I went on a great adventure with my good friend Ronnie Czajkowski, master carpenter for Bruce Springsteen, who has also worked with Dead & Company and Billy Joel. Ronnie, after many phone calls, got me an audience with Johnny Depp. As I worked in my shop and watched his defamation lawsuit I really felt a […]
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 […]
This was such a pleasure to save the original bridge on this vintage Epiphone for my friend Robert Murphy. My Dad (Dr. Phil Petillo) who had 30 patents in musical instruments, fuel cells, hydrogen generators, spinal surgical devices and classified military technology invented so many glues for applications like this crack to secure it and […]
Take a look at at this Schecter Stratocaster style guitar thumb ring gash removal for my friend Franklin Elliot! This is truly an art to delicately sand and blend out the deep gashes in the neck. I was careful not to sand through the sealer finish coat on the neck. Check out all the pics […]
Take a look at this reverse painted clear plastic Stratocaster pickguard with psycodelic mushrooms for Jersey Shore Music veteran Bobby Donofrio aka Bobby D. All the colors were inspired by 1960’s pop culture. The black background and pickup covers really isolates the art work for a deep perspective. I painted the knob numbers, volume and […]
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
Take a look at this Violin fingerboard leveling and micropolishing. This is truly an art form to be consistent by hand sanding the string marks out of the fingerboard without changing the angle or sanding dips into the ebony fingerboard which would throw off the intonation. I love when ebony is polished to look like […]
Congratulations to the band FLETCHER for delivering a solid performance on the Jimmy Fallon show!! Being in the music business since I was a child and witnessing last minute repairs or preventing something bad from happening is always a challenge with my normal work load/studio projects. A big congratulations to Chris McKeon seen at the […]
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Take a look at this engraving of a Cross and Sunrays into a Fender style pickguard shape. The pickguard is made of aluminum anodized Aztec gold color. When doing the engraving I cut thru the top layer of the anodizing color to reveal the grey aluminum underneath. I made this for […]
PETILLO Tele Lotus Pink stained color design. The top is book matched German quilted maple. The grain of the maple mimics the pedal shapes of the lotus flower. The back is one piece Honduran mahogany.
Take a look at this piece I painted called “The Green Fairy’s Lament” for my dear friend Nick Bautista on his Fender Tele. Nick is a painter/singer/songwriter. I incorporated a lot of symbolism in this piece that is taken from Nick’s artwork and his style/music. Check out all the pics
Another addition for my pal William Joseph Batman Telecaster! I spent four hours on the switch tip! I painted a rose with a tooth pic and once it dried I blobbed on clear resin to seal the art. The final step was to shape and buff the resin on the lathe into a dome top […]
Take a look at bassist Adam Troshane fretless Warwick bass fingerboard restoration! I micropolished the ebony fingerboard removing the deep string coil marks. Adam plays bass for the band FRAGILE HOMES out of Hazlet, New Jersey. Leveling the ebony fingerboard is an art. The same technique of fingerboard sanding is done to the bowed instrument […]
Take a look at our longtime friend musician Alan Warshak‘s vintage Martin D-35 acoustic guitar finish restoration. Overtime the old lacquer on vintage instruments admits gases and causes the finish to melt or in this case soften. The case fabric plays a role in this chemical reaction as well. In the before and after pics […]
Stephen Colbert’s interview with Bruce Springsteen begins with a round of show-and-tell. The Boss goes first, and he shares the story behind the legendary “Born to Run” guitar. As Bruce shares its history, he gives credit to New Jersey native and master Luthier/Engineer Dr. Phil Petillo. Bruce was 22 at the time and purchased the […]
Check out Earl Hooker’s vintage UNIVOX guitar fret micropolishing restoration for my friend Oliver Kostrinsky! Earl Hooker was an awe-inspiring slide guitarist and one of the architects of Chicago Blues. He is considered one of the most important Blues guitarist in history.The process of micropolishing involes leveling off a business card worth of thickness off […]
Thanks to The Met Museum for the recommendation to restore this vintage 1939 D’ANGELICO Excel. The original frets were corroded green and dented. I worked hard to remove the corrosion to save the original frets and did our micropolishing process of the frets/fingerboard. The procedure of micropolishing involves the frets being polished from 400 grit […]
This was one of the most fun projects I did with my friend singer/songwriter Matt Cook on his Fender Stratocaster! The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is still one of my favorite cartoons! Growing up, my brother Timmy and I played with the TMNT toys and even the Nintendo video game. The pickguard is made of […]
Check out this finish restoration on Michael Post’s gold top Les Paul. The finish had pick scratches in it and they were deep to the touch. I hand buffed the lacquer to remove the marks. Nitrocellulose lacquer is very delicate and the majority of it has been the dominant finish used by U.S. musical instrument […]
The last bunch of pics from the Nils Lofgren tribute guitar I did for Kyle and Carol! Nils signed the pickguard I made for Kyle and Carol when they met him at a concert. I handmade all the pieces on this beauty from the Spalted maple pickguard and tremolo cavity covers, the back battery cover […]
