# JP guitars - Portuguese custom 7 in the works (tasty pics inside)



## ExhumedShadow (May 26, 2012)

This is a long time wish of mine, a brainchild I've been putting together in my mind for ages now. Now that I've found d right luthier, it's gaining shape. 

After a very disappointing effort from a british builder that led to a long process, cash back, no replies and no guitar, I made d change to a very talented and extremely professional craftsman, couldn't be happier.

JP Custom Guitars | Facebook

Be sure to check out his work.
He did a great job reinventing the Portuguese guitar, a traditional twelve-string guitar.
I also recommend you take a look at some of d pictures of an instrument he built for Blasted Mechanism, a two-necked beast.
I have no relation with it, but if you want any more info on the custom shop let me know.

Back on topic, I call this *project fix-a-(popular-model-I'll-update-later)* 
I'll be revealing the specs as I post new photos of d building process.
For now:

7string e-guitar
Kxk inspired headstock design
neck-thru construction
7pc neck, bubinga (4) Black Chacate (3)
High grade swamp ash body
Curly redwood top






















Hope you like it as much as I do.

Thanks for reading, stay tuned!


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## scherzo1928 (May 26, 2012)

Really solid specs, and beautiful wood. I've been dying to see someone use Chacate Prieto on a guitar, and combined with bubinga it's going to make one hell of a neckthrough.

Can't wait to see more of this build!


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## BlackMastodon (May 27, 2012)

Really digging that headstock shape! Very cool. Also beautiful wood you got there.


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## Purelojik (May 27, 2012)

dat flamed redwood....


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## ExhumedShadow (May 27, 2012)

thanks folks!
I wouldn't expect people to know of chacate preto, cool.
It's a fairly rare wood, considered precious, this particular batch is from Mozambique, a small batch I had d luck to get.
I expect it to be somewhere between wengue and ebony tonewise, very hard wood, high density, nice lustrous touch, gonna be a solid, fast neckthru.


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## The Dovahkiin (May 27, 2012)

Wow, that's going to be one gorgeous guitar! I'm excited to see how it turns out.


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## scherzo1928 (May 27, 2012)

ExhumedShadow said:


> I wouldn't expect people to know of chacate preto, cool.


 
I read a lot about woods, lol.


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## Lorcan Ward (May 27, 2012)

The top is awesome! Looking forward to seeing this come to shape.


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## metale (May 28, 2012)

Nice woods!

Where is JP from, Algarve?

Cheers


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## drmosh (May 28, 2012)

awesome specs and wood, lovin the redwood


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## ExhumedShadow (May 28, 2012)

Joao Pessoa is based in Olhao, Algarve, yes.
I'm gonna be paying him a visit in a few weeks to have d final neck shape made to my exact specifications, that's beyond awesome.

I was impressed myself with d depth in that top, and Like mister scherzo which watches tonewood blogs instead of porn like the rest of us, I did a lot of research on curly redwood and can't remember seeing one so "alive"


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## scherzo1928 (May 29, 2012)

Once again, can't wait to see more pics of this build. 



ExhumedShadow said:


> I was impressed myself with d depth in that top, and Like mister scherzo which watches tonewood blogs instead of porn like the rest of us, I did a lot of research on curly redwood and can't remember seeing one so "alive"


 
 I'm a big fan of redwood. I've got a sinker redwood top on one of my guitars, and I'm fairly certain I'll use one again.

and, I'll just leave this here for you.
Oregon Wild Wood: Redwood Solid Body Electric Guitar Top Sets


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## M3CHK1LLA (May 29, 2012)

its lookin good...

...the headstock shape is nice too.


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## ExhumedShadow (May 31, 2012)

wow! those redwood slabs are wild!
I just love mine for how perfectly even and symmetrical d curl is, you just don't get that everyday.


