The guitar is made from 40,000 matchsticks collected by Fraser during his years with the Armed Forces, as issued to him as part of a 24-hour ration pack. Over the next 18 years, Fraser designed and refined his plans until he finally gifted the world with this incredible instrument.
Fraser notes that the matchstick guitar “plays and sound[s] as good as any high end guitar should do.” The body, neck, pickguard, pickup covers, jack socket, trem cover, switch tip, trem tip and knobs are all made of matchsticks – quite literally the entire guitar.
It’s not the first time a guitar has been made out of an unusual material (remember the Fender made out of a cardboard or the one created from seats at the Hollywood Bowl?), but it’s not every day you hear of a working instrument manufactured from 40,000 matchsticks. Count us in as seriously impressed.
Personally, we’d like to hear ‘Ring of Fire’ or ‘Matchbox’ played on this one – surely a match made in heaven?
See Dean Fraser’s post about his matchstick guitar here.
