"The DALMORE" Telecaster by Ron Kirn

Arlo · May 16th, 2008, 07:48 AM

A couple of months ago I acquired a third piece of Pine from the nicely grained batch that Ol Piney came from. Originally I had bought 2 pieces from Marty "guitarbuilder" one became Ol' Piney the other became my first Burst.

This new piece was somewhat of a fluke. I had asked Marty to make me a Telecaster from Pine with a vintage Strat tremolo rout? I also asked if he had any more of that beautifully straight grained Pine that the other two had come from?

Marty replied that he did not have anymore of that particular wood. But he had made a Tele body for a friend of his in the Mid West whom he thought might be interested in selling. He explained "That one did come from that batch of Pine." I was instantly interested and contacted Marty's friend via email. We discussed it for a month and never really got around to completing the transaction. I completely forgot all about it until some months later. Almost let that one slip through my fingers!

Here is a great example of the proof of kinship. Top is Ol Piney.

Bottom is the new piece with the trem rout.

Anyway we came to an agreement and I purchased this 3rd body.

I was told it was a rough cut and needed some attention. It wasn't ready for paint and it had a couple of small issues. One of them was that there was a small chunk that had broken out at the trem rout. A piece had been glued back in. Not a big deal since it would be covered with the bridge and it wasn't significant cosmetically or functionally.

Spring approached and I decided that I would do something a little different with this one rather than finishing it myself. I decided to do a double binding with a nice nitro paint finish. My experience with Ron Kirn on the "Digger Pines" and the "MK Honey Burst" pine body's left little choice as to who was going to do this important finish work.

If you have recently joined the TDPRI and you would like to see just how excellent and professional Ron's work is take a look at this thread!

OK... so I promised... here ya are. . . .

I contacted Ron and asked if he could do this new Pinecaster for me. He said no problem send it on down.

Before I did I was sitting at the table with a freshly opened bottle of Dalmore Scotch single malt whiskey. Had just poured a nice healthy glass over the rocks and was admiring the bottle and the label when it struck me. Here is the color of the new Pinecaster I was looking for. A nice vintage amber with a dark whiskey overtone. The more I studied the label and the stag head that is so prominently displayed on the bottle the more creative I got. And possibly tipsy but that is another story.

What if I had the Stag head imprinted on the guitar as well? Heck I could call this the Dalmore. So the concept was realized and I emailed Ron with my thoughts. Well seems as though Mr. Kirn is a lover of the Highland nectar as well! He was intrigued and quite interested in doing this. He said "Send all the parts down with the body."

WOW, looks like I was about to become the proud owner of a custom designed R.K. Telecaster!! I sent the body and a commission check off to Florida and so the story of "The DALMORE" custom designed Telecaster begins.

I have a few pictures to display that Ron has sent me. They are rough and progressive as the build is in the works but I want to share them with you all.

Here is the first coat of paint.

A perfect match to the hue of Dalmore Scotch!

Arlo · May 16th, 2008, 08:03 AM

I then received a few more shots from Ron. Here you can see the binding is installed. Also the Stag Head decal.

Here it is with a few parts placed on it. Customized pick guard and the new Glendale Chimemaster tail piece.

Customized headstock.

Some other features the guitar will have that are not pictured here are:

Taipan Tone - Control Plate, Neck Plate and Bridge pickup mounting plate.

Bill Lawrence - (new microcoil pickups if possible before NAMM summer) or Keystones with Q filter and special cap wiring.

I will give a more detailed account of the appointments soon. Just wanted to get the thread started since I have hinted at this build in other threads.

maestrovert · May 16th, 2008, 08:12 AM

Oh ho ! That's jes' plain tasty ! Thanx Arlo, & Ron too !

robt57 · May 16th, 2008, 08:18 AM

Lay off the scotch dude... ;)

NOT, as usual you got another beaut!

Now you just gotta swipe Woodman's switch plate...

He gigging at Pete & Beula's Cannery Bar tonight I think....

I think I saw a termite hop on it outta the grass BTW...

magicguitar · May 16th, 2008, 08:34 AM

Cool!!!

Southern ILL · May 16th, 2008, 08:39 AM

Arlo-Very nice indeed.....I love everything about this one.Not another out there like this one.....And those are my favorite.Gonna be killer git'.....Cheeers,from Southern ILL

JimiBryant · May 16th, 2008, 08:42 AM

hmmm.. think I need me a Pappy Van Winklecaster!!

Arlo that's a beauty, keep us posted of course.

Telemarkman · May 16th, 2008, 08:55 AM

What a beauty

...

Ron is an artist, but I always knew that ..... He's also great with words

Hee, hee!

