanks. I'm hopeful they will not only look good but play well too. I am working with two makers right now but the one who is producing these three seems the most promising. As I may go commercial with these I'm afraid I'd rather not say who is making them. They are an established company who has manufactured OEM guitars for some of the big and middle guys.

Members of theFret will get a big discount on the first run, right? :D

[syo]

Members of theFret will get a big discount on the first run, right? :D
Members of the Fret are my friends so will of course get a phenomenal deal. Free guitar and a case of beer thrown in as well. All you have to do is pay for
shipping and um... handling charges...;)

[MAXIFUNK]

Members of the Fret are my friends so will of course get a phenomenal deal. Free guitar and a case of beer thrown in as well. All you have to do is pay for
shipping and um... handling charges...;)


sign me up for that DEAL:) :beer:

[Brian Krashpad]

I like those first two a lot.

I think I might have trouble playing this brand at my church gigs though.

[Kodiak3D]

Members of the Fret are my friends so will of course get a phenomenal deal. Free guitar and a case of beer thrown in as well. All you have to do is pay for
shipping and um... handling charges...;)

I get the feeling I'm going to end up with a Hell guitar added to the arsenal. :D

What kind of pickups are you going to put in them?

[syo]

I like those first two a lot.

I think I might have trouble playing this brand at my church gigs though.
Actually Brian, understanding the size of the worship market, I've come up with the idea of a logo mod kit. "Deluxe" $49.99 kit gets you an Ichthus (Christian fish symbol) decal that fits perfectly over the "Hell" logo. "Standard" ($29.99) kit gets you the lower case letter "o" to turn your logo from inappropriate to downright friendly. Of course it might just be easier (and cheaper) to go buy something else...:D


I get the feeling I'm going to end up with a Hell guitar added to the arsenal. :D

What kind of pickups are you going to put in them?
The pickups are as of yet undecided. The prototypes will ship with Wilkinsons.
This first round is to determine physical design issues like weight distribution/balance. Also structural integrity and workmanship. After I receive them, I'll try them out and then have them taken apart by a luthier to discover any issues and then also try to determine which pickups might be most suitable. For the semi hollow model I really want to try the Seymour Duncan SH-2n/14 combination I have in my Edwards 335 copy.

Actually I would be very interested in any recommendations from the fretters on what they think might be suitable for any of these models. If I wind up actually trying to market these I will probably want some reasonably priced (but good quality) name pickups. For myself I do want one with the seymours and perhaps another model with some P-Rails.

[Auriemma]

I prefer the one inspired by the 335. Reminds me of my first electric. A nice cherry sunburst should do well. But then natural would be killer too.

Keep up the good work.

[Kodiak3D]

Actually I would be very interested in any recommendations from the fretters on what they think might be suitable for any of these models. If I wind up actually trying to market these I will probably want some reasonably priced (but good quality) name pickups.

Can't beat GFS for quality/price ratio, but while their name is growing, they aren't known as well as Seymour Duncan or EMG.

[syo]

Just received these images from the factory. This guitar is tentatively called the "Bender". It's actually sexier than I imagined...
Jack is too close to the knob though. Have to fix that next time around.

Front:
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aba1b75e9894.jpg
Back:
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aba1b760b22a.jpg

Apparently they are ready to ship. I'm very excited to receive them!

[deeaa]

That is one damn cool axe. I knew it'd look great but that really really looks good. Even if the pickup switch is in the wrong place for me, it sure looks like an axe I could definitely want.

[Kodiak3D]

Lookin' very sweet, Syo!

[bigG]

Hell....?....Yeah! That is one sweet lookin ax, syo! I would be interested in that guitar if she were hangin' on the wall of a local git shop! :bravo: :rockon:

[Kodiak3D]

Hey Syo! What's the latest word on Hell Guitars? Haven't heard anything for a while.

[Tibernius]

Just received these images from the factory. This guitar is tentatively called the "Bender". It's actually sexier than I imagined...
Jack is too close to the knob though. Have to fix that next time around.

Front:
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aba1b75e9894.jpg
Back:
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aba1b760b22a.jpg

Apparently they are ready to ship. I'm very excited to receive them!

Got to say, that in black, with a black pearl pickguard and chrome hardware...:drool

If you do end up selling them...have you given any thought to a UK/EU distributor?

[MAXIFUNK]

LOOKS GREAT WONDER HOW IT SOUNDS. :applause

[syo]

Hey Syo! What's the latest word on Hell Guitars? Haven't heard anything for a while.
Hey Kodiak, Tibernius and MAXIFUNK.
Although I have been at the Fret, I somehow missed these posts. Sorry.
Hell Guitars are coming along very nicely, Thanks! After playing around with the first prototypes I am very encouraged. I am just finishing some small design and spec changes and the next round of prototypes should be started next week. We will be trying out some Bare Knuckle pickups this time. The Wilkinsons are really quite decent for the money but I want to try some higher end hardware this time around for comparison.

Got to say, that in black, with a black pearl pickguard and chrome hardware...:drool

If you do end up selling them...have you given any thought to a UK/EU distributor?

Thanks Tibernius. Maybe I'll try your color suggestion. I was thinking to offer black and with a black pearl pickguard sounds nice. Right now I am putting most of my energy into building the best guitars I can and not worrying too much about distribution. Hopefully we can get to that part of things soon too.
Hmmm, If I have a UK distributor, perhaps I will have more opportunity to visit Wales. One of my favorite places..:AOK

[syo]

A quick update. I just installed some Bare Knuckle pickups in two of my guitars and am floored by the transformation. I was looking for a Cream-like vintage vibe and got it with a set of The Mule HBs. Terrific match for this particular guitar. The HSS model got a "Nailbomb" HB with "Irish Tour" singles which pack quite a punch. More muscular than I am accustomed to but it seems to work for this model too, although I may try some others too.

Anyone out there using Bare Knuckles? I'd love to hear what someone else has to say about them. I am quite pleased myself and leaning toward using them for all of my designs. I'll try to post some sound files soon so you can hear what I'm talking about:rockon: .

[grave89]

Hello...
Just received some photographs of the first real round of prototypes of my new guitars in progress.
This lot is fairly straightforward. Each basically inspired by ES-335, SG, and Strat in terms of rough dimensions and playing styles.

Anyway, would love to hear what anyone thinks. Although there are a few issues I can see already (oval fret markers for one), I am generally quite excited about the whole thing. Finished samples should be delivered in about 2 weeks...!

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff25c35da.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff2611b3c.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434aaeff25e5d74.jpg

these are really great!! I like the most is the middle one.

[MAXIFUNK]

Hey Kodiak, Tibernius and MAXIFUNK.
Although I have been at the Fret, I somehow missed these posts. Sorry.
Hell Guitars are coming along very nicely, Thanks! After playing around with the first prototypes I am very encouraged. I am just finishing some small design and spec changes and the next round of prototypes should be started next week. We will be trying out some Bare Knuckle pickups this time. The Wilkinsons are really quite decent for the money but I want to try some higher end hardware this time around for comparison.


Thanks Tibernius. Maybe I'll try your color suggestion. I was thinking to offer black and with a black pearl pickguard sounds nice. Right now I am putting most of my energy into building the best guitars I can and not worrying too much about distribution. Hopefully we can get to that part of things soon too.
Hmmm, If I have a UK distributor, perhaps I will have more opportunity to visit Wales. One of my favorite places..:AOK


sounds very cool best of luck with the new hardware.

Maxi....................

[syo]

I've done a redesign of my semi-hollow "No. 6" model. These 3 are being built now. You can see the concept art here:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/no6_colors.jpg

The original had one soundhole and not chambered on the treble side. It plays nice but is a little too heavy so I decided to hollow out both sides and
added a soundhole (redesigned shape). Added new colors as well. Would love to hear any feedback...er...I mean opinions from my trusted fellow fretters.
Thanks.

[FrankenFretter]

I've done a redesign of my semi-hollow "No. 6" model. These 3 are being built now. You can see the concept art here:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/no6_colors.jpg

The original had one soundhole and not chambered on the treble side. It plays nice but is a little too heavy so I decided to hollow out both sides and
added a soundhole (redesigned shape). Added new colors as well. Would love to hear any feedback...er...I mean opinions from my trusted fellow fretters.
Thanks.

Love 'em. I like the black best, although the goldie is nice. Any idea how much longer until you go into production, and where your US distributors will be? If someone already asked this, and I missed it, I apologize.

-Sean

[syo]

Love 'em. I like the black best, although the goldie is nice. Any idea how much longer until you go into production, and where your US distributors will be? If someone already asked this, and I missed it, I apologize.

-Sean

Thanks Sean.

The (hopefully) last round of prototypes should be finished in about a month. We have just a few design tweaks and trying out a few more pickups to see which fit each guitar best so I'll be sending a bunch of guitars out to some professional players and builders for their input and go from there. If all goes well, we might start marketing in 4 months or so. As for US distributors we're not yet sure. We are talking with several parties but we may start first here in Japan and go from there.

Really this all started out as something purely for my pleasure and passion with an idea to make a business of it if it felt right. After the second round of guitars (with a different maker) I was so encouraged (stoked actually) that I've been putting more resources into realizing a business. My approach is always to start small, take our time and get it right. And of course to do something I feel passionate about.

One thing I would like to make clear is that I joined this forum before I seriously considered trying such a business. Lest anyone here should think that I came here to cultivate future customers I can assure you that this is not at all so. I stumbled upon this forum when I found Steve's great Hagstrom review. I then discovered the good vibes here and joined the group. I am sharing this Hell business because I am seriously gassed about it (in more ways than one) and appreciate that I can share with the good guitar-passionate people I've come to know here. This is in fact the only guitar forum I have ever joined.

Perhaps when we get into the business of finally selling these things I can be Robert's first paying commercial business member (you still doing that Robert?). I'm looking forward to it...:happy

[FrankenFretter]

That's good info, Syo. Thank you.

It must be a fantastic feeling to start a business that is also your passion. Congratulations, and best of luck (although, looking at your guitars, I don't think you'll need luck, as long as they play as great as they look!).

-Sean

[syo]

Here's the last of my first four designs:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_layout.jpg

First prototypes to be built starting tomorrow. A familiar style made a little sexier (to my taste anyway). I'll have three flavours to start. This black, a cream (w/ red tortoise PG) and a figured maple top tobacco burst. For comparison we will be testing Bare Knuckle "Brown Sugar" pickups, BK "The Boss" and some Wilkinson Vintage. I'll go to the factory in a couple of weeks to check out the progress. My AmStd Tele is one of my favorite guitars so I am really anxious to try this model out.

As always, feedback/opinions much appreciated.

[syo]

For any out there still following this, the 3rd round of prototypes are shipping this week. Got some pics from the factory and here are a couple...

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spits_0110.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2s.jpg

The Tele-ish model is all new. Although I saw parts of it in the factory last week, it hadn't been assembled so I am am very much looking forward to seeing how it plays. The one on the left is a bit out of focus but it's a flamed maple veneer on alder. Looks stunning in person if I do say so myself.

As always, any comments welcomed.

[mainestratman]

Cool thread, cool guitars. :-)

[bcdon]

Those are very nice! How long before they hit production? Do you have a ballpark price range yet?

Fantastic work! :dude

[syo]

Cool thread, cool guitars. :-)

Thanks! Coming from a golden god that is high praise indeed! :D


Those are very nice! How long before they hit production? Do you have a ballpark price range yet?

Fantastic work! :dude

Thanks Don!
The (hopefully) last of the prototypes are shipping this morning and if all goes well with these we should be ready for market in about 3 to 4 months. I am also negociating with the top maker in Korea to perhaps build some models there which may push things back for some models. As for pricing, we are currently debating strategy. We will definitely offer our models equipped with Bare Knuckle pickups (which retail for for about $320 USD). These will range in price from approx. $500 to $700 depending on model. We are also considering offering the same guitars equipped with much cheaper (but still good quality) Wilkinson pups. These would probably go for around $350-$500+.
The guitars are all made from North American woods and most parts are from the US, UK and Korea. Pricing and timing could change a little but this is a decent estimate of things.

Also, we just negotiated a deal to bundle our guitars with an excellent US made tube amp. I'll give more details on this soon as there are a few small details pending. But basically for the retail price of the pickups and a handmade, handwired US made amp you can get a new guitar for just a few dollars more (all for under $1,000).

Honestly, the most gratifying thing about this whole process has been designing and realizing the kind of guitars I want for myself. I am not structuring this strictly with profit in mind. We have other businesses that do well enough so if I can cover costs with a little left over I'm cool with it. This has really been the most fun I've had in some time and I don't want to spoil everything pouring over pie charts and attending marketing meetings. Modest profit and maximum fun and creativity. Perhaps you'll get a better idea of it all when our website launches soon.

[mainestratman]

Thanks! Coming from a golden god that is high praise indeed! :D


Heh... one of my old drummers called me that... it made my head swell until I saw the movie "Almost Famous"... ;-)

I love the "SG-style"... I even like the color. Plop a 57 and 57+ in it and I'll save my pennies to buy one. :-)

[syo]

I received most of the last round of prototypes a few will have to wait until after the (very long) Chinese spring holiday. They look great and so far have had the time to play 3 of them. I spent quite alot of time on this new model which plays like a dream. It's the first maple neck I've ever owned. I love the look and feel of it. Here are a couple of pics:

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434b6eb1493669d.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434b6eb14958ea8.jpg

I was all set to take pictures of all the models that came in but my trusty Nikon decided to stop working. Very frustrating. Also due to the snow storms last month in England which hit the "English Riviera" (Cornwall) the pickups arrived too late to get to the factory in time which means I will need to install a dozen or so pickups myself to test. While I'm at it I suppose I'll try out a few different pots for comparison.

As always, comments/observations appreciated...

[bcdon]

Those are awesome!!

I can not wait until you get to production! When are you going to start taking orders? Please tell me you'll be able to ship to Canada. :dude

[syo]

Those are awesome!!

I can not wait until you get to production! When are you going to start taking orders? Please tell me you'll be able to ship to Canada. :dude

Thanks alot Don. Hopefully we can start taking orders in a few months. There are still a few logistical details to be worked out but we're getting closer. We will start shipping to the US:smile-us: , Canada:canada: and Japan:master first with Europe:frenchblank soon after.
More than anything, we'll have to see if the world is ready for Hell. I feel fairly confident we will be up for it :D

I'll try to post some more pics soon.

