Customized ApiKai guitars and basses
APIKAI PT 1.0 DeepRed
In June 2024, we attempted to see if we could make 2 guitars in one day. The project was interesting, but unfortunately, the result was not as hoped, and the guitars remained unfinished. During the summer and early autumn, the instruments were left lying in the corner of the guitar workshop, but finally, the time was found, and the first self-designed ApiKai saw the light of day. The color chosen was red, lacquered with nitrocellulose so that the wood grain remains well visible, preserving the natural surface of the elm. As a small addition, mahogany veneer was added to the top, partially covering it.
The same model will be built with different pickup, bridge, and tuning options, and it will also be available to order according to individual preferences. It’s fun to play and sounds great.
- Body: elm
- Neck: maple
- Fingerboard: maple
- Bridge: Gotoh
- Tuners: Gotoh
- Nut: acrylic
- Pickups: UT P-90
- Color: red
- Lacquer: nitrocellulose
and some other small parts.
Pille Peltonen Signature bass.
Amid the summer 2024 commotion, we received a bass order from Kari “Pille” Peltonen, who had a deadline looming for the opening of the Helsinki Festival where Lauri Porra’s “Basso” piece was to be played, and the instrument had to be ready. The pressure didn’t come from the artist but from ourselves, as we absolutely wanted to have that instrument there. The full story can be found HERE (in Finnish)
But here are the specs:
– Body: Elm
– Neck and Fingerboard: Maple
– Frets: Fender Standard
– Color: Stain, lacquered with nitrocellulose about 5-6 times
– Tuners: Gotoh
– Bridge: Fender American Standard Big Block
– The electronics and pickups were installed by Pille himself, so they remain a secret 😉
Lauri Porra’s “Basso” piece at the Helsinki Festival can be found HERE.
ApiKai PROSEPINA SG
The story of SG Prosepina begins over ten years ago when the undersigned had the idea of ordering custom guitars from China. However, the project fell through for various reasons after numerous emails and a couple of orders over the course of about a year.
The idea, however, “lived on,” and in the summer of 2023, I messaged my friend Tomi asking, “Are you still interested?” to which he responded, “Of course.” This got things rolling smoothly, and by spring 2024, we began the project in earnest.
The project was extensive, particularly in terms of the design, and a lot of time was spent correcting issues like the miscalculated fret spacing. But in September, SG Prosepina finally reached its customer, and we’ll provide more details on this at some point.
Specifications:
– Body and neck: Mahogany
– Fingerboard: Wenge
– Body finishing: Laser-cut mahogany
– Tuners: Grover
– Bridge pickup: Bare Knuckle Pickups – Aftermath
– Neck pickup: Dimarzio – HS 4
– Bridge: SCHALLER “BADASS-STYLE”
– Electronics: UT
– Finish: Nitrocellulose lacquer
– Fingerboard decoration painting: Sean Meade
– Plus glitter and embellishments “as needed”
ApiKai FINNSTER SAWOLAX DeLuxe
One of the projects that faced the most “adversities” began in spring 2024 when Kaitsu introduced me to a local Savonian reinforcement, Raimo “Rambo” Naukkarinen, in Fuengirola. Rambo wanted to honor his roots and hometown with a guitar.
Rambo and I then started sketching a shape on graph paper that would be unique and unlike anything seen before.
The shape of the body would incorporate elements of the Tele, SG, Explorer, and PS-1. The neck would be “a bit Stratocaster,” and the headstock would be “something completely different.” The color scheme would be black and yellow, with gold parts and lots of glitter.
Spring was well underway when the ElRambo man gave a thumbs-up to the sketches, so we got to work.
The work started off well, and the body, neck shaping, fretboards, etc., came out nicely. But then came the painting, which, due to a “small issue,” couldn’t be done in the workshop and had to be carried out in the backyard under a grill canopy. More details on this will be shared in the blog later.
Specifications:
- Body: Mahogany, glued from two pieces
- Neck: Maple, except the headstock which is mahogany as a “trick”
- Tuners: Grover
- Bridge: Gotoh
- Electronics: UT
- Bridge pickup: Gretsch FullTron
- Neck pickup: DiMarzio lipstick
- Color: Acrylic
- Plus a decal…
