Les Paul Build (Part 3 of 3) 

He made everything himself, literally. Including the pickups... this is master craftsmanship here

i like how you took a giant slab of wood and took away the bits that aren't a guitar.

I'm surprised he didn't make the strings :). Best guitar making video I've seen ,hand down !!!! You are an awesome craftsman.

holy fuck, one of the best 3 vids ive ever watched on yt, this guy is incredible, absolute perfection, everything perfect, this guy is timeless, like an old master painter or race car designer, primo !!!

this is the master of RU-vid-Guitar builder Awesome man ! 10/10 you inspired me to make my own guitar and I bought everything that I need with all machines and I will start after two weeks ! Thanks !

Wow I was amazed I'm surprised he didn't make the strings but awesome job came out really good

My friend, when you set out to build a guitar, you don't mess around. Your dedication and attention to detail is second to none. I thought I had really seen it all until you broke out the Abalone shell. Totally speechless. You are more than just s craftsman or luthier. Sir, you are a genius. BRAVO.

I have watched A LOT of guitar builds on RU-vid. This is, by far, the most beautiful one I have seen! 👍 It has been 10 years. I hope someone is out there is still playing this beauty.

Truly amazing work. This makes my Gibson look like an Epifone.

for me is the best hand made guitar in youtobe

I just found this build on RU-vid and I have never been more impressed with anything in my life! I absolutely LOVE the way you make the neck become the fretboard binding. The handmade pickup rings, the inlays the overall design -- all awesome! I also enjoyed the fact that you've done all of it with little more than a router and some very creative jigs along with what had to be hours (weeks?) of painstaking handwork. Hats off to you sir! The guitar is a work of art! You are indeed a master!

The whole time I was thinking; don't you dare put stain on that guitar. You didn't, happily. One of the most (if not: the most) beautiful home build guitars on RU-vid. I'm literally stunned. Amazing craftsmanship!

Wow, really impressive!

Damn, thats an awesome job, really really good friend!!! thanks so much for those videos, you're a crazy guy ;D

From one craftsman to another, thats is one of the finest builds and display of craftsmanship I have seen on You Tube.

I keep watched this video over and over. I've watched practically every guitar build on RU-vid but this one really stands out from the rest. The skill and craftsmanship is just phenomenal. Like the way the fingerboard is laid in and the fact that it's one piece. And what a chunk of mahogany. I hope to be this skilled one day

So much work!!! Looks great, sounds crappy...

I am surprised anyone would post negative comments, no matter what kind of sound came out of it. I do a lot of woodworking and I have never seen such devotion to a high quality finish. This guitar would stand up to being classed as a work of art, even if it was never plugged in to an amp. Truly amazing craftsmanship and a real talent that most others could only dream of achieving. Well done Elams1894 on a cracking guitar and a most entertaining set of videos.

I simply don't have the words to describe how utterly blown away I am by your dedication to crafting this beautiful piece of art. I have a tremendous amount of respect for your skill and patience. Thank you for sharing.

I didn't plan to spend 30 minutes watching a guitar build - but I did, and enjoyed every second! Excellent planning, preparation and extremely skilfully executed! Amazing work - thanks for sharing :)

Hi Mutley, Thanks for taking the time to comment with such kind words. Really glad you enjoyed the vids and I wish you all the best!

words don't describe how badass this is, how much quality craftsmanship involved for all those tinker finishing stages

What a masterpiece. My heart was pounding the whole time.

I'm trying to find proper words to comment, but I can't because this is so amazing. I wish I could play this Les Paul. Congratulations.

Quite simply the finest exhibition of craftsmanship I have ever seen in the building of a guitar... Much love

Excellent craftsmanship. As a fellow woodworker and musician I can appreciate and respect your choice to use a variety of simple hand tools, custom made devices, jigs, templates etc. Whether time saving techniques, high end tools and modern day machinery offer speed and accuracy is irrelevant. There is nothing like the feel of a good scraping blade reverberating the grain to that final clean cut. Or spending hours sanding fitting sanding fitting for the snug sound of a nice tight fit. And when it comes to expressing pride in workmanship skinless fingertips say it all. Thanks for sharing you work especially loved the 'sanding drum' 2 inch masking roll. Hope you don't mind if I use that one seemed like you could squeeze slight curvature changes with that little baby too. Genius. It's a revolution... Down with the CNC...Long live the French curve!

Kinda finding it hard to digest the amount of artistry, precision, craftsmanship, skill and passion that went into this project. So far the most amazing project i've seen on youtube. amazing job!

Absolute perfection. All that craftsmanship and nothing by Stew Mac to be seen

Thanks so much for the comments and so glad you enjoyed the vids! I really like the wood sound to shine through and hence I love string through body anchors, you have great eye for detail :). They certainly are a wonderful design the Les Paul and I wish you all the best in fixing yours. Have a great day!

Truly remarkable craftsmanship...one of the best home builds I have ever seen!

I am blown away at the workmanship you put into this guitar, and your obvious high skills level! The videos were excellent as well. You could easily produce a how-to video of this with narration and market it. This is one of the best videos I have ever seen about building a guitar, and shows the level of craftsmanship and attention to detail that you have. Keep it up, and thank you!

Wow, I was extremely impressed BEFORE I got to the part where you made your own pickups FROM SCRATCH. I can't stop shaking my head at these videos. You have done a marvelous, incredible job.

Hey, Elam, I just wanted to say that those two guitars (the Stratocaster and the Les Paul) are two of the best pieces of art and craftsmanship that I have witnessed, aside from the videos themselves, which one does not want them to end, perhaps because you really convey in them the love and passion you have for what you do, anf for life. From Mexico, my most sincere admiration for your work, and the passion you pour on it.

Wow, just wow. The most enjoyable 30 minutes I've had for a long time.

Great video! It was very inspiring to see this level of craftsmanship attained without having a fully equipped woodworking shop with all the expensive tools. Makes me want to give it a try myself now.

Unbelievable you sir are a master.People at Fender,Gibson ETC need to take lessons from you and see what a MASTER BUILDER really is,.Just incredible work.

I have to say that you have created the most stunning guitar I have ever seen. The inlays on the fretboard are simply beautiful.

This is without a doubt the most skilled craftsman on RU-vid!! Just incredible

The guitar is amazing as everyone has said and I'm very appreciative of the time you took to put the video together to show it off. Most woodworkers, get so involved in the project that they forget to take the extra step of documenting what they do. You have done a fantastic job at both! Hope that guitar treats you well.

And I thought the Strat you built was awesome! This has flawed me, I can not believe how stunning that guitar is. You sir are a guitar building genius keep up the amazing work!!

This has to be one of the most amazing guitar videos I've ever seen. My jaw dropped when I saw the level of detail, from the fretboard inlays, to the use of materials. When I saw you make the pickup surrounds from wood as well as the knobs, I was stunned. It truly is a beautiful guitar and despite the Les Paul copy, completely unique. You would make anybody with an expensive Les Paul custom jealous with that and I bet it sustains like a bastard! Well done, an absolutely awesome job.

My chin just felt down... like 1000 times... What a showcase of genius ideas, I'm starting building guitars myself, but Sir, this level of excellence and perfectionism I will never achieve, I just don't have it in me. Lots of inspirations though, thanks a bunch for sharing it!

Absolutely unbelievable. This has given me soooo much more respect for guitars. Especially hand built like this. THAT is why that price tag is so high...and rightly so! ART!!

Skills shown through the guitar. Dedication shown through those bandaged.. I salute you, sir.

Mesmerising build from start to finish... Holy crap that is such a nice guitar! I'm sitting here in shock... Holy crap! Well done mate! Very well done!

This is fantastic to watch.You can plainly see the passion you put into making such a beautiful instrument,and the care is palpable.I salute you,Sir !!!!

I've never seen a guitar built like that before. Really amazing.

Congratulations on the build. Definitely the most beutiful guitar ive ever seen. Your amazing amount of detail, craftsmanship and effort are now represented by a physical object and that is this guitar. amazing

Only one word i can remember while watching this, "masterpiece"

I can't believe how amazing these three videos have been. Even the music was good, and that's rare. I play nothing but Les Pauls, and watching this one-of-a-kind masterpiece take shape was awe-inspiring. I was waiting to see which high-end aftermarket pickups you would drop in, and then you go ahead and build your own...wow! And the whole string-through-the-body concept is unique on a Les Paul. I want to try it on a Les Paul that I'm fixing after my ex-wife smashed it. Beautiful work, my friend!

Thank you so much for your kind words. Really appreciate it, thanks for checking out the vids and glad you enjoyed them. Have a good one!

I'm blown away at this craftsmanship! What a gift 1 in a billion !! Ty for taking the time to share

Incredible, astounding and breathtaking... Subscribed after first 3 minutes of first part. Now, this is guitar worth thousands!

Ohad sil it is cheaper buying one, but you can't beat the satisfaction of having made one yourself and hearing the end result. This guitar is a beauty and he has serious woodworking skills. Lovely guitar mate.

Deeply impressed my friend. I thought I was a luthier but it turns out I just put guitars together. KUDOS

Just been doing some research for my own upcoming build and this is by far and away the most well crafted and beautiful build I've seen. Picked up more than a few tips and tricks that I would've never thought of so thanks heaps for sharing your work.

How anyone could give a thumbs down, I don't know. This is not just a guitar...it's a work of art. Most beautiful pickups and homemade knobs I've ever seen, not to mention the gorgeous inlay work and all the woodworking skills that went into making this gem. A beautiful display of fine craftsmanship!

Just when I thought you couldn't get any more pro, you go and french polish it! Amazing work man.

Patient and meticulous craftsmanship. You, sir, are an artist.

I came across this by chance, and am totally amazed at your talent. Your patience, precision, and knowledge is astounding! You should be very proud of what you have achieved. Keep up the good work.

I've never seen anyone use a handsaw like you. Usually they cut on a mechanical saw. You've got some very serious skills. I envy your carpentry prowess.

Your meticulous craftsmanship is astounding and the guitar is beautiful!

MASTER! .... So much work, so much patience, so much accuracy. You're my hero. Thank you for the vids.