[bcdon]

I'll try to post some more pics soon.

Any new photos? :drool

[syo]

Any new photos? :drool

Thanks for asking Don. I just got my camera back from repair and took a few shots over the weekend. Did a few quick layouts to try and get a feel for possible presentation. Haven't had a chance to shoot the semi-hollow model yet, but I just put a set of Bare Knuckle Black Dogs in it which really crank.

I am also thinking to design my own vol/tone knobs for a couple of the models. Anyone out there do any metal casting?

Anyway, here are a few of them. Comments please...

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/SpitBlk_topdtl.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spitfire_BlkTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spitfire_TBTopDtl_Sml2.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spitfire_TBTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Spitfire_WtTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2Blk_topdtl_sml.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2Blk_topSddtl.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2Wht_topdtl_sml.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2Wht_topSddtl.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_BkTopDtl_Sml.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_BkTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

[Katastrophe]

Possible ad line:

When everyone else is playing the same old thing, you can give 'em Hell...

[guitarhack]

Possible ad line:

When everyone else is playing the same old thing, you can give 'em Hell...


:dude Most excellent

[bcdon]

This is one stunning guitar! I really like the target/bull's-eye inlays. Great guitar and fantastic image layout. I really want one now! :dude

Do you put the same fret markers on top of the fretboard as well?

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spitfire_TBTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

[bcdon]

Awesome! Great inlays as well, but I'm partial to the one above that looks like a bull's eye (what do you call it?).

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_BkTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

[syo]

Awesome! Great inlays as well, but I'm partial to the one above that looks like a bull's eye (what do you call it?).

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_BkTopDtl_SdeSml.jpg

The "bullseye" marker is at the 12th fret only, otherwise it is 6mm dots at 9,7,5 and 3 frets. I did play with the target shape on other frets but it seemed to stand out best alone on 12. There's also the same motif on the headstock. You can see it here:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/spit6_TB_head_Sml.jpg

As for the name, I will have to wait to say until a few trademark questions are answered (hopefully soon).

[mainestratman]

I'm super interested in seeing the semi-hollow... I dislike buying a guitar online, but think that a fellow fretter might be a safe investment. ;-)

[FrankenFretter]

I really like the body shape of the Bender (Hell Bender?), but I'm curious as to why a guitar named Bender has a fixed bridge? Just wondering. Not that it matters, I still like it best of the three.

[syo]

I really like the body shape of the Bender (Hell Bender?), but I'm curious as to why a guitar named Bender has a fixed bridge? Just wondering. Not that it matters, I still like it best of the three.

Astute observation FF.
That is a point that I considered actually. Has more to do with the body shape than playing characteristics. The original prototype was much more "bent" but this still reflects the original idea. Hell Bender, yes :AOK

[bcdon]

Hi syo,

This is my bi-monthly plead for more pictures and status.. can you help a brother out? :-) :dude

[syo]

Hi syo,

This is my bi-monthly plead for more pictures and status.. can you help a brother out? :-) :dude

Hey don...
Thanks (as always!) for following my progress. I apologize that I don't have any new pics just yet, but soon, I promise. Lately I have been concentrating on final details and minor tweaks. I'm designing some custom knobs and trying out different style knobs from different manufacturers. We've also been kind of deconstructing some of the guitars to ensure that the guitars are sound inside and out.

Also working on getting video and sound files recorded soon. Lots of things to do with only so much time. Funny, but even though we're not advertising we've been receiving quite a few enquiries about the guitars. Certainly hope
to be out there soon.

And for anyone out there building, fixing or setting up guitars, I can't recommend Stewart Mac enough. Lots of great tools shipped (cheaply) halfway around the world in 3-4 days. Now that I suddenly have a workshop full of guitars, I find myself gassing for new tools...! :drool

[bcdon]

Thanks for the update. Sounds like you are having a blast with these. I'll nag you again real soon. :drool

[syo]

Thanks for the update. Sounds like you are having a blast with these. I'll nag you again real soon. :drool

The process has not been without its' frustrations but yes, it has been fun and personally rewarding to this point.

Unlike most nagging in my life, yours is actually an encouragement. Thanks. :)

[deeaa]

I've said it before, but I gotta say it again, that Bender one sure is a cool looking guitar. And it looks nicely smallish and compact too in the pics, which is a big plus for me.

[MAXIFUNK]

I just saw your latest updates if those play half as good as they look your going to need a new accountant real fast.

I want one of each I really like the look and layout of each axe.

WELL DONE INDEED :applause :applause :applause :applause :applause

[MAXIFUNK]

names

Hell Bound
Hell Raiser
Hell Hound
Hell Fire
Hell Redeemer
Hell Seducer
Hell Mistress


Just tossing it around!

[guitarhack]

names

Hell Bound
Hell Raiser
Hell Hound
Hell Fire
Hell Redeemer
Hell Seducer
Hell Mistress


Just tossing it around!


Good ones, Maxi!

Also: Hell Bound Train (in a nod to Savoy Brown)
Hell Hole (Courtney Love sig model?)
Hellabalou
Hell For Leather

[Ch0jin]

Good ones, Maxi!

Also: Hell Bound Train (in a nod to Savoy Brown)
Hell Hole (Courtney Love sig model?)
Hellabalou
Hell For Leather

LOL at "Hell Hole". She has a sig guitar already though, the Squier Venus.

How about the Lionel Richie signature guitar, the Hell-O :) :AOK

Also, Hellcat, Hellion and Hellacious (not a real word though) spring to mind :)

[syo]

Wow, I didn't count on the fine marketing minds at The Fret! Many interesting ideas. Although I wasn't initially leaning toward the individual "hell" name idea, this does have me thinking. Actually the HSS deluxe model features Bareknuckle "Irish Tour" singles for which the "Hellcat" (read Rory Gallagher) would be perfect. And for "Hell Hole" perhaps I could get Nigel Tufnel involved somehow. Hmmm...

Say Robert, do you have any objections to an informal naming "contest"?
If it's ok with you, please let me know and I'll draw up the guidelines.

Off the top, I would propose something like:
If I wind up using a name that is suggested in this thread that we haven't already considered, I'll send a guitar (either working prototype or production model) to whoever made the suggestion first. Even if we don't use any proposed names, I would commit to sending at least one model out to whoever sent, what I feel, is the best and/or most creative name. So far all the names here were not on our list except for "HellFire". Seems there is a "Hellfire" produced by Halo. Just did a search for Hellcat and came up with Fender and Schecter Hellcat models...

But before we get started, what sayest thou, Robert?
Any objections? :nono:

[bcdon]

hell's delight (as in pandemonium)
hell-born
hell-cat (hellicat)
hell-fire
hell-hound
hellick (old word for hell like)
hellish
hellness (the evil character Hellhood)
hellward (towards hell)

So, anything new on the status? :dude

[deeaa]

Always wondered what was the etymology of the phrase 'hell bent for leather'. Well I better go google it...

[syo]

So, anything new on the status? :dude

Thanks Don, for the product names. Status is moving forward but with nothing more to show you (just yet). I actually started writing a longish explanation of where we're at, but it will probably be more interesting if I wait until we can show you properly. I did discuss scheduling the first production run with the factory on Fri. so things are heating up rapidly.


Always wondered what was the etymology of the phrase 'hell bent for leather'. Well I better go google it...

Well deeaa, if you haven't googled it yet, I have. There are several explanations. I thought this one was fairly plausible (top entry):

http://www.takeourword.com/TOW154/page2.html

[mainestratman]

so things are heating up rapidly.

No pun intended, I'm sure. :-)

[syo]

No pun intended, I'm sure. :-)

Nope, none intended. Not feeling so clever as that tonight... ;)

It's funny but the direct meaning behind the name of my company doesn't register with me anymore. Although I'm reminded of its' effect everytime I hand out my card. Reaction is anywhere from "Oh"!? to :what

[bcdon]

Well deeaa, if you haven't googled it yet, I have. There are several explanations. I thought this one was fairly plausible (top entry):

http://www.takeourword.com/TOW154/page2.html

I love etymology and that sounds plausible enough to me. Here is what the OED has to say about 'hell-bent' with my favourite in bold:



ˈhell-bent, a. and adv. colloq. (orig. U.S.).

[hell n. 11 d, bent ppl. a. 3.]

‘Fiendishly’, doggedly, or recklessly determined (on or upon a certain course). Also advb. determinedly, recklessly.

***1835 Knickerbocker VI. 12 A large encampment of savages,‥‘hell-bent on carnage’. ***1840 Pol. Song (Cent. Dict.), Maine went Hell-bent For Governor Kent. ***1904 Boston Herald 2 Aug. 6 The Populist Democrats are going ‘hell-bent’, as the old song says, for Roosevelt. ***1910 W. M. Raine B. O'Connor ii. 21, I know your kind—hell-bent to spend what you cash in. ***1910 C. E. Mulford Hopalong Cassidy xxviii. 184 As soon as we lick this aggregation of trouble-hunters, what's left will ride hell⁓bent for that valley. ***1912 L. J. Vance Destroying Angel ix, Unless you're hell-bent upon sticking around here. ***1918 C. E. Mulford Man fr. Bar-20 xv. 152, I was hell⁓bent to get down here,‥an' now I'm hell-bent to get back again. ***1926 B. Cronin Red Dawson vi, Shaw sending the coach hell-bent round the curve of Jumping Lead. ***1935 A. Squire Sing Sing Doctor iii. 32 We'll always have people hell bent on doing what they want to. ***1957 Times 27 Dec. 6/1 Sir Edmund Hillary's message‥went on to say: ‘We are heading hellbent for the Pole, God willing and crevasses permitting.’ ***1967 Spectator 24 Nov. 633/1 This report has been widely used to sustain the charge that the French government was hell-bent on feeding speculation against the pound. ***1968 Times 31 Oct. 11/3 It is now becoming‥clear that an intelligent plan may have to be drawn, according to which those elements hell-bent on‥embarrassing the School will have to be expelled from it. ***1973 Times 31 July 1/3 A minority of Unionist Party members‥feel obliged to vote with those who are hell-bent on destroying the first democratically elected assembly the Ulster people have had since the dissolution of Stormont.

[bcdon]

Thanks Don, for the product names. Status is moving forward but with nothing more to show you (just yet). I actually started writing a longish explanation of where we're at, but it will probably be more interesting if I wait until we can show you properly. I did discuss scheduling the first production run with the factory on Fri. so things are heating up rapidly.



Groovy, I just thought I'd ping you for any new details. Thanks again!

[mainestratman]

I don't remember, but did you have a line called "Diablo"? I think some kind of MIM Strat feel would warrant "el Diablo" or something like that.

That's the extent of my creativity for the day. :-)

[syo]

Got a small shipment in today of the last (for now) prototypes. Took some quick, not so great pics. At least they will give you some idea anyway. The first two links are of the semi-hollow model. This is a goldtop but there's also an all black and a flamed maple top/mahogany. I'll try to get some shots of those soon.

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No6_gold_topDtl_Sml1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No6_gold_topDtl__Sml2.jpg

And here's a silver metallic (with big metal flakes) version of the HellBender.
Pics are a little darkish...

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_silver_topDtl_Sml1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_silver_topDtl_2.jpg

Trying to line up some recording video/audio in the next month or so. I have a player in here in Japan and I may go to London and New Orleans in May/June where I have some friends who may help out to add some variety (sounds fun anyway :cool: ).

As always, comments/ideas appreciated...

[bcdon]

Very nice! I really dig the tail section on the hollow-body.

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No6_gold_topDtl__Sml2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_silver_topDtl_2.jpg

[bcdon]

Syo, are all your guitars 22 fret or do you have some with 24 as well?

[MAXIFUNK]

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No6_gold_topDtl_Sml1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No6_gold_topDtl__Sml2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_silver_topDtl_Sml1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_silver_topDtl_2.jpg


I like the body styles and the colors the silver reminds me of how people used paint their cars in the 80 with a flake paint job.

How soon before you'll be selling these to the general public?

[FrankenFretter]

That hollowbody is freakin' sweet! I also love that metal flake Bender. Good stuff!

Name suggestions:

- Aleister
- Nergal (too arkane?)
- Infernus
- Loki

Just a few that I thought might be amusing. Good luck with the first production run, Syo!

[syo]

Syo, are all your guitars 22 fret or do you have some with 24 as well?

Hey Don. Right now all are 22 but there's a 24 in the works.


I like the body styles and the colors the silver reminds me of how people used paint their cars in the 80 with a flake paint job.

How soon before you'll be selling these to the general public?

Good question. Although I might have some promotions in a couple of months, with perhaps some limited sales, I'm still at about 3 possibly 4 months for the big show. I should have a website up next month that will provide updates and sales info. Seems the more I get into this, the more I want to do which has pushed things back a little. When I was in the software business, we used to call it "feature creep". Start with the spec and then keep adding more and more features until you've blown a hole in both budget and schedule. I'm not at that point yet however. I am having fun though...:D


That hollowbody is freakin' sweet! I also love that metal flake Bender. Good stuff!

Name suggestions:

- Aleister
- Nergal (too arkane?)
- Infernus
- Loki

Just a few that I thought might be amusing. Good luck with the first production run, Syo!

Thanks ff. Nergal eh? Had to look that one up. Loki too. "Infernus" with some hot pinstripe flames might be nice on the semi-hollow.
Actually much more interesting to me, than almost anything else, is the reaction to my company name. For most of course, it conjures up the black, fiery home of the devil. However our approach will be rather different. As a creative excercise, I wanted to see if I could sell Hell on different merits than the obvious connection. Then again, the "Fiery Hell" thing might wind up selling better than what I'm thinking. We shall see. I am always open to ideas though. I like ideas :AOK

[syo]

Well 2 new developments to report. It looks like Hell Guitars will be offering a bundle with the Little Lanilei 3350LT. Very cool little tube amps as I'm sure some of you know. Will be available as a special bundle with my guitars in Japan and probably in the US as well.
http://www.mahaffayamps.com/little-lanilei-3350lt.htm

I initially was interested in them for Japan because practicing through an amp, especially for apartment dwellers, isn't usually possible because of thin walls and close neighbors. But these amps do indeed go "from a whisper to a scream" and are great for recording at low volume. Been playing around with them quite a bit the past few days. Very cool indeed.