Scotland · May 16th, 2008, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Telemarkman

What a beauty

...

Ron is an artist, but I always knew that ..... He's also great with words

Hee, hee!

+1. Also a great photographer ! Some day I'm going to get Ron to build something special for me

That's going to be one hell of a guitar Arlo.
By the way, Dalmore is a whisky, not a whiskey.

Ronkirn · May 16th, 2008, 09:51 AM

Well, the cat's outta the bag, or better, the Scotch's outta the bottle..... It's well into the finish stage, the part where the photos would be of a spray gun, a mist of lacquer, and a fog hanging in the air in the back ground....

I'll be into assembly, in a week or so, and I'll do a few shots and show ya Bill Lawrence's handy work.

Ron Kirn

Ronkirn · May 16th, 2008, 09:52 AM

Oh, if you're into scotch, any of the Dalmore's singles are amazing. the Cigar Malt is as sweet as can be.... if you are a scotch drinker....i repeat.... if you are a scotch drinker..... Dewar's don't count.

Ron Kirn

furrfurrfurr · May 16th, 2008, 09:58 AM

You guys are amazing. Arlo, I can only imagine the smile that came over your face when you had this revelation.

Cheers.

Furr

Ronkirn · May 16th, 2008, 10:10 AM

and for those that think I'm uh just whistlin'

and I'm kinda ashamed, I didn't realize I was so low..... gotta go shoppin'

Ron Kirn

PeterUK · May 16th, 2008, 10:16 AM

Hey Arlo

Great project.

I presume the Tele bridge pick up will be mounted a la a GE Smith?

Peter

Gareth John · May 16th, 2008, 10:19 AM

Wow, another stunning guitar from Arlo and Ron. Great idea, I'm loving the stag head and the colour, aweseome ideas. Now I think I need a drink....

Arlo · May 16th, 2008, 10:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronkirn

and for those that think I'm uh just whistlin'

and I'm kinda ashamed, I didn't realize I was so low..... gotta go shoppin'

Ron Kirn

Well, there are two packages headed your way Ron via Fed Ex so don't be running out too soon!

One of em is liquid and well packed for a safe delivery!

Scotland, thanks for the spelling lesson

I swear I wasn't drinking that early in the morning! I think mi spel cheka iz bustid.

Arlo · May 16th, 2008, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeterUK

Hey Arlo

Great project.

I presume the Tele bridge pick up will be mounted a la a GE Smith?

Peter

Peter, Vince "taipan" over at Taipan Tone is making me a pup mounting plate.

TheDev01dOne · May 16th, 2008, 11:04 AM

Nice guitar, do I smell a promotional deal in the future?

That stratele trem looks really weird though. Would be interested in a video review of this guitar just to see the trem in action.

Another nice unique build though, hope it ends up as everything you want it to be.

thaus · May 16th, 2008, 11:08 AM

Nice looking guitar and great story Arlo! That stags head motif would be very popular in my homeland Germany. Anything with a stags-head is instantly popular.

e-merlin · May 16th, 2008, 11:19 AM

So, Ron, how close is the color of Scotch Whisky to the color of, say, Tennesee Whiskey? OTOH, Jack Daniel's has been over promoted already, and maybe I should move my palate to the next level...

Arlo · May 16th, 2008, 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDev01dOne

Nice guitar, do I smell a promotional deal in the future?

That stratele trem looks really weird though. Would be interested in a video review of this guitar just to see the trem in action.

Another nice unique build though, hope it ends up as everything you want it to be.

The bridge is the new Glendale Chimemaster tremolo system.

I used the steel E/A and the brass D/G B/E saddles "Twang"

Bill Hullett wrote a great review here Glendale "Chimemaster" ... OUTSTANDING!

Boris Bubbanov also did a fantastic review here Glendale chimemaster - any users?

I believe this is one of the first Telecasters to utilize the tail-piece?

Ronkirn · May 16th, 2008, 11:57 AM

Tennessee Whiskey??? What's that?

Ron Kirn (devout fundamentalist Scotch drinker)

e-merlin · May 16th, 2008, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ronkirn

Tennessee Whiskey??? What's that?

Ron Kirn (devout fundamentalist Scotch drinker)

Well, there was a time when I would drink whatever you put in front of me, but that's for another thread...

One of my brothers is the Scotch drinker in the family. The other prefers Tequila.

I pretty much stay away from that stuff when I'm working with power tools, though. Wouldn't want to get my hose tangled up in the air compressor pump...

