# Octaves, Zouks, Citterns, Tenors and Electrics > Tenor Guitars >  Intro to Tenor Builders

## mandoglobal

Hey All - 

Looking into buying my first tenor, really need some help understanding the builders out there there (if I decide on a new build) and the respected vintage brands. Can you guys help out? Thanks.

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## bruce.b

Herb Taylor. How much do you want to spend. Where are you?

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Jill McAuley

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## Charles E.

The Martin O-18 T from the 60's and earlier set the bar for tone for the flat top tenor guitar as far as I am concerned. Gibson made some sweet  sounding tenors in the 20's and 30's but they do not have the power of the Martins. 
An example......... https://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/116275#116275 NFI.

There are some folks that are active here on the Cafe that build tenors and get good reviews.

Good luck with your search.

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## Rick Purcell

Not much experience with other builds but I'm having a blast with my Fletcher Tenortone, very responsive. I've got the JD1S.

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## mandoglobal

> Herb Taylor. How much do you want to spend. Where are you?


Looking to spend anywhere between 2.5 - 4K. I’m in Chicago.

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## bruce.b

For 4k you almost might be able to get a Nigel Forster tenor. They look and sound wonderful. A Collings tenor guitar is also a great choice. I love my Herb Taylor archtop, but those are the two that tempt me.

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## Cornfield

Lots of choices. In your price range. I would probably go conservative and buy a used Martin since this would e your first tenor. If you decide to get one built later you could sell the Marti. And not lose much $.

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## dcav

What type of music are looking to play on your New TG mandoglobal ?

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Escaped Cellist

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## Jill McAuley

For your price range I'd definitely second Bruce's suggestion of  Herb Taylor - I just took delivery of the tenor guitar he built for me this week and I can't put it down! The playability is phenomenal! The build itself is superb - I'll post pix when I get a chance in the next few days and will be recording some videos when I get my Zoom Q8 camera tomorrow. I went for a flat top tenor but Herb also builds gorgeous arch top tenors too. My first tenor purchased in 2011 was a Fletcher Tenortone, which I really loved. Financial circumstances meant I had to sell it a couple of years later unfortunately. When I was in the market for another tenor earlier in the year I did consider getting another Tenortone, but went with a build by Herb instead due to the being able to go for custom specs, and I'm delighted I made that choice!

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Kay Kirkpatrick

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## fox

And while you are waiting for the elusive vintage Martin, or waiting for your custom build, you could buy a superb value for money... Blueridge BR40T for around 10% of your budget!

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## mandoglobal

> What type of music are looking to play on your New TG mandoglobal ?


Well, I’ve played Bluegrass exclusively for decades, but I’m really interested in swing or gypsy jazz.

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## djweiss

I'm partial to Arrow Guitars (Paul Lestock).  He made both tenors in the pictured in the link...

https://photos.app.goo.gl/gHmXnlZiObdt9O3U2

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## mandoglobal

Just happened to stumble on this list sponsored by the Cafe. 

