Photo: Facebook capture
We're not sure if any major guitar manufacturer would pick up this idea, but we definitely like the Hog-O-Caster. In case you're not a guitar guy and wonder what's with the "caster" thing, we'll tell you that is comes from the Fender universe, as a part of the name of two iconic guitar models, the Telecaster and the Stratocaster.
The Hog-O-Caster belongs to Terry "Mojo" Johnson from the band The Swamp Drivers, a guy who often makes his own guitars. Now, if the "swamp" in the name of his band was not enough for a hint, you should prepare for some southern rock with a healthy dose of blues and rock-n-roll, often played on makeshift instruments, just like the Hog-O-Caster.
As Terry says, one of his buddies brought him a box of old Harley-Davidson parts and he thought that they were just enough to make a guitar. The body of the instrument, which is most of the times made of wood, was replaced by a large rear sprocket, to which a clutch cover was attached.
In a way, this combination could have served as a small resonator box, but Terry decided to skip the bridge pickup and go for the twangy sound the neck pickup provides, all in all, a more suitable tone for southern rock and The Swamp Drivers' music.
This left the 100th-anniversary badge on the clutch cover intact and fully displayed, and this adds to the mojo of the Hog-O-Caster. After drilling the cover and installing the tone and volume pots, Terry replaced their caps with two small metal gears, for a consistent motorcycle-themed look.
The wooden neck comes from a regular electric guitar, but at the opposite end, we'll find more Harley parts. The quarter-inch jack is screwed into a Sportster 1200 airbox cover, while the tailpiece that holds the strings' bullet ends screwed into a brake lever. Two slash-cut exhaust pipes round up the build and give a more bike-ish vibe to the Hog-O-Caster.
This guitar is clearly not on par with a regular Fender or old-school Gretsch, and neither will it even sound like a Jackson or ESP, but for The Swamp Drivers, this looks like one of the best axes out there. And we enjoyed their song, too!
As Terry says, one of his buddies brought him a box of old Harley-Davidson parts and he thought that they were just enough to make a guitar. The body of the instrument, which is most of the times made of wood, was replaced by a large rear sprocket, to which a clutch cover was attached.
In a way, this combination could have served as a small resonator box, but Terry decided to skip the bridge pickup and go for the twangy sound the neck pickup provides, all in all, a more suitable tone for southern rock and The Swamp Drivers' music.
This left the 100th-anniversary badge on the clutch cover intact and fully displayed, and this adds to the mojo of the Hog-O-Caster. After drilling the cover and installing the tone and volume pots, Terry replaced their caps with two small metal gears, for a consistent motorcycle-themed look.
The wooden neck comes from a regular electric guitar, but at the opposite end, we'll find more Harley parts. The quarter-inch jack is screwed into a Sportster 1200 airbox cover, while the tailpiece that holds the strings' bullet ends screwed into a brake lever. Two slash-cut exhaust pipes round up the build and give a more bike-ish vibe to the Hog-O-Caster.
This guitar is clearly not on par with a regular Fender or old-school Gretsch, and neither will it even sound like a Jackson or ESP, but for The Swamp Drivers, this looks like one of the best axes out there. And we enjoyed their song, too!
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