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4 Hawaii are used for various decorative aspects. Sharp has special permits that allow him to use these rare materials. “You can’t go to the store and buy these,” he explains. New Hope guitars are made with the same standards and materials as the famous guitars produced by C.F. Martin and Company in the 1930s. “Martin hasn’t made guitars like these since 1947,” Sharp remarks. “Pre’47 Martins are very expensive—$50,000 and up.” Sharp moved to Fort Defiance in 1991. About four years ago, he built a shop behind his home to manufacture and repair guitars. “I thought I might as well build guitars. It’s not like I have a big agenda for the next 20 years.” Before Sharp built the shop, he would spend many hours fixing old guitars in his basement. “They weren’t nearly as valuable as the ones I make now are,” he says.
Sharp’s shop is quite a sight. It’s roughly the size of a four-car garage and is full of works in progress. There are tables, saws, carving knives, a plethora of exotic woods and a glass-enclosed spray room. “I like to watch paint dry,” says Sharp, chuckling. He grew up in Cass, W.Va., and learned to play guitar at a young age. He
is also perfect for guitars because the wood helps the sound resonate most strongly. Sharp’s hometown of Cass is one of the few regions in the world that produces the “proper” red spruce trees. Sharp learned his craft from Wayne Henderson, a renowned guitar builder from Rugby, a small town in southern Virginia. Henderson has produced guitars for the likes of Eric Clapton, Tommy Emmanual and Gillian Welch, among others. “ Wa y n e … h e’s the man. He’s the best guitar builder in the world. He knows more about vintage guitars than probably anybody.” It didn’t always come this easy to Sharp. “First guitar I built? Absolutely too heavy,” he recalls. There’s a fine line between a guitar’s strength and how well its sound resonates. A lightweight guitar may have a better sound, but it will not be as durable. Accordingly, a guitar that is
“As long as I’m alive, you’ll have a great guitar. That’s about as good as I can do.” – Ron Sharp
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has been learning about woodworking his entire life. “Woodworking was a way of life where I grew up. Logging is the only real industry over there,” he says. “When it comes to guitars, one of the keys is definitely the red spruce. I grew up looking out the window at this stuff.” Sharp says that the red spruce is the strongest wood in the world as far as its weight-to-strength ratio. The red spruce