Kevin Caton

Kevin has been building and repairing stringed instruments for nearly 20 years.  He studied guitar building at the Roberto -Venn School of Luthiery, and has been building some of the worlds finest instruments since. 

     When I was 17-years-old, my grandfather gave me my first guitar.  It was a 1965 Gibson ES-330TD.  I immediately started to clean it up.   I polished the pickup covers and tuning keys, cleaned the fingerboard and made the body shine.  Even though I played the guitar every day, I found that I was more fascinated by how  it worked and how it was built.

   

     When I was  19 I decided to try to build a guitar.  I went at it with no experience, research, or training.  After a few months, I had a playable guitar. The action was a mile high and it weighed twice as much as it should have, but the seed had been planted.  A few weeks later I started to build another, and then another. 

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     Since that first guitar, I haven't looked back.  My passion for building continues to expand;  my understanding is constantly broadening, and my curiosity only grows stronger.

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Although many of my guitars have a modern look, my building methods are very traditional. For the backs sides and tops, I use my intuition instead of calipers. By bending it, taping it  and  feeling its weight in my hands, I let the wood tell me when it's the right thickness.  I take special care to place each brace in the optimal position. I carve them until the top resonates freely, with a clean, focused tone.  Each piece of wood is different. I believe that it is necessary to form a relationship in order to bring out its full potential. 

 

 Every piece on every Caton Guitar is handcrafted by me.  Nothing is CNC'd.  I personally bend the sides, design and install the rosette, make the linings,  binding and purfling.  Absolutely everything is made by me.