Also, on a recent visit to a Japanese folk museum, I was introduced to a woman who was creating illustrations using traditional gold leafing techniques. Got me thinking how cool it would be to make a 24k guitar (everything gets angled to guitars nowadays). So I picked up the materials today and hope to have something started next week. Might do some mixed media or just a straight 24k gold covered guitar. Started sketching ideas out today. Very excited about this...

[bcdon]

Very cool, indeed! That looks like one screaming amph!

http://www.mahaffayamps.com/images/little-lanilei-3350lt-250.jpg

I really like the low volume output and the fact that it can also drive a cab is even cooler. Cool stuff!

I can't wait to see your 24k guitar design, should be really sweet.

Thanks for the update! :dude

[tjcurtin1]

Off the top, I would propose something like:
If I wind up using a name that is suggested in this thread that we haven't already considered, I'll send a guitar (either working prototype or production model) to whoever made the suggestion first. Even if we don't use any proposed names, I would commit to sending at least one model out to whoever sent, what I feel, is the best and/or most creative name.

Somehow I'm just reading through all the posts after seeing the original only some months ago... Wow! What great looking guitars! And what a generous - and exciting - offer. I would really dig having one of these beauties! So, a few model name ideas:

The 'Lucifer' seems absolutely essential (IMHO, of course!), and how about
'Fallen Angel'
'Firebrand'
'Barn Burner'
'Brimstone' or 'Fire and Brimstone'
Then there are the Dante figures/allusions, for those classically inclined shredders:
you could have a model pair (think of the sales boosting possibilities!) the 'Dante' and the 'Beatrice' (if you want a female name for one model).
Then there's 'Hades' if you want the Greek classical tone, or 'Pluto' if you prefer ancient Rome (tho of course many might think 'disney' at that one...).

[Tibernius]

'Fallen Angel'


Fairly certain that one's out. Check my sig.

(Then again, maybe amph names are different to guitar names...)

[tjcurtin1]

Oops - Then how about 'Dark Angel'? Or would 'Hell's Angel' be doable....? A natural, of course.

How about this, for lefties: 'Sinister Angel'?

[bcdon]

Syo, about the Bare Knuckle Pickups, are you still going with The Mules? Perhaps you can also offer a selection from their "Contemporary" line, such as the Nailbomb/Painkiller. That would be wicked! :dude

[syo]

Syo, about the Bare Knuckle Pickups, are you still going with The Mules? Perhaps you can also offer a selection from their "Contemporary" line, such as the Nailbomb/Painkiller. That would be wicked! :dude

Hey Don. I do have Nailbombs on the HSS model (along with Irish Tour singles). I may offer custom orders where we can put together some different options. That will probably have to wait though until I can get the normal order process running smoothly.

I like the Nailbombs alot. I didn't expect to as I'm more of a classic guy myself. Much nicer cleans than I expected and for distortion of course, they're amazing. Have you tried them?

[bcdon]

I like the Nailbombs alot. I didn't expect to as I'm more of a classic guy myself. Much nicer cleans than I expected and for distortion of course, they're amazing. Have you tried them?

No. I had never heard of BKPS (http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/) until you mentioned them in this thread. I checked out their website and listened to some audio and they sound (http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=e5dfeface9bfcf2ae174bb0fcb4f13 5b&topic=11736.0) really nice.

Thanks for the update!

[syo]

Well, I've been playing around a little bit these past few days. I recently had the factory send me a few white bodies with the idea of trying out a few ideas. I then ordered some pure 24kt gold leaf, pure silver leaf and some different variegated (patterned) metal leaf along with some gilding sealer, Japan gold size, tools etc.

My first experiment was (is) with the gold leaf. I spent quite a few hours prepping the surface which eventually came to feel like highly polished ivory. Very nice. I rather always hated sanding but found myself getting into it. Then applied the gold size and waited for it to get suitably tacky and applied the leaf. Unfortunately I miscalculated badly and only had enough leaf for the back and sides, so I'll have to wait another few days to finish gilding. Then it will be lots of clear coat to finish.

Below are a few pics. The first shows the work in progress. I want to create something that looks like it could have been found in a dig of 2000+ year old Greek artifacts. I mean well beyond your usual "vintage"... After I got it looking all nice I roughed it up a bit. The mosaic look is intentional.
Please bear in mind that this is a work in progess but I was excited enough by the process that I wanted to share. Plus it's what's known as "Golden Week" here in Japan, so it seems appropriate enough. Anyway, please let me hear any thoughts you may have. Thanks!

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_24kt_PrcsFnl1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_24kt_LayOt1.jpg
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_24kt_LayOt2.jpg

[MAXIFUNK]

SYO, that gives gold top a whole new meaning. I like it a lot but I like things that are not of the norm. Keep up the good work man.

[ibanezjunkie]

seems they get cooler with each post syo.

[bcdon]

Wow, that really does look like something out of an ancient Greek exhibit.
Very nice!

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_24kt_LayOt1.jpg

[bcdon]

Syo... inquiring minds want to know.. how about some new eye-candy or a status update? ;-) :dude

[syo]

Syo... inquiring minds want to know.. how about some new eye-candy or a status update? ;-) :dude

Hey Don. I've been playing around quite alot these days with different media to create some new finishes. I'm thinking to offer some custom one-offs that I'll do here in Japan. I was going to wait to post these until the process was further along so please understand that this is far from finished. Just put the first couple of clear on today. Also, this is really just a test to see how the materials interact so it's rather rough.

First, the metal leaf without paint:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_varie1_prepnt.jpg

Second, my attempt at a burst finish with nitro rattle cans. I've never really used them before so it was pretty awkward to work with. The burst went too wide due to my inexperience. (I used to do airbrush illustration professionally but an ex-girlfriend "borrowed" my tools years ago and I've seen neither her or the tools since. Guess I'll have to buy the stuff all over again...:thwap ). This isn't great but ok for a test anyway:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_varie1_2clears.jpg

I dont know if I'll use these or not but just got these hofner style knobs to see how they might look. Not sure really. (USD $10 EACH believe it or not).

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_varie1_hofner_knobs.jpg

This isn't a pitch at all Don, but I really do appreciate your interest and enthusiasm over my project. Every query makes me smile and pushes me in a good direction. If ever you decide to go to Hell, I'll give you the no risk/half price special. Valid forever. Thanks man.

[mainestratman]

REALLY digging the Bender.

Sign me up for one. :-)

[FrankenFretter]

I like your experimentation with the finishes, Syo. I think the burst looks pretty cool. And those Hofner-style knobs are also very cool, although they seem a bit cost-prohibitive.

I imagine I'm not the only one here at The Fret who can hardly wait for these to go into production. Will you personally sign every guitar that fellow Fretters order? ;-)

[bcdon]

Thanks, Syo!!

Even though the finish is not complete, I think this one is really awesome.
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_varie1_prepnt.jpg

I really like the knobs even if $10/each does seem a lot.. but not too much for such a kick-a** effect. I can see that you are a real perfectionist and are thinking about every aspect of your guitars. Very nice.
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_varie1_hofner_knobs.jpg

I didn't take it as a pitch at all. In fact, thanks! I really enjoy watching your progress on these beautiful guitars and I can't wait to go to Hell. :dude

[tjcurtin1]

That Bender paint job is one of the most beautiful - and creative - guitar finishes that I've ever seen!

[syo]

I imagine I'm not the only one here at The Fret who can hardly wait for these to go into production. Will you personally sign every guitar that fellow Fretters order? ;-)
:D That's very kind Sean. I'm really glad to hear some of my fellow fretters reacting positively about some of my designs. This and other forums are a testament to the passion guitarists have for their gear. Hopefully the finished products will inspire some passion too. That's my goal anyway.


I can see that you are a real perfectionist and are thinking about every aspect of your guitars. Very nice.

Perhaps if I was a little less so, they would be ready for market already. ;)
In the end, I'm sure I will miss perfection but I really am enjoying the process.


That Bender paint job is one of the most beautiful - and creative - guitar finishes that I've ever seen!

Thanks alot TJ. While working on it I've been excited by the direction it is going but all the while I've been wondering if it will have any appeal. Nice to hear that someone else sees something in it too. Your comment made my day.

[eazypop]

Great designs man, love the 335 inspired one!!

[Auriemma]

Man, I have been overlooking this thread for too long. Excellent work. The No. 2 and No. 6 have my attention. The gilded looks makes me think you should try one totally steampunk.

I am totally curious as to price at this point. Any hints?

All the product names thrown around, you missed the obvious for one (should it fit)... Hell's Heaven

[syo]

Man, I have been overlooking this thread for too long. Excellent work. The No. 2 and No. 6 have my attention. The gilded looks makes me think you should try one totally steampunk.

I am totally curious as to price at this point. Any hints?

All the product names thrown around, you missed the obvious for one (should it fit)... Hell's Heaven

Yeah, on the last patterned metal leaf body pic I posted, as I was painting it made me think steampunk too. I wasn't setting out to do it though. I do know someone who does some antique-look metal casting so I may play around with a somewhat steampunk theme.

Regarding pricing, it's looking like around USD$299-$329 and up. That is if I decide to have versions with the cheaper Wilkinson pups or not. Still not sure. They will definitely be equipped with the considerably more expensive Bare Knuckles. Prices will start at around $450-$500 and up depending on model. Not a bad deal I think considering Bare Knuckles alone sell for around $300 or so for a set.

I am starting to do custom finishes myself. I wish I could spend all my time on these as I love doing this. These would be my "custom" models and I have no idea at all on pricing for these. Probably vary in price depending on materials, hours spent and how much/little I like the end result. :french :D

[kerc]

These guitar designs are simply awesome. Exactly the kind of thing I love...Original and good-looking designs.

[FrankenFretter]

Syo, will you be selling any of your prototypes? Just curious. This thread has been so interesting and exciting, watching the progress of things as you see your dream become reality. It's been a real pleasure to live somewhat vicariously though you, and experience all the things that you're going through as this goes forward. Thank you for sharing with us!

[syo]

These guitar designs are simply awesome. Exactly the kind of thing I love...Original and good-looking designs.
Thanks kerc, for the kind words.


Syo, will you be selling any of your prototypes? Just curious. This thread has been so interesting and exciting, watching the progress of things as you see your dream become reality. It's been a real pleasure to live somewhat vicariously though you, and experience all the things that you're going through as this goes forward. Thank you for sharing with us!

Hey Sean. Thanks. I'm thinking about maybe selling a few to make some room but not 100% sure yet. As this is a new brand it is especially important that whatever is sold speaks well of the name on the headstock. I've got some I wouldn't sell because designs were changed and a few with minor (but unfortunate) cosmetic issues. But there are a few I might let go after some upcoming photo/video shoots. I'll mention it here first in case anyone might be interested.

On a side note, yesterday I received 9 bodies which are all routed, sealed and with bottom coats. All ready to play with! I'm hoping to come up with 9 unique designs to take back to the factory in a couple of weeks for assembly. I'll try to post pictures as they develop.

[mainestratman]

I would be VERY interested in a "in progress" prototype. A one-of-a-kind Hell Guitar? Hell yeah. Even (especially) if it's "imperfect" and/or beat to hell, whatever.

Just sayin.. :beer:

[bcdon]

Ground Control to Major Syo... Dude, when can I buy one of your guitars? I have the (funny) money and it's burning a hole in my pocket.. can you (at least) help a brother out with some status updates? :rockya

[syo]

Ground Control to Major Syo... Dude, when can I buy one of your guitars? I have the (funny) money and it's burning a hole in my pocket.. can you (at least) help a brother out with some status updates? :rockya

Hello Don. Sorry I didn't respond sooner. I was away on business for a few days and didn't check in. I was just about to update my progress but of course you got here before me... :D

Unfortunately I can't say too much at the moment, but the guitar options are kind of, well... exploding. Rather than leave it at 4 styles and 3 colors each, I've kind of gone crazy with the custom option. And by crazy I sort actually mean it. I've been working on creating rather elaborate finishes often well into the early mornings. When I do go to bed I can't sleep because I'm thinking about what to do next (hence, crazy...). I've invested in some equipment to help me do the bodies here in Japan and then ship to the factory. My goal is to get the bodies done in a few weeks and take them personally to the factory in time to oversee the first production run. I'm extremely excited about where it's all going and hope to post some pics soon.

Regarding the hole in your pocket Don, which model were you interested in? I'll see if I have something suitable and available for you. But perhaps you might want to wait to at least see the new stuff that's coming? I'm sorry things have dragged on longer than expected (though I rather suspected they might). This whole process has been evolving in ways I didn't imagine originally. Now, things are falling together just where I hoped they would! :rockya

[bcdon]

Regarding the hole in your pocket Don, which model were you interested in? I'll see if I have something suitable and available for you. But perhaps you might want to wait to at least see the new stuff that's coming?

Exciting times! I'm really not in that big of a hurry, I just wanted to light the fire a bit. :thumbsup I can't wait to see the results of all your hard work.. until then I'll just nag every so often. :dude

[syo]

Well I just thought I'd put up a work in progress. This is my first test of doing graphics with silver leaf. I just pulled the mask off and cleaned it up a little but I will have to do some spot leafing here and there. You may notice that the pickguard and control plate look like they're just hanging there and that's because they are. The pickguard is a rough one from an earlier prototype. Not sure about the white but it's all I had at hand. It will need to be sealed with some clear coats for both looks and protection. As it is pure silver (well .9999) it will tarnish should moisture get to it so it needs to be sealed.

Please let me know what you think. The stars/fireworks were just a quick idea for a test. Kind of looks a little like a poor man's Zemaitis to me (wait, that would be a Greco...:D )

Here they are:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto1.jpg

On other news, the first production run is underway. I'll be going back and forth to the factory to follow progress. I'm excited and nervous in equal measure. Small run for the first time...:running

[MAXIFUNK]

Here they are:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto1.jpg

On other news, the first production run is underway. I'll be going back and forth to the factory to follow progress. I'm excited and nervous in equal measure. Small run for the first time...:running


I want one of those with maple or ebony neck for sure.

