The company’s instruments are truly unique, with designs executed using old-school woodcarving tools. “What is currently setting us apart, in the carving world, is the fact that we have been blending traditional relief carving with classic chip carving techniques to create details and textures that can’t be replicated with modern power tools,” explains McMahon. “Our most recent piece, ‘The Diamondback,’ seems to have really separated us from the pack. The idea for this piece started with a conversation that I had with Floyd Rose’s president, Andy Pappicio. He said to me, ‘Your pieces are beautiful works of art, but I want you to think about something that will have more of a universal appeal with people that love Rock ‘n Roll.’ After thinking about that for a while I came to the conclusion that there is nothing with more dangerous and full of attitude then the rattlesnake itself. Before ‘The Diamondback,’ the closest you could get to that look and feel on a guitar were the few that had actually glued snakeskin to their guitar bodies.”
McMahon continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible with respect to finishes, textures, and designs. “Similar to McMAHON Artistry’s approach to carving itself, the creation of new designs is a result of the passionate and the obsessive, an alchemy of the old and the new,” he says.