https://docs.google.com/document/pub...Zh94Ik_qBQ8rc8

List of Active Tenor Guitar Builders (25 August 2015)
Active Tenor Guitar Builders (updated as of 25 August 2015)
* Almuse [Pete Mallinson] (UK electric only)
* Amistar (Czech Republic resonator only)
* Aria
* G.D. Armstrong (Oregon)
* Arrow Guitars [Paul Lestock] (Oregon)
* Artist Guitars (Australia)
* Ashbury
* (Alister) Atkin Guitars (Canterbury, Kent UK)
* (Matty) Baratto Guitars (California, Resofiddle cigarbox tenor guitar)
* (Greg) Beeton Guitars (Australia resonator only)
* Benedetto Guitars - NEW (Georgia)
* Big Leaf Mandolins [Stanley Pope] (British Columbia, Canada)
* Blueridge (Saga Music)
* Jamie Boss, Hot Strings Guitars (Connecticut)
* (Jayson) Bowerman Guitars (Oregon)
* Ian Chisholm (UK)
* Breedlove (Oregon)
* (David) Cavins Guitars (Missouri)
* Chanticleer [Patrick Arbuthnot] (UK Resonator only)
* Circle Strings [Adam Buchwald] (Vermont)
* Collings Guitars (Texas)
* DarkStar Guitars (Kansas electric only)
* Paul Doyle Instruments (Galway, Ireland)
* Earnest Instruments [Joel Eckhaus] (Maine)
* Eastwood (electric only)
* (Joe) Egan Custom Guitars (British Columbia)
* Elloree Guitars [Rick Felkel] (Louisiana)
* Evergreen Mountain Instruments (Oregon)
* Wayne Fairchild (Michigan)
* Fletcher Instruments (New York)
* Fletcher Brock Stringed Instruments (Washington Selmer Style only)
* Fylde Guitars (UK)
* Doug Gazey Instruments (Clevedon, North Somerset, England, UK)
* (Max) Girouard Mandolins - NEW (New Hampshire electric only)
* Gold Tone
* Carlo Greco (New York)
* Gypsy's Music [Walt Kuhlman & Astrid Wolf] (Maryland - special order)
* Beau Hannam Guitars & Ukuleles (Colorado)
* (Trevor) Healy Guitars (Massachusetts)
* Highland Strings Instruments [Jason Harshbarger] (Ohio)
* Ibanez (AVT1 tenor parlor & AVT2E tenor mini-dread)
* Indian Hill Guitars (Montreal, Quebec, Canada)
* LT Jackson Instruments (Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada)
* Andrew Jerman - NEW (Indiana electric only)
* Jupiter Creek Music (Australia electric only)
* (Phillip) Kearney Luthier (Launceston, Tasmania Australia)
* Colin Kendall (Manchester, UK)
* Kinnard Ukes (John S. Kinnard) [California] - The John S. Kinnard ​Tenor/Tenor
* Lark in the Morning
* Andy Manson Custom Guitars (Portugal)
* Martin Custom Shop (PA, contact an authorized Martin dealer for info on pricing & delivery time)
* Alan Mayers (UK - Antrim, Northern Ireland)
* Bob McNally, Strumstick (New Jersey travel tenor only)
* Ron Melnechenko (Vancouver)
* Mark Mitchell [Galloway Strings] (Galloway, South West Scotland)
* Vinnie Mondello (Texas)
* Moon Guitars (Glasgow, Scotland UK)
* Bryn Munford (UK - Aldershot, England)
* National (California resonator only - custom order only)
* David Newton Guitars (Texas)
* Ozark (UK)
* Pendennis Handmade Folk Instruments [Andreas Köpkes] (Schönkirchen, Germany)
* Nick Perez, NP guitars (Newark, UK)
* Pono Guitars (Oahu, Hawaii & Java, Indonesia) - BN-10D Tenor Guitar
* (Lars Tholstrup) Rasmussen Guitars (Sweden)
* Republic (resonator only [model T49])
* Rozawood (Kolín, Czech Republic)
* (Tyko) Runesson Guitars (Switzerland)
* Kevin Schwab (Minnesota electric only)
* Sea to Sky (Vancouver travel tenor only)
* Shelley Park (Vancouver Selmer Style only)
* Soares'y Guitars (New York)
* (Steve) Sorensen Mandolin & Guitar Co. - NEW (California - custom order only)
* Southcoast Ukes (Louisiana)
* Stephen Stevens Guitars (Texas)
* Bill Styler (Priest River, Idaho)
* (David) Sundberg Guitars (Sweden)
* Herb Taylor Instruments (Colorado)
* James Trussart Custom Guitars (California electric/resonator only - custom order only)
* Webber Guitars (British Columbia)
* Bruce Wei Guitars (Vietnam)
* (Steve) Wishnevsky String Instruments (North Carolina)
* Zither Music Co. (Texas electric only)

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## Cornfield

Impressive list. I’ve read good things about the Bruce Wei ukuleles

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## liestman

A strong endorsement for Nigel Forster "Session King" tenors here. Just amazing and just barely in your budget. I have played several other makers including new ones mentioned above and vintage and for my tastes (tone and especially volume), my Forster is by far the favorite.

