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#FJFest: Mil Guitars

Johannes Roeder of Mil Guitars.

Over in Antwerp Johannes Roeder runs a small shop with Sebbe Linotte. They have a steady business doing repairs and refinishing, selling accessories and the like, and assembling and finishing the occasional parts-caster, but Johannes’ main focus is building acoustic flattop guitars as Mil Guitars. For the past two years, after offering the usual array of styles, he’s be focused on a single model, a small-bodied 12-fret dubbed “El Niño,” sporting dimensions “close to a classical guitar,” Johannes says.

As Johannes explains it, the decision to limit Mil to the single style was largely economical. “The work flow is so much faster because always the same molds and measurements are used. Above that we wanted to offer something in that price range [~€4,000, or $4,300-ish USD] that would still have that boutique sound. Because I only have to focus on one kind of instrument, the voicing process for me is much more obvious and easier and I get the results I want in a much shorter time.”

Mil’s website hasn’t quite caught up to this recent pivot, but keep an eye on their Instagram.

#FJFest is the Fretboard Journal‘s way of staying connected during these difficult times: Expect to see never-before-seen shop tours from guitarmakers, unique music performances and a ton of beautiful instruments on a daily basis throughout March 2020 and beyond.

See our ever-growing #FJFest posts here.

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