Preston Thompson Guitars Workshop | Behind the Scenes
Behind the scenes at the Preston Thompson Guitars Workshop.
A warm and articulate pairing of Adirondack Spruce and Mahogany based on classic design with some refinements from the fine folks at Preston Thompson guitars.
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Stunning work from the good people at Preston Thompson. This instrument offers everything you'd want out of the bodystyle/tonewood combo with none of the drawbacks that plague similar, particularly vintage, instruments (the astounding clarity in the bass and presence of a truss rod, in particular, are welcome features). Warm, woody and balanced with just the right amount of top end sheen to perk up the ears. A taut, powerful bass and, of course, gorgeous mids. Flatpicking, fingerpicking, lead playing, strumming--when you push this guitar it pushes back in the best way possible!
Preston Thompson 12 Fret 000 guitars are based on an exceptional 1929 000 owned by our late friend and mentor Charles Sawtelle. For years before the development of the dreadnought body style, the 12 fret 000 was the largest guitar available. To us, the 12 fret 000 is still one of the most beautiful and aesthetically pleasing guitars ever created. The tone and versatility is unequaled. You can throw all the guitar adjectives at this one: sweet, responsive, loud, woody, lively, etc., and you’d still come up short in the true talents this model processes.
A few of the design features that contribute to the guitar’s sound and playability is the 12 fret neck joint, placing the bridge more in the center of guitar’s lower bout for efficient use of the soundboard. The slotted peg head allows increased string ramp over the nut as the strings wind onto the tuner post centered in the headstock. Both ends of the tuner post are also embedded into the guitar headstock – hence no wasted energy.
This guitar is built with a standard long 25.4” scale length (short scale length can be requested) with red spruce tops as standard but other woods may be substituted if desired. Whether Mahogany, East Indian Rosewood, Honduran Rosewood or Brazilian Rosewood, Thompson 12 Fret 000 guitars are built with the finest woods, materials and craftsmanship to deliver the true vintage tone and playability.
From our workshop in the music-loving town of Sisters, Oregon we build custom guitars and standard models based on the best American made guitars from the 1930s. The choice of Grammy-winning flatpick and fingerstyle guitarists alike, Preston Thompson Guitars are among the best acoustic guitars available anywhere, renowned for superior tone, craftsmanship and materials.
Our fine guitars are designed by master guitar luthier, Preston Thompson. Discovered by bluegrass virtuosos Charles Sawtelle and Peter Rowan in the 1980s, Preston has built a reputation for handmade, original vintage style guitars based closely on the measurements and sound quality of those golden era steel string guitars. He got his start building guitars under Charles Fox at the School of the Guitar Research & Design Center in Vermont, one of the first schools for guitar making in North America.
It was during his collaboration with bluegrass great Charles Sawtelle of Hot Rize, that Preston began to gather measurements from Sawtelle’s collection of rare and famous pre-war vintage instruments.
The guitar Preston built for Sawtelle based on these studies became one of his most treasured instruments. And Preston uses his detailed measurements of those instruments to this day to create guitars that are coveted for their superlative sound, the beauty of their materials, and the precision of their construction.
Model: 000-12 MA
Serial: 1535
Top: Adirondack Spruce
Back/Sides: Mahogany
Binding: Tortoise
Top Purfling: BWBW
Back Purfling: None
Side Purfling: None
Soundhole: 3 7/8"
Rosette: Style 18 Three Ring
Back Strip: Ebony Strip
Tail Wedge: Tortoise
Top Bracing Pattern: Advanced X Position
Top Bracing: Adirondack Pre-War Scalloped
Back Bracing: Adirondack
Tongue Brace: Yes
Neck Material: Mahogany
Truss Rod: 12 Fret Adjustable
Peghead Overlay: Figured Ebony
Peghead Logo: Regency Torch with Logo
Custom Inlay: Regency Torch with Logo
Headstock Binding: None
Headstock Type: Slotted
Neck Binding: None
Volute: None
Nut Width: 1 3/4"
Width @ 12th Fret: 2 1/4"
String Spacing: 2 5/16"
Neck Thickness: .0860"
Neck Profile: Soft V
Heel Cap: Tortoise
Neck Finish: Vintage Brown Mahogany
Top Finish: Shaded Top
Back/Sides Finish: Vintage Brown Mahogany Gloss
Fingerboard Material: Ebony
Bridge Material: Ebony
Sunburst: Natural
Fingerboard Style: Style 18
Fingerboard Bindings: None
Fingerboard Inlay: Old 18 Style Dots
Inlay Material: Abalone
Scale: 25.4"
Side Position Markers: 2mm Dots
Side Position Material: White MOP
End/Bridge Pin Type: Ebony
Strap Button: None
Bridge Type: Ebony Belly Drop In
Tuning Machines: Waverly Nickel with Butter Bean Buttons
Nut Material: Bone
Saddle Material/Style: Bone Compensated
Pickguard: Tortoise 000
Fret Wire: Standard Nickel Silver
Case: Harptone Hardshell
Behind the scenes at the Preston Thompson Guitars Workshop.