Good luck with your 1st run.

[Mystrom]

Well I just thought I'd put up a work in progress. This is my first test of doing graphics with silver leaf. I just pulled the mask off and cleaned it up a little but I will have to do some spot leafing here and there. You may notice that the pickguard and control plate look like they're just hanging there and that's because they are. The pickguard is a rough one from an earlier prototype. Not sure about the white but it's all I had at hand. It will need to be sealed with some clear coats for both looks and protection. As it is pure silver (well .9999) it will tarnish should moisture get to it so it needs to be sealed.

Please let me know what you think. The stars/fireworks were just a quick idea for a test. Kind of looks a little like a poor man's Zemaitis to me (wait, that would be a Greco...:D )

Here they are:



http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto1.jpg

On other news, the first production run is underway. I'll be going back and forth to the factory to follow progress. I'm excited and nervous in equal measure. Small run for the first time...:running
It looks great. I have been lurking on this thread for awhile following the progress. Your so fortunate to be able to do this. I have a couple of questions. Any word on the latest pricing? What is the radius on the necks your using. what shape are they? I'm guessing a C? What guitars are included in your first run? I'm trying to decide between the semi-hollow body ( any new pictures?) and the one with 2 humbuckers that doesn't look similar to a Tele. Is that the Target. I get a little confused with all of the mock ups. The best of luck.

[deeaa]

Honestly, I like them better with plain colors. Why is the pickguard so huge BTW, wouldn't it look nicer if smaller? Just my preference of course.

[syo]

It looks great. I have been lurking on this thread for awhile following the progress. Your so fortunate to be able to do this. I have a couple of questions. Any word on the latest pricing? What is the radius on the necks your using. what shape are they? I'm guessing a C? What guitars are included in your first run? I'm trying to decide between the semi-hollow body ( any new pictures?) and the one with 2 humbuckers that doesn't look similar to a Tele. Is that the Target. I get a little confused with all of the mock ups. The best of luck.
Hello Mystrom. Glad to have you following along. To answer your questions...

The radii for all of the models are currently 14". The necks are pretty standard C shape. I made these choices for 2 reasons. One is that it suits my personal style. The other is that since I am starting small I wanted to start first with a good all-rounder, which I believe the "C" with a 14" radius to be. I plan to offer some fatter necks and smaller radii in future. More success will mean more options available. I will be testing a 10" and 12" radius in my next order.

Regarding the semi-hollow model, unfortunately it is not part of the first production run. I am still tweaking things but I didn't want to hold up production for this one model. It will still be coming but delayed unfortunately. The other dual Humbucker is the "Bender". That will be coming with the first order. Pricing has been mentioned a few times earlier but I am also adding options which will vary the price. Hope to have the website up soon with all the current info.


Honestly, I like them better with plain colors. Why is the pickguard so huge BTW, wouldn't it look nicer if smaller? Just my preference of course.
Hello Dee. The plain colors are still available of course. Ever since I was a boy sitting in church, I had a desire to paint the plain walls with my own creations. Since church was interminably boring, I had lots of time to fantasize. I never did get to paint the walls but I did wind up making my living by drawing, painting and otherwise covering surfaces with my ideas. Can't be helped I'm afraid. It's my affliction. :D I have 18 more bodies waiting to be worked on and I'm sketching ideas in my sleep. Actually I started casually showing that silver star guitar around 2-3 days ago and received two offers to buy it on the spot. The reaction from a few trusted friends in the business has been very encouraging. Certainly not for everyone though I'm sure. Maybe I could interest you with one with a spookbox logo perhaps? ;)

Pickguard actually doesn't take up too much more square centimetrage than a standard tele guard. The contrast of the pearl white on black with silver really does pop though. As I said in the above post it was just thrown on as it was to hand. But actually the more I look at it, the more I like it.

Thanks for the comments Dee. One thing I'm fairly sure of is, if you ever do wind up with one of my guitars, it will (most likely) eventually get stripped down to its' skeleton, or the body will be replaced by a really good rock or something. I would certainly like to see what you come up with...:dude

[bcdon]

These are awesome!! I love the silver stars, very cool!
http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/No2_SStars_proto2.jpg

[deeaa]

As usual I was less wordy than I should (mobile surfing....), I really liked the _looks_ of the golden one with those rather intricate patterns, and most others are also aesthetically quite pleasing. But I meant, when buying a guitar, I don't like graphics or such...if I want something there, I'll add them myself rather. And from general marketing standpoint, I'd venture overall people would prefer guitars without graphics etc. however nice they were. Might be wrong too, but I think there's a market for 'adorned' guitars and one for plain ones, and the latter is probably much bigger.

I do really like the shape of the guitars. If I ever had one, I would definitely be tempted to reduce the pickguard size on this last one, though...or remove it :-)

On this one, I would leave the pickguard off from the lower horn...kinda like leave the top as it is, and make the bottom the top's inverted mirror image almost, so it'd form a nearly perfect oval stretched forwards on the top side and towards the control cavity on the bottom. Sorta like on a Music Man bass but tilted and bent to fit the guitar shape. I just feel that looks a bit too big and unnecessarily so, and also the sharp angles at the control area sort of take away from the general smoothness of the guitar shape.

[syo]

As usual I was less wordy than I should (mobile surfing....), I really liked the _looks_ of the golden one with those rather intricate patterns, and most others are also aesthetically quite pleasing. But I meant, when buying a guitar, I don't like graphics or such...if I want something there, I'll add them myself rather. And from general marketing standpoint, I'd venture overall people would prefer guitars without graphics etc. however nice they were. Might be wrong too, but I think there's a market for 'adorned' guitars and one for plain ones, and the latter is probably much bigger.

I do really like the shape of the guitars. If I ever had one, I would definitely be tempted to reduce the pickguard size on this last one, though...or remove it :-)

On this one, I would leave the pickguard off from the lower horn...kinda like leave the top as it is, and make the bottom the top's inverted mirror image almost, so it'd form a nearly perfect oval stretched forwards on the top side and towards the control cavity on the bottom. Sorta like on a Music Man bass but tilted and bent to fit the guitar shape. I just feel that looks a bit too big and unnecessarily so, and also the sharp angles at the control area sort of take away from the general smoothness of the guitar shape.

Well, I agree with you Dee about there being a much larger market for "unadorned" guitars (off the subject, how is it that a guy from Finland writes English better than I do? :D). My motivation for doing the adorned guitars is primarily for my pleasure. I will not be mass producing them but doing them myself. That being said, I do hope some will find them worth having for their uniqueness and craft. Frankly, I find 90%+ guitars and guitar makers to be rather uninspiring. If I enjoy some success with this I intend to play around with things quite a bit. And I always figure if this whole venture tanks, at least I'll have more guitars than Spudman...:dude

As for the pickguard suggestion, perhaps I'll try a mock-up along the lines that you suggest. Actually I recently discovered that without the pickguard at all the guitar looks mean and sexy at the same time (or maybe I'm just projecting something...).

[deeaa]

Okay, I assumed all the guitars would have special graphics/stuff on them. My bad :-) in that case, well, excellent work!

I usually think guitars look better sans pickguards. Even Les Pauls etc...but I guess on some, like Teles, it's so iconic it can't be left out. But a brand new shape might lend itself well to some unique pickguard shapes as well maybe.

[mainestratman]

Great progress syo... this has been a super-fun thread for sure.

I like the SStar model.. I'm not usually huge on a "busy" guitar finish, but the SStar is just so darn.. "cheerful".. :-)

I've decided what my dream Hell Guitars guitar would be.. .a Bender with a rosewood fretboard, the body finished only with 2 dozen coats of boiled linseed oil... all silver hardware.

So when I get my big record deal *cough cough* we can start talking endorsements. :poke

[syo]

Okay, I assumed all the guitars would have special graphics/stuff on them. My bad :-)

Nah, no bad at all Dee. Actually I always preferred "plain" (but well done finishes) and never modded the cosmetic appearance of any of my guitars. But it's becoming like tattoos for me now. Doing one makes me want to do more. The idea of creating unique, one-offs really appeals to me. Of course the standard colors are there because I love them that way too but I really get off on spending time creating something unique. It's very satisfying indeed.

[FrankenFretter]

I really enjoy seeing you express yourself with your guitar finishes, Syo. I like all of them, to be honest. I'd have a hard time picking a favorite out of what you've posted so far, but that star design is pretty fantastic.

I'm very happy that you'll have some available for sale in the near future. I think I've kind of got my mind made up that my next guitar should be a Hell guitar. Of course, I may have to fight BCDon for the first one off the assembly line... ;-)

[MAXIFUNK]

SYO 10" to 12" radius on the neck and I am ready to spend. LOL

[syo]

SYO 10" to 12" radius on the neck and I am ready to spend. LOL
Like really flat necks do you, Maxi? :D

I read over my comments thinking I may have an ill-constructed sentence somewhere but couldn't find it. But then I'm not sleeping much these days and confuse myself easily. But if you really want a 10" to 12" radius neck, I'll have the factory glue you a block and give it a light sand...:)

Check that. I just read over the original question. I'll cancel your order :D

[bcdon]

I'm very happy that you'll have some available for sale in the near future. I think I've kind of got my mind made up that my next guitar should be a Hell guitar. Of course, I may have to fight BCDon for the first one off the assembly line... ;-)

You got that right! I was in Austin, Texas and went to about 10 different guitar stores and didn't see a single one that spoke to me (well, there was a $5K Gibson but that ain't happening as long as I plan to stay married) so I'm sweating bullets (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9dox9_megadeth-sweating-bullets_music) waiting to place my order with you, Syo. And I'm leaning towards the Bender with some Bare Knuckle goodness (Nailbomb perhaps..please?) ;-) :dude

[FrankenFretter]

You got that right! I was in Austin, Texas and went to about 10 different guitar stores and didn't see a single one that spoke to me (well, there was a $5K Gibson but that ain't happening as long as I plan to stay married) so I'm sweating bullets (http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9dox9_megadeth-sweating-bullets_music) waiting to place my order with you, Syo. And I'm leaning towards the Bender with some Bare Knuckle goodness (Nailbomb perhaps..please?) ;-) :dude

The Bender is probably at the top of my list as well, although the Nail Bombs seem a little too hot for what I'm looking for. I find that I really enjoy the sound of AlNiCo II vintage wound pickups lately. Any chance that you could do something like that, Syo? I love the sound of the Gibson 57 Classic and 57 Classic plus pickups, especially.

How's your first production run coming, Syo? Any blems you need to liquidate?
;-)

[bcdon]

The Bender is probably at the top of my list as well, although the Nail Bombs seem a little too hot for what I'm looking for. I find that I really enjoy the sound of AlNiCo II vintage wound pickups lately. Any chance that you could do something like that, Syo? I love the sound of the Gibson 57 Classic and 57 Classic plus pickups, especially.

How's your first production run coming, Syo? Any blems you need to liquidate?
;-)
I think the Bare Knuckle pups that Syo spoke of is more inline with those 57s.. it was me asking for pups with a tad more zing (a'la Nailbombs). ;-) :dude

[deeaa]

Are you guys really sure you can tell the differences between pickups like AlII or 57 or nailbombs? Really?

[bcdon]

Are you guys really sure you can tell the differences between pickups like AlII or 57 or nailbombs? Really?
Absolutely, not! I just like the nailbombs for the name. :)

[GuitarAcademy]

They remind me of a cross between Minarik and Halo Guitars. I'm interested in seeing their progress. I'd also like to talk a little business when you get ready for release :) I am very impressed by what I'm seeing. Of course I own 27 guitars, and probably shouldn't be saying that. Maybe you'll be doing Winter NAMM '11?

GA

[syo]

Hey Don, Sean and welcome to Hell and of course The Fret, GA.

Regarding the Bareknuckles I can drop in most of what they make at this point since the run this time is small. Not sure yet if I will have custom configurations in the future. Still working out some details about this issue. But whatever (and whenever) you guys might want a guitar I'll put in whatever you like. With the caveat that I can't personally recommend pick-up/guitar combinations that I haven't personally tried out myself (and I have tested a few).

I have a few new things I'm working on but nothing to show just yet. Guitarwise anyway. I did do a test of a 24kt gold leaf violin recently. A little off but I was mostly just testing materials and my technique. Was playing with an Art Nouveau theme. Sorry. I know it doesn't have any frets...;)

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434c39c6d701053.jpg
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434c39c6d7233db.jpg

Didn't put any clear varnish on top which would really pull it together nicely but I will on the final I'll start working on soon. All in all though I was pleased with this test.


I am very impressed by what I'm seeing. Of course I own 27 guitars, and probably shouldn't be saying that. Maybe you'll be doing Winter NAMM '11?
GA

Well GA, you do sound rather easily impressed (with 27!) ;). I'll certainly be at NAMM and it's 50/50 whether or not I'll be exhibiting.. Need to decide soon though.

[bcdon]

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434c39c6d701053.jpg

Very cool! I can picture Yngwie playing this on stage in between guitar solos! :dude

[FrankenFretter]

Hey Don, Sean and welcome to Hell and of course The Fret, GA.

Regarding the Bareknuckles I can drop in most of what they make at this point since the run this time is small. Not sure yet if I will have custom configurations in the future. Still working out some details about this issue. But whatever (and whenever) you guys might want a guitar I'll put in whatever you like. With the caveat that I can't personally recommend pick-up/guitar combinations that I haven't personally tried out myself (and I have tested a few).

Hey Syo, good to hear from you! As far as pickups go, since you've tried more than a few, is there something in your opinion that sounds sweet, a little dark, and somewhat more on the vintage side rather than modern/hot? My Epi Tribute Les Paul has kind of become the bar to which my standards are set in that regard, but I'm willing to try something new.

The violin is beautiful! You do very nice work. I look forward to seeing some more custom paint jobs on the Hell guitars. The stuff you're doing is so much more creative than what's out there right now. Way cool.

[syo]

Hey Syo, good to hear from you! As far as pickups go, since you've tried more than a few, is there something in your opinion that sounds sweet, a little dark, and somewhat more on the vintage side rather than modern/hot? My Epi Tribute Les Paul has kind of become the bar to which my standards are set in that regard, but I'm willing to try something new.

