About McClellan Guitars

I’ve been building things and trying to make music for as long as I can remember. My dad was a contractor in the South Carolina Lowcountry, and my parents were musicians, so I was exposed to woodworking and music from a very young age. Some of my earliest memories are visiting job sites with my dad and brothers and hearing my parents play guitar and piano. When I was about 8 years old, I made a drum kit using leftover construction materials: 5-gallon buckets with varying levels of water, a piece of tin as my snare, and a metal trashcan lid as a cymbal. I guess that was the first instrument I ever made.

By the time I was in high school, I was gravitating towards the finer aspects of woodworking while I was working for my dad or other local builders during summers or holiday breaks. In addition, I’ve played guitar since I was 10, and music has become a huge part of my life. After an unsuccessful year at college, I moved back to the Lowcountry.  I worked for several contractors in the Charleston, SC area for a few years and continued to hone my fine woodworking skills. In 2006, I attended a small lutherie trade school outside of Atlanta, GA. After graduation, I was hired as a staff member and worked there for about a year and a half.  With a solid background in shop, woodworking, and playing guitar, lutherie came very naturally to me, and my passion was ignited. I returned to the South Carolina Lowcountry, and over the next few years I built cabinetry and furniture as a main source of income, but I continued to build and repair guitars as a hobby.

In 2010, my wife and I relocated to Pendleton, SC, and in 2011, I was fortunate enough to move into the shop on Pendleton Square where I’m still located today. In the shop, I was mainly building custom cabinetry and furniture and doing some antique refinishing. I was also playing a lot of music and wanted a better acoustic guitar. I couldn’t afford a nice one, so I decided to build one.

That was the best decision I could have made. Up until that point, I'd mainly made electric guitars and basses and only a handful of acoustics. It was an excellent dreadnought-style guitar and got much attention in the local music community. As a result, I built a few more for friends. After about 6 acoustic guitars, I realized I was consistently building pretty nice instruments and thought maybe something more could come of it.

I started studying steel string acoustic guitar building with a purpose, reading everything I could get my hands on, acquiring better tools, and making the necessary jigs and templates. I also realized that I was absolutely hooked, and there was no turning back- this is what I was made for. I started spreading the word through the local music community and doing a lot of instrument repair while also taking on fewer and fewer cabinetry and furniture jobs. In 2021, I took the leap of faith and started focusing solely on building heirloom-quality guitars.

My building style has become a blend of traditional and contemporary methods, and my process continues to evolve as I learn new things and try new techniques. From fit and finish to tone and playability, I'm very happy with the guitars I'm building today. I average around 120 hours per guitar; most of my work is commissioned, and I enjoy working closely with clients to produce an instrument we can both be proud of.