The Baker b3 Fire Tobacco Burst has
a quilted-maple top, a mahogany neck
and body, a Madagascar rosewood
fretboard, Lollar Imperial humbuckers,
and a TonePros TP6 bridge.
Baker’s b3 Wood semi-hollowbody features a
chambered mahogany body, flamed-maple top,
Baker’s b3 Metal-XS
neck-through has a solid
mahogany body, Lollar
pickups (two Imperials and
a Special S), a MannMade
tremolo, Sperzel locking
tuners, and a Graph
Tech TUSQ nut.
relatively new gig with this consortium of master builders, he’s
seen his fair share of troubles. Not long ago, a malfunctioning
CNC machine led to shutting down his Baker Guitars shop and
declaring bankruptcy—a debacle from which it took years and
more than $36,000 to recover. But while Baker has had his share
of the blues, his passion, perseverance, and sheer love of guitars
has carried him through.
PBG was formed in 2009 by Howard Swimmer and Michael
Bernstein. Their goal was to provide customers with an exciting
portfolio of boutique, master-built guitars and amps, without the
uncertainty, extended waiting periods, and lack of customer support often associated with boutique instruments. They wanted
to assemble a lineup of all-star builders and build guitars from
those brands efficiently and under one roof. Both Swimmer and
Bernstein were admittedly new to the guitar business, and neither
was quite sure how to round up the group—but they had one
secret weapon: Gene Baker.
“I think the fact that we had Gene in our lineup out of the gate
is what actually let us open a lot of doors,” says co-founder and
PBG president Swimmer. “Everyone who’s building guitars today
knows who he is and of his commercial success with his line of b3s
and Baker Guitars. We didn’t know the other builders when we
started building our group, but as soon as you mention Gene, it’s
instant street cred.”
Two years and six brands later, Baker is now solely responsible
for every guitar that goes out the PBG door. Whenever PBG part-
ners with a master builder, Baker does the prototyping at the com-
pany’s shop in Arroyo Grande, California, while working closely
with the designer to make each guitar specific and unique. Nothing
leaves the building without him playing it.
“We’re making guitars for six different builders, and Gene’s over-
seeing the production of each one of these different brands,” says
Swimmer. “Each one has its own setup requirements. Each builder
has his own unique desires for his guitar. The beauty of Gene is
that he’s able to realize what each builder wants with his guitar and
make that a reality.”
“This is a guitar I would build on my best day,” says PBG
builder Saul Koll after handling a guitar Baker saw through produc-
tion from start to finish.
The 411 on b3s
Within the range of PBG guitars, Baker’s own designs are repre-
sented by the b3 line, which was inspired by vintage models from
Fender and Gibson. He says the b3 logo was created with the
Hindu aum symbol in mind, because dealers he’s worked with favor
more organic names over numerical model designations. The line’s
models are named for the five phases of the ancient Chinese cycle
of Wu Xing: Earth, Fire, Wood, Water, and Metal. All five models
have similar body outlines, C-shaped neck profiles, and Lollar pick-
ups. “I’ve always been a huge Les Paul fan,” says Baker. “But there
were always small details I didn’t like about an LP, so I used the
model as a benchmark.”
The Fire model is his attempt to create a more ergonomic guitar
via appointments such as a sculpted neck heel, a tummy contour,
