XYLEM Handmade
Basses and Guitars
BY RICH OSWEILER, PHOTOS BY DIANE ZAHORODNY
As a student at Colorado State University in 2004, bassist and Les
Claypool fan Anthony Olinger taught him-
self many Primus songs between classes and
work. But when he found himself having
trouble getting “John the Fisherman” just
right with his 5-string Peavey, Olinger start-
ed looking for a short-scale, 4-string bass.
Not being able to find anything for less
than $2,000 and paying his way through
college, he quickly came to the realization
that he couldn’t afford to buy one. When
he found a music professor that was willing
to give him an elective credit for building
his dream bass, the budding luthier decided
to make the instrument he needed.
and building part-time, he launched Xylem
Handmade Basses and Guitars in 2007 and
set up shop in Durango, Colorado.
Citing Claypool as his inspiration to
begin playing bass, it makes perfect sense
that Carl Thompson—who has built several basses for Claypool—provided the inspiration for Olinger to actually start building
them. Today, Olinger credits his personal
drive and ability to constantly improve his
instruments as what sets him apart. “By
handmaking everything, I’m not chained
The Shishido’s poplar core has a spalted-maple top with mahogany accents, while
the neck is constructed from quartersawn
mahogany and topped with a bocate
fretboard. Weighing in at just over 6 1/2
pounds, this lightweight bass features Hipshot Ultralite tuners, a Hipshot Trans Tone
bridge, and is loaded up with Basslines
pickups by Seymour Duncan with an SRB- 1
for the neck and a SJB- 3 for the bridge.
Borysthenis >>>
The 5-string Borysthenis bass is outfitted
with active Bartolini BC5CBC humbuckers
that are covered with ebony and paired
with a Bartolini HR4.7 preamp. The highly
figured top of the black-limba body is book-matched macassar ebony, accompanied by
bocote and walnut accents. Also utilizing
Hipshot for hardware appointments, the
Borysthenis is outfitted with Ultralite tuners
and a Triple Lock Down bridge.
The Aurelia’s flamed-maple top is adorned
with a bloodwood center stripe and accented
with black walnut, while the guitar’s maple
neck is topped with a bois de rose fretboard
that’s decorated with abalone markers for both
the frets and sides. Utilizing Hipshot tuners
and a Hipshot Baby Grand bridge for hardware
appointments, the Aurelia is outfitted with a
Seymour Duncan SH- 2 neck humbucker and a
TB- 5 bridge humbucker—each with independent tone and volume controls.
