Any luthier’s first guitar sale is a big deal. But it’s even more impressive when the guitar sold is the first guitar you ever built. So congratulations to recent Guitar Craft Academy graduate Tiernan McKinney, who recently sold his first guitar — built during our Electric Craft course — to a longtime friend and bandmate!
McKinney says his guitar’s unique look brings together design aspects from a range of rock- and metal-style guitars that he’d admired on Instagram. His guitar’s fingerboard is made from the Central American hardwood cocobolo, which blends well with the guitar’s mahogany body.
McKinney says the guitar’s eye-catching blue metallic paint job was its most challenging aspect, and took several layers to get the look he was after.
Now an employee at Gibson’s Nashville factory, McKinney is also playing in a band with his guitar’s new owner: “I’ll get to play it whenever I want,” he says.