Hey Sean. Just in case you haven't been to the Bare Knuckle site yet, you might want to take a look:
http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/
They have specs, descriptions and sound files for all of their pickups. You can really get a good idea of what they offer. The forum is interesting too.

Regarding pickups for the Bender, I can recommend The Mule, Stormy Mondays and Black Dogs. I also have some Riff Raffs but haven't dropped them in yet. As per your description, The Stormy Mondays might be a good fit. Of the 3 the SM's have the lowest output and use either alnico II or IV (you'd definitely want AIV for the neck). All are on the vintage side. The Mules are Bare Knuckle's PAF model and the Black Dogs are listed as "vintage hot". Personally I really like either the Mules or Black Dogs (for extra punch) for this model but they all fit.

I have heard very good things about the Riff Raffs on guitars of similar construction to this (set-neck/alder body), so I'm anxious to try them out too, hopefully this week.

[GuitarAcademy]

Syo, since I am new here Im not sure how to contact you in PM about these guitars. Could you contact me, I have some questions, business-wise.

GA

[syo]

Syo, since I am new here Im not sure how to contact you in PM about these guitars. Could you contact me, I have some questions, business-wise.

GA

Hello GA. Tried sending you a message through the user panel but your preferences are set to "not receive". I don't know what the policy is about posting email here. If for some reason, I'm not supposed to, please someone berate me for doing so and I'll remove it. :spank
Until then, you can reach me at: contact@hellguitars.com.

Thanks.

[MAXIFUNK]

Like really flat necks do you, Maxi? :D

I read over my comments thinking I may have an ill-constructed sentence somewhere but couldn't find it. But then I'm not sleeping much these days and confuse myself easily. But if you really want a 10" to 12" radius neck, I'll have the factory glue you a block and give it a light sand...:)

Check that. I just read over the original question. I'll cancel your order :D


SYO your a mean evil dude "The radii for all of the models are currently 14".

So a 10 to 12" radius would be nice @!$#@%#^%$#@^$^$^!

[syo]

Ok. Another work in progress. Perhaps it is getting tiresome seeing more half finished pieces rather than final guitars but this is part of the process for me. I've been working on a bunch of new designs for the exisiting models and trying to get them to the factory as soon as possible for completion.

This one I rather like. Was playing with the idea of a 3D guitar (yes, I know that a guitar is already in 3D). It produces an interesting illusion. The goldish diamonds are from a special schlag metal leaf. Depending on the angle and lighting the can appear anywhere from gold to brass to silver-ish. There's also a very light pattern in the leaf. It is very tempermental stuff and tore in odd ways when removing the masking film so I sprayed with a light clear coat to keep the leaf stable and I'm fixing all the rough bits. Still needs a little more fixing and a nice glassy clear finish. Of course getting the shiny hardware and diamond marker neck on there should pull it together too. Please use a little imagination. Not sure if I should use nickel covers or open with black for a meaner look. Guess I'll try both and see.

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434c486321a1116.jpg

Lots of other things going on that I'm anxious to share but I suppose I should wait until things get a little further along. Anyway I would, as always, appreciate any comments on this model. Good, bad or indifferent. Thanks...:dude

[bcdon]

Wow! That is so awesome! I'm not sure if it is just the flash, but it looks like there are reddish spots on some of the tiles. Also, if you scan your eyes from top-to-bottom the 3D really pops out like a M.C. Escher design. Very cool! BTW, that snake logo looks very cool and would be really wicked on the guitar (maybe as inlays on the fretboard).

Great work! :dude Thanks a lot for sharing this with us.



http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434c486321a1116.jpg

[FrankenFretter]

Cool. Reminds me of Alice in Wonderland, as that pattern usually does for some reason. I like it. Personally, I'd go with the open pickups, but that's just me.

[bcdon]

It's been almost two fortnights since your last update, syo. So...
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b1/Oasis_-_(What's_The_Story)_Morning_Glory_album_cover.jpg

[tjcurtin1]

That finish/design is just FABULOUSLY COOL! Wow! I'd see how it looked with gold pup covers...

[syo]

That finish/design is just FABULOUSLY COOL! Wow! I'd see how it looked with gold pup covers...

Thanks alot TJ. I am not usually inclined toward gold hardware but I've actually thought about it for this one. I'm really anxious to have this one built.


It's been almost two fortnights since your last update, syo. So...

Well you are indeed right about that Don. Unfortunately I got a bit behind as our usual business was insanely busy. At the same time, my wife injured her ankle which is now in a cast and I got a bad bug with a very high fever. For the first production run I need to be at the factory a couple of times during the process. So I figured rather than push it, it would be best to wait until I have the time I need to make sure that everything comes out as it should. I am now planning to go to the factory in early September. I'll go back to the factory and to the Music China Fair in Shanghai in Oct. where I might show some of our stuff in a friends' booth.

I have been busy though with other Hell details in the meantime. New designs, a new model (a rather different signature model), plus working on the website and coming up with some Hell branded gear.

Sorry for the silence. I should have more to report soon. Perhaps I'll come up with some kind of giveaway for the Fretters only. :hungry

[bcdon]

Hi syo,

Thanks for the update. Sorry to hear about your illness and your wife's ankle (tell her to take it easy on those snow boards!) :) Of course there is no hurry, it's always best to take one's time and do things right.. I was just nudging you a bit. :poke

Good luck with the Music Fair, that must be a really exciting thing to plan for.

Cheers!

don

[syo]

Sorry to hear about your illness and your wife's ankle (tell her to take it easy on those snow boards!) :)
don

Nothing so glamourous Don.
Slipped on her moderately high heels on the way back from our cheap local Chinese. :hungry :running :thwap

[FrankenFretter]

Nothing so glamourous Don.
Slipped on her moderately high heels on the way back from our cheap local Chinese. :hungry :running :thwap

I have a friend who broke her ankle in a drunken slow motion tumble from a park bench. And yes, she was sitting at the time. How that could happen, I still don't understand.

[syo]

I believe I told Sean quite some time ago that I was hoping to try out the Bare Knuckle Riff Raff humbuckers "this weekend". Well (many weekends later) I finally did. They're terrific. I highly recommend them if you have an SG style guitar. Probably great in a LP too. Amazingly versatile from bell-like clear to nice punchy growl. Fits the Bender like a glove. Although I did pull out my Mule equipped Bender and that is amazingly sweet too. A little warmer sound.

Just placed half of a sizable order with Bare Knuckle. Their products and service really cannot be beat in my opinion. If you're looking for an nice upgrade I do recommend them. Prices appear to have gone up however... :(

[FrankenFretter]

I believe I told Sean quite some time ago that I was hoping to try out the Bare Knuckle Riff Raff humbuckers "this weekend". Well (many weekends later) I finally did. They're terrific. I highly recommend them if you have an SG style guitar. Probably great in a LP too. Amazingly versatile from bell-like clear to nice punchy growl. Fits the Bender like a glove. Although I did pull out my Mule equipped Bender and that is amazingly sweet too. A little warmer sound.

Just placed half of a sizable order with Bare Knuckle. Their products and service really cannot be beat in my opinion. If you're looking for an nice upgrade I do recommend them. Prices appear to have gone up however... :(

From what I've experienced so far with AlNiCo pickups, I think I prefer the IIs and IVs over the Vs. I'd probably dig the Mules, from what I've read. I've heard nothing but good things about these Bare Knuckle pickups. I think you made a good choice there, Syo.

How is production coming along? Will we see any available soon?

[syo]

How is production coming along? Will we see any available soon?
Should be about two months (which is what I said 5 months ago:thwap ). Actually pretty firm this time. Many unforseen factors conspired to the delays. Mostly to do with our other business which has required more of my time than was anticipated. Also, I'm a bit of a perfectionist when I'm into something so I keep trying out new hardware, tweaking designs etc. until I start feeling good about going to market.

The happy result of this delay however, is that the yen has been getting quite strong over this time so everything is costing me a bit less. For now anyway. So a few weeks after the Shanghai Music China fair (next week) I will hang out at the factory and oversee the production at an early stage then back again later for assembly, set-up and shipping. I will go over every guitar to make sure everything is as it should be. Have to finish the website too. Lots to do! :running

[FrankenFretter]

Should be about two months (which is what I said 5 months ago:thwap ). Actually pretty firm this time. Many unforseen factors conspired to the delays. Mostly to do with our other business which has required more of my time than was anticipated. Also, I'm a bit of a perfectionist when I'm into something so I keep trying out new hardware, tweaking designs etc. until I start feeling good about going to market.

The happy result of this delay however, is that the yen has been getting quite strong over this time so everything is costing me a bit less. For now anyway. So a few weeks after the Shanghai Music China fair (next week) I will hang out at the factory and oversee the production at an early stage then back again later for assembly, set-up and shipping. I will go over every guitar to make sure everything is as it should be. Have to finish the website too. Lots to do! :running


Good luck, Syo! I'm sure you'll let us know when the website is up. Maybe you can even test it on us Fretters! Have fun at the Shanghai Music fair!

[bcdon]

Hey Syo!

I know you are at the Shanghai music fair but thought I'd ask you about your progress. When, oh when, can us fretters place an order? ;-) :dude

[syo]

Hey Syo!

I know you are at the Shanghai music fair but thought I'd ask you about your progress. When, oh when, can us fretters place an order? ;-) :dude
Hey Don. I just finished meeting with suppliers. Worked out some better deals on hardware so the guitars will be improved without extra cost. Also having neck joint plates with the Hell logo done up for the bolt-on models. As I mentioned to Sean, it will be about two months til the guitars are finished. Unfortunately this is the busy manufacturing season so production is taking a little longer. Also, I am a pain in the... well...neck for the manufacturer I think as I require more attention :mad than most of the other makers (or so I've been told)...

In all, sorry this has been dragging on but we're nearly there. Then I'll join otaypanky in the presently lonely looking "Manufacturers and Retailers" section. :D

[FrankenFretter]

As long as you have some ready for tax return time, I'll be happy! :thumbsup

[Commodore 64]

Yeah, how much should I be saving up?

[FrankenFretter]

Yeah, how much should I be saving up?

What, you're not going to wait for one to come up on CL, C64? :thumbsup

[duhvoodooman]

Expected pricing (before the special Fretter discounts you will undoubtedly offer ;)) would be helpful information for GAS budget planning purposes....

[kidsmoke]

Wow. Decisions decisions. Just took some time to read this thread word for word. As a job shop manufacturer, I am completely impressed by your journey, to say nothing of the guitars. They really do stand on their own. Beautiful!

The idea of a dual humbucker with a nice belly carve is great. Partnering with BareKnuckle is brilliant. I already own a Little Lanilei, so I'm down with that idea as well. (although, I'd be concerned about distribution. My buddy just ordered one a week ago and was given a 55 day lead time by the guy who hand wires them one at a time. How's he gonna keep up?!)

The semi...is it solid block through like a 335 or hollow?

Man, you are gonna have a great group of testers available for sure. For the record, I play on stage every week with a whole bunch of guitar nuts with more money than self control. I really think this is where your guitars need to be seen. This is where I "sold" a Lanilei. So, I suppose I might be willing to help you out on the marketing...

But seriously. Kudos

Oh, and a HUGE thumbs up the serpent as a headstock logo or fret markers. Maybe your signature guitar has no brand script....JUST a serpent! It should happen on a 3+3 though, not a 6 on a side headstock.

Take a Bender maybe a serpent on the headstock, trans candy apple red over flamed maple cap, with pearly gates p'ups ....

Hell's Ophidian

I want one.

[syo]

Expected pricing (before the special Fretter discounts you will undoubtedly offer ;)) would be helpful information for GAS budget planning purposes....
Looks like the first run will be all Bare Knuckle equipped as I want to make the best impression out of the gate. Therefore pricing will be from about the low/mid $500 range and up. As a set of BK's go for about $300 or so retail, it's not a bad deal if you ever wanted to try a set and with a quality HELL guitar to go with them for just a little more (end sales pitch :D). I am still considering a "budget" version which is the same package but with much cheaper Wilkinsons. Also will be offering some custom models featuring my own graphics and buyer customizable hardware. But the Fretter price will be my best "Crazy Syo" price ("How can he offer prices so low?! He's CRAAAZY"!!!). Just to thank my brothers here for their encouragement.

Wow. Decisions decisions. Just took some time to read this thread word for word. As a job shop manufacturer, I am completely impressed by your journey, to say nothing of the guitars. They really do stand on their own. Beautiful!

The idea of a dual humbucker with a nice belly carve is great. Partnering with BareKnuckle is brilliant. I already own a Little Lanilei, so I'm down with that idea as well. (although, I'd be concerned about distribution. My buddy just ordered one a week ago and was given a 55 day lead time by the guy who hand wires them one at a time. How's he gonna keep up?!)
Hey TK, thanks for the kind words and for following me on my journey.
Regarding the Little Lanilei's, actually I've had to pull back a little on that offer. Tris is a real nice fellow and I like his amps quite alot but I do believe that right now his business is best suited for individual buyers and not for large volume. In other words, your concerns were mine. That said, I think we would both agree that they're great little amps. I think that anyone so inclined should get in line and buy one. At the Shanghai Music China Fair last week, I did come across some interesting hand wired all-tube amps and may offer some of those. Amazing quality/price. They make for some of the big manufacturers but they'll do OEM for me. :AOK Right now though, just concentrating on getting the guitars out in good shape first.

The semi...is it solid block through like a 335 or hollow?
Solid block. Thicker top than a typical 335.
The good news is, this model is amazingly versatile. Incredible depth of tone and can sing sweet or scream real nasty-like.
The bad news is, it's not available. :thwap At least not on the first run. It was all we could do to manage quality control on 3 solid bodies for the initial run. The semi-hollow was experiencing some persistent cosmetic issues so we decided to hold off until they can be straightened out. Nothing major but didn't want to hold up release any longer. I may throw a prototype or two up for sale though sometime.

So much to do. I need longer minutes...

[bcdon]

Wow! That's a low price!!
XUBUxv4VsTw

Great work, syo!!

[Duffy]

That's one BEAUTIFUL checkerboard guitar. I can see that being a big time collector's item.

Beautiful work.

Congratulations. I hope the mfg plant doesn't turn x into y on you; or z in this case.

Best wishes in this endeavor.

