I write to extol and celebrate the virtues and amazing craftsmanship of Michael Virok, the owner of…read more@theGuitarRescue.com and a Luthier extraordinaire. This review has been a long time in coming, due to several serious family medical issues combined with a move to another state, and it is a review that I am grateful to finally write. Michael graciously and kindly helped me to complete the final (and most important) phases of mods on my 2006 Gibson SG Standard. My overall goal was to switch the colour-scheme of the hardware to Black, and so that it also had the "Doom" affinities of my previous guitar, an ′86 Jackson Custom made in the San Dimas workshop. The first phase of mods began with the installation of new tuning pegs and control knobs. I was able to get some Grover 102BC Original Rotomatic Black Chrome tuning pegs to replace the original faux-ivory white ones, the latter of which have really thin attachment posts (which I have seen break due to desiccation a few times). I always loved the control knobs on my Jackson, so I got a set of four Proline Back Chrome Textured Dome ones, which feel like home to me. The next phase of mods involved replacing the Gibson pickups with something more suited to my style of playing. I decided to go with the EMG Zakk Wylde 81/85 Humbucker Set in Black. Both of these are active pickups, like the one in my Jackson. I went to one of the big-box stores for the installation and when I picked it up, the tech (i.e. not a luthier) said that since the electronics cavity of an SG is notoriously small, he was unable to fit the battery inside of the cavity, and it was returned to me like this. He suggested that I find a luthier who could rout out a battery-box to ameliorate this situation, because the store didn't even have the proper tools for the work. I was, like...WTF. So, I found a real Luthier in Michael Virok. He was able to discard the splitter connecting the new pickups and wired them directly together so that a battery could actually fit in the cavity - without having to rout out a battery-box to the side of the cavity. While this setup may use batteries more quickly, there was no need to do any invasive procedure to install something by doing it this way (which I thought was a great idea!). He did this while I waited. Gratis. The final piece of the puzzle was the installation of a proper tremolo system, and I asked Michael if he could put a Kahler whammy-bar on it, because I absolutely adored the Kahler on my Jackson. Michael acted as a de facto consultant on this, and he graciously helped me to determine which Kahler model would be the best-suited for my SG. Bear in mind, that literally no other luthier in a 100-mile radius said that they could do this...not even in Philly. He installed the Kahler 2200 and it works perfectly! Taken together, I offer my highest recommendation, without any reservation, for Michael Virok at The Guitar Rescue as the regional go-to Luthier extraordinaire. If you live anywhere within an hour-or-two of Lawrenceville, NJ and have the need to do something, anything with/to your guitar, PLEASE let him work on your axe! I drove all the way from King of Prussia (PA) based on his reputation alone, and was so impressed with him. He is kind, affable, and a consummate professional whose only concern is customer satisfaction. Thank you so very much, Michael, for literally everything, and humble apologies for the exceedingly long delay in submitting this review. Namaste...

Took my guitar in yesterday and got it back today. Full rewire and setup. Sounds perfect! Provided…read moreme with some history on the 1983 Fender Fullerton Stratocaster I brought, which I always wanted to get confirmed. I would highly recommend.