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bruce.b

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## Reinhardt

> Hey All - 
> 
> Looking into buying my first tenor, really need some help understanding the builders out there there (if I decide on a new build) and the respected vintage brands. Can you guys help out? Thanks.


I'm the lucky owner of a Martin 0 18T (1958 ) and a Gibson TG00 1935. Both lovely instruments but in my experience, pretty quiet. The Martin is louder but the Gibson has a warmer tone. Check out English Nigel Forster. He makes fantastic Tenor Guitars which would probably be at the upper end of your budget. They're listed in his Session King range. see video below.

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## Cornfield

> I'm the lucky owner of a Martin 0 18T (1958 ) and a Gibson TG00 1935. Both lovely instruments but in my experience, pretty quiet. The Martin is louder but the Gibson has a warmer tone. Check out English Nigel Forster. He makes fantastic Tenor Guitars which would probably be at the upper end of your budget. They're listed in his Session King range. see video below.


Very nice sound and playing

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## fox

Nigel's session king tenors are not really anything like a 1920s tenor, they seem to have much larger bodies & longer scales.
It is not surprising that they sound so good & Mr Kimber is obviously a very able player, he doesn't even need to use four fingers!
That is not a criticism, just an observation....
I have only been interested in tenor guitars for around 5 years but it strikes me that a lot of builders ( including myself ) are trying to make something that is different from the ordinal tenor guitar concept!
Nothing wrong with that but I think it would help if you had a play on a few different styles before investing too much money.
You may well find a big body 24" scale four string guitar is what appeals to you or perhaps a small body 20" scale 'sofa guitar' is more in tune with your intentions.
I have sort of settled with  quite a large deep body with a 21" scale & nylon strings!
I never saw that coming but I love the sustain & bass tone you can get from a short scale nylon string tenor guitar.
My modified Blueridge ( scalloped bracing & refinished soundboard) & my nylon string Cypress top, arch back, tenors are the ones I play most.

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bruce.b

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## liestman

Nigel's are not like a 20s tenor for sure. 000 guitar-sized body instead of a 5 size (to use Martin terminology) and he builds at least two scale lengths. I think the one Mr Kimber is playing in the video is 24" or more. Mine is 22", making it easy to play fiddle tunes and such and keep mandolin fingering instead of four fingers fingering.

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bruce.b, 

fox

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## Cornfield

> Looking to spend anywhere between 2.5 - 4K. I’m in Chicago.


I just realized you are in the Chicago area. You might want to check with Rick at Cremer Guitarworks in Aurora. He told me about a few pieces that he has, there may be a vintage instrument of interest to you.

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## nkforster

> Nigel's session king tenors are not really anything like a 1920s tenor, they seem to have much larger bodies & longer scales.


Correct. There will be the odd exception, (which I've never come accross) but in general vinatge tenor guitars are very dissapointing. Both Martin and Gibson were adept at making nice looking, qiuet, weak sounding 4 string guitars. The 4 string tenor/plectrum guitar market has alwys been and will always been a small niche and makers simply havent given it much attention. This is no surpise as no one is going to get rich by making the best one. 

That said, I make a LOT of tenor/plectrum/4 string guitars these days and I really enjoy making them - I can concentrate only on what matters most - sound, projection, and playability.  It's a breath of fresh air making tenors. Just thinking about what matters - performance. It's been years since you could do that in the 6 string guitar world, which is now dominated by novelty, bling and gimmicks.







A simple tenor is a better tenor. Just like ukes (in my opinion.)

So when I decided to give the tenor guitar some serious thought, my starting point was not what was already around. What is already around wasn't worth copying. Shame, 'cos those vintage tenors look great. Instead I looked at my own guitar bouzouki design, which is already successful and sells well. I took that body shape and simplified the soundboard construction (flattened the arching) and the looked at the materials to make it more affordable.

