Wechter Pathmaker Nylon

I am updating the review from 2001 on the custom order (Thomas Galfano). I have played the guitar since then on a consistent basis. I love the guitar so much I feel I owe it to the maker to do this.
I have a Rosewood model and paid extra for hand selected woods and it was worth it; I have a super fine sitka spruce top, this is obvious master grade and the same goes for the indian rosewood- great to look at; almost like some stright grained brazilian it has so much depth with dark streak lines. 12 string neck used for this 6 string for the wide nut spacing. Abalone top and headstock. SImple prefix system

This guitar has improved within the last 4 years. I believe the wood is a factor in addition to of course the excellent build. The guitar is built lightly (I mentioned this on my custom order) and it is getting lighter.
The sound is just incredible for a nylon string, I do play my classical pieces on this and enjoy the sound more now that it has opened up.... more sonority. I did sell my Kohno Model 15 because I was not playing it anymore. But I also play some jazz and other modern styles and it sounds good for almost any music. I remember once reading something by I believe Carlos Montoya who said "there is no such thing as a flamenco guitar, just good guitars and bad ones". I played a few copied Tony Rice solos on this and it is pretty cool too.
The sound is clean and even vertical and horizontal across the fretboard, it has an excellent dynamic response, pick harder and it responds with more bite and volume- you dont really max it out, you can push it until it doesnt sound good, but in no way does it sound compressed as you push it.
My other favorite guitars I have are a Martin Brazilian D42 and a custom Rhyne guitar. SO I have a couple of other decent ones too to compare and this one is great on its own right.

This guitar has not changed a bit, top flat, neck set steady, neck straight, tuners hold steady, finish holding up well. I had an accident with it, got mad at a computer internal floopy disk drive and wailed it on the floor- the darn thing rolled all the way across the room (its a long room) and as I watch it horror it aimed right for the spruce top the metal corner gave the top a nice wedge, pretty deep- it hurts and it is the only thing that needs a fix.

Been great here, but I am not a traveller so I cant say

I dont know, called once and they offered for me to send the guitar in for free but I never did,.

This is a great guitar and I wish I had the money to order another custom instrument with Brazilian rosewood and a German spruce top and specific neck dimensions.

2001,Cedar top, rosewood back and sides, walnut neck,jumbo frets, gloss finish, double cut-away, standard gold tuners, rosewood fingerboard, Fishman "prefix plus" p/u, 1 ?? width at nut, 19 frets usable, 22 total, no pick guard, rugged archtop case w/plush interior, a unique looking cute little hussy that makes your fingers dance!

An ex-seventies electric jazz fusion junkie turned 40ish suffering from GAMCS (guitar acquisition midlife crises syndrome), I set out to find an acoustic/electric nylon that would serve me in my living room as well as onstage, something that had the gorgeous sound of nylon with the playability of an electric; something that wouldn?t break the bank, yet was not spit out of a cookie cutter factory. I found it in this hand-made double cut-away hunk of joy. Not to sound redundant to the above reviewer?s comment, but to add to its validity?. If it is the deep and loud sound of a classical box you are looking for, this is not it. This box is smaller, tends to sound a bit enclosed, and perhaps not as thumpy. But it is more than acceptable if you like the sound of acoustic nylon. The Pathmaker Elite has that and more?.. it?s strengths overcometh! Plug this baby into any acoustic amp (hell, it sounded great in my ?65 Deluxe reverb..go figure) and this thing kicks booty; snappy, punchy, crispy, and vibrant. The fishman prefix plus, with its adjustable EQ, phase invert, and notch filtering for eliminating feedback, is a great choice of electronics and is critical in the makeup of the amplified sound.

