Grateful Dead Music Forum

Here's another

That Carvinwolf is awesome!

I chose a koa wood back since this is what Travis Bean used on most of his guitars

Very cool. I went over to Carvin's website. They have a build a guitar area where you select what you want for a custom order. Can you explain some of the details of your guitar? I dont want to copy yours I just would like to know how you got there from Carvin. I have called them and they will NOT do any mods on their guitars other that what they offer. ie OBEL, buffer really anything like that. I know you said you sent it out to get the Jerry mods, but what did the guitar come to you with. Thanks alot. I really like your guitar!

Thanks for posting the headstock picture. I, too, would be happy to learn of the specifics of your order (FWIW, for kicks, I visited the Carvin website, opened an order form, started filling out my choices, and ended up with a total adjusted price within $50 of yours so I think I can guess at least a few of the options you selected!).

Regarding the headstock, I wonder if it's possible to order the guitar with an unconfigured "plank" headstock sort of along these lines (link is to Carvin's Guitar Parts page). That way I could have my tech finish it to be exactly like Wolf's.

http://www.carvinguitars.com/images/nt6/nt6-main.jpg

My guess about the headstock is NO. The salesman I spoke to was more than willing to upgrade from what they had available. But no mods outside of the Carvin "realm". 2 cents, if you get anywhere with this please let me know.

That Carvin is out of this world. It's really a Wolfish guitar. You could get a Phiga or Michas or Moriaty or Resurrection. If I was building a Wolf it would have to be a Moriaty guitar (still waiting for Moriaty Rosebud pics to leak)... I went with Resurrection for the Eagle shape. Only 2 luthiers do it and I already owned one.

Budget is key. If Alembic was within your range go with Moriaty like Vic suggested.

Just my 2 cents

jdsmodulus wrote:Very cool. I went over to Carvin's website. They have a build a guitar area where you select what you want for a custom order. Can you explain some of the details of your guitar? I dont want to copy yours I just would like to know how you got there from Carvin. I have called them and they will NOT do any mods on their guitars other that what they offer. ie OBEL, buffer really anything like that. I know you said you sent it out to get the Jerry mods, but what did the guitar come to you with. Thanks alot. I really like your guitar!

The guitar came with a Carvin humbucker in the bridge and two Carvin single coils in the middle and neck position. I was looking for the closest model to a strat and the DC135 fit the bill. All DC models are the same. The only differences are in the electronics. I've heard bad things about their pickups but I was actually pleased with their tone. Carvin is not flexible outside their options which are stated on their webpage. The neck radius is 15" which is the same as wolfs. The only grip I have is the neck profile is a little on the thin side. I have large hands and like a thick baseball bat feel. Carvins have only one neck profile to choose from which is geared toward shredders. The pickup cover plate was done by Jack of Roses. I live not too far from Tom Lieber and he did the pickup work. I am probably going to contact Waldo soon to purchase his buffer. I have the CB2 in it right now and will swap it to my strat.
My Carvin is by no means a wolf clone (different woods and shape). But if you are on a budget, it's your best option. If you are looking to spend more. Moriarty is your best consideration. Be prepared for a wait. Carvin takes about 9 weeks. I would also contact Tom Lieber to see if he would build a Wolf clone. If I were looking for a Tiger style guitar I would definetly consider his.

Thanks for the added info. I'm undoubtedly in the minority here but I'm not necessarily a fan of exact clones (nor can I generally afford them!). I actually dig the fact that the Carvin is Wolf-like. I have a guitar and amp up for sale now, if they sell, I'll be seriously tempted!

A talented luthier might be able to do some after-market shaping of the stock Carvin headstock, not to copy exactly (would be impossible) but suggest, Wolf's shape, assuming one felt it important to do (it would be aesthetically rather than tonally-driven).

Did you say that was a DC400 or DC400A? What's the difference between those two models?

mk

He said it was a DC135. Custom ordered though. JKs is a DC400a if that was what you wanted? Apparantly you can order any DC model with options. I think from looking at their website all of the DCs are similar. The lower numbers start with more standard options.

Carvin web site explains all.

DC400A Anniversary

The DC400A was introduced in 1996 in conjunction with Carvin's 50th Anniversary. In addition to the premium features found on the DC400, the DC400A has a 3-piece body with an alder back, AAAA flamed maple top and center layer of walnut. A 5-piece maple/walnut neck is also standard. The headstock has no wood overlay, allowing the 5-piece neck to show. Standard Features:
- 3-piece body and 5-piece maple neck
- Highest quality 4A flamed maple top
- 24K gold plated Carvin headstock logo
- Sperzel locking tuners
- 25" scale ebony fingerboard with abalone block inlays
- 24 medium-jumbo frets
- C22J & C22B classic humbuckers
- Push/pull active/passive controls with passive master volume & tone and active master volume & cut/boost for bass & treble, 3-way pickup selector, 2 dual/single coil switches, phase switch
- FT6 bridge standard; Bigsby vibrato, Floyd Rose tremolo, Wilkinson tremolo & M bridge available
- Chrome hardware standard

LIST PRICE: $2,999.00
DIRECT: $1,399.00
SALE: $1,249.00

keirweir wrote:If I was building a Wolf it would have to be a Moriaty guitar (still waiting for Moriaty Rosebud pics to leak)...

here's one: