Round TWO of the Petillo Aluminum Double “L” Neck made in 1988 for Jersey Shore music veteran Chris Spiwak. This is after the time when my Dad (Dr. Phil Petillo) designed the Kramer Aluminum Tuning Fork neck and consulted for Travis Bean with the layout/construction of their models as well. This Bass neck my Dad […]
I don’t know if this is the first of it’s kind but check out this inlaid Paua abalone skunk strip outlined in French walnut on an American maple Tele neck I built
My friend Kevin Kirby’s PETILLO “Sunset Over The Water” horizontal color burst archtop jazz guitar with hand painted shark outlines around the F holes is almost done! The two versions of the sharks are unique and we decided on the one with the half open mouth. Also, the Jaws scene is coming to life on […]
This was a fun project. The theme of this Petillo archtop guitar was based on a Mallard duck. The details of the hunter scene on the headstock were a lot of work. The background of the headstock is German figured maple. The Mallard inlay is 18 pieces of exotic wood veneer. The Petillo banner logo […]
On Jerry Thrunk’s Gibson Acoustic guitar, there was a bad crack on the lower bout, and I designed a piece of Nigerian Ebony to follow the outside perimeter edge of the guitar to cover the crack. The inlay is of mother nature about to touch the earth and moon above her finger. The inlay consists […]
Engineering plays such a complex role in making string instruments and running machines like our Logan lathe. I inlaid these ebony bridge pins/end pin with the largest abalone dots I could fit. I had to find the correct speed on the lathe to drill the holes so the ebony pins don’t shatter. The abalone dot […]
Check out this jewelry restoration on these two handmade bracelets I restored for my friend Barbara Abbott. Inlay encompasses many fields of art and skill from instruments, walls, flooring and jewelry. The abalone bracelet had some missing pieces that I had to custom fit and file on a radius to match the rest of the […]
Check out this bad neck/fingerboard crack restoration! I restored this for my good friend singer/songwriter Sandy Privetera on her vintage Martin D-35 acoustic guitar. This kind of crack repair takes a lot of time to do it correctly and have it look invisible. I always use my family glue recipe invented by my Dad (Dr. […]
PETILLO Custom Acoustic Guitar: (Made for my dear friend Gene Deetz & family/completion date – December 12, 2020) Specs/Notes:Soundboard: Spanish cedarBack & Sides: Brazilian rosewood (dark straight grain)Finish: NitroPickguard: clear Martin style Neck: Hondorous mahoganyNeck Heel Cap: Nigerian ebonyFingerboard: Nigerian ebonyFingerboard Inlays: abalone ringsFingerboard Side Dots: Mother of pearlFrets: stainless steel low profile styleNut: Woolley […]
Check out this custom PETILLO Tele neck I made for my friend William Joseph! It was themed after the Christopher Nolan Batman played by actor Christian Bale. The mother of pearl for the inlays was rare to find in big flat pieces. This was such a fun project, check out all the pics!
I wanted to share this story about Carrie Fisher since we very sadly just lost her. She was a lovely person who I admired. I had a chance to meet Carrie this October 2016 at Comic Con. I made her a box out of German quilted/flamed maple and rare East-Indian rosewood. When Carrie saw the […]
Boxing has many meanings to Billy Joel. Growing up he learned to box to help him defeat bullies and it has symbolism for fighting in the music industry to become one of the world’s greatest. The pickguard is made of black phenolic. Phenolic can take seasonal changes without cracking. My Father (Dr. Phil Petillo) used […]
This was a long repair job for Guitar Maker and fellow Marquetry artist Jim Macdonald. Jim created two marquetry guitar designs for the Gibson Custom Shop in the early 2000’s as part of their “Visual Artist Program.” Both guitars were priced at $14,000. In 2013, Jim began making his own guitars featuring beautiful marquetry work. […]
HAPPY EARTH DAY with a ocean/sea theme PETILLO Tele! We should all make the effort to keep our oceans clean. Enjoy this beautiful day!PETILLO SHORECASTER Tele (custom made for singer/songwriter/producer/musician Brian Mackewich) pecs:1) German quilted maple book matched top with natural binding edge to frame the top2) American alder two piece book matched back3) German […]
Check out the custom handmade PETILLO POINT body shape WAVE archtop guitar for my friend singer/songwriter Bob Snyder! Hand carved book matched quilted African bubinga top, back and sides. South American padauk outside perimeter binding and neck heel cap. 327 piece Paua abalone inlaid top purfling. South American blood wood fingerboard with Paua abalone and […]
This project took a long time based on materials. Over the years my Mother (Lucille Petillo) and Father (Dr. Phil Petillo) have accumulated many exotic one-of-a-kind materials to use on stringed instruments. This guitar has many of those exotic accents. The heart of the construction is the bracing pattern and its precision location for the […]
This was a deep and special project I got to be a part of. Last December 14th, 2016 me and Laura Appello were invited by music, film and TV industry veteran Bobby Chirmside to the Rick Springfield Stripped Down show at the Count Basie Theater in Red Bank New Jersey. Bobby is a dear friend […]
This was a long project because I have never used Sterling Silver foil in such large pieces. The reason Sterling Silver foil was used is because I wanted to give the guitar a feminine, passionate look, but not too girly cute. In the ever-changing world we live in, getting sea shells and scarce exotic materials […]
Had a chance to give Brian Wilson at the Count Basie Theater show – September 21, 2016 in Red Bank New Jersey this copper engraved birdseye/flame maple box. The copper stamping/engraving circle motif has symbolism to his life. The shield stands for courage, the heart means love, the W crown on top of the heart […]
This guitar took a year and a half of work, love and long nights. The fingerboard consists of 13 layers of mother of pearl, clam shell, abalone, 24k gold dust, stone and glass. The body is made of German quilted maple, Spanish cedar, Nigerian ebony and French walnut. The 11 piece neck laminations are layered […]
