Latest articles by Terry Carleton
The Whatchamacallit: an Unusual Instrument with an Even More Unusual Story
Reunited with its owner after 50 years, this custom double-neck is a blast from 1954.
Cool, Quirky and Collectible: the Teisco Spectrum 5
With its innovative features this oddball Holy Grailer is interesting enough to push anyone’s buttons.
The Gretsch Guitar That Was Far Too Clever For Its Own Good
Despite its secret weapons the Viking failed to conquer when it landed.
Mike Dugan Walks Us Through the Wonderful World of Weird Guitars
As the caretaker for a vast collection of unusual vintage axes, blues guitarist Mike Dugan has carved out a second career in front of the camera.
It's Cheap, Nasty, and Sounds Terrific: the Silvertone/Teisco EV3T
Some 50 years later, Teisco guitars like this have found their way into respectability among not just collectors but also players and session musicians.
This Department Store-Bought Supro Folkstar is Causing a Stir on the Vintage Market
A plastic whack job that sounds like a true resonator.
What Do David Bowie, Jack White and St. Vincent Have in Common?
They’ve all played off-brand guitars like this Japanese-made Norma EG-421.
Whack Job: 12-string Splattercaster
How do you make a Splattercaster even cooler? Give it an easy and affordable 12-string conversion.
There’s Way More to Custom Builds Than Fender-Style Frankencasters
Get inspired to build your own unique hybrid axe with this 1981 Peavey T-60/2018 Electrical Guitar Company mashup.
Looking for a Cool American-Made Vintage Guitar for Under a Grand? Keep Your Eyes Open for One of These
This 1968 Custom Kraft Beat Blaster looks, plays and sounds great.
The Kent Model 834: One of Japan’s Most Underrated Vintage Rarities
Video Light but solid, this groovy oddball is one of the many stand-out guitars from the Kent-Guyatone era.
Whack Job: Gretsch 7680 Atkins Super Axe
Video This late ‘70s rarity is a choice of ax for Johnny Marr.
Whack Job: 1964 Eko Condor 820 2V
This ‘60s Italian relic happens to be a no-nonsense, meat-and potatoes, rock-and-roll kind of guitar.
Whack Job: 1965 Teisco Del Rey EP-10T
As one of the more collectible Teiscos this oddball ax could easily set you back a thousand bucks.
Whack Job: 1966 Martin GT-75
Acoustics weren't the only guitars Martin were building in the '60s.
Whack Job: This Made-in-Japan Mystery Guitar Reveals a World of Uncommon Tones
Sold under a variety of brand names, this guitar looks sweet and sounds cool.
Whack Job: 1998 Italia Monza
Clothes, cars and freaky guitars – this offbeat 60s throwback is classic Italian design at its best.
Found a Box of Spare Guitar Parts? Dinette Can Turn Them Into Something Equally Weird and Cool
As a baritone guitar, this Dinette DIY Franken-Bari can take your tone to more interesting places than a real Vox Teardrop.
Meet the 1967 Domino Californian – a Vox Phantom Doppelgänger at a Quarter of the Price
A bona-fide oddity with a groovy set of dials and switches, garage rockers will fall hard for this Domino.
The Plug In and Play Performance of the Casio EG-5 Cassette Guitar Was Pure 1980s Weirdness
With its built-in cassette recorder, Casio developed a bona fide six-string karaoke machine.
The Eastwood Devo Cloud is the Guitar That Should Have Looked Like a Potato
This new, crowd-sourced Eastwood Devo guitar is a heavenly re-creation of Bob Mothersbaugh’s original.
The 1965 Framus New Sound TV 12-String Has Chime and Jangle for the Ages
This unusual guitar is beautiful, easy to play, six pounds light and sounds like nothing else.