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## ExhumedShadow (Jun 15, 2012)

I've been updated twice since my last post, so I'm letting you guys know how she's looking today.
Body wings have been cut to d general shape of d guitar.
Necktru glued to d wings.
Top treated and ready to be glued.
At d moment I'm waiting for d right fretboard, gonna be something special =)

So... here she his:


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## Hollowway (Jun 16, 2012)

That HS shape is winrar, as the kids say!


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## skeels (Jun 16, 2012)

Looks awesome!



Wood blogs.....?
Is that a certain KIND of porn website?


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## BlackMastodon (Jun 16, 2012)

Hollowway said:


> That HS shape is winrar, as the kids say!


Strange, I never say that.


Oh... 


 But yes I definitely agree, that is a very nice headstock shape.


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## ExhumedShadow (Jun 18, 2012)

skeels said:


> Looks awesome!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



yeah, and sounds like gay porn as well, ahah


I'm glad you guys like it, I'm gonna keep you updated on d remaining specs.
Fretboard is ordered already.


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## ExhumedShadow (Sep 25, 2012)

So... 

I haven't been updating this thread because the construction has been interrupted, 'till now.
The reason to this is that customs are screwing with me and my luthier, long story short We've ordered two different fretboards and none has reached us in over a month... 

In the meanwhile, just as the board is arriving it came to me I should let you guys know what have been done so far.

Most of the woodwork in now completed, all woods but the head veneer and fretboard are glued in place, electronic cavities drilled, general body shape done, and most exciting the carved on the top is sculpted.

I'd like to reveal more specs, I will as they come into place, anyways you can already sort out a couple of things.

H-H configuration
plenty of electronics
some sort of fixed bridge
inspirations for the body shape (?)

I'm excited to have this in my hands, the body contours turned out better than I expected.

Here are some pics, as promised, stay tuned, more to come, soooooon!


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## ExhumedShadow (Oct 1, 2012)

Quick update, just got some more photos from the luthier, love the figuring on the top and all the nice details on the bevels

He's now working on binding and inlays.
Oh... and arm wrestling customs for my fretboard.


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## ihunda (Oct 4, 2012)

ExhumedShadow said:


> Quick update, just got some more photos from the luthier, love the figuring on the top and all the nice details on the bevels



Amazing top, that guitar will be sweeeeeet


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## OfArtAndArsenal (Oct 4, 2012)

scherzo1928 said:


> I read a lot about woods, lol.


 
*snicker*


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## ExhumedShadow (Nov 3, 2012)

Long due update:

Finally won the battle with customs and recieved a couple of nice ziricote boards.

The black box marks the fretboard size and the particular part I've picked.

The luthier suggested that portion of the board, what do you think?








This should be moving quite fast now, so expect developments soon.


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## edonmelon (Nov 4, 2012)

ExhumedShadow said:


> Long due update:
> 
> The luthier suggested that portion of the board, what do you think?



That would be an extremely sexy fretboard sir!


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## OfArtAndArsenal (Nov 4, 2012)

ExhumedShadow said:


> The luthier suggested that portion of the board, what do you think?


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## ExhumedShadow (Nov 30, 2012)

Hi there fellow members.

Just got an update from Mister João and this time is regarding the inlay job I ordered.

You gonna be looking at Jackson inspired triangular fretmarkers and the main atraction, 12th+ fret Greek Psy, used as the symbol to Psychology. 
All wood, laser cut, I really think it sets the guitar appart. 











More pictures to come soon as the plot thickens =)


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## BlackMastodon (Dec 1, 2012)

Those inlays are going to look awesome.


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## Alex_IBZ (Dec 1, 2012)

So also Sigmund Freud would also approve this guitar, reaaaally nice!


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## ExhumedShadow (Dec 5, 2012)

Oy!

Maple inlays now in place.
Birdseye maple binding is also there to be seen.

I'm happy with the results, all wood is the way to go =)

Stay tuned!


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## BlackMastodon (Dec 5, 2012)

Damn, was hoping that the edges of the wood inlays would stay a bit burnt from the laser cutting. That is still one gorgeous fretboard.


