Barry Wood's NAMM Oddities 2015 Edition

 Packrat Barry

Guitars

For Shredders of all Stripes

The body and necks of these exceedingly cool guitars are made of reused skateboard decks laminated together. The only way to use more of the original skateboard would be to melt down the trucks and make frets and pickups out of them.

Skate Guitar

Roadkill Resonator

I can't imagine that there are many Ramblers still on the road but some of them live on after a fashion. I'd like to think that the hubcap from my grandmother's Rambler was used for one of these guitars.

Asher Guitars

Tron's Les Paul

This is what I would imagine a sunburst Les Paul would look like if a Tron-like computer program were to fashion one.

I actually find this guitar strangely attractive.

Kaminari Guitars

Make Me a Sandwich

For company named after a condiment, it's wholly appropriate that their guitars are made of aluminum sandwiched between moulded wood veneer.

Relish Guitars Switzerland

Pop Top

With the very nearly trivial removal of about a dozen bolts, a completely new top can be swapped out on the Evolution guitar, complete with entirely new pickups.

Evolution Guitars

From the 50s to the 80s

Dean is known for their flying V guitars but this year they stepped out a bit with flying V that looks like it should be on the cover of a 50s Pulp SciFi magazine, and a flying W with graphics that look like they could have been a rejected Iron Maiden album cover from the 80s.

  • Dean Guitars
  • Armadillo Enterprises, Inc.
  • 4924 West Waters Ave.
  • Tampa, Florida 33634
  • www.deanguitars.com
Dean Guitars

Where the Sun Don't Shine

With the Manhattan weighing in at $50,000 and the Maple Leaf a hefty $20,000, it seems a crime to spend so much for inlay work that's normally hidden from view.

McPherson Guitars

Inlay All Things

Perennial Oddities favorite Minarik make their 9th appearance on these pages with a bevy of extravagant inlayed guitars.

Minarik Guitars

A Rose is a Rose is a Guitar

In NAMM land where overwrought inlay is the norm, Luna comes through with a beautiful and stylish acoustic guitar.

Luna Guitars

Chuck Taylors for Chuck Berry

I don't want to think about how many pairs of converse shoes gave their lives to make this guitar a reality.

Ritter Bass Guitars

Maximum Bling

The sparkle per square inch is off the scale.

O’Donnell Custom Guitars

Abdomen Steel Guitar

Lap steel players have now been liberated from the tyranny of the chair and since it's not on your lap any longer, you can exactly call it a lap steel.

  • Peavey Electronics Corporation
  • 5022 Hartley Peavey Drive
  • Meridian, MS 39305
  • www.peavey.com
Peavey Electronics Corporation

Lilliputian 6-String

These sweet travel guitars sound pretty damn good. They have a standard tuning model and a smaller one tuned up minor 3rd, which could be very cool for double tracks.

  • Quaystone Music Singapore Pte, Ltd.
  • Bedok Avenue1, Casafina Block 211 # 02-06
  • Singapore 469336
  • www.lapaxe.com
Quaystone Music Singapore Pte, Ltd.

An Axe for Cruise Night

Not only will this lap steel fit right in with the custom paint jobs of the street rods, if you opt for the option wheels and trucks you've got transportation to the gig as well.

Brown’s Guitar Factory Corp.

Car Show Refugees

Each of these guitars should be sitting next to a custom car with a matching paint job.

D’Angelico Guitar

Expect the Unexpected

Tied with Minarik, ESP is making their 9th appearance in the Oddities. I can always count on them for a several over-the-top guitars to feature.

  • The ESP Guitar Company
  • 10903 Vanowen St., Unit A
  • North Hollywood, CA 91605
  • (800) 423-8388
  • www.espguitars.com
The ESP Guitar Company

One of These Things Doesn't Belong With the Others

Fender is not one of those companies that frequents the Oddities but they did have a few interesting guitars produced by their custom shop. They also had, for no reason that I could discern, a 70's Schwinn suspended from the ceiling.

Fender Custom Shop

Jr. High Woodshop Project

While this guitar looks, shall we say, a little rough–the 108 Guitars coffee table book looks like it's quite nicely put together.

108 RockStar Guitars

The Wrong Guitar for a Camping Trip

McPherson has taken their offset sound hole acoustic guitars and added a woodland graphic wrap.

McPherson Guitars

Targeting the Tween Demographic

The designs on these guitars look like they're more suited to products found on the back to school aisle at Wal Mart.

Corona
Next Up: Other Goodies

©2015 Barry Wood