1BA Ferguson Shirley McLean
BA Ferguson Guitars made its
first NAMM show appearance this
year with a collection of acoustics
and electrics built from recycled
materials and repurposed wood.
The Shirley McLean model pictured here features a chambered
cherry body with a maple top, a
maple neck with a persimmon
fretboard, Heavy Air single-coils,
and momentary mid-boost and
kill switches made from ’80s
Nintendo Entertainment System
controller buttons.
bafergusonguitars.com
2Mario Martin Serpentine 2 This Tennessee-based
company’s short-scale, Mustang-
esque Serpentine 2 uses TV
Jones pickups and a super-light-
weight paulownia body to create
crazy-lively and overtone-rich
sounds. At 5 pounds 7 ounces,
it’s like slinging a feather!
guitarmill.com/custom
3HeliArc Guitars Arc Light Based in Santa Ana, California, this new outfit debuted its
line of aluminum-bodied guitars
that combine quasi resonator-style construction and Lace
Alumitone pickups for tones
ranging from fat, Tele-like bark to
super-mellow jazz vibes.
heliarcguitars.com
4Larrivée Bakersfield The boutique veterans from
Vancouver, Canada, unleashed their
beautiful Bakersfield T-style solidbod-
ies, which feature contoured bodies,
chunky D-profile necks, an optional
neck humbucker, and jumbo frets—
they’re sweet players, too.
larrivee.com
5J.D. Vokes Art Guitars J.D. Vokes’ Art Guitars made
its NAMM show debut this summer
with an eye-grabbing collection of
customized production guitars from
other manufacturers. The “Slashin’
Assassin” Epiphone Goth Explorer
(left) features an inlaid chainsaw
blade and rusted-steel pickguard,
while the “Home on the Range”
Kona KE35 has hair-in cowhide
and a leather-covered pickguard.
jdvokes.com
6Burly Guitars Burly Guitars builds ornately
carved semi-hollowbodies that
incorporate a patented Internal
Resonance System to get a wide
spectrum of growling tones. The
company says the resonance
system uses “tuning forks” carved
into each guitar’s core to “
recirculate vibrations back into the
strings” for added sustain.
burlyguitars.com
7Burns Dream Noiseless US distributor Saga Musical
Instruments debuted the Burns
Dream Noiseless, which marries
vintage Burns appointments such
as the Rez-o-Tube tremolo and
Gear-o-Matik truss-rod adjuster with
new Burns Rez-o-Matik Noiseless
pickups and locking tuners.
burnsguitars.com
