Author: Dart Instruments

If you’re in the Pacific Northwest, come check out several new Dart guitars at the La Conner Guitar Festival, between Friday, May 13th and Sunday, May 15th. Although David won’t be attending, shop assistant Geoffrey Yenson will be holding down the Dart Instruments booth — stop by and say hi!

The show runs from 11 AM until 6 PM on Friday and Saturday, and from 11 AM until 4PM on Sunday. Tickets are $20 at the door ($15 in advance / online) for a single day, or $50 for a weekend pass ($40 in advance / online).

In addition to the luthiers’ exhibition, there will be assorted workshops, concerts, performances, and lots of other vendors as well.

More information & tickets at laconnerguitarfestival.com

We started off 2022 with a fun run of ukuleles, in all different sizes. The cherry concert uke is made from old western cherry that David’s had since the 1960s; its peghead has a ram inlay designed, cut, & inlaid by shop assistant Geoffrey Yenson. The Hawaiian lacewood tenor & soprano are a matching set, made from a board sent from Hawaii by the customer who’d ordered them. All three have Pegheds tuners, rosewood fingerboards/bridges, abalone soundhole rings, and abalone Dart logos.

Here’s another gorgeous custom Honduras rosewood / Sitka spruce OM guitar, this time with David’s ever-popular hummingbird as well as abalone purfling and a slot head. The ab purfling combined with boxwood binding beautifully contrasts the dark rosewood.

• Honduras rosewood (dalbergia stevensonii) sides & back
• Master-grade Sitka spruce (Ketchikan, Alaska) top 
• Boxwood body, neck, and peghead binding
• Indian ebony fingerboard, bridge, and peghead overlay 
• Honduras mahogany neck
• Abalone body purling
• Waverly tuners   
• Hand-cut abalone hummingbird peghead inlay, fingerboard diamonds, customer initials, Dart logo, and soundhole inlay 
• One-of-a-kind epoxy resin pickguard, made in-house
• Mother-of-pearl side dots 
• Bone nut & saddle 
• Nitrocellulose lacquer finish
• 25” string length  
• 1-3/4” nut width 

This dazzling parlor guitar is truly a unique beauty, with custom cannabis peghead & fingerboard inlay as well as abalone purfling. 

• Honduras rosewood sides & back
• Master-grade Sitka spruce (Ketchikan, Alaska) top 
• Indian ebony binding, fingerboard, bridge, and peghead overlay 
• Abalone body purling
• Waverly tuners   
• Hand-cut abalone cannabis peghead & fingerboard inlay, Dart logo, and soundhole inlay 
• One-of-a-kind epoxy resin pickguard, made in-house
• Mother-of-pearl side dots 
• Bone nut & saddle 
• Nitrocellulose lacquer finish
• K&K Mini pickup
• 24-3/4” string length  
• 1-3/4” nut width 

A customer approached us with a few specific features in mind for this gorgeous OM: a slightly wider nut width (1-7/8″); short scale; a cutaway; an armrest; and a particular neck profile. Normally we’d use a 25″ scale on this size guitar, but the 24-3/4″ scale feels great & allows for a bit more pliability in the strings.

• Honduras rosewood sides & back
• Master-grade Sitka spruce (Ketchikan, Alaska) top 
• Indian ebony fingerboard, bridge, and peghead overlay 
• Venetian cutaway
• Waverly tuners   
• Boxwood binding & heelcap 
• Hand-cut abalone rose peghead inlay, Dart logo, fingerboard diamonds, and soundhole inlay 
• Mother-of-pearl side dots 
• Bone nut & saddle 
• Nitrocellulose lacquer finish
• 24-3/4” string length  
• 1-7/8” nut width 

This is an octave mandolin, built with a mandola-sized A-style body, F-holes, with a peghead vine & diamond fingerboard markers. Highly figured English sycamore sides / back / neck. Hand-carved top & back. Custom order / NFS.

• Curly English sycamore sides, back, & neck 
• Master-grade Sitka spruce (Ketchikan, Alaska) top 
• Indian ebony fingerboard & suspended Dart finger-rest 
• Ebony bridge Bronze Dart tailpiece 
• Rubner tuners   
• Ivoroid body binding 
• Hand-cut abalone & mother-of-pearl vine peghead inlay  
• Hand-cut abalone Dart logo 
• Hand-cut abalone fingerboard diamonds 
• Mother-of-pearl side dots 
• Bone nut & saddle 
• Sunburst / nitrocellulose lacquer finish   
• 21” string length  
• 1-3/8” nut width 

Standard maple & spruce A-style mandolin body with F-holes and custom peghead / fingerboard inlay. Hand-carved top & back. 