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## ExhumedShadow (Dec 6, 2012)

That would look cool yeah, I didn't think of that, also I'm not sure it would be really visible once all the work is done.

Going for a classy look with this board, The binding for instance was inpired by some J-customs.


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## firebelly (Dec 8, 2012)

That fretboard looks better than my entire guitar collection


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## ExhumedShadow (Dec 11, 2012)

hi there folks!

Exciting developments back at the shop!

Fretboard is glued in place ready to be fretted and radiused.

The veneer and binding on the headstock looks amazing to me eyes.

You can also spot a graphite nut blank to be cut to my specs and an engineering marvel that is the Hipshot bridge.

At this point I'm having the horns re-carved to grant ungodly access.

More pics to come soon =)


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## ExhumedShadow (Dec 14, 2012)

A few more shots to keep us entertained. 

Work done on the cutaways, the bevels are almost spot on, just a few more tweaks and it's gonna be perfect.

You can also start to see how the work gonna look when finished, amazing figuring on the board and top =)


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## skeels (Dec 14, 2012)

Loving that fretboard man!

Also, +1 for that headstock! 

Wow!


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## ExhumedShadow (Dec 21, 2012)

Keeping the thread up to date.

Horns reshappen
Final bevels
Back of the neck and heel carved to it's final shape - Looks so neat!

Next step is fretting, I'll keep ya posted.


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## ExhumedShadow (Jan 24, 2013)

Keeping the thread up to date with these freshly taken photos of the fretjob.
6100 Stainless Steel fretwire.

Next step is the first coat of primer before staining, yes I'm gonna stain the redwood top, but don't worry it's gonna be awesome =D

The pics:


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## ExhumedShadow (Feb 2, 2013)

Hi folks!

I present you the final shape!
The first layers of primer are on, gotta love the movement on the redwood.
The headstock kills me everytime I look at it it, the birdseye maple binding looks so neat.

So excited to see this dyed =)

Cheers!


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## a curry (Feb 3, 2013)

Wow that looks amaizing especially the headstock binding! I'm totally doing a flame maple binding on the fretboard and headstock of my BWG build now!


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## vinniemallet (Feb 3, 2013)

the guitar is looking amazing! I gotta do a build with JP for sure, a lots of details in this build.


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## ExhumedShadow (Feb 5, 2013)

a curry said:


> Wow that looks amaizing especially the headstock binding! I'm totally doing a flame maple binding on the fretboard and headstock of my BWG build now!



Cool, I love the way it looks as well, it was a surprise, I didn't expect it to look so hot. 

Go for it, mine is birdseye, but flamed maple gonna look great as well, J-customs use it, it's actually were I got the idea from.




vinniemallet said:


> the guitar is looking amazing! I gotta do a build with JP for sure, a lots of details in this build.



I'll tell you more once I get this beast in my hands, but from what I've gathered from visiting JP's shop a few times he's an artist, very detail oriented and commited to build whatever you want.

Gather some ideas around and jump on it.


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## mphsc (Feb 5, 2013)

how did I miss this? Love the wood inlays, very inspiring for upcoming builds.


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## Sang-Drax (Mar 12, 2013)

Looks awesome. I'm subscribing to this thread because odds are that I will finally be able to play guitar again soon - with some money in my pocket at last. I'm leaning towards going custom and I'm already looking for options


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## ExhumedShadow (Mar 15, 2013)

mphsc said:


> how did I miss this? Love the wood inlays, very inspiring for upcoming builds.



Thanks, a lot of time and research went into this one, I'd be glad if someone took some ideais from this build.



Sang-Drax said:


> Looks awesome. I'm subscribing to this thread because odds are that I will finally be able to play guitar again soon - with some money in my pocket at last. I'm leaning towards going custom and I'm already looking for options



You should really consider this luthier, not only you speak the same language which makes everything easier, also he's a very open and creative guy and prices are honest.

I'll tell you more once I get the final product, but what I just said is a very good indicator of how good the guitar is gonna be, oh and I visited the shop a few times already and saw him work, the man is an artist.


