This page is intended to give you a little information about me, so that if you are inclined to have me build an instrument for you, or let me perhaps repair or modify your favorite guitar or bass, you have some idea who you're dealing with.

My name is Carey Nordstrand. As of 1/1/03 I have begun working for myself full time. I intend to build only the highest quality basses at a low quantity working entirely by myself.

My last job was with Suhr Guitars in Lake Elsinore, California. I was there for a little over four years. Among my responsibilities; surfacing and fretting necks, sanding and buffing paint, wiring, building guitars, training new guys(many of them, it's hard to find good help) and coordinating the building schedule. I feel that I was a valuable part of the company while I was there. Given the reputation of Suhr Guitars you can get an idea of the quality of my work.

Before Suhr Guitars I worked for Azola Basses. I was there for a little over two years, and I did all of their production woodworking. I made bodies, necks, and fingerboards. I sanded bodies and carved necks. I also did most of the final fingerboard surfacing and nut cutting. I give Steve credit for showing me a lot of great techniques for guitar making and giving me the room to allow me to learn as much as possible while I was there.

Going back further in time we come to my beginnings in the guitar making world. After attending The Grove School For Contemporary Music and working at entry level in a big time recording studio for a year and a half, I got a job as an engineer working for Mr. Tim Benge at Camerata Recording. This was a smaller studio in the Riverside area. My gigs were not quite full time so I had a lot of time to waste. I became good friends with my best pal Ryan and began to hang out at his work; Caleb's Guitar in Redlands, CA. It was just the coolest place I knew of. One day, Caleb the owner, who by then had noticed me hanging about perhaps too much, came to me and asked if I was busy. The answer should be apparent. He brought me to the workbench in the back of his shop and showed me the guitars that he was making. The Traveler guitar. What a story there is around that little instrument. It was the brainchild of Caleb and a retired Air Force engineer named Leon Cox. Leon did most of the actual design and prototype work, and Caleb played, made suggestions, and eventually sold them. Anyway, I took to it quickly and was soon assembling 5 or 6 a week for him. My career in guitar building had begun. After a year of having parts made in Mexico and assembled in his shop it became apparent that Caleb had spread himself a little thin and he ran out of money. He sold the store to his longtime manager Ray. He also sold the rights to the Traveler. The current owner and myself went into production in January of 1995. After 5 months I left to persue another direction in my career. After all this time the Traveler is still going strong, much to the credit of the current owner.

Let me tell you a little about my building philosiphy. I believe there is no "magic" in building a good instrument. It just comes down to skill, experience, and ingenuity. I use CNC cut jigs wherever it's practical, such as neck profile, pickup cavities, fret slotting, and neck pocket. Visit my Shop Tour page to see some of my methods. Also, I believe in hard finishes in most cases. This comes from working with both Steve Azola and Suhr Guitars. I just feel that a "real" finish adds legitimacy to a product. Of course a hard finish has other obvious benefits as well. Don't tell me, however, that a nitrocellulose lacquer paint job sounds better than a new high tech finish. I would ask you to scientifically prove it to me. There are so many variable that go into a guitars or basses sound (ie. wood, pickups, strings), that you can't conclusively prove that the finish makes a difference. For example: At Suhr Guitars we made three identical guitars for Scott Henderson. He brought his rig down to the shop, set it up, and played all three. He picked the best sounding one. ONE!. They all sounded just a little different. They were all made from the same woods. They all had the same pickups. They all had the same finish. The same frets. You get the picture. He heard distinct differences in all three guitars. So did I. It was amazing. Anyway, he loves his new guitar.

Another thing that is important to me is attention to detail. This is something I learned from John Suhr. He is downright anal. And so am I. I believe that there are details in the construction of an instrument that really show just how much the maker cares about his craft. Immaculate finishes. Perfect fretwork. Perfect fitting neck pockets. Perfect set ups. Etc. This is what you'll get if you order one of my basses. Check out my Players page to read some comments from some happy owners.

By the way. In case you were wondering. "What's up with his eyebrows?" It's called Alopecia Aerata. Loosely translated, that means roving bald spots. They say it's stress related. Now you know.