• Curly Eastern sugar maple (Massachusetts) sides, back, & neck
• Master-grade Sitka spruce (Ketchikan, Alaska) top
• Indian ebony fingerboard & suspended Dart finger-rest
• Ebony bridge
• Bronze Dart tailpiece
• Rubner tuners  
• Ivoroid body/fingerboard/peghead binding
• Hand-cut abalone & mother-of-pearl hummingbird peghead inlay
• Hand-cut abalone Dart logo
• Hand-cut abalone & sterling silver vine fingerboard inlay
• Bone nut & saddle
• Black side dots
• Sunburst / nitrocellulose lacquer finish 
• 13-7/8” string length
• 1-1/8” nut width

A unique short-scale fretless acoustic bass, built from David’s 0-size guitar body. Built with about an extra inch of body depth to maximize air volume, this bass has an impressive amount of punch and sustain & effortlessly holds down the low end behind a small ensemble. Its 31” scale is three inches shorter than a standard bass guitar, allowing for easy, nimble reach over several frets. This parlor bass has the dynamic warmth of a fretless upright bass & is still comfortable to play, with inlaid flush-sanded boxwood frets & side dots all the way up the fingerboard. And in case you want to plug in to stand out in a larger/live ensemble, there’s a K&K Pure Bass pickup already installed. 

For sale – $6,000

• African mahogany sides & back
• Master-grade Sitka spruce top
• Fretless ebony fingerboard with inlaid boxwood frets
• Mother-of-pearl side dots
• Hand-cut abalone Dart logo
• Bone nut & saddle
• Rosewood binding, bridge, & peghead overlay
• Tape-wound La Bella “Deep Talkin’ Bass” strings
• K&K Pure Bass pickup
• Matte polyurethane finish
• 31” string length
• 1-3/4” nut width
• 4-3/4” max body depth

This twelve-fret dreadnought has a BIG voice, with a powerful low end and David’s signature crystal-clear treble notes. Its master-grade old growth Sitka spruce top perfectly complements the rich chocolate-hued Honduras rosewood sides & back. Other features: ebony binding, hand-cut abalone Dart logo, vine inlay, fingerboard diamonds, and soundhole inlay ring, slot head, 3-on-a-plate Waverly tuners.

$10,000 with hard-shell case – price does not include tax or shipping

Specs/materials:

• 1-¾” nut width
• 25-⅜” string length
• 12 frets to the body
• Slot head
• Honduras rosewood sides, back, & bridge
• Master-grade Sitka spruce top
• Indian ebony fingerboard, binding, and peghead overlay
• Sitka spruce top & bracing
• Solid basswood lining
• Hand-cut abalone peghead vine inlay, Dart logo, and fingerboard diamond markers
• Mother-of-pearl fingerboard side dots
• High-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish (body & peghead)
• Matte neck finish
• Unique epoxy resin pickguard (made in-house)
• Waverly tuners (3 on a plate)
• Hand-cut bone nut & saddle

Please contact us if you’re interested in this instrument.

This OM has a full & balanced sound, with fourteen frets to the body for upper fret access. This guitar is as comfortable with articulate fingerpicking as it is punching out big open chords in a group setting. Its top is master-grade old-growth Sitka spruce, and its sides and back are Honduras rosewood. The unique pickguard was made in-house, from epoxy resin and finish dye. Other features: ebony binding, hand-cut soundhole abalone ring/fingerboard diamonds, as well as David’s own hand-cut peghead vine inlay below the classic Dart logo.

$9,000 with hard-shell case – price does not include tax or shipping

Specs/materials:

• 1-¾” nut width
• 25” string length
• 14 frets to the body
• Honduras rosewood sides & back
• Master-grade Sitka spruce top
• Indian ebony fingerboard, bridge, binding, and peghead overlay
• Sitka spruce top & bracing
• Solid basswood lining
• Hand-cut abalone peghead vine inlay, Dart logo, and fingerboard diamond markers
• Mother-of-pearl fingerboard side dots
• High-gloss nitrocellulose lacquer finish (body & peghead)
• Matte neck finish
• Unique epoxy resin pickguard (made in-house)
• Waverly tuners (individual)
• Hand-cut bone nut & saddle

Please contact us if you’re interested in this instrument.