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## ExhumedShadow (Mar 15, 2013)

Now for the update part, we've been working on colour samples for the past weeks and we've been very methodic.

Me, the luthier and a third party ink specialist went through a few different ink types and ended up with a very nice mix of pigments, loving the result!

Not only the tonality matches the natural wood colour nicely, but the all things shifts and reflects, this is not the actual saturation we're using but gives you an
aproximate idea:


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## ExhumedShadow (Mar 30, 2013)

I'm happy to post some major update pics.

This time the pigment is aplied in a exuberant fashion, it's a sort of violet/magenta/fuschia burst.

Took us a while to find the tone I was looking for, I wanted something that worked great with the natural colour of the wood and a primary color, mangenta.

After collecting some samples we asked a third party paint shop to mix us a solution, this is the result, I'm amazed.

Now we are shy of a few more clear coat layers to start working on the back and neck.

The magic:


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## CD1221 (Mar 30, 2013)

gorgeous colour. She's gonna be great.


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## AwDeOh (Mar 30, 2013)

My only comment, which goes for about 90% of topped guitars, is that the bookmatching line is a bit of a shame.

That's it, that's all I've got. Muhfugging beautiful guitar dude, love the binding contrast!


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## technomancer (Mar 30, 2013)

Can't say I would have thought of staining a redwood top like that, but DAMN did that turn out awesome


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## InfinityCollision (Mar 30, 2013)

Daaaaaaaaaaaaamn. Dat finish.


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## tmo (Mar 30, 2013)

Nice job!...

How much is it gona cost?

Que é como quem diz, por quanto te vai ficar a brincadeira?


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 31, 2013)

That's one hell of a purple/pink top!


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## pondman (Mar 31, 2013)

Stunning !


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## parksed24 (Apr 2, 2013)

That color turned out so nice!


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## ExhumedShadow (Apr 5, 2013)

technomancer said:


> Can't say I would have thought of staining a redwood top like that, but DAMN did that turn out awesome



I hear you, people kept telling me I had no business staining that gorgeous top, but I'm happy with my decision, I think the colour compliments the wood very well.



tmö;3487355 said:


> Nice job!...
> 
> How much is it gona cost?
> 
> Que é como quem diz, por quanto te vai ficar a brincadeira?



Boas!

Considering it's a no-compromise guitar, went for every spec I wanted not considering cheaper alternatives, I should say it is very fairly priced. 

To give you a ballpark figure, it's about the same as an ESP 7 (horizon/eclipse).

Stay tuned!


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## ej207t (Apr 5, 2013)

that stain!


oh my fuck!!!

that is all.


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## vinniemallet (Apr 13, 2013)

Damn, I'll do a build in JP for sure... your guitars is looking awesome but why you're having so much delay in the build? It's being hard to receive all the materials etc?

Cheers bro!


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## mcd (Apr 14, 2013)

everything about this is amazing! Great taste man


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## nutsock (Apr 14, 2013)

lovin that color!


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## onetake-jam (Apr 14, 2013)

The color isn't my cup of tea, I prefer natural wood. But It cacth the eye, gorgeous top and exquisite woods in the built. Great work. Hope to see more in the few !


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## ExhumedShadow (Apr 17, 2013)

vinniemallet said:


> Damn, I'll do a build in JP for sure... your guitars is looking awesome but why you're having so much delay in the build? It's being hard to receive all the materials etc?
> 
> Cheers bro!



Can't wait to get my hands on it, it's so close, lookwise it's the gem I wanted it to be, just need it to play as it looks =)

Build time, yeah... I've come to the conclusion that luthiers can't tell time, it's like a genetic defect or something, ahah. 

No, but really there was a point or 2 when I stressed about how long it was taking but I got over it, mostly beacause the updates were plenty and the man always replied my enquires in due time.

