The frets are on the small side, and perfectly finished, as one might expect. The tuners are open-geared Waverlys, which are as good as you can get, and nicely complement the traditional look of the instrument. Quite narrow and even grains run throughout the Sitka top, and the ample cross-grain silking is a sign of perfectly cut wood with no runout. The C100 features a Sitka spruce top with a high-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish.
Restrained design is seen in the simple dots of the pearl position markers, as well as in the unbound peghead, which sports no decoration other than the Collings logo in mother-of-pearl. The reviewed example features a very tastefully shaded top, set off by a half-herringbone trim, with both the top and back bound in ivoroid plastic. In trim, the C100 also falls between those two models. In terms of size and shape, the C100 seems like an amalgam of the Collings C10 and SJ models, larger than the former and a bit smaller than the latter (though even deeper, at 4-3/4 inches). Although it’s not a fancy guitar by any means, everything about it shouts “quality.” The mahogany back, sides, and neck and Sitka spruce top are woods that traditionally are found on midline instruments, but in recent years players have come to realize that you can make fine guitars out of many woods, and that mahogany has its own tonal personality, which many players find to be their favorite. W hen you think of the Collings guitar company, one of the things that stands out is nonpareil workmanship.
COLLINGS UKELELE FREE
In late 2014, Collings started production of Waterloo Guitars, a stand-alone line of vintage-inspired guitars designed to capture the tone and character of some of the best depression era instruments.įor the past 40 years, Collings Guitars have been the choice of musicians who seek the finest handmade instruments available.This article is free to read, but it isn't free to produce! Make a pledge to support the site (and get special perks in return.) LEARN MORE.įrom the March/April 2019 issue of Acoustic Guitar | BY TONY MARCUS
COLLINGS UKELELE PROFESSIONAL
In 2009, with a nod to the tradition of some other high-end acoustic guitar makers, Bill created a line of concert and tenor ukuleles that have been hugely popular with professional and hobbyist players alike. In 2006 his interest in carved top instruments led him to introduce a line of electric guitars. In 1999, he introduced the first Collings mandolins, which like his guitars, quickly set new standards for the industry. By this time musicians such as Pete Townshend, Joni Mitchell and Brian May were playing Collings instruments and demand continued to grow.īy 2005, Bill broke ground for a new 27,000-square-foot shop featuring CNC technology that modernized machining processes and made parts production more consistent, accurate and safe.īill soon began crafting more than just acoustic guitars. That same year, George Gruhn, the acclaimed collector and purveyor of vintage fretted instruments and owner of Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, asked Bill to make 24 custom “Gruhn” guitars, giving the Austin luthier national exposure. In 1989, he rented a 1,000-square-foot space and hired two helpers. His reputation for outstanding quality and meticulous attention to detail quickly spread.
By the mid-1980s, Bill was building flattop and archtop acoustic guitars in his own small shop. Before long his instruments were in the hands of local talents Rick Gordon and Lyle Lovett, which led more Texas players to seek out Bill for custom guitars.Īfter building about fifty guitars and a few banjos in Houston, he headed west to pursue lutherie in southern California. More interested in guitars and engineering than in medical school, he took a job at a machine shop and began building guitars on his kitchen table with just a few hand tools. Bill Collings moved from Ohio to Houston, Texas in the mid-1970s.