May 16th, 2008, 07:48 AM	#1 (permalink)
Arlo Friend of Leo's Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Maine [in a van down by the river] Age: 49 Posts: 2,168	"The DALMORE" Telecaster by Ron Kirn A couple of months ago I acquired a third piece of Pine from the nicely grained batch that Ol Piney came from. Originally I had bought 2 pieces from Marty "guitarbuilder" one became Ol' Piney the other became my first Burst. This new piece was somewhat of a fluke. I had asked Marty to make me a Telecaster from Pine with a vintage Strat tremolo rout? I also asked if he had any more of that beautifully straight grained Pine that the other two had come from? Marty replied that he did not have anymore of that particular wood. But he had made a Tele body for a friend of his in the Mid West whom he thought might be interested in selling. He explained "That one did come from that batch of Pine." I was instantly interested and contacted Marty's friend via email. We discussed it for a month and never really got around to completing the transaction. I completely forgot all about it until some months later. Almost let that one slip through my fingers! Here is a great example of the proof of kinship. Top is Ol Piney. Bottom is the new piece with the trem rout. Anyway we came to an agreement and I purchased this 3rd body. I was told it was a rough cut and needed some attention. It wasn't ready for paint and it had a couple of small issues. One of them was that there was a small chunk that had broken out at the trem rout. A piece had been glued back in. Not a big deal since it would be covered with the bridge and it wasn't significant cosmetically or functionally. Spring approached and I decided that I would do something a little different with this one rather than finishing it myself. I decided to do a double binding with a nice nitro paint finish. My experience with Ron Kirn on the "Digger Pines" and the "MK Honey Burst" pine body's left little choice as to who was going to do this important finish work. If you have recently joined the TDPRI and you would like to see just how excellent and professional Ron's work is take a look at this thread! OK... so I promised... here ya are. . . . I contacted Ron and asked if he could do this new Pinecaster for me. He said no problem send it on down. Before I did I was sitting at the table with a freshly opened bottle of Dalmore Scotch single malt whiskey. Had just poured a nice healthy glass over the rocks and was admiring the bottle and the label when it struck me. Here is the color of the new Pinecaster I was looking for. A nice vintage amber with a dark whiskey overtone. The more I studied the label and the stag head that is so prominently displayed on the bottle the more creative I got. And possibly tipsy but that is another story. What if I had the Stag head imprinted on the guitar as well? Heck I could call this the Dalmore. So the concept was realized and I emailed Ron with my thoughts. Well seems as though Mr. Kirn is a lover of the Highland nectar as well! He was intrigued and quite interested in doing this. He said "Send all the parts down with the body." WOW, looks like I was about to become the proud owner of a custom designed R.K. Telecaster!! I sent the body and a commission check off to Florida and so the story of "The DALMORE" custom designed Telecaster begins. I have a few pictures to display that Ron has sent me. They are rough and progressive as the build is in the works but I want to share them with you all. Here is the first coat of paint. A perfect match to the hue of Dalmore Scotch! __________________ My music? It is free for my friends.

May 16th, 2008, 08:03 AM	#2 (permalink)
Arlo Friend of Leo's Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Maine [in a van down by the river] Age: 49 Posts: 2,168	I then received a few more shots from Ron. Here you can see the binding is installed. Also the Stag Head decal. Here it is with a few parts placed on it. Customized pick guard and the new Glendale Chimemaster tail piece. Customized headstock. Some other features the guitar will have that are not pictured here are: Taipan Tone - Control Plate, Neck Plate and Bridge pickup mounting plate. Bill Lawrence - (new microcoil pickups if possible before NAMM summer) or Keystones with Q filter and special cap wiring. I will give a more detailed account of the appointments soon. Just wanted to get the thread started since I have hinted at this build in other threads. __________________ My music? It is free for my friends.

May 16th, 2008, 08:12 AM	#3 (permalink)
maestrovert Poster Extraordinaire Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: West Branch Mi. Posts: 5,835	Oh ho ! That's jes' plain tasty ! Thanx Arlo, & Ron too ! __________________ Sing the Song Bro' Play on Drummer www.godonthe.net

May 16th, 2008, 08:18 AM	#4 (permalink)
robt57 Friend of Leo's Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Lost Yankee in Nashville Age: 51 Posts: 2,027 2 Photos	Lay off the scotch dude... ;) NOT, as usual you got another beaut! Now you just gotta swipe Woodman's switch plate... He gigging at Pete & Beula's Cannery Bar tonight I think.... I think I saw a termite hop on it outta the grass BTW... __________________

May 16th, 2008, 08:42 AM	#7 (permalink)
JimiBryant Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Chicago Chicago that toddlin' town Age: 46 Posts: 1,296	hmmm.. think I need me a Pappy Van Winklecaster!! Arlo that's a beauty, keep us posted of course. __________________ I am very proud of the fact that I'm so humble!

