Chartwell Guitar

1998 Gerard Gilet

Woods: Indian rosewood and alpine spruce. Maple binding. French polish throughout.

Miscellany: 650mm scale, 51mm nut, 44mm string spacing at nut, 56mm at saddle. String height at 4mm bass, 12th fret. Radial bracing. This is the same bracing style as employed by Moyes and Marty in Australia, which incorporates essentially a double fan system, converging under the bridge. Where a traditional fan braced guitar has its struts extend from the butt past the bridge, towards the sound hole, radial bracing is a full circumference of struts. To my ear, I hear the added sustain of a lattice top, including the volume. The effect is a warmth that any guitar with superior sustain possesses, a very winning attribute.

Condition: a number of slight nail marks on the top, all superficial. Two minor string dings. A minor eruption in the finish on the top, between the bouts, next to the binding. The shellac finish is in very good condition. TKL type hard shell case is in excellent shape.

Comment: when this used Gilet came up for sale in Australia, I did not hesitate, as the 1994 Gilet on this site has been one of my favorite guitars from the beginning. Gilet is not well known in the U.S., and his production in the past decade has been with steel string guitars. He is one of the wise old heads in Australian luthiery, having run an open shop in Sydney where other builders could share ideas and equipment. He has done his homework on the physics of sound production, publishing monographs on the subject, so the lovely balance and power of this guitar is no coincidence.

Both Gilets have a remarkably thin neck profile for folks like me who prefer not to have a blocky, thick neck to grapple with.