Chris Cuthbert

Chris is an excellent guitarist and has a fair amount of experience as a woodworker. Despite this he came perilously close to disaster on two occasions, the scariest of which being when the router "got the better of him" when he was cutting his neck pocket. Luckily we were able to rescue the job with minimal damage visible!

I'm not a big fan of pointy guitars ("posing planks"), but I have to admit this shape grew on me. Again there are BC Rich influences, but Chris made the points blunt (good move!) and chamfered the edges to catch the light. From the jaws of disaster came a lovely little guitar.

Simon Delhaize

Guitar to be completed

Ian Ellis

Guitar to be completed

Mason Larobina

Mason set out to create a guitar that looked spectacular, but was a functional, playable instrument. Consequently despite the inevitable pointy influences, the body is small and contoured, and fits the player superbly. The humbuckers are switchable but have only a volume control. The 4/2 headstock was the result of an exchange of machine heads with Chris (above).

Mason, a non-player, has inherited a vintage valve amp from a relative, and now it seems that the whole family is learning to play!

Catherine LeRoy

Catherine had not undertaken any woodwork since Year 8 (a four year gap), but she was an excellent student who soaked up information and used it to her benefit.

Catherine took the "simple but effective" route that I recommend to first time builders, but introduced enough novel features to produce a great instrument.

Like a number of the group, Catherine followed the "retro" design theme currently popular, and went out to produce a guitar which looked like it could have been designed in the sixties. The body has Fender influences, the headstock PRS, and the massive retro scratchplate is chequer-plate aluminium. This seems to have an effect on the sound which is loud and brash. A great sounding, great playing guitar.

For her efforts Catherine was awarded a Certificate of Distinction by the Curriculum Council of Western Australia.

Bradley McCarthy

Bradley’s guitar is an amalgam of classic 1950s design with 1980s pointy excess. Taking styling cues from BC Rich guitars, these have been combined with a more conventional overall body shape. The “pointy” theme has been continued through to the headstock and matching truss rod cover.

The body has been quite heavily chamfered, so despite the top reverse horn appearing uncomfortable, it is unobtrusive.

The neck on this guitar is outstanding, and is not unlike a 1960s Gibson, full and very playable.

Another gem of a guitar.

Michael McKenzie-Brown

A full-on retro design, with wide horns and a large scratch-plate, and enormous sixties-style headstock. This was probably the most successful reinterpretation of a classic design within the group.

This guitar was the first within the group to be completed and has some minor constructional imperfections, but it is an excellent player, and the Golden Age pickups sound excellent.

Kylie Scoble

Kylie wanted to produce a guitar aimed at girls, and very early on came up with the idea of using cats as a theme. The design evolved into a Telecaster body shape modified to incorporate a curled cat's body, and a slotted Flying-Vee headstock.

The body timber was the pick of the crop with some beautiful, shimmering figure. The cat's face was inlayed using scrap rosewood from the edges of the fingerboards.

This guitar has been an attention-grabber, and not just amongst the female students. Although the cat's ears do hinder player comfort this is a superbly made instrument, perfectly blending art and design. Kylie, like Catherine, had not undertaken any woodwork for four years, and she too was awarded a Certificate of Distinction by the WA Curriculum Council, making her and Catherine the year's two highest achieving students in the subject in the whole of the state.

Brooke Stephen

Brooke wanted to create a guitar that would stand out from the crowd, yet still suit a female player. Although she was influenced by a number of other designs, she created her own unique shape which is compact, but does not look small.

Brooke managed to land the best bits of rosewood and maple, and consequently the neck of the guitar looks magnificent. The long top horn provides excellent balance when hung from a strap, and as with the others this is a very playable, great sounding guitar.

Dora Rose Voyatsis

Guitar to be completed

James Willshire

As can be seen, James was heavily influenced by BC Rich guitars, and his was the closest of the group to being a copy. The body timber was a particularly dark piece of Blackwood, which suits the guitar well.

James came close to removing too much timber from the neck, which is extremely skinny, though this suits the "metal" vibe of the guitar well.