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| Bob Taylor - Kurt Listug 1985 |
So for his woodworking project young Bob Taylor set out to build his own EKO Ranger. His teacher lent him a book called Classic Guitar Construction. The thing Bob liked most about the EKO guitar was its long, skinny, bolt-on neck, with it's low action. Usually this featured was reserved for only electric guitars.
Very few builders had incorporated bolt on necks in their designs for acoustic guitars. But there were a few builders that embraced this technique.
In Europe, some Framus acoustics used a bolt-on neck on some of it's guitars, including the Texan guitar.
Luthier Roger Rosmeisl used the bolt-on neck on the series of Fender acoustic guitars that he was building in the late 1960’s, such as The Kingman, The Palomino, and others.
Rossmeisl also used a bolt-on neck design on the Fender LTD and Montego Jazz guitars that he designed for Fender. However the rumor was bolt-on necks were a sign of poor quality, though over the years this fact has been disproven.
Bob built his first guitar that year. He decided that is what he wanted to do with his life.
After graduating from high school, Bob started working at the American Dream Company.
This was a local guitar-making collective in Lemon Grove, California, where he realized that he still had a lot to learn. This is where he met co-owner and luthier Sam Radding, a man who turned out to be a seminal influence in shaping Bob’s philosophy of guitar building.
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| 1970's Bob Taylor American Dream Guitar |
It was a bootstrap operation and became a starting point for some builders that went on to become a starting point for successful guitar manufacturers.
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| Taylor, Hoover, Bourgeois |
It was at this shop that Bob Taylor met Kurt Listug, another fellow that was interested in building guitars. The two men struck up a friendship.
In the early 1970's when Radding’s business ran into some financial trouble. He offered to sell it to anyone for $2400.
So in 1974 Taylor, Listug, and another fellow named Steve Schemmer pooled their resources to come up with the required cash, and the co-op became a bona fide guitar business.
The trio renamed American Dream, "The Westland Music Company."
However, they discovered they were going to need a shorter name to put on their guitar’s headstock. They chose Taylor. This was because Bob was the better builder, and “Listug” and “Schemmer” did not sound like average American names.
Within two years, in 1976, the fellows agreed it they were building some a great guitars and it was time to sell their guitars through retailers.
Martin acoustic guitars had always been the industry standard, so the initial Taylor guitars were more affordable versions of Martin guitars, except the Taylor instrument had developed unique bolt-on necks in their design.
Taylor offered these necks in various widths and were much easier to adjust and repair than Martin Guitar necks.
During these early years of Taylor Guitars it was a "builder to customer" situation. The company would build a guitar and sell it directly to the customer based on the customer's specifications. This was why the removable neck Bob Taylor was so important. Bob could take the neck off, adjust the angle, or put on another with a different width until the customer was happy.
Though this was probably not the best situation, it taught Bob to increase his set up skills on the fly and develop new knowledge of neck angles that his average customer appreciated culminating in the Taylor low profile neck design.
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| Historical Martin Necks |
Of course Taylor kept their prices below comparable Martin Guitars, which really helped the fledgling company get off the ground.
By 1981, facing financial difficulties, the company took out a bank loan to purchase equipment. Then in 1983 Steve Schemmer decided he wanted out and sold his stake in the company.
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| Prince with 12 String Guitar |
Because of the obvious features of the build, other musicians soon figured it was a Taylor. Word of mouth gave way to reputation.
Bluegrass flat picker, Dan Crary signed on in 1986. This became Taylor's first signature guitar.
In 1987 Leo Kottke made the switch to Taylor and had a 12 string model designed to his specifications
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| 1984 Taylor 510 |
Initially Taylor Guitars produced dreadnought and jumbo-sized guitars with the Grand Concert body shape was introduced in 1984, followed by the popular 400 series in the early 1990s.
In 1989 MTV launched it's "Unplugged" series of videos. This was a big boost for interest in acoustic guitars and helped Taylor Guitars grow the business.
By 1989 Bob Taylor had purchased the company's first CNC (computer numerical control) mill. This gave a more accurate, and consistent way to build guitars, than hand building and eyeballing assembly.
In 1992 Taylor Guitars relocated to a new factory in El Cajon, California, which as of today occupies eight buildings.
In 1999 Taylor guitars debuted the "NT" neck design, which would become the company's standard. NT stood for New Technology.
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| Taylor NT Neck Design |
Taylor does cut a 'neck pocket' into the guitar's top and neck side. This pocket fits the neck block on the end of Taylor necks. Taylor's NT designed neck can also have laser cut shims fitted to slightly raise it if necessary.
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| Taylor Tecate, Mexico Factory |
This factory is only a 45 minute drive from the main factory in El Cajon, California.