This guitar possesses a level of craftsmanship worthy of guitars twice the price. The neck-to-body joint seams are perfect, I mean PURRFECT?no glue blobs. The finish on the rest of the guitar is equally superb. I am not a wood connoisseur, but the cut of cedar on top looks like a solid 8 out of 10. The Rosewood back and sides, however, seems almost a 10. And a nice, yet unexpected touch, are the curly maple bindings on the body and the pegboard, not masked off and stained like on PRS electrics. The finish application seemed flawless...no areas of dimpling, perfect coverage, with no pockmarks or "flubs"(see below for comment on top finish durability). The neck had an exceptionally clean gloss finish; very smooth and seemingly thick. This neck is one of the most comfortable necks I have ever played. Seriously, your hands just take off at one touch?great intonation, great upper register fret access, and a comfortable feel of the body in your lap. There is a comfort level with this guitar that, I swear, makes me play better. At first glance, the double cut-away struck me a bit like a bulldog with a squinted-up face, but it took me only a day to get used to it, and now, I have to say, I think it looks very attractive. And, by the way, my buyer?s euphoria has long since worn off, I bought this guitar over 7 months ago?these comments are from the gut, not ?ether? or bs.

With proper care and maintenance, this guitar should outlast me. However, I do have a word of caution that I have noticed in the short 7 months I have owned it: I am an aggressive flat picker (hats off to you fingerstylers!) and in short order I put many little pick scratches on the top finish, right below the rosette (abalone, I forgot to mention). The scratches are at the point now where they are buffable, but I would recommend that you install a clear pick-guard to preserve the integrity of the top wood, that is only if you are an adventurous soloist that likes to buzz around the neck with a hard pick. The finish on the top is very thin, in my opinion it could be stronger and thicker. Be warned and be careful. Install a clear pickguard before you start jammin?. That way you won?t have to worry about it.

I have talked to Abe Wechter numerous times. It is one of the few places you call and the owner actually picks up the phone himself. I found him to be patient, informative, and generous with his time, a real pleasure to deal with.

I have been playing guitar since I was around 8 years old and am taking one last blast in my mid-forties. I have two electrics (?69 Gibson ES 340, 2000 PRS C24), and 4 acoustics (2002 Lowden O32c, ?96 Breedlove C1-R, ?76 Ovation Folklore, and the Wechter). I looked at tons of other acoustic nylons before buying this (Lowden jazz, Yamaha APX10, Rameriaz, Breedlove N25, Martin), some at more than twice the price. If I had to do it over again (or if it were stolen) I would go right back out and buy another Pathmaker Elite Nylon. The only thing I would do differently would be to install a clear pickguard fresh out of the factory. This guitar has a formidable combination of fit, finish, and function that is unbeatable in its price range. Although it doesn?t have that ?full classical voice?, it is the perfect hybrid that allows you that nylon "flavor", an unparalleled power and presence when amplified, and a finger-friendly neck that you just can?t take your hands off of!

I think this is a 1998 or 99, all solid woods, a spruce top with walnut back and sides. It has the fishman Prefix pickup. The most striking thing of course is the double-cutaway with 19 frets clear of the body. It has nice smooth tuning pegs , which are more like those of an electric guitar than a nylon string instrument like this is. The Wechter case is pretty solid It has a loop for a pad lock and that nearly broke off from being put in the trunk with objects sliding around, but the case is holding up.

I play song writer stuff and jazz and a pretty wide variety of music really . I've been plugging it in direct to a PA mostly. Unplugged it is not a real loud guitar , more like a 3/4 , well not that little sounding but maybe that would give you an idea. The body is a bit smaller than a clasical . Hey if you are looking for a traditional classical guitar I think you would know right away from looking that this ain't that. It does have a nice sound, a pretty original tone. Plugged in it sounds full with a little bass boost but the small body and stiff top give a very tight sound for chording. OK I'll put it like this it sounds as good as you could ever hope it to from looking at how weird it is. its very clear and though the bass is not very prominant it is pretty balanced. This isn't a classical guitar . from hearing it plugged in you woudn't ever think that the body as so weird . sounds good but realize you sacrifice a little low end for the retracted boddy and it is small so what should it sound like. Its not a jumbo gibson. the tone is quality just a little different

OK this is the ticket here. This is the easiest playing acoustic guitar I've evr played. It is butter. No resisitance , in ways easier than an electric. Its easy to hit to hard and you have to readjust a little with your attack to really get a proper sound but it is so easy to play, I got tendonitis a few years ago and though I've recovered I still can wear out but not on this thing. Again this is a very non-traditional guitar . Finish is smooth and perfect.

