# Guitars, guitars, guitars! at Lee Valley



## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

I always look forward to the cover photo of the Lee Valley seasonal mini-catalogues. The photos often depict some remarkable achievement in wood that inspires.

Well, imagine my pleasant surprise when I get the new Spring 2016 catalogue in the mail, and the cover was 14 different electric guitars in a variety of styles. Semis, solids, familiar shapes, novel shapes; each an exquisite piece of handiwork.

The description of the cover photo says: _Guitars built by students in the Guitar Building Focus Program at the Kingston Collegiate and Vocational Institute in Kingston, Ontario. All novice woodworkers, the students developed their own designs, built production jigs and templates, and made full-size prototypes prior to constructing and finishing their electric guitars._

That's my kinda high school! Excellent and inspiring work, equal to the best of what forum members have proudly shown off. You should b able to see their work here: http://www.leevalley.com/en/home.aspx


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## greco (Jul 15, 2007)

I received it in the mail today also....


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## Blind Dog (Mar 4, 2016)

K.C.V.I. is where a lot of, if not all, "The Tragically Hip" went to high school.


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## ezcomes (Jul 28, 2008)

Im pretty sure the teacher is the luthier at the local guitar shop too...

The program has been going on for awhile now...there was/maybe still is, a recording program where you learn how to record music too


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## sambonee (Dec 20, 2007)

Some
Really great designs in there. Cool stuff.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

Great cover! It looks like some good instruments came out of the course. I'd probably build a tele if I took it, or if I were any good with tools and drawing in general haha.


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

Now I'm looking forward to getting mine. Hope it's the same cover.

That's cooler than anything L&M has sent me. Probably Guitar Player too.


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## LanceT (Mar 7, 2014)

@High/Deaf pretty sure we will see here on the West Coast a cover with photos of flowers & birds, but fingers crossed.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Given that they would have different covers showing on their website, IF there were different covers, I think it's safe to say you'll all get the same gorgeous display of guitars.

Almost worth framing, eh?


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## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

That's all kinds of awesome. Good on Lee Valley for displaying it, but fantastic for the school on all counts.

Peace, Mooh.


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## Lemmy Hangslong (May 11, 2006)

Some very nice builds there for sure. Great looking LV cover!


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

Please CanadaPost, don't munch this one up - like you did to about 30% of the GP's when I used to subscribe.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

when I saw the title I thought Lee Valley had started to sell guitar kits or materials like "Grizzly" does in the States. Nice cover for sure, but kinda disappointing from that aspect.

The president of Grizzly Tools is a closet guitar maker

http://grizzly.com/the-presidents-guitars


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

Very cool. I'm not as big fan of fancy inlay in my own stuff, but I do appreciate fine workmanship, and the Grizzly Tools prez appears to have that in spades.

Those pics offer a slightly different approach, but whether its guitars or something else, like a duck decoy, those cover photos always make me want to buy more tools. It's the idea of "What I could do if only I had a....".


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

@mhammer I don't suffer from that malady. I have 10 fingers and I fully intend on keeping it that way. Much of what LV sells could alter that.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

High/Deaf said:


> @mhammer I don't suffer from that malady. I have 10 fingers and I fully intend on keeping it that way. Much of what LV sells could alter that.



But surely a left-handed watering can would offer a margin of safety?

The same catalogue has a new product, courtesy of Sam Bat. Sam Bat is a local company that makes high-end baseball bats for pros out of maple, rather than the more traditional ash. Many of the "heavy hitter" (in every sense of the word) use them. Because you can't tell what a bat will weigh until it's nearly finished, and because the league has rules on how much a bat can weigh, Sam Bat can end up with some bat blanks that will not meet weight specs. So Lee Valley had them turn the overweight bats into wooden mallet/bats for hitting chisels and other cutting tools.

I don't know that you would lose any fingers with one of those, but if you did any Bautista bat-flips somebody else might end up with less skull than they started out with!


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## High/Deaf (Aug 19, 2009)

mhammer said:


> But surely a left-handed watering can would offer a margin of safety?


Are you kidding? I could take an eye out with that. Maybe even my own.


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## Lincoln (Jun 2, 2008)

Last time I was in the Edmonton Lee Valley they had a whole bin of free guitar picks that they had punched out of what looked like spent gift cards. They worked ok once you smoothed the edges off a bit


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## cheezyridr (Jun 8, 2009)

that's pretty cool, and those guitars look nice. and the best part is, those kids now have a skill that will pay them tens of dollars


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## ezcomes (Jul 28, 2008)

as a result of the cover...they story made the paper...

Students' guitars grace magazine cover



> "Many a small thing has been made large by the right kind of advertising." - Mark Twain
> 
> So it is with the Guitar Building Focus Program (GBFP) at Kingston Collegiate and a studio full of glistening guitars, a sampling of first-rate 'final exams' turned in for marking by students over the years.
> 
> ...


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## Guitar101 (Jan 19, 2011)

Great story. Makes me want to go back to high school. . . . . . . Nah, retirements better.


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## mhammer (Nov 30, 2007)

I sent a note to _Vintage Guitar_ editor Ward Meeker with the cover photo and a link to the Whig article, suggesting they run the picture. Haven't heard back yet, but they usually follow up on some of my suggestions.


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## ezcomes (Jul 28, 2008)

That would be pretty sweet...thx mark!


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