You crafts the Les Paul guitar with yourself invented tools. !!!! I've never seen this before, It's really amazing woodwork. Now you're my idol.

I don't even know what to say anymore. I was without words already after the first video, but now after finishing the series... Every single detail, I'm amazed. Astounding craftsmanship. I am starting to do my own small projects, but this for me is like to build a spaceship in the garage. Just amazing. Congratulations man, you just opened a brand new door for me showing that all of this is possible having patience and precision (and lots of skills that I probably lack of, but the pleasure is in the journey, right?). Keep up the amazing work, in the meantime I'm going to watch the rest of your videos.

What an elegantly beautiful Les Paul, and with a fabulous sound. Thanks for sharing your work on this.

Thanks again dd! I never imagined that I would get this many views. When I finished the build I was in such a hurry to string her up and play that no intonation was done at all. I ended up shielding every cavity, and rewiring, also shielded the pups. Took me an extra 2 weeks (i was very slow) made a huge difference though. The demo vid was filmed with everything completed. Huge thanks to you for your comments!

I personally think that this is one of the best toturials/walkthrougs on youtube! Keep up the good work!

Thats one of the most hypnotic builds I've ever watched. Your craftsmanship is faultless. I'm about to build a ten string LP and found this vid by accident but thanks for sharing it. Congrats on a stunning guitar :)

Incredible workmanship and dedication in literally every single part! Amazing

Dude this is seriously amazing. All that work and craftsmanship you put into building that guitar is so awesome.

And you replied back, Too cool. What a master guitar builder...

great work, i totally stuffed up my last neck tossed it on the bbq and start again, good to see fellow guitar builders work, i still go out into the bush to mill my own sound wood, great set of videos for inspiring Luther's . i buy pickups now as my eyes are failing . i hope its not your last bro nice job

9:29 I must admit, it's so eargasmic. Starting from there, you can hear the crisp of the wood. AND I love the heel. :) Nice!

What I saw in all the process is about perfection. You are really an artist. Beautiful work! The most beautiful at RU-vid for sure!

literally the best highest level of quality instrument i have ever seen. incredible my friend. if i ever have 1000000 to just buy a guitar with, you are the man i wanna talk to.

I think that is the most beautiful guitar I have ever seen.

I did not expect him to make his own pick-ups... That is some impressive work.

Pure art, man. You must 've had a blast making it. It's the journey, as well, not the moment you arrive there.

Your attention to detail is impecable

Eu simplesmente não estou acreditando! Que obra de arte incrível!!! Isso é é uma hand made de verdade! até os captadores são artesanais, se dizerem que ele também plantou a árvore pra poder fazer essa guitarra eu não me espanto!! Incrível!!!

This is the most amazing build I’ve ever seen. I’m building a Strat. Nothing like yours. The body and neck are modified versions. I bought mostly American Strat parts. And did not make my own pick ups.

I thought I was pretty smart making room for a humbucker in my single coil guitar body. Really nice work mate. Amazing skill and patience which has resulted in a brilliant piece of work.

You are without a doubt one of the most skilled craftsman I've ever seen, all categories...very impressing!

Wow,you are all the Factory in one person,congrats Mr. Elams, you really are a gifted person!!!!!!!!!

WOW Your dedication and craftsmanship is unbelievable.I was blown away. Thanks for posting

Give new true meaning to hand crafted guitar build.

Really appreciate your feedback, its so nice to receive amazing comments like yours.. I wish you all the best!

The amount of detail you put in this is insane!

Your guitar is STUNNING!! I really like how uncompromised you were with every detail. I started to build my first LP last autumn. This video was very inspirational, thanks for sharing it and a lot of joy to your future projects!

A custom guitar built by hand over the course of three months would probably go for 4 to 5k US minimum I would assume. I would never have believed the amount of work necessary for an accurately spec'd LP. This guitar took me 13 months to build. I could never part with it I doubt, but the time it takes me to build one renders the idea of making money out of them for me futile. But a similar one by hand, expect to pay someone in the 4k range minimum I would imagine. Thanks so much dude!

Very astounding! Loved to watch the whole thing and then went back to watch it all again. AMAZING!.

This guy is a hero. He can say anyday "Hey i'm bored as fuck, i'm going to make a les paul today. Let me go cut down this tree." This guy is a boss! From the pickups to the knobs, to the body, to the neck, everything by hand. Well done man, well done!

What really stands out for me....You make your own fucking pickups! That is absolutely amazing, considering you built this guitar from scratch. Usually people buy pickups for a guitar they build and this guy makes them himself. I seriously wish I had that much ingenuity, artistic skill and the tools to do this myself. You Sir, are AWESOME!

Now that's a truly hand crafted guitar! Beautiful!

even though i dont play guitar, I appreciate this work of art so much... only talented people can do this...great job!

Thanks Allison, A massive thanks to Brazil as I get many great kind comments from your country, all the best to you!!

Probably the best guitar build I've seen on You Tube. Bad ass job man! That axe looks sick

A true master craftsmen attention to detail is unbelievable

I know there are a million other great things about this build but I love those fretboard inlays for some reason.