Originally Posted by
auchencrow
All true Jim, but I would venture that some of the guitars being made today are the equivalent of any Pre-war issue. (Your Collings is one such example).
Since the late 80's, there has been a second Golden age of Lutherie - with a number of individuals and small shops producing some truly great product: Dana Bourgeois, Bill Collings, James Goodall, and Richard Hoover being among the most well known, but many others (including our own David Newton) are building guitars in the same tradition - and sometimes even with the same methods, as the pre-war greats. This has raised the bar for the big companies too - so Martin, Gibson et al, are turning out terrific new instruments too, which (if we are all around 60 or 70 years from now) we may find will surpass the tonal quality of their 1930's efforts.
Add to that list, Wayne Henderson. The D-18 looking guitar in my pic is my first one from him. I just got my second one couple weeks ago. Though it's a bit more personalized. It's made from wild cherry from my family's farm, has inlay from my family crest, peghead and heel carvings done by the guy who taught me guitar and some other random things. I've seen a lot of guitars coming from local luthiers that surpass anything i've heard out of a pre-war guitar.