The Sweet Sound of the Lap Steel Guitar
photos courtesy of Estaban Bojorquez
source AllAboutSurf.com
by Ken McKnight
posted 2003-09-15

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And if that is not enough there is full movie production facility, as well as state of the art musical equipment everywhere. Sit over here and pick up a bass guitar, or pick up a tambourine. Sit in as drummer in the corner and stare at walls that stare back through an odd accoutrement of goggles and hats. Sit in with the band and stay awhile is the motto. You're welcomed and encouraged to participate. It is that type of world.

There is a lot that goes into Bojorquez folk art guitars. For instance, the logos on the guitars are laser engraved. He fashions brass or bone on the bridges that he hand carves himself. He uses only the best pickups available in the market today on each of the instruments. These come from the master, Seymour Duncan www.seymourduncan.com in Santa Barbara, the Guru of Pickups.

Walking around the studio, checking out each instrument separately, you can't help but notice that one guitar he proudly displays features abalone inlays perfectly placed on the frets, sanded smooth, and set naturally in a graduating pattern that is as pretty as a fall sunset along the coast. And yet another instrument features sides adorned in Bamboo, with small cut pieces fitted into a band that stretches around the body of the guitar. There is a lot of work that goes into these lap steel guitars and if the sound isn't right, well, he re-does them until it is.

"I have so many guitars I have worked on," said Estaban wryly, "I have to always play each to keep up with them."

For instance, one of the guitars on the wall has a beautiful flowing outline on the body and headpiece. The design came from pieces of old furniture, a table to be exact, that he took the legs off of, sanded them down, attached them perfectly to an existing bass guitar he had laying around, and refinished it to look brand new. This is a piece of musical art worthy of any collection. And the sound, well, is to be heard. The guitars all yearn to be played and seem to beckon to visitors, "Hey, try me, no try me!"

There is one instrument that features an old Mexican leather purse that the artist / designer cut out, treated, and applied to the top of a guitar.

Bojorquez also spends a lot of time on the headstocks to make them just right. "I like to do different treatments on the heads, both top and bottom." He explained with a sweep of his hand."

"If you look at the headstock you'll see the tuners have to go through a different thickness then the rest of the guitar. The body is generally much larger and thicker and it graduates into a thinner head. I try to design a sculptural quality that is a logical transformation that goes from thick to thin"

This is very evident in his model he named, the Royal Hawaiian. This particular guitar is made out of Lace Wood, with a unique grain and feel. It has a very bizarre design on the headstock, one that is shaped like a pineapple. It also features the aforementioned detailed bamboo inlays on the side of the instrument.

"You really have to play or touch all of these guitars," he spoke admiringly, "to fully appreciate the tones and ease of play.

Estaban is particularly proud of the brass lap steel guitar he built. While the construction was admittedly tedious and never-ending, the end result is mind-boggling. He sweated the edges to form the body and neck, and then soldered them shut. Then he started the painstaking part of sanding the brass smooth. Boroquez had to literally make the tailpiece and hand rest from scratch. The bridge was completely custom-made and he even re-engineered the nuts. The tuning pegs, strings, and control knobs he purchased of course.

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