CUSTOM BUILDS
At Colfax Guitar Shop, we craft bespoke guitars that reflect both our customers' vision and our own artistic inspiration.
Every acoustic and electric guitar that leaves our in-house Denver workshop is handcrafted from the ground up — blending time-honored lutherie techniques with modern design and finishing options. The result: instruments as distinctive as the musicians who inspire them.
With over 50 years of combined experience, our team brings expertise, passion, and precision to every build. Our extensive repair background gives us rare insight into what truly enhances playability, tone, and durability — so every detail is purposeful. Each guitar is designed to delight the eye, feel effortless beneath your fingers, and deliver a tone that's unmistakably yours.
Commissioning a Colfax guitar is more than buying an instrument. It's bringing a one-of-a-kind work of playable art to life.
Our Two Custom Guitar Lines
Phillips Guitars
Handcrafted by Colfax owner and master luthier Christian Phillips, these instruments are fully bespoke — built either to individual client specifications or from Christian's own original designs. Each Phillips guitar reflects years of repair experience, the influence of master luthiers he's studied, and his own passion-driven approach to building, all brought together with meticulous attention to detail and an uncompromising commitment to quality.
Colfax Guitars (Coming Fall 2026)
Our in-house production line is designed to bring boutique-level craftsmanship within reach of working musicians. Featuring three original electric guitar models, every instrument will be entirely handmade by our team of expert luthiers right here in Denver. Announcements are coming soon — stay tuned!
What We've Been Building
From 2024 to 2026, we paused custom guitar production to do something we'd been planning for a long time: a full transformation of our workshop. We installed advanced finishing systems, upgraded our machinery, and laid the groundwork to significantly expand production capacity. It was a big investment in the shop's future — and the results will speak for themselves
Our Philosophy
We've always wanted Colfax to be more than your average lutherie shop. Inspired by the great workshop traditions of Ervin Somogyi, the Larson Brothers, José Ramírez, and American Dream Musical Instruments Manufacturing, we've built an environment that encourages our in-house artisans to pursue their own creative work alongside collaborative builds. That balance of innovation, mastery, and artistic independence is what drives us—and it's what goes into every guitar that leaves this shop.