Listing of Tenor Guitar Builders

[Ed Goist]

Updated 9 June 2012

Active Tenor Guitar Builders
Almuse [Pete Mallinson] (UK electric only)
Amistar (Czech Republic resonator only)
Aria
G.D. Armstrong (Oregon)
Arrow Guitars [Paul Lestock] (Oregon)
(Greg) Beeton Guitars (Australia resonator only)
Benedetto Guitars - NEW (Georgia)
Blueridge
Jamie Boss, Hot Strings Guitars (Connecticut)
Bowerman Guitars (Oregon)
Ian Chisholm (UK)
Breedlove (Oregon)
(David) Cavins Guitars (Missouri)
DarkStar Guitars (Kansas electric only)
Paul Doyle Instruments (Galway, Ireland)
Earnest Instruments [Joel Eckhaus] (Maine)
Eastwood (electric only)
(Joe) Egan Custom Guitars (British Columbia)
Elloree Guitars [Rick Felkel] (Louisiana)
Evergreen Mountain Instruments (Oregon)
Wayne Fairchild (Michigan)
Fletcher Instruments (New York)
Fylde Guitars (UK)
(Max) Girouard Mandolins - NEW (New Hampshire electric only - 1st under construction as on May 2012)
Gold Tone
Highland Strings Instruments [Jason Harshbarger] (Ohio)
Andrew Jerman - NEW (Indiana electric only)
Jupiter Creek Music (Australia electric only)
Colin Kendall (Manchester, UK)
Lark in the Morning
Andy Manson Custom Guitars (Portugal)
Martin Custom Shop (Pennsylvania, contact an authorized Martin dealer for info on pricing and delivery time.)
Bob McNally, Strumstick (New Jersey travel tenor only)
Ron Melnechenko (Vancouver)
Vinnie Mondello (Texas)
Bryn Munford (UK - Aldershot, England)
National (California resonator only - custom order only)
David Newton Guitars (Texas)
Ozark (UK)
(Lars Tholstrup) Rasmussen Guitars (Sweden)
Republic (resonator only [model T49])
(Tyko) Runesson Guitars (Switzerland)
Kevin Schwab (Minnesota electric only)
Sea to Sky (Vancouver travel tenor only)
Shelley Park (Vancouver Selmer Style only)
Soares'y Guitars (New York)
(Steve) Sorensen Mandolin & Guitar Co. - NEW (California)
Stephen Stevens Guitars (Texas)
Bill Styler (Priest River, Idaho)
(David) Sundberg Guitars (Sweden)
Webber Guitars (Brittish Columbia)
Bruce Wei Guitars (Vietnam)
Zither Music Co. (Texas electric only)

[Seonachan]

Southcoast Ukes makes a tenor and a plectrum - the tenor is 23" scale, but for nylon strings only. Meant as a bridge between tenor guitar and baritone uke apparently.

[mrmando]

Ed, haven't you long admired Lynda Kay's James Trussart electric tenor?

[mrmando]

... And while at 24"+ the Breedlove is long for a tenor, it's too short to be called a plectrum. It's built for GDAE. Plectrum guitars/banjos are usually 27 or 28 inches in scale.

[Ed Goist]

Ed, haven't you long admired Lynda Kay's James Trussart electric tenor?

Doh! Can't believe I let that one slip by.
In my defense, I seem to be inexplicably distracted by something whenever I see that instrument.

[Ed Goist]

