February 2000

Series II Guitar

When we get a chance to make a super guitar, we've just got to share it with the world. When Bob saw the Series II guitar from the private collection of his dealer, he knew exactly what he wanted.
The Burl Walnut that graces both the front and the back is exceptionally beautiful. You could get lost in all the swirls in there. To maximize the "real estate" as we say, we bookmatched the top to the center so you could enjoy the most Burl Walnut possible. In addition, we covered the brass backplates in the very same wood. It's all about the wood, baby.
These plates are cut before we glue the back laminate to the core. First, the position of the plates is carefully measured, then we use a scroll saw to cut the holes for the electronics cavities, saving the wood that falls out. These "fall outs" get glued to the bass plates for strength and go through the same finishing process as the entire guitar at the same time.
Series II
plates For the neck plate, it's a little bit trickier. When we glue the body on, we make the top flush with the top of the neck, and that leaves an extra thickness of the neck on the rear of the guitar that has to be carved away. When we do a continuous wood backplate over the neck area, we first have to shave off some of this "extra" thickness before we glue the body on and reserve it for the platemaking.
The Alembic logo on this guitar is goldplated sterling silver. We've inlaid it under the finish and backed the cloud with a blistered mother of pearl. Behind the alembic in the dragon, we used abalone shell. All this is done before we apply finish to the guitar, so when you run your hand over this area, it feels absolutely smooth. logo
point From this view, you can see how the strings pass straight from the tailpiece over the bridge saddles and on to the string nut. You can also see the mirror like surface of the guitar and how that gorgeous recessed logo is set into the body.
When this guitar is flipped over, not only do the continuous wood backplates get attention, but the subtle detail of the tummy comfort carving is apparent. It's also your best chance to see the triple venEer accent laminates as they spread out over the carving. tummy cut
to purify and mercury Here's a closeup of the fine inlay work. The alchemical symbols are inlaid in sterling silver. These symbols represent "to purify" and "mercury". Other symbols on the fingerboard are "bismuth", "yellow wax", "antimony", "cinnabar", "the torrefaction of silver", "lead", "one pound", and "the torrefaction of gold".
body detail

SPECIFICATIONS

  • 6-string Series II Guitar
  • Burl Walnut top, bookmatched to center
  • Burl Walnut back
  • Triple veneer accent laminates
  • Europa body shape
  • Sterling Silver Alchemy inlays
  • Logo with shell inlaid in body
  • 24k Gold plated brass hardware
  • Continuous wood backplates
  • Bronze side position markers

Price available on request

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