Around 2005, an up and coming 16 year old songwriter, Taylor Swift, purchased a Baby Taylor guitar that she kept in the back of her car to use for songwriting.
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| Andy Powers |
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| V Bracing Introduced 2018 |
Taylor builds guitars for every size and budget. The following guitars are built at Taylor's Mexican facility.
The 3/4 sized Baby Taylor Guitar retails starting at $449. with tops of solid Spruce, Mahogany or Hawaiian Koa wood.
The full size Big Baby Taylor Guitar retails for $499, or $599 with electronics. It is similar to the Baby Taylor, available only with a solid Spruce top, and a layered Walnut back and sides. Neither the Baby or Big Baby have a neck heel/ Both come with a padded gig bag.
The Taylor 3/4 size GS Mini Guitar is a step up, starting at $499 and features spruce, mahogany and koa for top woods, along with layered rosewood, layered Mahogany, layered Sapele and layered Koa for the backs and sides. The price also includes a gig bag.
The Taylor Academy Series has a 24 7/8th scale and a solid spruce wood top. This guitar comes in a Dreadnaught style or Grand Concert style body. The back and sides are layered Sapele or Walnut wood.
The base price is $799.00, which include an arm rest, built-in Taylor EB-1 electronics, and a gig bag.
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| Taylor 100 Series |
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| Bajo Quinto - Doce Doble |
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| Taylor 200 Series |
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| Taylor 300 Series |
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| 314 ce Studio SEB |
For example the Taylor 314ce Studio SEB has a suggested retail price of $2099.00. For this price you are purchasing a very nice guitar with a torrefied Spruce top with a Venetian cutaway, Sapele wood back and sides , a |Mahogany Neck, with a West African Crelicam Ebony Fretboard . This guitar comes with the Taylor| Expression System® 2 Electronics. It has Taylor's V-shaped bracing. The price includes a padded gig bag. It is available with a natural or tobacco stain finish on the sound board.
The average suggested retail price of Taylor 300 Series guitars is $2500.00.
Let me explain about Crelicam Ebony wood. This is specialized sustainable wood found in the Cameroon section of Africa. It has been processed at a saw mill owned by the Taylor Guitar company since 2011. Taylors goal is to provide fair wages, process locally, reforestation, and providing high-quality, often variegated ebony for fingerboards, bridges, and backs.
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| Taylor 400 Series |
The fretboard is made of West African Crelicam Ebony. These guitars feature a Venetian cutaway. For electronics most come with Taylor's Expression System® 2 Electronics system, while some new models for 2026 are equipped with the Claria™ Pickup System Electronics.
Most guitars in the series include a Taylor Deluxe Hardshell Brown Case. Guitars in this series retail from $2200 to $3000.
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| Taylor 500 Series |
This line up comes with Taylor's Expression 2 electronics. The guitar's tops are Sitka Spruce, while the back and sides are made of Red Ironbark or Shamel Ash. Shown here are the new all Mahogany Taylor 520 and 522.
The Taylor 600 Series guitars were designed by CEO Andy Powers. They combine Torrefied Sitka Spruce tops with Big Leaf Maple back and sides, which is said to produce a warmer overall tone. Some of the guitars include a beveled Venetian cutaway. The Ebony fretboard includes special design mother-of-pearl position markers. All come with a hardshell case and Expression 2 electronics. Suggested retail prices range from $3800 to $4200 USD.
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| Taylor 724ce and 722ce Koa |
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| Taylor Gold Label 717 Series |
The Fretboard are made of West African Crelicam Ebony with dot position markers. The two Koa models have a deluxe single ring rosette done in Rosewood and Paua. All guitars include the Expression 2 electronics system and a deluxe hardshell case. The suggested retail prices range from $3000 to $4000.
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| Taylor 800 Series |
The Expression 2 or Claria acoustic electronic under saddle pickup system is included, plus a deluxe hardshell guitar case. Suggested retail prices range from $4000 to $5500.
The 800 Series features the Taylor Legacy 855e 12 string, which is a recreation of one of Bob Taylor's first guitar builds.
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| Taylor 900 Series |
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| Taylor 900 Series |
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| Taylor 900 Series |
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| PS54ce |
All of these guitars are beautifully designed and made of Honduran rosewood and Sinker Redwood, with the exception of the 12 string PS54ce which has an Adirondack Spruce top and the PS14ce, which has Red Ironbark back and sides. All Presentation Series guitars have the West African Crelicam Ebony fretboard that is inlaid with a mother of pearl California Vine design that is crafted from Paua shells.
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| Taylor Presentation Series |
These guitars are all equipped with Taylor's proprietary Expression System 2 is a behind-the-saddle acoustic pickup and come with a deluxe hardshell case.
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If you are a fan of Taylot Guitars, watch this video
of Bob Taylor telling their history.