Updated 16 June 2012

Active Tenor Guitar Builders
Almuse [Pete Mallinson] (UK electric only)
Amistar (Czech Republic resonator only)
Aria
G.D. Armstrong (Oregon)
Arrow Guitars [Paul Lestock] (Oregon)
(Greg) Beeton Guitars (Australia resonator only)
Benedetto Guitars - NEW (Georgia)
Blueridge
Jamie Boss, Hot Strings Guitars (Connecticut)
Bowerman Guitars (Oregon)
Ian Chisholm (UK)
Breedlove (Oregon)
(David) Cavins Guitars (Missouri)
DarkStar Guitars (Kansas electric only)
Paul Doyle Instruments (Galway, Ireland)
Earnest Instruments [Joel Eckhaus] (Maine)
Eastwood (electric only)
(Joe) Egan Custom Guitars (British Columbia)
Elloree Guitars [Rick Felkel] (Louisiana)
Evergreen Mountain Instruments (Oregon)
Wayne Fairchild (Michigan)
Fletcher Instruments (New York)
Fylde Guitars (UK)
(Max) Girouard Mandolins - NEW (New Hampshire electric only - 1st under construction as on May 2012)
Gold Tone
Highland Strings Instruments [Jason Harshbarger] (Ohio)
Andrew Jerman - NEW (Indiana electric only)
Jupiter Creek Music (Australia electric only)
Colin Kendall (Manchester, UK)
Lark in the Morning
Andy Manson Custom Guitars (Portugal)
Martin Custom Shop (Pennsylvania, contact an authorized Martin dealer for info on pricing and delivery time.)
Bob McNally, Strumstick (New Jersey travel tenor only)
Ron Melnechenko (Vancouver)
Vinnie Mondello (Texas)
Bryn Munford (UK - Aldershot, England)
National (California resonator only - custom order only)
David Newton Guitars (Texas)
Ozark (UK)
(Lars Tholstrup) Rasmussen Guitars (Sweden)
Republic (resonator only [model T49])
(Tyko) Runesson Guitars (Switzerland)
Kevin Schwab (Minnesota electric only)
Sea to Sky (Vancouver travel tenor only)
Shelley Park (Vancouver Selmer Style only)
Soares'y Guitars (New York)
(Steve) Sorensen Mandolin & Guitar Co. - NEW (California)
Southcoast Ukes (Louisiana)
Stephen Stevens Guitars (Texas)
Bill Styler (Priest River, Idaho)
(David) Sundberg Guitars (Sweden)
James Trussart Custom Guitars (California electric/resonator only - custom order only)
Webber Guitars (Brittish Columbia)
Bruce Wei Guitars (Vietnam)
Zither Music Co. (Texas electric only)

[Ed Goist]

I just heard back from Steve Wishnevsky of Wishnevsky String Instruments in North Carolina.
He has built tenor guitars (and electric mandolin family instruments) in the past, and would be happy to do so again if one was ordered by a customer.
I'll be adding him in the next update.

[delsbrother]

I just heard back from Steve Wishnevsky of Wishnevsky String Instruments in North Carolina.
He has built tenor guitars (and electric mandolin family instruments) in the past, and would be happy to do so again if one was ordered by a customer.
I'll be adding him in the next update.

As much as I appreciate all the work you are doing, isn't the above situation applicable to just about every luthier? I mean, if cost is no object, I think most people would be happy to get any order. That would mean your list is going to be (if not infinite) pretty damn long. Of course, since I'm not doing any of this work, whatever floats your boat!

[Ed Goist]

Excellent point.
So far I've only inquired about a builder when someone has suggested I do so ("Hey, I think so-and-so has built a tenor guitar", etc.).
Oh, and I have heard back from a couple of builders who said they would prefer to not be listed, as the one or few tenors they built were purely one-offs.
Although I want the list to be inclusive, I also don't want it to become so long as to be meaningless.
Now that I've followed-up with all the builders suggested to me, I'm thinking the list is at the point now where future additions will mostly be self-identified builders.

[Ed Goist]

Here's something interesting...

I just visited Fletcher Brock's website because of another thread, and saw what he calls his Selmer Style Octave Mandolin.



With its four single strings, guitar-shaped body, and 23 1/2" scale, I can't for the life of me figure-out why this instrument isn't a GDAE-tuned tenor guitar and not an octave mandolin?

I have a message into Mr. Brock to see if he'd like to be included on our list.

[GKWilson]

Breedlove made a Tenor with a 25" scale. These were designed to be tuned GDAE.
Jason Bowerman built these in the custom shop in Bend Or.
When Jason opened his own shop down the road, Breedlove discontinued the model. [I believe]
They are no longer on their web site.
These are great easy playing instruments with a large custom guitar sound.
Like delsbrother I'm dreaming of a shorter scale Tenor.
I hurt my left hand awhile back and find difficulty with the longer scale.
I'll hate to lose this little [OM] guitar. But, you may see it in the classifieds down the road.
Gary

[GKWilson]

I played a couple of Arrow 5 string Tenors a few days ago.
They have a low F string making Bass runs easy.
They had a longer scale also. So, I won't critique them as I
couldn't play them very well. My problem not the instruments.
Paul does beautiful work.
I should have gotten pictures.
Gary

[mrmando]

With its four single strings, guitar-shaped body, and 23 1/2" scale, I can't for the life of me figure-out why this instrument isn't a GDAE-tuned tenor guitar and not an octave mandolin?

