Sonny Boy Guitars - LeSG

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Some of you know about the custom SG shaped, semi-hollow body, carved spalted maple top guitar that I commissioned Glenn from Sonny Boy Guitars to build for me. I call it a LeSG because although it is a two horned beast, it is not a SG (Solid Guitar) but more a mix of SG and Les Paul features. It does have a carved top like a Les Paul, it is chambered for weight reduction and this baby is very light weight with all of the hardware removed. Actually I think the hardware and electrical parts out weigh the wood. There will be no neck dive problems here.

Below is a picture of how it looked when it arrived to me.


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After adding a few coats of tung oil, here is how it looks as of this morning:

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I did have a chance to play it unplugged before striping it down and it does have a pleasant tone. The semi hollow body allowed for it to be played like an acoustic guitar. Once I get it all finished up, I'll make a video of it being played unplugged, with the piezo pickup and the P-rail pickups.
 
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The thickness is the same as Burla, but with the hollowed out innards it is much lighter. I think the bag of parts (pickups, pots, tuners, bridge, tail piece etc.) weigh much more than the body & neck.
 
Thanks for showing details of the build. That's a neck through, isn't it? And the carve for the TOM is set to the plane of the top of a normal SG?

The carve of the top reminds me to the so called German carve which has been used in the 50s by luthiers like Rossmeissl and partly Lang - they invented it after WW 2 in order to deall with the bad wood supply situation at those times.

I find this guitar very inspiring, and i am actually considering to do something similar (thicker, larger body, more acoustic than that one, and 30" scale). Triggered by the picture You showed in ETSG.
 
Yes Bea, it's a 5 piece neck through with alternating flamed maple and mahogany.The carved top plane is basically the same as a SG, however the bevels are more like a Les Paul. This is why I call it a LeSG. I can't in all fairness call it a SG style guitar because it is not a solid body. I can't call it a Les Paul style guitar because of the shape is more that of a SG than it is a LP double cut away. I will be using a Lashbrook piezo bridge (demo below) instead of the standard Tune-O-Matic.


 
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Please let me suggest for future experiments to try LoZ pickups. With these You might achieve a very natural acoustic sound without the harshness of piezos. I find them a lot easier to handle than piezos.
 
bea said:
Please let me suggest for future experiments to try LoZ pickups. With these You might achieve a very natural acoustic sound without the harshness of piezos. I find them a lot easier to handle than piezos.
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Do you have a link with a sound clip?
 
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