Specs:
• Model: Gus G1
• Builder: Gus Guitars (Simon Farmer)
• Origin: Handmade in Sussex, United Kingdom
• Year: 1994
• Finish: Chameleon
• Body Construction: Cedar core wrapped in carbon fibre with chromed tubular steel frame
• Neck Construction: Carbon fibre skin over cedar core
• Fingerboard: Ebony
• Scale Length: Standard G1
• Frets: Medium
• Pickups: Stacked single coils + piezo acoustic system
• Switching: 6-Way Rotary Selector (all pickup combinations including outer coils together)
• Additional Switching: Boost switch enabling two humbucker-style tones
• Electronics: Magnetic + Piezo, Stereo Output Capability
• MIDI: Yes
• Bridge: Gus Bearing-Mounted Vibrato System
• Tuners: Gotoh 510
• Strap Locks: Schaller Locking
• Hardware: Gus In-House (excluding tuners & strap locks)
• Case: Hard Case Included
• Condition: Excellent
Personal Thoughts:
Gus Guitars are not just instruments — they are engineering statements. The G1 is Simon Farmer’s most iconic and radical design, blending aerospace materials, avant-garde aesthetics, and serious musical intent into something that still feels futuristic even 30 years on.
The carbon fibre–skinned cedar core construction gives the guitar an incredibly immediate, resonant response, with huge sustain and clarity across the register. The bearing-mounted vibrato is exceptionally smooth and stable — genuinely one of the best-feeling vibrato systems ever designed. This is not a vintage-style wobble; it’s precision machinery.
Tonally, the 6-way rotary selector combined with push-pull options delivers around nine genuinely usable sounds, from glassy single-coil clarity to thicker humbucker-style voices via the boost circuit. Add in the piezo system and stereo capability, and this becomes an unbelievably versatile instrument — equally at home feeding two amps, recording direct, or running complex live rigs.
Gus guitars are made strictly to order, take close to a year to build, and cost well into five figures today. Every example is unique.
Famously, Simon built a purple G1 on spec for Prince, which was finally delivered just a month before his passing — believed to be the last guitar Prince ever owned. That instrument was seen in Simon’s workshop years earlier, and its story is now part of Gus Guitars folklore.
For anyone interested, this exact model is discussed by the maker himself on YouTube — search: “Gus Guitars G1”.
Condition Report:
Excellent condition for a 1994 handmade instrument. All electronics function correctly including piezo and stereo outputs. Vibrato system operates smoothly. Supplied with a new stereo cable. Well cared for throughout.
Part Exchange Welcome:
Part exchange welcome. Video demos are available via our YouTube channel at Squealing Pig Guitars. Personal consignment service available via our site at a 10% rate.