A little soft I let someone use it and they dented a cornr pretty easily. I depend on it as my main guitar now, I have a Tacoma jumbo koa also and a Washburn festival series but I haven't been bringing them at all I feel comfortable with this guitar it is solid. The neck joint is very solid almost to solid they made sure that the 19 fret access wouldn't threaten the stabillity of the joint. The wood on the area of the connectin is rather thick

I've been playing for 13 years and man its not the years its all the hours, I have invested most of my waking life to this musical anchor. This guitar is great for me others could be put off by its unussual appearance, its not something you want to take along to duel with a banjo. I love the action and the nylon strings with upper range access. I'ld like it to be slightly stiffer to play I may increase string gauge to be able to hit harder. I took a risk getting this off ebay without trying one (where's the dealer?) but I am 100% satisfied and for the price That is amazing for an all solid wood hand built instrument I got a great great deal. If it was taken I would probably get another though I might try the Ramirez cutaway or maybe the Tacoma classical to compare them maybe but I like this thing alot. I think it is beautiful. This is a great instrument especially for playing live.,It could be louder acoustically but it is not at all as small sounding as some might think from looking at it. I'ld like to hear Rosewood out of curiousity. Great professional instrument. It is a weird thing if you want a real straight classical guitar go elsewheree if you want an original guitar with unique features and extremely soft action this is a fantastic guitar. Neck could be wider, its a little to much like an electric that way. The other reviewers idea wth the custom order 12 string width neck was wise. It is worth every penny of the price it would cost new $1300 or so

4 months with a custom Wechter. With Wechter its easy to custom order as I did. Rosewood and ebony all the way around, I have a nicely tight-grained spruce top, not any different than my Martin M-38. Cutaway, jumbo frets, its a different kind of nylon string guitar. I also ordered it with a 12-string neck and classical string spacing at the bridge for a wider neck. I have the standard Prefix pickup with no controls but I will equip it with RMC's soon just the same, it sounds great amplified with the Prefix.

I have several classical and Flamenco guitars at hand. This guitar has a different sound than both. While my classical's sound deep and woody and the Flamenco's sound bright and thin, the Wechter is punchy and strong. It isnt as deep or resonant as the standard classical (I have an old one), but it is still has depth and I love the snappy response of the Wechter, which is what I was looking for. Playing with Finger Nails, it is punchy and dynamic with lots of movement which makes up for its slight lack of bottom end. Yes you can play your classical tunes but you will adjust you right hand style for the new tone. With a hard pointed pick, its finally exciting to play a nylon string. I am happy with the guitars sound and believe it will get better over time, inlucding the bottom end and resonance.

Well, this guitar is made by professionals and it shows. I had some abalone installed and it was put in nicely. The lacquer is evenly and perfectly laid on. The ACTION, is as good as it gets as far as I am concerned. The nice wide neck is smooth and easy to play and is very well set. The wood is of very nice grain and bookmatched very well. No flaws on arrival. John cares about his work, and it shows.

This guitar will withstand as well or better than any others out there. FUnny thing is because the price is so reasonable for a custom acoustic instrument, you feel like you can abuse it a little, at least thats how I felt when I first ordered the guitar. After receiving and playing it though, I have a different opinion and I take great care of it.

I havent tried any yet and do not expect to. However, John was responsive during the custom build and I have no concerns if Iever neet to call.