Kavanagh Customs PRS custom-build

Made in 2006 by Kavanagh Customs (a guitar workshop in London UK) to my specs. 24 Frets, made from one-piece mahogany with flamed maple top. Finished in rich dark blue nitrocellulose. Two very nice-sounding Kent Armstrong humbuckers, one volume, one tone control with push-pull for coil splitting. PRR custom-24 style with Wilkinson locking tremelo and machineheads. Came with case, lead and accessories (as per my request).

I've been using Kavanagh Customs to repair my gigging instruments for almost a year now and have never had a problem with them. When my PRS was stolen (Brixton! I should've guessed better really!) I turned to them to build me a replacement rather than forking out the huge amount of money it would have cost to buy another. The Kent Armstrongs are my favourites, I chose them because I already knew that they would produce the sound I was after. The guitar sounds slightly different to the other guitars I've had the same pickups in - slightly warmer and more mellow although I assume that's more to do with the mahogany than anything else. I just had to turn my gain up a touch more to conpensate. The cavities are fully shielded so there isn't even a whisper of hum from it and the coil-tap means I can use it to produce pretty much any sound I like, from Clapton's strat to Angus Young's SG, it is very versatile and I was more than pleasently surprised at how easy and well-defined the different sounds actaully were.

The guitar came to me well set-up and well-finished. Apart from a few tiny areas of sinkage where the lacquer has since sunk ever-so-slightly into the wiid grain, it's perfect. I did have to tweak the action a tiny bit after I received it just for my personal preference.

I've been using this guitar as my main instrument ever since! I never gig without a backup (who in their right mind would?!), but it's never let me down apart from the occasional broken string which is hardly the guitar's fault. I have changed the strap buttons for lockers now just to make sure it doesn't impact with the stage, but I rely on this guitar ever week and it's never let me down.

As I said, I've been using Kavanagh Customs to repair my guitars for some time now, I've come to know John very well in that time and it was he who suggested the custom-build in the first place. They are very friendly people, he talked me through every option and the entire process and I have no doubt that were any problems to arise, all I would have to do is pick up the phone and he'd be telling me to bring it in the very next day! This guitar will probably out-survive me!

Apart from the slight sinking of the finish (which wasn't there to start with anyway), this guitar is as close to perfect as anyone could wish for without spending literally thousands. I had this evaluated by my insurance company (all my instruments are insured now) and they said it was easily worth #1,500!! If it was lost or stolen, I'd firstly be enormously pissed off, but then I'd use the insurance money to buy another two! The only thing I would say is that I wish I hadn't gone for the floating tremelo system - I chose Wilkinson rather than a stop-tail because I thought it would be nice but because it floats and I rest my hand on it whilst I'm playing, it sharpens the note until I lift my hand back off. John was quick to rectify this by putting in more springs and pulling the bridge back flush against the body though.