I guess everything took longer than expected, the greatest factor was the dificulty to get the curly top I craved and mostly the almost impossible to import ziricote, took us like 3months just to get a board that fit our requirements, some issue with suppliers and customs to top it up, it's amazing how annoying those _filhos da p*t*_ can be.

That's about it, clear coating is taking a while as well, layer after layer, to cover the living reedwood cap.

It's a year rather than 4 months, but...

*Back on topic It's gonna be completed in the next month, at this point my initials are being inlaid in the headstock

#Stoked*


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## vinniemallet (Apr 18, 2013)

Oh man can't wait


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## jtm45 (May 14, 2013)

Did you take delivery of your guitar yet ?
That colour on top of the curly redwood looks absolutely stunning!!! Can't wait to see it completely finished and to find out how she plays!

I just had a look at the builder's Facebook page and i was mega-impressed with the work he does. Awesome stuff!!!
There was some really interesting looking little mandolin type things that i think he was calling Portuguese Guitars. Never seen one before at all.
They had a really cool and technical looking tuning mechanism on the 'headstock' part. It was like two sets of six (set up like a 12-string in pairs) tuning rods that operated little sliding string anchors. Really cool things!


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## pondman (May 15, 2013)

Great colour


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## LuizPauloDT (May 15, 2013)

ExhumedShadow said:


> Hi folks!
> 
> I present you the final shape!
> The first layers of primer are on, gotta love the movement on the redwood.
> ...



Pretty sexy man!

Parabéns!


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## ExhumedShadow (May 30, 2013)

I apologize for the lack of updates I was expecting some photos to post along these words.

This certantly is one of the last stops before delivery, I'm picking it up in a week or so, I'm on the moon right now!

You are now looking at a semi-completed guitar, since I last posted it got:
-multiple layers of gloss lacquer to make the finish pop
-fret polishing, 
-my initials in the headstock, 
-back finished with a satin feel
-neck carved to final specs and finished with a special brazilian wax mix.

What's left?
-Applying all the hardware, a day job.
-Custom fitted case,it's being completed with high density foam and nice "plush" covered interior.

It's so closeeeeee I can smell it, so bear with me =)

@jtm45 

The man is a master at building instruments, no boundaries and the most unrelentless attention to detail.

That's indeed a portugues guitar, twelve strings, it's own tuning arrangment sounds beutiful, you should check _carlos paredes_ playing some movements, it's eye watering.

Also check the guitar next to mine in the following pictures so you can see the kind of thing João Pessoa can create.

The p0rn:


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## ExhumedShadow (May 30, 2013)

dp


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## possumkiller (May 30, 2013)

ExhumedShadow said:


> dp


 
Double Penetration?


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## rikomaru (May 30, 2013)

birdseye pickup covers to match the binding?


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## vinniemallet (May 30, 2013)

Oh my god it's looking awesome! Can't wait for a nice review I think I'll drop my money to him later hahaha!


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## ExhumedShadow (Jun 8, 2013)

As sick as I'm, damn seasonal allergies, I have the most idiotic smile on my face right now as I'm in posession of the finished guitar and it's oh so pretty =D

I'll tranfers my comments and all the necessary p0rn to an NGD you can expect in the sevestring section in the next fews days.

Thanks for all your time and support.

Cheers!


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## vinniemallet (Jun 15, 2013)

NGD thread fastttttttttttt!



ExhumedShadow said:


> As sick as I'm, damn seasonal allergies, I have the most idiotic smile on my face right now as I'm in posession of the finished guitar and it's oh so pretty =D
> 
> I'll tranfers my comments and all the necessary p0rn to an NGD you can expect in the sevestring section in the next fews days.
> 
> ...


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## ExhumedShadow (Jun 18, 2013)

Let me redirect you to:

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/se...-custom-guitars-7-designed-made-portugal.html

Thanks a lot and enjoy!


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## Hendog (Jun 19, 2013)

Wow man! Awesome job! I would love to do this one day.


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## lvsexgtr (Jun 21, 2013)

Damn can I buy it??? Lol


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