See your semantics question in another thread. Obviously Fletcher doesn't want to be associated with tenor guitar wackos like you and me.

[Ed Goist]

Updated 23 June 2012
(This is our 'final' update, in that from this point forward, all additions or deletion will be builder generated.
Thanks very much to everyone who helped put this list together!)

Active Tenor Guitar Builders
Almuse [Pete Mallinson] (UK electric only)
Amistar (Czech Republic resonator only)
Aria
G.D. Armstrong (Oregon)
Arrow Guitars [Paul Lestock] (Oregon)
(Greg) Beeton Guitars (Australia resonator only)
Benedetto Guitars - NEW (Georgia)
Blueridge
Jamie Boss, Hot Strings Guitars (Connecticut)
(Jayson) Bowerman Guitars (Oregon)
Ian Chisholm (UK)
Breedlove (Oregon)
(David) Cavins Guitars (Missouri)
DarkStar Guitars (Kansas electric only)
Paul Doyle Instruments (Galway, Ireland)
Earnest Instruments [Joel Eckhaus] (Maine)
Eastwood (electric only)
(Joe) Egan Custom Guitars (British Columbia)
Elloree Guitars [Rick Felkel] (Louisiana)
Evergreen Mountain Instruments (Oregon)
Wayne Fairchild (Michigan)
Fletcher Instruments (New York)
Fletcher Brock Stringed Instruments (Washington Selmer Style only)
Fylde Guitars (UK)
(Max) Girouard Mandolins - NEW (New Hampshire electric only - 1st under construction as on May 2012)
Gold Tone
Highland Strings Instruments [Jason Harshbarger] (Ohio)
Andrew Jerman - NEW (Indiana electric only)
Jupiter Creek Music (Australia electric only)
Colin Kendall (Manchester, UK)
Lark in the Morning
Andy Manson Custom Guitars (Portugal)
Martin Custom Shop (Pennsylvania, contact an authorized Martin dealer for info on pricing and delivery time.)
Alan Mayers (UK - Antrim, Northern Ireland)
Bob McNally, Strumstick (New Jersey travel tenor only)
Ron Melnechenko (Vancouver)
Vinnie Mondello (Texas)
Bryn Munford (UK - Aldershot, England)
National (California resonator only - custom order only)
David Newton Guitars (Texas)
Ozark (UK)
(Lars Tholstrup) Rasmussen Guitars (Sweden)
Republic (resonator only [model T49])
(Tyko) Runesson Guitars (Switzerland)
Kevin Schwab (Minnesota electric only)
Sea to Sky (Vancouver travel tenor only)
Shelley Park (Vancouver Selmer Style only)
Soares'y Guitars (New York)
(Steve) Sorensen Mandolin & Guitar Co. - NEW (California)
Southcoast Ukes (Louisiana)
Stephen Stevens Guitars (Texas)
Bill Styler (Priest River, Idaho)
(David) Sundberg Guitars (Sweden)
James Trussart Custom Guitars (California electric/resonator only - custom order only)
Webber Guitars (British Columbia)
Bruce Wei Guitars (Vietnam)
(Steve) Wishnevsky String Instruments (North Carolina)
Zither Music Co. (Texas electric only)

[Michael Wolf]

Chanticleer by Patrick Arbuthnot

Shelly Park

Pendennis by Andreas Köpke


These are made by Andreas Köpke. The body of the resophonic is from Patrick Arbuthnot and the neck is made by Andreas.

[Steve Davis]

Thanks Ed.

[Ed Goist]

Updated 29 June 2012
This update includes builder Nick Perez of NP guitars (UK, Newark) who has asked to be added to our list since the list was finalized.
For other suggested builders not on the list, be sure to check post #40 and beyond in this thread for Cafe member suggestions.
If you are a builder and you would like to officially be added to the list, simply post to this thread or private message me indicating so.
For quick reference, this list is available as a website here. Henceforth, updates will be applied to the website and just the link will be posted to this thread.
Thanks.