[syo]

Hell-o again...
It has been awhile since last updating things. So update I will for those who care to follow. Production is ongoing although some illness and recording scheduling have delayed my early production inspection at the factory. Hopefully going over later this month.

Speaking of recording, I hope to have some sound and video files up later this month. I'll be recording a player here in Japan in a couple weeks and hopefully another player in L.A. at the end of the month.

Been working on the website design and would be interested in hearing what some of you think. It is a design in progress, which means it could change considerably but the general layout is set. Just working on styles now. If you like, you can see a non-functioning page here:
http://www.hellguitars.com/HP_TEST5B_11-1-10.jpg
It's just a .jpg so click the image to see it full size.

The text is mostly dummy text. Don't get too excited about the guitar giveaway as it's dummy text too. :D Although I do plan to do one sometime.

Would love to hear some opinions. Thanks!

[bcdon]

That is a great design. Syo, I have to say (and not to get a discount!), you really have a keen eye for style.

I really like the guitar display with the colour palette. It would be really cool if you could have a mouse-roll-over on the colours that changes the colour of the guitar.

Great work!

[MAXIFUNK]

I like what I saw on the dummy page color tone spacing. :applause
Just do not go over the top with to much flash it kills a web site to me. :thwap

[progrmr]

I like that No. 6 - A LOT

[FrankenFretter]

The New Number Six...from The Prisoner?

Very nice, Syo. Things are really coming along for Hell Guitars. I feel the excitement building...I guess I'd better plan on using my company bonus for a Hell guitar in March!

[syo]

The New Number Six...from The Prisoner?
I did my first pilgrimage to Portmeirion ("The Village") in N. Wales in the early eighties. I love that show. When I came up with the name I wasn't conciously thinking about it but it did occur to me. "The NEW No. 6" however, was indeed conciously concieved. :D

Be seeing you!

[syo]

Update time...

Did some video recording the other day with a local player. Got some nice footage and sound recording. I'm excited about getting it all mixed and edited.
Here is a bit that I just chose at random and quickly threw together. Image quality will be better for the real deal. But here's a preview anyway...

http://www.youtube.com/v/OoCtRryEXcw?fs=1&hl=en_US

Hmmm... Can't seem to get the youTube flashmovie to show up here. Could someone please help? Thanks... Just put up the link instead for now.

Comments welcomed.

EDIT: Fixed please see below...

[Katastrophe]

I can't see the vid!

[syo]

I can't see the vid!

Yes, sorry. I dropped the embed code between the YOUTUBE tags but no dice. Am I doing something wrong...?

[syo]

Ahh. Here you are!


<object width="640" height="390"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/OoCtRryEXcw&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/OoCtRryEXcw&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="640" height="390"></embed></object>

[Katastrophe]

Nice, syo!

Beautiful guitar, and it's brilliant to drum up some interest on YouTube before releasing the guitars to the public.

They sound great, and I can't wait to hear the other models in action!

[bcdon]

Very nice! :dude

[syo]

Hell Update time. It seems I may actually, finally launch this thing. I am flying to China tomorrow and will go over the first production run on Sunday. If all is well, they should ship in about 2-3 weeks. Got the Hell Guitar branded shipping cartons going and I just received this pic today of the Hell branded neck joint plates for the bolt-on models. Pics aren't great but you get the idea.
http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d27180a95397.jpg

Recently I designed some Hell Guitar baseball jerseys which are being made by Ebbets Field Flannels. A very cool company. They make everything to order like the old days. The founder was apparently a pro guitar player. I don't know why I wanted to do this except that the idea of my logo on a baseball jersey seemed like something cool. We'll see how they turn out in a few weeks. Seems things are finally heating up in Hell...
:dance

[bcdon]

Great news, syo!

I can't wait to be sitting around in that jersey playing a Hell Guitar! :dude

[Duffy]

That would be neat to be able to own a nice guitar manufactured by a forum member.

[duhvoodooman]

So when are we gonna see a model & price list? :poke :D

[FrankenFretter]

Well, this is working out very well, timing wise. The tax return and company bonus are coming up in about 5 to 7 weeks, so I expect to be ready to order my own personal Hell at that time. I may be talking to you about a one-off, Syo. I'm very excited about your dreams reaching fruition! Congratulations!

[syo]

Thanks all for the encouraging comments. I am excited and, I must say, at the moment a little drunk...
I arrived at my hotel not far from the factory this evening and was graciously hosted by the owner and representatives of the company for dinner. As is always the case in these situations it is obligatory to drain the glass after each toast. Must say that tonight I drained quite a few...

I'll go to the factory tomorrow morning to check all of the guitars. Hopefully all will be as it should be.

And now sleeping sounds like a good idea... :beer: :messedup: :zzz

[Duffy]

Syo,

It would be of great interest to some of us to see some photos from inside the factory of the process and the guitars, if you can get some and are willing to post a few. I know some of us are great intellects, but none of us are trying to steal your intellectual property - I don't think. ? . ? Er, ah, yeah - some pictures would be real nice.

Seriously. Some pictures would be really neat. I don't suppose the Chinesse factory managers would complain, but, of course, I don't know. Maybe they have manufacturing secrets that they don't want pictures taken of for whatever reasons. Manufacturing standards within the factories, labor policies, environmental policies, etc., may not be exactly what most of us would expect to see.

So if you can't produce any pictures, we understand. They would be definitely cool though, and appreciated.

When is your catalog going to be available, as well as etimated US prices and availability dates? Very few of us will be able to go to NAMM and I imagine the news will be thin with little or nothing about your guitars readily available.

I'm assuming you will be at NAMM unveiling your products?

[syo]

Syo,

It would be of great interest to some of us to see some photos from inside the factory of the process and the guitars, if you can get some and are willing to post a few. I know some of us are great intellects, but none of us are trying to steal your intellectual property - I don't think. ? . ? Er, ah, yeah - some pictures would be real nice.

Seriously. Some pictures would be really neat. I don't suppose the Chinesse factory managers would complain, but, of course, I don't know. Maybe they have manufacturing secrets that they don't want pictures taken of for whatever reasons. Manufacturing standards within the factories, labor policies, environmental policies, etc., may not be exactly what most of us would expect to see.

So if you can't produce any pictures, we understand. They would be definitely cool though, and appreciated.

When is your catalog going to be available, as well as etimated US prices and availability dates? Very few of us will be able to go to NAMM and I imagine the news will be thin with little or nothing about your guitars readily available.

I'm assuming you will be at NAMM unveiling your products?
Duffy, when I was in the factory today I took some pics to post however they were taken by my mobile phone so I will have to wait until I return home to post them as I didn't bring my micro SD adapter with me. The factory has nothing to hide and neither do I but of course I would rather not announce the name of the company we are working with. As for labor/environmental standards, I am quite confident that we are dealing with a responsible partner. That is part of the reason they were chosen.

Today was a very good visit. I test played most of the guitars and they were all as I had hoped they would be. The company has been very responsive to our needs and have delivered according to our rather high expectations. I still have further inspections to do in the morning but thus far I have been very impressed.

Also, I discovered that they are now making both electric and acoustic guitars for another major US manufacturer. Some very nice guitars of which I played a few.

Regarding NAMM, I was initially planning to exhibit this year however we got rather got behind schedule. So we plan to have a booth next year but we will launch in the meantime.

Hopefully Duffy, I'm making sense as I've had another rather drink-filled company dinner. :messedup: After morning inspections I will fly to Beijing for other business and then to L.A. the following evening for NAMM where I hope to meet our own Mr. Renman. I've never met a fretter before let alone Die Meister Fretter himself...:running
Looking forward to it and the warm L.A. weather...

[bcdon]

Hopefully Duffy, I'm making sense as I've had another rather drink-filled company dinner. :messedup:
Sounds like you are having a good time to me! :dude

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/182/384944965_5e6e0834cd.jpg

[Duffy]

Syo,

No Syo. I didn't at any time suspect you might have anything to hide, and I look forward to seeing your new line of guitars launch successfully. Too bad you couldn't have a place at the trade show. I wish I was going to the show. Sounds like a lot of fun and a learning experience for sure. I can only imagine the show that Gibson and Fender put on, plus some of the others that are heavy on the advertising.

I hope someone gives us a review of the show. It would be more than interesting.

Anyway I'm sure that more than a few of us will enjoy looking at the factory pictures where your guitars are being made. It is very interesting watching a forum member develop, manufacturer, and bring his guitar to market. More than a handful of us should be interested in possibly acquiring one, as they hit the market.

Do you have any major distributors lined up yet or are you going to start out slow or even by yourself, taking and filling orders?

Sounds like you had your share of fun during the business trip.

[tjcurtin1]

Syo - you have GOT to get some of your guitars in the hands of the man at Dolphin street to demo! Who else would do them the justice they deserve?! I can see/hear it now! I was going to suggest that even before I read that you were going to meet up at NAAM, which of course makes it a natural.

Best success with the introduction of your new offspring!

Ted

[syo]

Sounds like you are having a good time to me! :dude

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/182/384944965_5e6e0834cd.jpg

Well, I must confess that I'm a bit out of practice. After a youth of healthily enjoying inebriants I have let my drinking muscles go a bit soft. Still, I did enjoy myself and managed to avoid a hangover so I guess I was two for two. Funny, when I got back to the hotel, I was contemplating a bath before bed when I read this sign above the tub:

Kindly Notice
Dear Guests:
Please kindly note that don't use bathtub when you have drunk,
feel not so good and catch hypertension or heart disease. We
sincerely with you are always in good health, enjoy your living!
Thanks for your attention!

I decided I didn't want to risk catching hypertension or heart disease so
I skipped the bath. As I am still alive and "enjoying my living" I think I made
the right choice.

Honestly after years of doing business over here, maybe I should write a book...

[bcdon]

Honestly after years of doing business over here, maybe I should write a book...

LOL! I love Engrish! http://www.engrish.com/

http://www.engrish.com//wp-content/uploads/2011/01/disorder-rubbish.jpg

This should help you, syo!

http://www.engrish.com//wp-content/uploads/2008/08/hangover.jpg

[Ch0jin]

Honestly after years of doing business over here, maybe I should write a book...

Do it man! When you become the next Leo Fender, that thing will be GOLD!

I kid of course. I did a lot of business in Malaysia and you just don't see the crazy "engrish" (hoping thats not actually a derogatory term) there so I wondered what it was all about. Went to Japan, still nothing like the funnies you see online.

Then I went to China and saw it everywhere!

This is one of my favourites from a restaurant I wandered into in Beijing (with REALLY good food mind, if you are interested I'll dig up the details, but it's basically next to Hooters :)

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4009/4461596924_02ea8cb511_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ch0jin/4461596924/)
Does the pot do the child sacrificially? (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ch0jin/4461596924/) by Ch0jiN (http://www.flickr.com/people/ch0jin/), on Flickr

Of course I ordered and ate it and I have to say "Doing Pot" then "Sacrificing Children" results in a mighty tasty meal!!!

If you click on my flickr link there there are couple more from the same place including the classic dish "Steamed Sausage with the Old God Mother Steams"

Anyway sorry, this was about guitars :)

[Ch0jin]

Well, I must confess that I'm a bit out of practice. After a youth of healthily enjoying inebriants I have let my drinking muscles go a bit soft. Still, I did enjoy myself and managed to avoid a hangover so I guess I was two for two.

You did well! In Malaysia on business I was usually the only, or one of two western guys at dinner with Japanese, Chinese and Malaysian colleagues and they seemed to think that as I'm like 6'3" and 230lbs (190/105), I should be able to drink substantially more than any of them. So not wanting to offend, and in the spirit of the thing, I'd always end up with the guys topping me up over and over again.

Man, after a while just hearing the words "Gan Bei" or "Kam Pai" made me feel tipsy haha.

[bcdon]

Looks yummy! BTW, 'Engrish' is not derogatory; nor is 'Frenglish' for any of our French brothers. :french I'm sure there are appropriate words for us English speakers when we mis-speak one language or the other... Anyway, back to guitars! :dude

[Robert]

Man, that's hilarious!

I'm still laughing. :) :D

[syo]

Update time...
I just received word that my first production run is about to ship. I'm very excited. :happy

I also received pictures of the individual guitar packaging. This was produced at a factory separate from the guitar factory. Unfortunately, my company name has changed to Hell "Guilars". This is a problem as I don't own the Trademark to "Hell Guilars" although I'm pretty sure it's not taken. I mean what the hell is a "Guilar" anyway?!

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d3d8df3ac77c.jpg

They even changed my logotype. Why?! Makes my company look like a knockoff of itself. Must fix immediately! :mad

[Robert]

Oh man! Somebody screwed up! :eek:

[bcdon]

Update time...

I also received pictures of the individual guitar packaging. This was produced at a factory separate from the guitar factory. Unfortunately, my company name has changed to Hell "Guilars". This is a problem as I don't own the Trademark to "Hell Guilars" although I'm pretty sure it's not taken. I mean what the hell is a "Guilar" anyway?!d

They really messed up because you got my order! And it was supposed to say 'Gell Guilars!' which is the name of my Syo-designed rip-offs. ;-)

Kidding aside, how exciting! Can't wait to here more!! :dude

[syo]

They really messed up because you got my order! And it was supposed to say 'Gell Guilars!' which is the name of my Syo-designed rip-offs. ;-)

LOL
Funny, I went to high school with a guy named Gell Guilars. He was from Paraguay. Nice chap...

Actually, this wouldn't be such a big deal except for the fact that the Chinese New Year Holiday starts in 3 days. This means that all manufacturing (for me anyway) pretty much stops for a good 3 weeks as the entire country is at home with their families at this time. We planned this run to ship before the holidays and now I'm not sure what to do.

On a side note, many years ago in my first art director position for a small record company, I made a similar mistake. On our first full color catalogue that I designed, I failed to catch a rather important typo. On the back page, was the logo which read, (Co. Name) "Reords". The error was discovered by a guy in shipping after we had printed 5,000 of them (not cheap at all in those days). That was my most traumatic work moment ever... :spank

[tjcurtin1]

Hell! We want to see what's INSIDE that box - who the hell cares about the wrapper! (Just kidding - congrats!)

[FrankenFretter]

Syo, I'm very much looking forward to owning one of your fine guilars.

