Q&As

Q & As


Do you make your necks and bodies?


Yes, we do. Every neck, body, pickup, and pickguard is made in house here at Bluesman Vintage Guitars.


Are your necks and bodies made by hand or machine?


Our guitars are constructed by taking the precision cuts from our CNC machine, while all of the shaping is done by hand. 


Made, or assembled in the USA?


Is your guitar made in the USA? Or was it "Assembled in the USA"? 

Everything in our guitars, other than the metal hardware, is made right here in Tennessee, just south of Nashville. 


What neck shapes do you offer?


We have many different neck shape options. We have a standard, chunky, fat, and with our necks being hand shaped, the ability to shape your neck just to your liking. 


What is a neck insert?


A neck insert is a threaded receiver that accepts an 8-32 machine bolt. We put these in the neck heel on all of our guitars. This allows a much tighter coupling to the body, achieving much greater resonance and sustain. This is one of the best modifications you can do to an existing guitar, and comes standard on every Bluesman Vintage Guitar. 


Do you only make relic guitars?


Yes, absolutely. We are known for our relic process and aged finishes, but we also frequently produce guitars with shiny, perfect finishes. 

It's up to you, as the customer, to choose whether you want an aged, or new look on your dream guitar.


How do you relic your guitars?


Our authentic relic finishes are achieved through many techniques that are secrets of the trade. To name just a few, our hardware is aged using different acids and chemicals. The checked paint finish is achieved with a special, proprietary lacquer that was designed in collaboration with our lacquer supplier.


Do you repair or restore other guitars?


Yes, we do. We have a world class repair and restoration department here at Bluesman Vintage. We do all matters of repairs from basic setups to full on restorations. Because we have such authentic aging and relicing results, people often send us their vintage instruments to be fully restored. 


Do you sell parts for replacement or builds?


Yes, we sell pickups, replacement bodies and necks. It will not have a Bluesman Vintage logo, but reach out to us with your projects and let us see what we can do to help. 


Can I supply my own parts?


Sadly, no. At Bluesman Vintage we have designed our instruments for a certain performance level. There are many manufacturers out there who make wonderful products, but we have to choose ones that align with the branding and quality level of Bluesman Vintage guitars.


What is the Bluesman Blender Circuit?


The Bluesman Blender Circuit is our proprietary wiring schematic for our Sedan models. A standard 3 pickup guitar with a 5-way switch includes a master volume, and two tone controls. 

With a Bluesman Blender Circuit, the secondary tone pot is used to blend in the neck pickup when the selector is in position 1. This also works inversely; when in position 5, the secondary tone pot will blend in the bridge pickup.


Does wood species affect guitar tone?


The species itself does not affect the tone. It is the weight and density of wood that affects the guitar's tone. 


How does weight affect guitar tone?


We've been told for years that heavy guitars sustain better. Heavy guitars do have long sustain, but have less mid-range and less resonance. Lightweight guitars can have more mid-range, phenomenal resonance, and less low end. 


Do you tap test your woods? What are you listening for?


We tap test our woods. When we do so, we are not necessarily looking for pitch, but how it responds to vibration and that vibration length. 


What tone wood should I choose?


The answer to that depends upon your tonal destination. 

Lightweight guitars have more mid-range and resonance. Heavier weight guitars have more low and high end frequencies. 

The name or species of a wood does not change the tone of the wood. It is the weight and density that affects the guitar's tone.


What is roasted or torrefied wood?


Torrefication/roasting/baking wood describes the process of removing all of the moisture from within the cell walls from the wood. 

This is done with a specialty oven designed for roasting wood. This will remove all resin and moisture out of the wood, and collapse the cell wall so it cannot accept that moisture back. This will give a nice caramel color to maple, and improve its rigidity and stability. 


What is the difference between chambered, or weight reduced bodies?


A weight reduced body uses small routes/chambers that are separated inside the body. When you glue the top on the body, the wood between the small chambers supports the top. This allows for a body to be lightweight, without sounding like a hollow or semi-hollow guitar. 

A chambered guitar is made with large acoustic cavities in the body, which gives a hollow sound to the guitar. 


Can you roast the wood in my guitar?


No, sorry to disappoint. The roasting process must happen prior to the construction process of the neck or body. 

Once the guitar is assembled, it will not survive the high temperature process of torrefication. The glues and assembly of the guitar would be compromised and the guitar would simply collapse. 


Can you reduce the weight of my guitar?


Sadly, no. The chambering done to make a lightweight guitar body must be done during the early stages of construction. 


Does nitro sound better than poly?


No. The difference is a thin finish, compared to a thick finish. Typically, a poly finish is sprayed on much thicker than a nitro finish. A thick nitro finish will "choke" the wood's tone, just as a thin poly finish would allow the wood to "breathe" better. 


Can you make a guitar from my tree?


No, we cannot. We are so selective with our wood supply, we do not accept wood from any outside suppliers. 


What hardware should I choose for my guitar?


The answer to this question will depend upon your desired result, as well as the wood you select to construct the guitar.


What pickups should you use for your guitar?


The best pickup configuration for your guitar will depend on your tonal destination. When designing your Bluesman Vintage custom guitar, we will discuss your tonal preferences and styles of music to find the best pickups for you and your dream build.


Do you offer custom colors?


Yes, actually all of our colors are custom colors. We hand mix every color when we paint our guitars. If you have a certain color in mind, reach out to us so we can see what we can do to accommodate you.


Do you have artist endorsement deals?


Yes, if you write a check, we will endorse it! 

Jokes aside, as a small shop, we do not give away free guitars.

We do, however, offer a referral program to earn a free instrument. If you refer ten customers to us that purchase a Bluesman Vintage guitar, you can earn a free Bluesman Vintage guitar for yourself! 


What are your payment options?


We have multiple payment options available. If you are making a custom order, you only need to make a 10% deposit, and you can make payments all along the build process. We will continue building, as long as you continue making payments. 

If you want to purchase a finished build off the wall, we have financing options available for that, as well. 

Reach out to us with any questions so we can find a way to make you an official member of the Bluesman Vintage family.

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