Psycho Builders

How crazy expectations led to the development of Mansons offshoot hardware line, Psychopaf Pickups.

Hugh Manson and the Manson Guitar Works team could tell us a story or three about the fun they’ve had working with some of the world’s top artists. But then they’d have to silence us… Instead, they share another story: “We outgrew the old Manson Guitar Works several years ago,” says Tim Stark, MGW’s head luthier. “It used to be at the original Guitar Shop in Exeter, but then we finally moved to our new premises in Ashburton, on the edge of Dartmoor, two years ago. It’s on bigger premises, but we’ve filled it already. It’s a nicer place to work, which enables us to get more done with such a small team of just four people.

“We put out around 350-450 guitars a year from our Cort Mods, Czech production and Custom pieces,” continues Tim. “The Czech-made models and the Corts make up the bulk with around 20 percent of production being Custom work. This is still very old-school and hands-on with just me working on each guitar from start to finish, which limits the amount of work we can do.”