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I know big brands like Taylor and Martin have good quality acoustic guitars, but I would also like to try out other brands. Recently I’ve purchased this LAVA ME 3 guitar. It’s an acoustic electric guitar with a display on it! So with the display, you can control the build-in effects and loops straight from the guitar. It’s an interesting one because I wouldn’t categorise it as a normal acoustic nor an electric guitar. Just sharing my experience of this niche brand. Anyone heard about it and maybe play a Lava guitar? This is what it looks like: IMG_7272.HEICIMG_7274.HEICIMG_7275.HEIC

Perhaps my favourite thing about guitars is modifying/customising them to suit my tastes. It's an addiction really. I'm constantly looking for the next project. Ideas and inspiration come from everywhere and I've come a long way with transforming the ideas in my head into reality. My first project was The Legocaster. http://imgur.com/a/VVoan This was inspired by someone on the internet who had done something similar. Once I saw it I knew I had to have one. A short time after that a work colleague was selling a Squier Strat for £25...perfect! Long story short, over the course of the following weekend, I lugged my huge childhood Lego box out of the loft and set to work. The images above show the finished product. She sounds terrible, so never gets played but she looks awesome and that's good enough for me. She'll be 10 years old this summer! Secondly, around 2 years ago I stumbled upon a video from a guy in a band (I'm sorry, I don't remember who it was or what the band was) and he was talking about his new custom 9 String PRS. The idea was the bottom 3 strings were double strung like a 12 string, and the top 3 strings were left on their own for soloing. The finished product is a guitar with huge sounding chords, without the limited lead capabilities. Again, I saw this and instantly started looking for donor guitars. After a couple of weeks, I had built this: http://imgur.com/a/YDcfu As you can see, I settled on a Flying V for obvious reasons. Firstly, the Tune-o-matic bridge could be easily replaced with a 12 string variant, and the "crotch" () of the V was the perfect place to mount the extra tuners! She's just what I hoped for when I was in the planning stages. The chords do sound huge, and the lead playing (for the most part) is unaffected. I was also pleased there were no issues with tuning stability. Finally, my most recent project is the Skateboard Slide Guitar: http://imgur.com/a/cJpsQ I'd been GASsing hard for a slide guitar for the longest time. I was initially looking for slabs of tonewood and plans to build a full Lap Steel, but was hesitant to spend that money on something I might never get good at. Again, while researching online I managed to find a chap that had built a slide guitar from a skateboard, so I made one too. It features a big old chunk of angled steel for a nut, and 5p pieces to level out the bridge saddles. I was going to buy some longer grub screws, but now I quite like the 5p's. They add a certain character to it. The project is, as you can see, unfinished. I need to find a permanent "fretboard". I'm thinking some sort of sticker/decal. I'd paint it on, but I don't have the skill/patience for that! If anyone has a solution I'd love to hear it! I'm also looking to finish it somehow. I'm sure I'll come up with something sooner or later. Hope you enjoyed reading through these. Rate/Hate/Masturbate...Whatever. I just wanted to share.

It may just be a ratty old Eko from a jumble sale or a cosseted James Olsen original but this is the place to show off your guitar collection... I've got a couple of electrics, a couple of acoustics and some other bits and bobs... here they are. Now time to share yours! Fylde Gordon Giltrap signature Brook Tamar 010 (Gordon seems to think it’s OK!) Gordon Smith G90 prototype Gordon Smith Gypsy SS Brueko ukulele Fylde Octavius bouzouki