Do you have any photos of the new babies fresh off the production line?

[syo]

Syo, I'm very much looking forward to owning one of your fine guilars.

Do you have any photos of the new babies fresh off the production line?

Almost Sean.
Here are a few pics in the factory, guitars not yet completely off the production line but close. I took these photos at Duffy's request to see some shots of the process/factory. Sorry I didn't get these up sooner. Taken with my mobile phone so quality is so so. I'll try to post a few more soon.

Here's a shot of some of my guitars which were brought in to have the hardware assembled.

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153c6ef05.jpg

Pickups being installed

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153c90270.jpg

These 3 were taken in the final assembly/setup phase. I spent quite a few hours myself in one of these stations playing dozens of guitars. In fact I was standing in the same position for so long that when it came time to go to dinner my legs were almost locked in position. I think I was so focused on trying to find any flaws that I forgot to shift my weight from time to time. You'll notice labels on the Bare Knuckle pickups. I put them on before shipping them from Japan as we have several different combinations per style. I didn't want to take a chance that they could get confused.

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153bed787.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153c27623.jpg

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153c4992e.jpg

[Robert]

Very interesting! Thanks for posting these pics.

[bcdon]

http://www.thefret.net/imagehosting/93434d40153bed787.jpg


Are those Nailbombs? Sweet!!! :dude

Very cool, syo! Can't wait to see more (and have one too!) :dance :applause

[sumitomo]

I really like the looks of that white one,good job.Ah but what the hell you already knew that.Sumi:D

[bcdon]

Can't wait to see the website up and running...

http://hellguitars.com/come_soon_homeimg.jpg

[Robert]

Very cool Syo! I hope to see one in person one day! :D

[syo]

Can't wait to see the website up and running...

Yes don, I know. I'm late as usual. Sorry...:master

Things are coming along however. Recently received the first production run and I'm personally inspecting and testing all of them. I should be finished with most of them by the end of the weekend. I must say that so far I am completely blown away with the quality. I know that this sounds like self serving sales talk but it truly isn't. I post all the Hell news as it comes and if it were otherwise, I would say so. All of the so far tested guilars are excellent players and sound terrific. There have been two so far that actually sent chills down my spine. Incredible tone and drop-jaw sustain and they played exceptionally fast. Second to no guilars that I have ever played.
There are a couple that will have to go as B stock for purely cosmetic reasons. Nothing major yet though. Will see what the rest of this weekend brings, but so far I am relieved and very very happy. :happy

I was messing about a week or so with ago with melting ice and came up with a little video teaser. Rough but conceptually where I'm going. Audio is the first (and only) take of some playing around I did while while watching the video. I'm thinking to have a contest with the finished video, "Score one for Hell". A competition to score the vid. Winner gets a guitar. Could be interesting.

DAriKRaEE6M

Of course once you go to hellguitars.com all bcdon (or anyone else for that matter) can currently see is that "coming soon" page. The site right now is being held up by the fact that at this stage of Hell development I'm still in control-freak mode. I will be bringing others in to help soon but I have to get through the birth stage first. Nearly delivering. Practically however it is being held up by the fact that the guitars (oops guilars) have had some minor changes made to them so I have to reshoot the lot. I can't do that until some new hardware (knobs) arrives next week. But the layout is about ready.

I can see the lights up ahead and they spell H-E-L-L...:dude

[NWBasser]

Yes don, I know. I'm late as usual. Sorry...:master

Things are coming along however. Recently received the first production run and I'm personally inspecting and testing all of them. I should be finished with most of them by the end of the weekend. I must say that so far I am completely blown away with the quality. I know that this sounds like self serving sales talk but it truly isn't. I post all the Hell news as it comes and if it were otherwise, I would say so. All of the so far tested guilars are excellent players and sound terrific. There have been two so far that actually sent chills down my spine. Incredible tone and drop-jaw sustain and they played exceptionally fast. Second to no guilars that I have ever played.
There are a couple that will have to go as B stock for purely cosmetic reasons. Nothing major yet though. Will see what the rest of this weekend brings, but so far I am relieved and very very happy. :happy

I was messing about a week or so with ago with melting ice and came up with a little video teaser. Rough but conceptually where I'm going. Audio is the first (and only) take of some playing around I did while while watching the video. I'm thinking to have a contest with the finished video, "Score one for Hell". A competition to score the vid. Winner gets a guitar. Could be interesting.

Of course once you go to hellguitars.com all bcdon (or anyone else for that matter) can currently see is that "coming soon" page. The site right now is being held up by the fact that at this stage of Hell development I'm still in control-freak mode. I will be bringing others in to help soon but I have to get through the birth stage first. Nearly delivering. Practically however it is being held up by the fact that the guitars (oops guilars) have had some minor changes made to them so I have to reshoot the lot. I can't do that until some new hardware (knobs) arrives next week. But the layout is about ready.

I can see the lights up ahead and they spell H-E-L-L...:dude

Hmm, I think I know how the label mishap on the box happened...

[Ch0jin]

This is getting pretty exciting :) So score wise you're thinking 30 seconds? Not that I have any composition/arrangement/musical ability, just, well, curious ;)

I think the main competition here is going to be more like "Who buy's and receives the first Hell Guilar". I know there are a couple of us here quite interested ;)

[bcdon]

This is getting pretty exciting :) So score wise you're thinking 30 seconds? Not that I have any composition/arrangement/musical ability, just, well, curious ;)

I think the main competition here is going to be more like "Who buy's and receives the first Hell Guilar". I know there are a couple of us here quite interested ;)

I bet shipping from Japan to Down Under is much faster than to North America.. at least we should have the European guys beat! ;-)

[FrankenFretter]

Man, this anticipation is driving me crazy! In a good way, of course.

[syo]

This is getting pretty exciting :) So score wise you're thinking 30 seconds? Not that I have any composition/arrangement/musical ability, just, well, curious ;)


Yes, Ch0, looking at a 30 second spot. Still working out the details for this but I'll give ample warning along with final video and clear instructions. While composition skills etc., would probably help, they're not necessarily required if you can manage to capture the Hell vibe. Anyway, stay tuned!


I bet shipping from Japan to Down Under is much faster than to North America.. at least we should have the European guys beat! ;-)

I know you're joking don, but I'm not sure about which would be faster. Technically flight time is about the same. What I don't know yet is what are the typical custom delays from country to country. Shipping a guitar to the US usually takes about 4-5 days from Japan. I know Europe usually has longer delays getting things through customs. I am looking into arranging a distribution center for N. America so guitars will be shipped from the States. This will help cut costs and make delivery faster for US and Canada. Not sure when this will happen though I'm fairly sure that this is what we'll do.

[syo]

I am rather happy as I recently received some hardware (knobs/toggle knob) that are perfect for my Bender model. I initially wanted to design my own but in an effort to control costs I've been searching for over a year for some pre-existing knobs. It is amazing to me how few styles/choices are actually available. They are chromed brass and really finish things off nicely and have a nice feel to them. I'll take some pictures this weekend and post them.

I also recently learned that there is a law (apparently) that guitar manufacturers must also sell T-shirts. So to be in compliance I have been designing a few.
I would love to hear any opinions/comments if anyone is inclined. The first one is definite. Just the classic hell logo look. The other 2 I threw together from sketches while waiting in the hospital this week. It was my inclination from the start not to have any devil imagery, satanic stuff but the one below just came off as fun and natural. Might do another with angels too. Anyway, please let me know what you think. Thanks!

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_classic_mockup.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_classic_mockup_BLK.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_devilsWT_mockup.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_devilsBK_mockup.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_oneOnly_mockup.jpg

[FrankenFretter]

Way cool, Syo! I actually like all of them, and I don't think I could choose one favorite. I guess I'll have to get one of each when they're ready. I do kind of favor the bottom design just a tad, I guess, although I'd prefer a black T. Any plans to make baseball caps and beanies? They seem to go along with the tee shirts most of the time. Here in Oregon, I could really use a nice warm Hell hat. ;-)

Thanks for keeping us up to date!

[kidsmoke]

Cool stuff, SYO, must be very satisfying for you. If I had to choose, I'd get the last design, the headstock logo. I dig that.

[Duffy]

Syo, one thing I like in a T shirt is a small graphic over the pocket. I like a pocket in them. I have designed a few decent T shirts for various purposes. In addition I like the big graphic on the back instead of the front.

Just my opinion, but I think the bottom graphic with the headstock and a couple tuners with HELL on top would lend itself real well to being modified into a smaller four inch diameter circle pinstripe above the pocket with HELL arcing across the top inside the circle and the year 2011 arcing within the bottom of the pinstripe circle. I personally think this motif makes the T shirt look real cool, especially with the big graphic displayed proudly on the back of the T shirt. It kind of gives it a two dimensional element and looks classy, as opposed to just a plain T shirt with a big graphic on the front and no pocket for MP3 player, phone, etc., highlighted with the four inch diameter graphic above the pocket. I have found these pocketted T shirts to be very popular compared to the plain type.

Just some ideas from my personal perspective and past experience in T shirt design.

The T shirt can be a lot more than just a legal necessity. In my personal view T shirts can be powerful advertising, especially if they are really cool and have an element of desirability that separates them from the plain run of the mill T's.

I also think they look better in a color other than plain white, even grey or red or black. I usually don't go overboard with more than one color and make sure that I have abundant quantities in the most desirable sizes, especially extra large, because of shrinkage, especially with the cheaper T shirts.

I wouldn't mind drawing a sample circle graphic above the pocket and big graphic on the back, but I'm sure if you are contemplating designs you can easily conceptualize the idea I'm getting at. Green would be another color that would, similar to grey, accentuate the red in the headstock graphic.

As I said, I'm really into the powerful advertising value of cool and desirable T shirts.

I personally think the hellish characters on the shirts look really linear and make it difficult to have a flowing graphic, plus they look "busy" and maybe only one character would be better than a few, in my inconsequential opinion.

I hope you don't mind me throwing out some ideas. I definitely don't mean to sound critical, but don't mind sharing some of the experience I have had designing what turned out to be highly desirable T shirts with "strong" advertising value.

Your entire endeavor looks great. I wish you the greatest success.

I really liked that black and gold prototype you posted with the cool diamond or skewed box/rectangle blockiness on the body. That was one stunning finish, probably relatively expensive to produce, but really had a beautiful vibe to it.

What is your target demographic by the way, if you don't mind me asking?

Again, best wishes in your substantial endeavor. It is highly interesting to watch you share your quest with us. We can almost feel your ups and downs. I've never seen such a revealing insight into a mfg'ing pursuit of any type. Thanks for opening that window to your cool project.

[FrankenFretter]

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_devilsBK_mockup.jpg

That would be a great sticker! Just sayin'.

[syo]

Hey Duffy! Thanks alot for the input from your experience. You make some good points.


Syo, one thing I like in a T shirt is a small graphic over the pocket. I like a pocket in them. I have designed a few decent T shirts for various purposes. In addition I like the big graphic on the back instead of the front.

I've approached my shirt designs just like my guitars. I design things that I personally want to wear (or play). All of the T-shirts I wear are largish images in front with no pockets (so I guess I lost one customer already :D). To me they are created more as art/fashion pieces rather than advertising. I've even sketched a few ideas where there is no mention of my company except on the label.


The T shirt can be a lot more than just a legal necessity.
That was just a bad joke on my part...:D


I also think they look better in a color other than plain white, even grey or red or black. I usually don't go overboard with more than one color and make sure that I have abundant quantities in the most desirable sizes, especially extra large, because of shrinkage, especially with the cheaper T shirts.
Yes I largely agree with you Duffy, I plan to do color shirts and some color designs as well. I do like black quite alot though. I plan on creating alot of short runs of many different designs. I have a terrific screen print co. who can do this affordably for me.


What is your target demographic by the way, if you don't mind me asking?
Not at all. It's a very good question and one I don't have a definite answer for. I have done zero market testing whatsoever. I (almost literally) plan to toss the guitars/shirts/other stuff to the wind and see where they fall. The guitars are not entry level so they'll probably skew past the youngsters but we'll see where it goes. As you can see the T-shirt designs pretty much run from young to older. There was quite purposefully no attempt to reach a certain market. I just want to follow my inspiration and leave it to the tastes (and pocketbooks) of the market. After 20+ years of art directing other people's projects I am having the time of my life creating products for my own pleasure and offering them to the market. Whether or not I get to continue long term of course will depend on whether anyone wants to pay for it. For me, it is exciting and intimidating at the same time. Mostly exciting though...


Again, best wishes in your substantial endeavor. It is highly interesting to watch you share your quest with us. We can almost feel your ups and downs. I've never seen such a revealing insight into a mfg'ing pursuit of any type. Thanks for opening that window to your cool project.

Really thanks alot Duffy. I have really appreciated the support from yourself and some other very good folks here. Looking back at the past year and a half, I feel that I was very stupid to think that I could do such a thing (but very glad that I did!). :rockya

[syo]

I could really use a nice warm Hell hat. ;-)
Sean, I hadn't thought about designing for Hell Hats but it sounds too catchy not to try...:D

[bcdon]

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Hell_devilsBK_mockup.jpg


This is really cool! What do the Kanji (is it Kanji? I'm not sure of the proper name) characters say?

The little devils remind me of statues I saw at the San Francisco Asian Art museum that had some really wicked Japanese good/evil demons/gods.

These would make cool hats and stickers too! :dude

[syo]

This is really cool! What do the Kanji (is it Kanji? I'm not sure of the proper name) characters say?

Thanks don! The Kanji represents earth, water, fire and air (wind literally). The four "elements" of all matter as explained by the ancient Greeks and alchemists. I've always liked alchemical illustration and symbols and sometimes include them in my work. I liked the ideas of the figures representing the creative elements.


The little devils remind me of statues I saw at the San Francisco Asian Art museum that had some really wicked Japanese good/evil demons/gods.
I suppose it does. As I was drawing it however I was thinking, "these guys are like the Pep Boys from Hell." I always liked the way the Pep Boys were rendered...

[syo]

Well finally getting some hardware pics up. Was knocked out sick this past week and have gotten a bit behind. Very frustrating week it was. Glad to be back...

