Details
The Western Hollowbody Double Top from luthiers Agustin Gaytan Morello and Ben Lambdin is crafted mostly from woods that are native to the American West Coast. The back and sides are layered Monterey Cypress and the neck is Black Acacia. The center block is old growth Redwood. The only non-West Coast wood is the ebony fretboard.
The arched top is made from hand-pressed and laminated San Lorenzo Sinker Redwood and it has been constructed using a fascinating technique. The middle layer of the three piece lamination is, as they describe it, “a predominantly negative space spruce core.” A similar technique has been used in the classical guitar world for decades, and it produces a light, stiff, very responsive top. The two humbucking pickups are hand made by Matthew Spady of Devil Dog Guitar Company, a small firm based in Southern California. The Western Hollowbody Double Top has a satin hempseed oil finish.
We first became aware of Ben Lambdin and Agustin Gaytan Morello through their work with Kenny Hill, a luthier who made high end classical guitars in a small workshop in the mountains of Santa Cruz, California. Lambdin and Morello wanted to expand beyond the classical guitar and a few years ago they set out to craft electric guitars using tonewoods native to the West Coast and Pacific Northwest like Redwood, Myrtle, Bay Laurel, Engelmann Spruce, Cedar, Acacia and Walnut.
Over the past couple of years, Ben and Augustin have been stopping by Gryphon periodically to show us their latest creations. Everyone here has been impressed with the fit and finish of the guitars but we’re even more excited by the sound. This Coastal Semihollow is our first Lambdin-Morello and it has a sweet, singing tone that’s hard to resist. Augustin and Ben make every guitar by hand so the supply is very limited.
Specs
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Back sides
Layered Monterey Cypress
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Fingerboard
Ebony
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Finish
Satin Hempseed Oil
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Neck material
Black Acacia
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Nut width
1 3/4"
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Pickup type
Devil Dog (n), Devil Dog DCBR (b)
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Scale length
24 3/4"
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Top material
San Lorenzo Sinker Redwood
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Tuners
Sperzel
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Case type
Hardshell
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Serial number
006
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SKU
LAMWESTERN-006
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UPC
141854