May 16th, 2008, 08:34 AM	#5 (permalink)
magicguitar Tele-Meister Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Fallon, Nevada Age: 60 Posts: 497	Cool!!!

May 16th, 2008, 08:39 AM	#6 (permalink)
Southern ILL Tele-Holic Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Illinois Age: 37 Posts: 719	Arlo-Very nice indeed.....I love everything about this one.Not another out there like this one.....And those are my favorite.Gonna be killer git'.....Cheeers,from Southern ILL

May 16th, 2008, 08:55 AM	#8 (permalink)
Telemarkman Friend of Leo's Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Norway Age: 61 Posts: 3,841	What a beauty ... Ron is an artist, but I always knew that ..... He's also great with words Hee, hee!

May 16th, 2008, 09:51 AM	#10 (permalink)
Ronkirn Friend of Leo's Join Date: May 2003 Location: Jacksonville, FL Age: 61 Posts: 2,130	Well, the cat's outta the bag, or better, the Scotch's outta the bottle..... It's well into the finish stage, the part where the photos would be of a spray gun, a mist of lacquer, and a fog hanging in the air in the back ground.... I'll be into assembly, in a week or so, and I'll do a few shots and show ya Bill Lawrence's handy work. Ron Kirn __________________ Lord, give me a sense of humor. Give me the grace to see a joke, To get some humor out of life, and pass it on to other folks. The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing......

May 16th, 2008, 09:52 AM	#11 (permalink)
Ronkirn Friend of Leo's Join Date: May 2003 Location: Jacksonville, FL Age: 61 Posts: 2,130	Oh, if you're into scotch, any of the Dalmore's singles are amazing. the Cigar Malt is as sweet as can be.... if you are a scotch drinker....i repeat.... if you are a scotch drinker..... Dewar's don't count. Ron Kirn __________________ Lord, give me a sense of humor. Give me the grace to see a joke, To get some humor out of life, and pass it on to other folks. The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing......

May 16th, 2008, 09:58 AM	#12 (permalink)
furrfurrfurr Tele-Afflicted Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: South of Heaven Posts: 1,788	You guys are amazing. Arlo, I can only imagine the smile that came over your face when you had this revelation. Cheers. Furr __________________ Hope I'm not too Messianic or a trifle too Satanic. Meow.

May 16th, 2008, 10:10 AM	#13 (permalink)
Ronkirn Friend of Leo's Join Date: May 2003 Location: Jacksonville, FL Age: 61 Posts: 2,130	and for those that think I'm uh just whistlin' and I'm kinda ashamed, I didn't realize I was so low..... gotta go shoppin' Ron Kirn __________________ Lord, give me a sense of humor. Give me the grace to see a joke, To get some humor out of life, and pass it on to other folks. The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing......

May 16th, 2008, 10:16 AM	#14 (permalink)
PeterUK Friend of Leo's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Nottingham, England Age: 47 Posts: 2,768 4 Photos	Hey Arlo Great project. I presume the Tele bridge pick up will be mounted a la a GE Smith? Peter __________________ I Facebooked your Mother.

May 16th, 2008, 10:19 AM	#15 (permalink)
Gareth John Tele-Meister Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: England Age: 23 Posts: 479 8 Photos	Wow, another stunning guitar from Arlo and Ron. Great idea, I'm loving the stag head and the colour, aweseome ideas. Now I think I need a drink....

May 16th, 2008, 11:04 AM	#18 (permalink)
TheDev01dOne Tele-Meister Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Staffordshire, England. Age: 20 Posts: 465	Nice guitar, do I smell a promotional deal in the future? That stratele trem looks really weird though. Would be interested in a video review of this guitar just to see the trem in action. Another nice unique build though, hope it ends up as everything you want it to be. __________________ '86 MIJ Esquire Squier Standard - Heavily Modded Bastardised '80(?)s Vester Esquire

May 16th, 2008, 11:08 AM	#19 (permalink)
thaus Tele-Meister Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Canada Posts: 414	Nice looking guitar and great story Arlo! That stags head motif would be very popular in my homeland Germany. Anything with a stags-head is instantly popular.

May 16th, 2008, 11:57 AM	#22 (permalink)
Ronkirn Friend of Leo's Join Date: May 2003 Location: Jacksonville, FL Age: 61 Posts: 2,130	Tennessee Whiskey??? What's that? Ron Kirn (devout fundamentalist Scotch drinker) __________________ Lord, give me a sense of humor. Give me the grace to see a joke, To get some humor out of life, and pass it on to other folks. The only thing necessary for evil to triumph, is for good men to do nothing......