A 1:00AM conversation with Starcrawler guitarist, Henri Cash, on New Year’s day 2023 led to the creation and eventual completion of the A-Frame exactly three months later. Its design is inspired by the 1950’s era Gretsch Round Up models combined with the angular designs that Bo Diddley (one of Henri’s biggest guitar heroes) was widely known for. With that said however, the “A” design vision came from a fellow vintage Gretsch enthusiast friend of Henri’s, Saraso Ju, that made a concept version of the guitar. Henri asked if I could replicate that concept and modify it to include an onboard Dallas Treble booster from R2R Electronics, custom logo design elements, and make it a super reliable, lightweight instrument that could survive the abuse of touring.

Although Henri’s guitar is outfitted with a TV Jones Power’Tron Plus, a genuine Melita bridge, modified American-made Bigsby vibrato, bolt-on neck, and an onboard R2R Treble Booster, you can get your A-Frame however you like it! 

Since making the original Slusser A-Frame for Henri Cash, a custom 24” scale version was made for his Cash & Skye partner, Sophia Skye. Her smaller A-Frame has thinner bracing and a piezo LR Baggs T Bridge pickup so she can easily toggle between acoustic and electric tones on stage without changing guitars. Additional 24.75” scale examples of the A-Frame are out there with more conventional binding and various custom vibratos. If you want something special that you’ll never see anywhere else, this guitar is it!