Solar’s Chop Shop aims to create guitars that have “never been seen before” – and its flagship Blitz models were etched with 1000 volts of electricity
Solar Guitars has lifted the curtains off two electric guitars that seemingly take the concept of a metal guitar to a whole new level.
Meet the AB1.6FR Blitz and AB1.6FR Black Blitz – two striking six-strings from Solar's new Chop Shop that were built to “challenge the notions of what can be done to a wood-based instrument”.
How was this challenge issued? Well, those gnarly body designs were made with the help of, erm, 1000 volts of electricity.
Yep, you read that right: to create the etched cosmetics of each model, Solar plowed an insane amount of electricity through the alder bodies in a bid to achieve those lightning bolt-esque body lines.
Solar says it was “a process never offered with a production instrument” – we’re more than happy to believe them on that – with each Blitz model, unsurprisingly, arriving with completely unique bolt designs owing to the random effect of the electricity.
In the production phase, the AB1.6FR bodies are subjected to obscene amounts of electricity, and are then cleaned and finished in either natural or black, before receiving a final poly sealer coat.
The assembly stage sees the alder body get paired with a roasted three-piece maple neck, which accommodates a 24-fret roasted maple fingerboard. Other specs include locking tuners, a Floyd Rose 1000 tremolo system and Luminlay side markers.
Tones come by way of a Duncan Solar Dual Rail neck pickup and a newly designed Solar Modern bridge humbucker, both of which are wired to a five-way selector switch and master volume and tone pots. Those knobs also double as push/pull controls that offer series/parallel switching.
Solar’s standard reverse headstock and 12th fret logo inlay also make the cut.
But electrical currents and unique body designs aren’t the only things making the Blitz guitars notable: these are the first to arrive from Solar’s Chop Shop.
Based in Catalonia, the Chop Shop is effectively Solar’s new custom shop, and is said to be the lab where the brand’s crazy guitar experiments will take place. Such experiments include “truly violent finish processes”, which will use torching, morphing, electrocution, sawing and more to create unique models.
“The founding [principle] is very simple,” a statement reads on Solar’s website. “Take the basic elements of what would be an awesome Solar Guitar 1 series model, then customize, modify, paint, morph, torch, electrocute, relic, stain, saw, wire, assemble and set-up to make something that has never ever been seen before.
“This could mean a striking new finish made from actual metal alloys, radical changes to hardware, pickup designs, new wiring configurations, complete deconstructions, destructions, relics and whatever else we can think up.
“Most important though, is our specialty: truly violent finish processes using methods of custom manipulation that challenge the notions of what can be done to a wood-based instrument.”
The Blitz guitars are both available now for $2,299.
Head over to Solar to find out more about the Blitz models, and to keep up to date with the Chop Shop’s activities.
