- Discover the best manufacturers of DIY Guitar Kits worldwide.
- Learn how to choose the perfect guitar for your needs and skills.
- Find the best DIY Kit for you
There was a time when building your own guitar would require long weekends spent carving wood and dealing with complex wiring and electronics, leading even the most resourceful guitar players to abandon the idea of creating the guitar of their dreams with their own hands.
Today, DIY guitar manufacturers worldwide make guitar assembly much more accessible and affordable than ever, with intuitive and customizable kits that are easy and fun to build. Plus, some of these guitars sound as professional as the ones bought from retailers and for a fraction of the cost!
Another crucial aspect of building your guitar is the bond you create with your musical instrument. Playing the guitar you built from scratch gives a sense of satisfaction and pride that no already-made string instruments can match. It’s an engaging experience that can entertain beginners, kids, and professional guitar players.
Today we’ll take a look at some of the most interesting brands in the world of DIY guitar kits, taking into consideration the quality of material, the sound, and the assembly process. Whether you want to save money and get a good-quality guitar or just want to spend a weekend assembling a new musical instrument, these manufacturers will provide you with everything you need to bring to life a unique guitar.
Let’s dive in! Here’s our pick of the best DIY guitar kits:
- StewMacDIY Kits
- Crimson (T Type)
- Luthiers Mercantile International (LMI)
- Bad Cat Instruments
- Solo (ADK-10 DIY Acoustic Guitar Kit)
The Best DIY Guitar Kit Manufacturers
If you’re looking for the best value for money, look no further than the StewMac DIY kits. They’re a bit more expensive than other kits but are made with lasting materials, and the guitar’s sound is incredible.
Other great brands include Crimson (more affordable but still good quality) and the Australian Bad Cat Instruments, both providing great-looking and sounding string instruments.
1. StewMac (Build Your Own 335)
Pros
- Great maple and mahogany wood
- Tons of video resources
Cons
- There are simpler kits out there, so beginners might want to look elsewhere.
Review
StewMac has been in the business for over fifty years, providing luthiers and guitar makers with the best spare parts and kits to create professional musical instruments. Their dedication to the guitar community is embodied by the quality of their kits, which come with great-sounding, lasting wood, and electronics.
Stewart MacDonald’s website offers a ton of information for newbies who have just entered the world of DIY kits, as well as separate spare parts to make your guitar uniquely yours.
Speaking of what I believe is one of their best kits, the StewMac 335 features mahogany wood and high-quality binding, giving you the chance to get a professional semi-hollow 335 at a fraction of the price of the legendary string instrument.
The humbuckers’ sound is versatile and smooth, offering a broad sonic palette that’ll satisfy the needs of even the most experienced guitar players. All in all, the quality you get for the price of a Stewart MacDonald’s guitar is hard to match.
2. Crimson (T-Type)
Pros
- 100% made in the UK.
- Courses, tutorials, and a YouTube channel.
- Endless customizations.
Cons
- Long delivery times.
Review
Crimson is a UK manufacturer that provides high-quality kits for ambitious luthiers. Moreover, they offer extensive documentation on their electric guitars, practical tutorials, and regular guitar-building workshops for those who want to take their passion to the next level.
Crimson allows you to create your own guitar shape with uncut kits that let your imagination run wild and create a truly one-of-a-kind musical instrument. The high quality of the materials used comes with a price, but then again, once completed, you’ll have a guitar that’ll last a lifetime.
With an ebony fretboard, ash body, and maple neck, the Crimson T-Type has all the right features to become your go-to guitar for both practicing and live events. The made-in-house pickups sound professional and rich, and the wood resonates magnificently.
3. LMI
Pros
- Endless customization with Kit Wizard.
- Wood of the highest quality.
- Rewarding as you build a guitar from a pile of lumber.
Cons
- Harder to build than other kits, as nothing is prepared by the manufacturer.
Review
For those looking for a real challenge and the reward of creating a unique musical instrument, the best option might be the DIY guitar kits provided by Luthiers Mercantile International (LMI). Through the Kit Wizard on their website, you’ll be able to fully customize your guitar, from wood to fingerboard and bending customizations.
High-quality materials and intuitive tutorials ensure the guitar kits can be a fantastic introduction to the world of lutherie for anyone. The only caveat is that these kits are entirely customizable and built from scratch, so some experience in woodworking and wiring is necessary.
LMI’s acoustic and electrics kits are top-notch, but reviews online speak highly of the LMI classical guitar kit, its rich sound, and its solid feel. Unlike other DIY guitar kits, what LMI does is provide the best raw materials to bring to life a professional string instrument, leaving most of the hard work to the luthier. If you’re up for the challenge, then this is the right kit for you.
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4. Bad Cat Instruments (LP Style Kit)
Pros
- Fantastic fretwork.
- Excellent wood.
Cons
- Hard to find online info on their website.
Review
Bad Cat’s guitars truly stand out for their design and built quality. The Australian brand has been around for about a decade and, over the years, has developed a cult following worldwide thanks to a relentless dedication to high-quality and inexpensive guitar kits.
With prices ranging between $150 and $350, the DIY guitar kits by Bad Cat Instruments come in all forms and shapes, from the classic Tele design to acrylic guitars. The resonance and sustain of the body feel natural and solid, giving the feeling of playing an instrument way more expensive than what you paid for it.
The Bad Cat AC-230 is a stunning piece of work with a rosewood fingerboard and graphite nut. The distorted sound is heavy and deep, perfect for guitarists working in the fields of hard rock and heavy metal. The dual humbucker further extends the sonic palette of this jewel, which for less than $400, proves to be one of the best options in the market.
5. Solo (ADK-10 DIY Acoustic Guitar Kit)
Pros
- Easy to assemble
- Great sonic palette
- Maple neck and walnut fretboard
Cons
- Strings and nuts could be of better quality.
Review
DIY solo guitars are not in high demand as much as their electric counterparts. However, some manufacturers create professional acoustic kits for enterprising guitarists/woodworkers.
Although Solo Guitars offers a vast assortment ranging from electric bass to double-neck guitar kits, I believe it’s their acoustic guitar kits that truly stand out. With the fret leveling and wood bending already taken care of, the kits come with clear instructions that help you bring to life your new instrument easily.
My favorite from their catalog is the ADK-10, a versatile acoustic guitar that sounds much better than the $200 investment might make you assume. The building process is relatively simple and requires roughly a week to finalize the string instrument.
The final result is an aesthetically-pleasing acoustic guitar with a deep sonic palette and an especially rich mid-range, making it ideal for daily practice and live performances.
Final Thoughts
Building a guitar from scratch is a relatively inexpensive way to get a musical instrument that sounds good at a very reasonable price. There are kits that are extremely easy to build and are ideal for beginners with little DIY skills, while others provide a more challenging kit that makes the building process more engaging for the more practical musicians.
DIY guitars also give new meaning to the concept of “owning” an instrument. The idea of creating and customizing your guitar brings us back to a time when people would make their own string instruments out of necessity and made great music with whatever string instrument they had at their disposal.
Give these DIY manufacturers a try by buying one of their affordable kits. You won’t be disappointed.