The Story of Raines Guitars

I started playing guitar in 1987. I had just received a black acoustic guitar for Christmas and was to begin lessons shortly thereafter. I was 11 years old and had already been begging my parents to buy me a guitar for years.

I remember my first electric guitar, a black Yamaha with a locking tremolo. I remember my next guitar, a yellow Washburn kc40. I also remember the countless amps and effects. And one thing I remember clearly is that I always felt that these instruments were not a good value. I must admit that I played several Ibanez guitars through high school and they treated me very well. But in general, I always felt like I didn't get what I paid for. It's a pretty big deal when you are washing dishes at a Chinese restaurant for $4/hr and spend $700 on an effect processor. It's a bigger deal if that effects processor doesn't do its job properly.

When I was 21 I discovered jazz and began the journey to learn how to play it. I bought a 335 copy for around $800. It was a nice guitar and sounded good. I bought a Gibson 347-very nice guitar too! Then I bought some Heritage guitars which were also very nice. Of course I would sell the old guitar(s) to pay for the new one(s). This went on and on until I went to a 7 string. My 1st was a cheap Dean, followed by an Ibanez AF207. I then began working with a guitar builder on a custom hand carved archtop. I also placed an order for a custom solidbody at the same time.

To make a long story short, the guitars were good. The guitars were also very expensive and took a very long time to build. And they had some pretty severe issues. I went through this process several times. I would send some guy a lot of money, wait a year or more and receive a good guitar that wasn't worth what I paid for it. I would then sell theses guitars a few months later at a huge loss. I was becoming very frustrated but was also learning a lot about the various characteristics of all types of guitars. I was learning which necks felt great and which ones felt like baseball bats with strings. I was learning about the woods and the build process. I decided to design my own guitar. I figured, nobody knows what I want better than me. I was gigging a lot, practicing 8+hours a day. I wasn't going to let some guy decide what I wanted.

My 1st design was a collaboration with a luthier from the USA. After some quality control issues, I tried something I thought was crazy. A friend recommended we find an Asian factory to make some prototypes. So we went to China and got the ball rolling. We also worked with guitar builders in Mexico and Canada. I can honestly say that 7 years later, the small shop in China has been simply spectacular. We now have what I believe to be the largest selection of 7 string guitars in the world. Our quality has improved incredibly and our prices are now lower than ever.

We have a very simple goal with our instruments,to offer the best possible value. That means you get more than you pay for. It means you finish a gig and don't have a sore hand because the neck on your Raines is sweet as hell and plays like silk. Right now, we have several models of 6 & 7 string guitars which are totally handmade, with graphite nuts, locking tuners,ebony fretboards, beautiful flame top,back and sides, custom pickups and abalone inlay for under $1000. Do these guitars have unique designs and gorgeous finishes? Do they include custom gig bags and shipping? Can you order virtually any custom specs without insane upcharges or lead times? YES!

We also have an incredible custom shop. If you have any requests or modifications we can't handle at the source, we can take care of it here. Anything from intricate custom paint to swapping out electronics, we can do it quickly and for a great price.

And remember, we are all musicians here at Raines Guitars. Our web designer, photographer, techs and even our custom paint specialist are all guitar players. So you can rest assured that your instrument is being handled properly every step of the way.