Mulhauser Designs

ABOUT MULHAUSER DESIGNS

We try to build guitars that are classic without being stuck in the past, and modern without pandering. We believe our guitars are at home in any setting. We believe it is possible to adhere to tradition while still offering combinations of options that allow you to comfortably step into new musical worlds. Thank you for visiting the site.

Body

One-piece, custom double-cutaway design. Asymmetrical edge radii of 1/2″ around the front edge, and 3/16″ around the back edge leave more wood in the guitar where possible. Custom angled heel for improved upper fret access is standard.

Neck

21-, 22-, 23-, or 24-fret, six-string, bolt-on, 25.5″ scale design. Please inquire about other scale lengths. Flatsawn maple or mahogany is specified, with a maple, rosewood, or ebony fingerboard. Nickel steel or stainless fretwire. Vintage-style (heel adjust) single-action truss rod and your choice of inlay and side markers. Optional graphite or titanium rods under the fingerboard. Our in-house profile has a 10″ radius built on a hybrid neck carve that starts with a relatively large soft V or C profile behind the nut, tapering through a D to a flatter U profile in the upper register. Easy upper fret access.

Hardware

Any brand available upon request. We like Rutters, Glendale, Barden, Tone Pros, Wudtone, and Gotoh/Wilkinson bridges. Our own half bridge allows for traditional through-body or “top load” stringing, is made in the USA from stainless steel, and nickel-plated in Oakland, California. Our preferred tuning machine is the staggered, vintage style Kluson, with counterbored holes in the peghead face for the press-fit bushings. This design makes string trees unnecessary, and promotes maximum sustain and vibration transfer. Modern, sealed-gear or other tuners available upon request. Strap buttons, knobs, and plastics are all to order, and pickguards are custom made and hand-fit.

Electronics

All major pickup brands. We especially like Bare Knuckle, Prima, Harmonic Design, Arcane, Lindy Fralin, Jason Lollar, and Barden units. Bourns and CTS potentiometers, CRL lever switches, Switchcraft #11 1/4″ jacks and Electrosocket jack cups. We recommend PIO tone capacitors and keep a wide variety in stock. Unless otherwise specified, all guitars are wired with silver or silver-plated copper wire. Our in-house design features a minimalist signal path and a small control cavity, to promote purity of tone and leave as much wood as possible *in* the guitar. Standard controls are master volume, master tone, and three-way blade type selector switch (neck, both, and bridge positions), and copper foil shielding. Push/pull or push/push potentiometers are available for series/parallel or coil-split switching. Any other wiring designs or custom onboard electronics are not standard and are quoted on a per-customer basis.

Finishes

Solid colors and sunbursts standard. Binding available as an option. All finishing is done by hand, using an instrument-grade nitrocellulose lacquer. Metallics, metal flake, and custom finshes by request.

Build Philosophy

Every Mulhauser Designs guitar is carefully built on the well-known and familiar “F” platform of a long scale length (25.5″), using a one-piece body and a vintage or single-acting trussrod. We feel that this design, combined with the right hardware and electronics, gives the player the widest variety of tonal and harmonic possibilities.