Here's an uber close-up of the toggle knob and a couple of the volume knobs on the Bender model. They are chromed brass. Not too heavy though as the vol/tone knobs have plastic inserts to attach to the pots. Really nice feel to them. The toggle switch knob is vintage style. Was rather hard to find.

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_red_knobs.jpg

Here are a few more shots with more of the bigger picture:

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_whtBlk_miscTop_2.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/bender_Blk_miscTop_FNL.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/Bender_BLK_Frnt.jpg

I'll try to get a few more shots up tomorrow or the next.
As always, comments, observations appreciated. Thanks!

[Robert]

Hey Syo, things are looking great I must say! :)

[kidsmoke]

SYO, those are beautiful. You are really doing it up right. LOVE the knobs and the switch tip. Hard to believe someone could come up with something unique AND appealing, but you're really hitting it out of the park.

[bcdon]

SYO, those are beautiful. You are really doing it up right. LOVE the knobs and the switch tip. Hard to believe someone could come up with something unique AND appealing, but you're really hitting it out of the park.

What Tio said! Great work! :dude

[FrankenFretter]

Glad you posted a close up of those knobs, I was wondering how they'd look. I love 'em!

[Tibernius]

Liking that...looking forward to seeing a full photo of the red one! :socool

Am I right in assuming that the Bender's a 24.75" scale length?

[Ch0jin]

Looking good man, looking REAL good!

[mrmudcat]

It has been awhile but what humbuckers and or other pups are you using again????

Bareknuckles???

[Katastrophe]

Man, that black Bender is some kinda sexy. Kinda hard to type, as I am wiping away drool at the same time. Great job, syo, and folks will be lining up to purchase those bad boys!

[syo]

It has been awhile but what humbuckers and or other pups are you using again????

Bareknuckles???

Hey mudcat. Yeah, right now we're using Bare Knuckles exclusively. I was thinking to offer a cheaper model with Wilkinsons but frankly they are very different guitars without the BKs. I am working on a hollowbody design that will probably be equipped with something from TV Jones. But nothing imminent.


Man, that black Bender is some kinda sexy. Kinda hard to type, as I am wiping away drool at the same time. Great job, syo, and folks will be lining up to purchase those bad boys!

Wow, Kat, thanks. It sure would be nice to see folks lining up that's for sure. I have been hunkering down in the Hell bunker working on the big opening. I'm shooting for mid-April. That's when the website will be ready and the nice tweed hard cases delivered. Must say, I'm a little nervous. I've been doing this (unintentionally) prolonged striptease on The Fret for some time now. Just hope when the last reveal is over, the goods will be appreciated. I'm happy with the way things are going and hope others will be happy too.

Speaking of striptease, I'll post the last pictures before the website is up.

Since you mentioned the Black Bender, Kat, here's the blackest Bender with uncovered BK Black Dog pickups and black speed knobs.

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/blackdog_miscTop_FNL1.jpg

Here are a couple shots of the off-white Zero Dot. This one with Irish Tour singles and Nailbomb bucker.

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/zeroDot_MiscTop_FNL3.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/zeroDot_MiscTop_FNL1.jpg

Also, along with the some T-shirt designs I have also designed some baseball jerseys. These are two protypes made by Ebbet's Field Flannels. They have their own line and they also have made throwback jerseys for some Major League teams. It is my plan to offer a whole line of Hell products to help subsidize the guitar costs. With fluctuations in currencies, taxes and ever rising labor costs, I figure I could better keep guitar prices stable if I have other revenue supporting them. Perhaps this is not of interest to those of you following along, but it's part of what I'm doing (it's also part of why I've gotten behind!). Anyway, here's a couple of jersey shots taken from the Ebbet's Field workshop before the felts were sewn. I just received them a couple of days ago. They turned out nice. :AOK


http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/white-pin-front.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/lack_cotton_Frnt.jpg

[bcdon]

That Zero Dot is awesome! And I really, really dig those jerseys! Awesome work, syo!! I can't wait for the unveiling!! :dude

[tjcurtin1]

The more I see of them, the more I like your body shapes and cosmetics, SYO - really nice design work! I often find myself looking at guitars and wondering why the HELL no one has come up with any interesting variations in so long - you've done it!

[mrmudcat]

I agree...TJ!!!! The jerseys are cool as hell !!!! ( I also like the t shirt with the.kanji on them and the headstock logo also looks killah ) No play on words!!;;;;;;;; The b.k.'s are really worth it brother I would keep them!!!I will buy a black bender with black chrome covered pups,black switch tip and a ebony fretboard and speed knobs!!!:socool

[deeaa]

Man, that merchandise looks sweet! Can't afford a guitar, but are any of those jerseys etc. available to buy? That I might be able to afford...and especially that blue jersey would make a real cool and unique (for now at least) shirt to wear on gigs and just all round as summer shirt.

[syo]

Thanks guys! Tj, I really appreciate your comments on the design. I won't bore you with my process, but I invested alot of time, thought and effort (not to mention money...) into getting designs that worked for me. Both aesthetically and functionally speaking. Nice to hear that it works for someone other than just me!


Man, that merchandise looks sweet! Can't afford a guitar, but are any of those jerseys etc. available to buy? That I might be able to afford...and especially that blue jersey would make a real cool and unique (for now at least) shirt to wear on gigs and just all round as summer shirt.

Well deeaa, I'm afraid in the short term, these are the only jerseys I have right now and they didn't come cheap. My cost for the jerseys is $150. Each. The company that makes them typically sell their jerseys for $200 apiece. They are all made to order in the US from authentic wool flannel like in the old days. However, I am thinking to have them made much more cheaply elsewhere. My initial estimates are for a retail price around $40 - $50. Of course these will not be made to order and will be cotton but they should look/wear fine. Another option for you deeaa, could be an endorsement deal. The Spookbox frontman wearing a Hell jersey might work for me. :dude

[MAXIFUNK]

Things have come along masterfully what great looking axes congrats man I think you have a winner!!!

[deeaa]

Heh, tell you what, I might get back to you on that issue when or if we get into gigging routine again, as it is there's not much exposure to speak of really.

[bcdon]

Man, these are so awesome. Put me down for one of each!! :dude



http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/blackdog_miscTop_FNL1.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/zeroDot_MiscTop_FNL3.jpg

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/lack_cotton_Frnt.jpg

[syo]

Alright, I said I wouldn't be posting anymore pictures until the site was up but I'll make one exception (or two...). As everything is just about ready, one detail has been annoying me quite a bit. The truss rod cover on the Bender is just a black/white acetate sandwich which really doesn't make a good impression at all. I did a little research this weekend and found a place that can make me diecast alloy covers for a good price. Actually the company has nothing to do with guitars but they do nice metal work. I sent them my designs and they sent me back their price and all looks good. I am really happy about this. In fact I'm thinking to create a whole bunch of different designs for standard trussrod covers too. I really like how these particular materials look as covers. Very distinctive and different from anything I've ever seen.

Anyway here is a mock-up of the cover along with the line art for the silverplate. The colors will be just gloss black/silver plate. I did the design quickly but it works well enough. I have too many other things I have to do to get Hell out the door, so this will have to do for now. But if it works out, I'll have lots of fun designing more. :thumbsup

http://www.hellguitars.com/stuff/trussrd_cover.jpg

Would love to hear any opinions. Thanks!

[FrankenFretter]

Very nice, Syo! I like that.

[deeaa]

Sweet!

[bcdon]

That is very nice. I really like the metal work. That is one of the things I really dig about DBZ' (http://www.dbzguitars.com/)s guitars is his cool
metal logo.
http://guitarnoize.com/images/blog/dbz.jpg

[Katastrophe]

Opinion? I dig the TR cover... I think it looks badass... However, could it be "too much?" I don't know, really, without seeing it on the guitar. What I like about your designs are that there isn't one thing that stands out over anything else on the guitar. The lines have a nice "flow" to them, and work together in a way that's very pleasing to the eye. I don't know if an embellished TR cover would distract the eye from the overall pleasing view of the whole guitar...

Hope that makes sense!

[syo]

Opinion? I dig the TR cover... I think it looks badass... However, could it be "too much?" I don't know, really, without seeing it on the guitar. What I like about your designs are that there isn't one thing that stands out over anything else on the guitar. The lines have a nice "flow" to them, and work together in a way that's very pleasing to the eye. I don't know if an embellished TR cover would distract the eye from the overall pleasing view of the whole guitar...

Hope that makes sense!

Actually Kat, it makes perfect sense. I printed out the mock-up and placed it over the TR hole. It definitely changes the look and a case could be made that it is "too much" for the design. I would also say though that the plain covers on now are definitely "not enough".
Ordinarily I would spend more time exploring the design until I feel that it is just right. However, I have been tweaking things so much that I'll never get this thing going if I don't stop trying to perfect everything. I'll still work to perfect as much as I can but some of it will have to wait until after launch.

I think the cover looks good on its' own and I think it works well enough on the guitar. However I do have similar concerns to the one you stated. More than anything I really want to see how these covers turn out. If they are well crafted, I'll make more and in different styles. Perhaps owners of the Bender with the "original 3" TR cover will have a collector's item worth thousands in a few years...:whatever:

[FrankenFretter]

Gee Syo, you're kind of like the Eric Johnson of guitar design... ;)

[kidsmoke]

Opinion? I dig the TR cover... I think it looks badass... However, could it be "too much?" I don't know, really, without seeing it on the guitar. What I like about your designs are that there isn't one thing that stands out over anything else on the guitar. The lines have a nice "flow" to them, and work together in a way that's very pleasing to the eye. I don't know if an embellished TR cover would distract the eye from the overall pleasing view of the whole guitar...

Hope that makes sense!

This was my thought as well. I saw the cover and thought "kewl!" then scrolled up to envision it on the headstock, and thought it may start to look cluttered. Keeping in mind that from 10 feet away, you really won't be able to see the detail. BUT, having said ALL that, I could have taken issue with several of your individual design components along the way, but damn if they don't all work...scratch that...EXCEL..... on your guitars. Clearly, your vision for these things works. I say put some on and give it a go. What's easier to change than a truss rod cover!

It's your pursuit of perfection that has given you a new guitar style that will get attention, even from ardent purists. I never would have even thought that possible.
:dude:dude:rockya:rockya

[syo]

This was my thought as well. I saw the cover and thought "kewl!" then scrolled up to envision it on the headstock, and thought it may start to look cluttered. Keeping in mind that from 10 feet away, you really won't be able to see the detail. BUT, having said ALL that, I could have taken issue with several of your individual design components along the way, but damn if they don't all work...scratch that...EXCEL..... on your guitars. Clearly, your vision for these things works. I say put some on and give it a go. What's easier to change than a truss rod cover!

It's your pursuit of perfection that has given you a new guitar style that will get attention, even from ardent purists. I never would have even thought that possible.
:dude:dude:rockya:rockya

Well TK, now that's just a lot of nice stuff you said right there. I would thank you except now I feel as though my work couldn't possibly live up this. Still, thanks...

If I were starting over today with the knowledge and experience I have now, I would do things differently. But the funny thing is, this has all progressed with a certain sense of magic to it. Each decision I have made (even bad ones) have led almost instantly to a new and better (or at least more interesting) path. I think this is what I'm getting off on more than anything.

A good example of this is the TR cover. Generally speaking, without a large budget it is very difficult to design and create unique, quality hardware as the development costs are high. But I really didn't like the off the shelf options so I went to an untraditional source that (apparently) does good work that I can afford. Whether or not this particular design works perfectly or not is not so important as the knowledge I've gained. As you say, it's easy to change a TR cover. Now I'm dreaming up all kinds of cover designs for standard (Gibson etc.) covers too!

Tio Kimo, I liked you soon after you started contributing here. You talk about gear, especially your gear, with passion and a telling appreciation of a truly good thing. On your word, I ordered a Little Lanalei (and two more afterwards). Your review was dead on.

I don't know if my guitars will live up to your current impression or not, but your enthusiasm for what I've done until now has been much appreciated. :dude

[kidsmoke]

Well TK, now that's just a lot of nice stuff you said right there. I would thank you except now I feel as though my work couldn't possibly live up this. Still, thanks...

I don't know if my guitars will live up to your current impression or not, but your enthusiasm for what I've done until now has been much appreciated. :dude

De Nada

Just callin' like I see it. If that's an encouragement, that's a great thing!

Ok now, just one question. What does one do with THREE identical amps? (they are awesome though, aren't they, for what they are...)

[syo]

De Nada

Just callin' like I see it. If that's an encouragement, that's a great thing!

Ok now, just one question. What does one do with THREE identical amps? (they are awesome though, aren't they, for what they are...)

Well, there's one for the studio, one for the kitchen and one for the upstairs bathroom. So I don't have to worry about setting up should I feel inspired...

Nah, actually, I was thinking to sell them as a package with Hell Guitars. I had Tris send me 2 more so I could check quality and have a few players give them a test. After all I decided not to sell the amps. Not because they're not good but it was just a business thing.

[Monkus]

Very awesome....your plans seems to be coming along grandly! You're going to get at least one sale from me!

[kidsmoke]

After all I decided not to sell the amps. Not because they're not good but it was just a business thing.

Yes I recall that conversation. His ability to supply in a timely manner could've gotten you in trouble. Did you not keep one for yourself?

[stingx]

LOVE that Zero Dot! Syo, how much will that particular model be listing for? That is simply a stunner.

[bcdon]

Syo, after seeing Robert's post about his Hell Guilar, I have to ask, what's it going to take for you to take my money?
This, perhaps? :-)
http://www.goodlaughter.com/funnypictures/pics/money-girl.jpg

[FrankenFretter]

Hey Don, tell Dorothy I like her new mini skirt!

[syo]

Syo, after seeing Robert's post about his Hell Guilar, I have to ask, what's it going to take for you to take my money?
This, perhaps? :-)


Actually Don, if I were to take your money under such circumtances, I'd lose quite a bit more in the soon to follow divorce...
:saw:

[bcdon]

Hey Don, tell Dorothy I like her new mini skirt!

I think I'll keep that comment to myself. ;-)

[bcdon]

Actually Don, if I were to take your money under such circumtances, I'd lose quite a bit more in the soon to follow divorce...
:saw:

You and me both.. :-) Actually, my wife is a Texan too so I don't have to worry about the legal fees because I'm sure no one would ever find my body! :dude