Doug Collins & The 50 Cent Guitar Company

I am not a professional luthier, nor do I play one on TV - which is my profession in real life. Although I make my living with television and video production (http://www.stepout.ca), I have recently become quite interested in the business of guitar repair and building.

This came about by accident in September 2007 when I came upon a badly beaten and abused guitar in the final minutes of a garage sale. When I ask the owner how much he wanted for it, he said, "How about, 50 cents?" It was an offer I couldn't refuse. When I show it to my wife, she said I paid too much.

Undaunted, I proceed with the restoration. Although it was a major undertaking, requiring a complete rebuild of the unit, I finished it within a week. I was the proud owner of my first acoustic guitar.

Now I didn't really know how to play the thing, but I had friends that did. The next Friday night I invited them over and told them to bring a guitar and a song. This is how the 50 Cent Guitar Club began - a group of songwriters and guitar players, good and bad, discovering God's mystery of music together.

You can learn more about the evolving club here: http://www.50centguitar.com . If you're ever in the Vancouver, BC area on a Friday night, drop me a line and come on over.

One of the things I have learned about guitars is that they tend to get broken. I was quick to offer my limited experience to repair their ailing instruments. To my surprise they trusted me to do so and so far I have not let them down.

I am anxious to learn more about this trade and I'm grateful to Frank Ford for all the knowledge he freely shares and for this great forum he has made available.