How Much Does It Cost to Build an Electric Guitar from Scratch?

The cost of building an electric guitar from the ground up can vary widely depending on a few key factors. These include your skill level, the tools you have available, the materials you choose, and how much you value your own time and labor. A basic guitar might cost hundreds of dollars, while a more elaborate custom build could easily exceed thousands.

When to Seek Professional Help

If you lack the experience and equipment required to build a guitar, it's often better to collaborate with a professional. For instance, I have multiple custom-built guitars from a skilled luthier that I work with. The shows one of those unique builds. The total cost of one such custom build was around €1500, without factoring in an additional guitar case.

Key Considerations for Building a Custom Electric Guitar

1. Body Shape and Wood Selection

Your first decision should be the body shape and material.

Body Shape: If there is no existing design you like, consider creating a unique shape. Once, my luthier built a guitar in the shape of a star. While unusual, it was exactly what the customer desired. For my nephew, I opted for a similar shape to his Jackson Dinky JS22, using mahogany for the body and flame maple for the top. Wood: The body can be constructed from solid wood, such as mahogany or basswood, or flame maple for a distinctive look. The choice of wood not only affects the look but also the overall feel and tone of the guitar.

2. Neck and Fretboard Materials

Decide on the neck and fingerboard material. Common choices include all-maple or a combination of materials like maple on the back and rosewood on the front.

Neck: I chose an all-maple neck with an even tone for this guitar. Fretboard: For this custom build, the neck featured a maple back and a rosewood fingerboard to achieve a balanced and professional tone.

3. Number of Frets

The number of frets is another important consideration. You can choose between 22 or 24 frets. I went with 24, matching the original Jackson design.

4. Headstock and Inlays

Decide on the headstock style (standard or reversed) and the design of the inlays. I opted for a standard headstock in black and inlays that resembled lighting, with a different design at the 12th fret.

5. Tremolo and Hardware

Choose whether to use a fixed or floating tremolo, and decide on the color of the hardware (black, silver, gold, etc.). For my guitar, I chose a floating tremolo with top lock in gold, "Schaller Lockmeister 6 Tremolo G".

6. Tuners and Pickups

Select the type and color of the tuners. High-quality tuners, such as Gotoh SGS510-S5 6L GG Tuners in gold, can enhance tuning stability, especially with a floating tremolo. In terms of pickups, I opted for two Seymour Duncan pickups, the TB-4 BLK Jeff Back for the bridge and SH2N-4C BLK Jazz for the neck, with a proven layout and a plastic frame.

7. Switch and Knobs

The type of pickup switch, tone knob, and volume knob will depend on your pickup configuration. For a floating tremolo setup, I chose a toggle switch selector and a volume knob. Since I often don’t use a tone knob, I removed it for simplicity.

Personal Experience

Building the guitar for my nephew was both a labor of love and a financial investment. The whole process cost me approximately €1500, excluding the case, which I purchased separately. However, the joy I felt when witnessing my nephew's reaction to the completed guitar was invaluable. He expressed that this was the best present he had ever received, and he continues to play it daily, treating his old Jackson as a collector's item.