A Turner masterpiece in production for an undisclosed client. This instrument will have nylon strings and be
equipped to work with Roland guitar synths.
Turner on the State of
the Boutique Family
With five decades of guitar building
under his belt, Turner naturally
has opinions about the state and
future of boutique guitar makers.
He expects to see faster price
increases from instruments made
in Asia—especially China, where
there’s a burgeoning middle class
that will probably start competing
for the worldwide demand. Of
North American makers, Turner
gives Jean Larrivée, Santa Cruz
Guitars’ Richard Hoover, and Bob
Taylor credit for being on the
ground floor of boutique guitar
construction. “I just hope that
American guitar makers can hold
on through the economy.”
Turner is encouraged by the
fact that electric players seem to
be looking beyond Les Pauls and
Strats—though he is thinking about
coming out with his own take on
the Stratocaster. Given that his
Model 1 is basically his take on the
Les Paul, there is little doubt his
interpretation of the Strat would be
anything less than inventive, unique,
and wholly playable. Only one thing
gives him pause on the matter: “The
dizzying array of Strats coming out
of Fender these days is . . . I mean,
who can
keep track?”
Lindsey Buckingham—who purchased the first Rick Turner Model 1 guitar and now owns six of them—wraps up a
fiery solo onstage at a May 3, 2009, gig at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Photo by J. Chris Johnston |
While many Turner fans look
upon his instruments as works of
art, to Rick Turner they are simply
tools. “I certainly know guitar makers
that think of themselves primarily
as artists, but I don’t. The musician
is the artist. On the best of
evenings, the instrument disappears
and the mind, soul, and heart of
the musician communicate directly
with the audience. My job is to stay
the hell out of the way. And part
of that is making instruments that
play well and that allow a musician
to develop his or her own signature
sound. You don’t want to make
characterless instruments, but you
don’t want to impose the character
of the instrument too severely on
the musician.”
Rick Turner Model 1 Specs
The first Model 1 guitar built for Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham featured
the following specifications.
Dimensions
-
Scale length: 24 3/4"
-
Nut width: 1 11/16"
-
Fretboard radius: 12"
-
String span at bridge: 2"
Woods
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Body: Mahogany
-
Neck: Laminated maple and purpleheart set neck with
24 medium-jumbo frets
Hardware
-
Tuners: Schaller M6-A
-
Bridge: Copy of Turner’s early-’70s Alembic design built
by Stars Guitars
-
Knobs: Mouser Electronics Eagle knurled black aluminum
Electronics
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Pickup: Rotatable Rick Turner-designed, high-impedance humbucker with
ceramic magnets, built by Bartolini
-
Controls: Quasi-parametric EQ with hardwire-bypass switch, a 150 Hz–3.5 kHz
sweep knob, 12 dB boost/cut knob, and Master Volume and passive Tone knobs