Briggs Reserve Stock Apollo

Notes from the Jack Briggs:
Originally spec'd and constructed for the 2020 Artisan Guitar Show, this Reserve Stock Program Apollo RSP #39 was intended as a "show-stopper." I had this amazing piece of figured Brazilian rosewood since the early 2000s and felt this would be the perfect platform for it. How often does one see a carved Brazilian rosewood top? Exactly!

The korina back is hollowed out for a semi-hollow build, but with no f-holes cut into the top, the body is tuned for an open yet somewhat softened tone. A little more resonant than rock maple, the bigleaf maple neck is nonetheless snappy sounding and visually exceptionally appealing with its fine fiddleback figure. Snakewood bindings trim the guitar superbly, IMO. With the hand-wound minibuckers and hum-canceling soapbar pickup, the overall tonality is soft but articulate, and resistance to feedback is excellent. Aesthetics were paramount with this piece, so the trapeze tailpiece got the nod over a stop tailpiece.

Essentially the guitar is a 2-pickup instrument with traditional front volume/tone and back volume/tone controls. The rear tone control is a push-push that selects either the soap bar or the bridge minibucker as the back pickup. All trim parts (pickguard, cover plates, truss rod cover) are from the same Brazilian rosewood board as the top - as is the book-matched head plate. The grain and figure of the pickguard match the top as it was cut consecutively from the board. Tuner buttons are snakewood, as is the nut. A show-stopper, indeed.

CRAIG'S POV:
Thank you, Jack, for your excellent detailed description of this fantastic Reserve Stock Apollo. One glance at this beauty confirms to me the masterful skill and craftsmanship of its uber-talented builder. Every detail is carefully thought out and meticulously executed. The excellent wood choices enhance the artistic design and create a fully righteous instrument; it is beyond what I consider "Private Stock."

In addition to it being absolutely stunning, this Briggs goes well beyond eye candy here. The Apollo is a fantastic player's guitar. The '59 neck profile is what I like, medium/full with just the right amount of shoulder. The guitar has a pleasing acoustic resonance that blooms when plugged in. Played through my blackface Princeton Reverb, I can only describe the sound as glorious. With any combination of pickups I choose, this is a sonic beast that covers any sonic road you decide to travel.

Hats off to you, Jack Briggs, for an absolutely killer guitar!

TOP bookmatched AD Brazilian rosewood, 1900
BACK AD korina, hollowed, 1983
BINDING snakewood/W/B/W
TRIM PACKAGE snakewood/BRW
NECK wood 1-piece AD fiddleback bigleaf maple, 1960
FINGERBOARD AD African blackwood, 1960
FRETWIRE '56 (.900/.970)
INLAYS pink MOP/ABW vertical slash
NUT snakewood/vintage bone
HEADPLATE Brazilian rosewood
NECK PICKUP Briggs minibucker
MIDDLE PICKUP Briggs noiseless soapbar
BRIDGE PICKUP Briggs minibucker
TAILPIECE Kluson ABR-1/LW
OPTIONS RSP tonewoods, trim package: gold
FINISH natural
STRINGS Curt Mangan .10-.046
COMPLETED 7/1/23
SETUP BY JAB