I built a guitar out of a SHELF during quarantine !

This is my third guitar build, handcrafted in Brussels, Belgium.
I used wood from a shelf to make the body, not only because Brian May is my hero, but mostly because the build started in mid April 2020, as Belgium was in complete lockdown and my usual lumber store was closed. Making this guitar may look tedious (or stupid) to you, but this was my own personal therapy during this insane period.

Update (January 2021): I've been teaching myself how to build guitars for the last 15 months, so I thought I'd share my findings with you all. Here is my first (and most likely only) tutorial on " How to make a guitar at home : a comprehensive guide for the weekend woodworkers and other guitar enthusiasts with no woodworking experience who always had the dream of building their own guitar but never really knew where to start" :
   • How To Build Your First Guitar : the ...  

For those who wonder why I even had a sapele shelf in the first place, full story here : https://imgur.com/gallery/I3T7h2R


0:00 Little sound demo
0:19 Top and back
5:19 Sides
9:42 Neck and fretboard
19:59 Finish and electronics
24:52 Beauty shots!

Here are the specs:
- Sapele top and back
- Mahogany & sapele sides (two plys)
- Wenge & mahogany laminated neck
- Ebony fretboard

- 628,65 mm (24"3/4) scale, 22 jumbo frets (6105) with ebony fretboard binding
- Seymour Duncan hot rodded pickups (SH on the neck , JB on the bridge), two volumes two tones (CTS, all audio, 500k) no push/pull, three way toggle switch short frame (Switchcraft)
- Schaller tail piece and bridge
- Kluson tuners
- Graphtec nut
- Custom made pickguard and trussrod cover (3 plys)

This was as demanding as it was fun ! The whole build took me about 2 months, working on and off when I had the time.
I'm not a professional guitar builder and don't sell guitars, even if I find your private messages very touching and somehow flattering.
I'm probably going to pass this one on to my kids someday, as a reminder that hard work can be rewarding sometimes.

You can find all my builds on my Instagram @
  / tchiksguitars  

I build guitars, furniture, toys, random household items ...
again, only for my family and myself :)

little update (December 2020): a lot has happened since this video came out and I haven't had the chance to record the demo yet, but I did 2 other builds, including one with my hand in cast and using only hand tools (I think it's a fair answer to those blaming on my " crazy expensive power tools") :

the video is here :
   • I built a guitar with one hand.  

As soon as I'm done with physiotherapy and can hold a guitar again in the playing position, I'll record the shelf guitar demo !

thanks for watching, and stay safe, this nightmare of a year is almost over !