Active Tenor Guitar Builders
Almuse [Pete Mallinson] (UK electric only)
Amistar (Czech Republic resonator only)
Aria
G.D. Armstrong (Oregon)
Arrow Guitars [Paul Lestock] (Oregon)
(Greg) Beeton Guitars (Australia resonator only)
Benedetto Guitars - NEW (Georgia)
Blueridge
Jamie Boss, Hot Strings Guitars (Connecticut)
(Jayson) Bowerman Guitars (Oregon)
Ian Chisholm (UK)
Breedlove (Oregon)
(David) Cavins Guitars (Missouri)
DarkStar Guitars (Kansas electric only)
Paul Doyle Instruments (Galway, Ireland)
Earnest Instruments [Joel Eckhaus] (Maine)
Eastwood (electric only)
(Joe) Egan Custom Guitars (British Columbia)
Elloree Guitars [Rick Felkel] (Louisiana)
Evergreen Mountain Instruments (Oregon)
Wayne Fairchild (Michigan)
Fletcher Instruments (New York)
Fletcher Brock Stringed Instruments (Washington Selmer Style only)
Fylde Guitars (UK)
(Max) Girouard Mandolins - NEW (New Hampshire electric only - 1st under construction as on May 2012)
Gold Tone
Highland Strings Instruments [Jason Harshbarger] (Ohio)
Andrew Jerman - NEW (Indiana electric only)
Jupiter Creek Music (Australia electric only)
Colin Kendall (Manchester, UK)
Lark in the Morning
Andy Manson Custom Guitars (Portugal)
Martin Custom Shop (Pennsylvania, contact an authorized Martin dealer for info on pricing and delivery time.)
Alan Mayers (UK - Antrim, Northern Ireland)
Bob McNally, Strumstick (New Jersey travel tenor only)
Ron Melnechenko (Vancouver)
Vinnie Mondello (Texas)
Bryn Munford (UK - Aldershot, England)
National (California resonator only - custom order only)
David Newton Guitars (Texas)
Ozark (UK)
Nick Perez, NP guitars (UK, Newark)
(Lars Tholstrup) Rasmussen Guitars (Sweden)
Republic (resonator only [model T49])
(Tyko) Runesson Guitars (Switzerland)
Kevin Schwab (Minnesota electric only)
Sea to Sky (Vancouver travel tenor only)
Shelley Park (Vancouver Selmer Style only)
Soares'y Guitars (New York)
(Steve) Sorensen Mandolin & Guitar Co. - NEW (California)
Southcoast Ukes (Louisiana)
Stephen Stevens Guitars (Texas)
Bill Styler (Priest River, Idaho)
(David) Sundberg Guitars (Sweden)
James Trussart Custom Guitars (California electric/resonator only - custom order only)
Webber Guitars (British Columbia)
Bruce Wei Guitars (Vietnam)
(Steve) Wishnevsky String Instruments (North Carolina)
Zither Music Co. (Texas electric only)

[Jim Garber]

Ed: here is another one:

Carlo Greco tenor

Carlo is a restorer and maker in New York. I think he still works on 48th Street. He used to work upstairs at Alex Music.

[Ed Goist]

List Updated as of 2012-07-12

[blueshawk]

I have just bought an Ashbury AT24 tenor from Hobgoblin Music's Manchester, UK shop - http://www.hobgoblin.com/local/GR522...uitar-page.htm
A vid of one being played is here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HDksmH29sI

I also have one branded as a Tonewood which I bought pretty cheaply from Hobgoblin 2-3 years ago - I say branded because I have seen very similar guitars with a different name on the headstock - problems with the intonation of the Tonewood led me to abandon it in favour of the Ashbury.

[Mandobar]

This is a pretty rare bird, old Harmony Patrician with a carved top.

[delsbrother]

At one point, I thought it would be cool to collect Harmony tenors with two-tone/colorama finishes (c'mon, you know you want an archtop catalina tenor in aqua/blue).

Then I wised up.

[Seonachan]

The other day I was waiting at the RMV in Easthampton, Massachusetts, which is located in an old factory building that now mostly houses artists' studios and the like. So I wandered around and came across a luthier, Trevor Healy. I asked him if he'd ever made a tenor, and it turns out he had, just a few months ago:

[wistah]

That's a neat little guitar.

[Jayyj]

Alister Atkin, UK, see other thread.

Also, James Trussart tenor? I really need a better paid job... Apparently he made Warren Ellis a violin as well a few years back, although I've yet to see any photos of it.