So this below is actually the same shape:



This too!



Some folk do order fancier tenors, but the thought process is the same - Once I have the scale and the tuning the customer wants (people can have whatever they like), I work out the string gauges, the amount of static load the top will be under, look at the soundboard material and make the soundboard according to that. That's all there is to it. Well, not quite...

The story I hear time and time again from customers is they've already owned a number of vintage tenors, and they've always been a little dissapointed by them. Eventually they find me and decide to order a Session King tenor from me. Then I make them something that does exactly what they wanted and hopefully a little bit more than they expected. 

The basic model is great. A truly simple instrument designed for high performace. 








Nigel
http://www.nkforsterguitars.com/inst.../tenor-guitar/

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bruce.b

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## kmmando

Here's another maker, here in Scotland, an example of luthier Rory Dowling's lovely Taran Guitars tenor, this one made for Scots singer Dougie Maclean.

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bruce.b, 

Jill McAuley

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## kmmando

As an aside to this, here's a mid 1930s one I own, a big bodied beastie!

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Cornfield, 

derbex, 

fox, 

Jill McAuley

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## mds0725

I have two custom tenor guitars -- one built by Beau Hannam in Colorado and the other built by John Kinnard in San Diego.  (If you include a Rick Turner built Compass Rose steel string baritone ukulele, I have two tenor guitars and a short-scale third tenor guitar.)  I've posted a photo of them here (L-R, Compass Rose, Beau Hannam, John Kinnard) as well as links to sound samples (they're all tuned DGBE).  




Beau Hannam tenor guitar sound sample (played by Beau)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxq4SFdy8HI

John Kinnard tenor guitar sound sample (played by Kevin @ KInnard Ukulele)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxTxPbyJ7cA

Beau Hannam's tenor guitar page
http://www.beauhannamguitars.com/Tenor-Guitar.html

John Kinnard's tenor guitar page
http://www.kinnardukes.com/tenor-uke--tenor-guitar.html

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## Jill McAuley

Here's a couple of photos of my Herb Taylor flat top tenor guitar:



And here's a video clip as well:

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bruce.b

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## Charles E.

> Well, Ive played Bluegrass exclusively for decades, but Im really interested in swing or gypsy jazz.


If you want to go the swing - gypsy jazz route I would take a look at this tenor from Bernunzio.......

https://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/116700#116700

I have a 1929 Triolian and it kicks butt. It can be heard with out plugging in in a session.

    NFI

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## Mandocarver

As I don't think anyone else has mentioned it, the OP's price range would include a mint-condition 1920s Gibson TG1. I've played a lot of tenors, modern and vintage, and for me, nothing can touch this model. Unbelievably light, sweet and resonant. Of course, at this age, you'd have to be sure to have it thoroughly checked out.

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## mandoglobal

> I just realized you are in the Chicago area. You might want to check with Rick at Cremer Guitarworks in Aurora. He told me about a few pieces that he has, there may be a vintage instrument of interest to you.


Wow, thats a great referral. I actually live in Geneva, a far western suburb of Chicago and super close to Aurora. Ill be getting to know this guy for sure! Thank you!!

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## Cornfield

> Wow, that’s a great referral. I actually live in Geneva, a far western suburb of Chicago and super close to Aurora. I’ll be getting to know this guy for sure! Thank you!!


His shop is open Mn, Wed and Friday Noon-5 and Saturday 10-4. It is actually in North Aurora so it's a bit closer to you. I just got a used Mid-Missouri mandolin there. It was in terrific shape and reasonably priced.

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## Cornfield

> If you want to go the swing - gypsy jazz route I would take a look at this tenor from Bernunzio.......
> 
> https://www.mandolincafe.com/ads/116700#116700
> 
> I have a 1929 Triolian and it kicks butt. It can be heard with out plugging in in a session.
> 
>     NFI


Have you got any recordings of playing gypsy jazz on your National? What tuning are you using?

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