As much as we love our Telecasters, we admit there are times when the sound and feel of an archtop can't be beat.

Why We Love This

Fans of jazz guitar have no doubt noticed more and more players moving towards smaller, easier to manage guitars, specifically the Fender Telecaster (the brilliant playing and tones of Bill Frisell and Julian Lage are certainly what's behind this "movement").

As much as we love our Telecasters and use/play them regularly, we have to admit there are times when the sound and feel of a great archtop are called for, either for the gig, session, or just purely for the enjoyment of making music on this classic style of guitar. But - and you could hear it coming - but...much like a great dreadnought, the physical stature and string tension of a traditional archtop can make these guitars quite difficult for new or even seasoned players to manage.

Enter Pasadena, MD-based luthier Tim Bram. We've been following Tim's work for a few years and marveling at his concept, design, and execution - and let's face it, these guitars are gorgeous. You've probably gathered what he's up to just based on the pics - it's a Tele shaped, and sized to some degree, archtop - ie, a smaller, more manageable instrument that's a breeze to play and delivers classic archtop sounds.