Whipple Creek Guitars

WHIPPLE CREEK
GUITARS
"If you don't have one, you're just up a creek"

Home Page

Guitar Raffle, Guitar for the Gulf to benefit the Audubon Society winner is Ray Hogan of Anna, Il. Second and third draws have the opportunity to have a guitar built at cost.

Thank you Robert Bowlin, Flatpicking Guitar Magazine and Terence at guitarbench.com for encouraging my behavior.

Read the latest review by PJ Waters (Centennial Flatpicker) on his new Whipple Creek http://www.collingsforum.com/
click on Collings guitar forum, other guitar makers, review of Whipple Creek Dreadnaught.

Notice: If you're in Carbondale, Il I usually have a guitar at "The Practice Pad" you can test drive. Occasionally I have a guitar available for purchase that was loaned to musicians, maybe a few scratches, at a discounted price. Contact me if you're interested in something like that.

One week old grandson William Noah snoozing in a triple O body. The completed guitar is currently on loan to Dorene Bankester and is played in their concerts as The Bankester Family. Robert also used it when he won his second Uncle Dave Macon Days flatpicking contest.

"Hey Terry
Got to spend some more time with the guitar last night and all I can say is your work is brilliant! This guitar that you built outshines all my others and my hats off to you. It is the most harmonically rich guitar I've ever owned. Absolutly brilliant."

Walt Barber, owner of

Collings custom 12 fret
Lucas LD 28
Rockbridge D21, D28
Mitch Corbin
Bourgeois Country Boy Deluxe

Terry,
I bought a Martin 08' D28 Marquis Madagascar Rosewood and yours blew it away so I sold it.

Richard Batey

Robert Bowlin, National Fingerpicking guitar champion,
ex Nashville session musician, Bill Monroe's last fiddle player and many other accomplishments too long to list here. Look up Robert on youtube, he's playing a dread on the Peaceful Bend Winery video and a Maybelle on others. I have the privilege of building Robert his first commissioned handbuilt. New guitars in the planning stages.

    I make custom handcrafted acoustic guitars with attention to projection, clarity, and balanced tone in all ranges, coupled with necks that allow excellent playability facilitating smoothness of runs anywhere on the fretboard.             Tops and backs are meticulously voiced to allow them to vibrate and work together in harmony, a box that responds to string vibration in a way as to blend your body, emotions and the guitar as one.
     My focus is mainly on dreadnaughts in a 25.4 scale and triple O's in 24.9 scale, but I have molds for virtually any body style you wish, and if I don't have it, I'll build it. I have square and round shoulder dreadnaughts, OOO, OM, LG1, LG OO, small jumbo, early Martin parlor size and a travel model called the" little Will". My new model is the Maybelle.   Robert designed the profile and contributed valuable input on specs. It falls between a OOO and Small Jumbo and works well in 14 or 12 fret. You can see it on youtube as well as a dreadnaught on the Peaceful Bend Winery videos of Robert and Wil Maring.
   My necks are slightly tapered with a compound radius fretboard. These subtle changes are not visibly detectable, but in your hands very noticeable. Everything from a modified V to a 35' Martin D28. If you have a favorite neck profile of your own I will do my best to duplicate it.
    One of the concepts I employ is the Larson Brothers' "built under tension" design and currently use laminated bracing as an upgrade. All bracing is scalloped forward X falling somewhere between advanced, (1" from the soundhole), to "standard" (1 3/4"   from the soundhole). Many factors determining this are the tops stiffness, bracing size and stiffness, bridge plate dimensions, string gauge, body style and how much to close or open the x.
    I use a dovetail joint for the neck  and take my time to get a very tight fit, using a clamp to push it in snug the last teeny bit, hide glued. It is a little time consuming to make it fit right, but I believe it adds to the integrity and sound quality of the guitar. If you have had a neck reset you know what I mean, a good one with neck fitted will help tone, a loose fit just filled with glue will dull it.
   My guitars feel "alive" and vibrate tip to tip. The tone and projection are such that you don't have to whip it to get volume, thereby allowing you to improve your technique and dexterity, making you a better player. It will never fail to explode when you need it to take a lead.
    I am not a "wood snob" or elitist regarding species for use on tops or backs and I am confident in my ability to build in any combination of wood and pull out what I need. I respect your personal choices and ideas and will work with you.
   There  are a lot of factors I take into consideration when building and I am constantly changing, adapting, and evolving. Everything is taken into consideration.


You may contact me at :
Whipple Creek Guitars
57 Jerusalem Hill Road
Pomona, Il. 62975
call 618-559-2317 or 618-893-4915
or email thewhip@whipplecreekguitars.com

Winner of the first Whipple Creek Guitar is Eric Travelstead shown with his wife Rhonda from Eldorado. That's a happy man.

Gene Beaver 77 ,"retired", owner of Beavers Music Shop, in Equality Il. has played for over 60 years and has sold nearly every major brand has this to say about Whipple Creek.

"I've never held a finer guitar in my hands. I've known guys who made guitars for 30 years and don't make 'em this good."

Whip in the shop with another killer Dread.

"The tone is amazing for a small body guitar. When we designed this guitar I told you I intended for it to be an heirloom and it will be. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
T.R. Murphy

Facebook either Whipple Creek Guitars or Terry Whipple.

Main Navigation