A division of Circle Strings in Burlington, Vermont, Iris Guitar Company is a small team of seasoned luthiers, dedicated to building modern instruments that capture vintage-inspired tone and aesthetics. Iris Guitars are handmade using a combination of state of the art techniques and old-world craftsmanship.
Named for Storm Gates—the head of setup at Iris—the SG-11 is a compact, square-shouldered guitar inspired by inexpensive blues boxes of the depression era. Lauded for their sweet snarl and X-braced for a fuller mid-range, the SG-11 is perfect for any serious guitar player's arsenal.
We ordered this SG-11 (serial #1018) with a Sinker Salmon Sitka Spruce Top, Natural finish, Ivoroid binding, and a Firestripe pickguard. It features hand-scalloped Adirondack Braces and Mahogany back and sides. The Sinker Salmon Sitka comes from a logs used for salmon trap corrals in Tenakee Springs, Alaska. These are old-growth logs that soaked in the sea for decades, making Sinker Salmon some of the finest-sounding, lightweight, and stable Sitka out there. Although the SG-11 comes standard with a 1-13/16" nut width, we decided to go with a 1-3/4" nut width to make the neck friendlier to most players.
This SG-11 produces a sweet, woody tone that is well balanced and produces more bass than you'd expect. A natural fit blues fingerpicking, this SG-11 has a great sound for old-time and traditional styles, too. Notes resonate and sustain like a good vintage guitar, but it plays with the precision of a modern boutique guitar. Thanks to its namesake, the setup is perfect, intonation is spot on, and the Golden Age tuners get the job done in style.
Dimensions:
- Depth: 4"
- Body Length: 17-3/8”
- Total Length: 38-7/8”
- Upper bout: 10"
- Lower bout: 15"
- Waist: 9-1/8”
Specs:
- Top: Sinker Salmon Sitka Spruce
- Back & Sides: Mahogany
- Braces: Scalloped Adirondack Spruce
- Bracing Pattern: X-Brace w/ 1 Tone Bar
- Neck Joint: Bolt on Mortise & Tenon
- Nut: Bone, 1-3/4" Spacing
- Saddle: Bone, 2-1/4" Spacing
- Scale Length: 24-3/4"
- Fingerboard & bridge: Indian Rosewood
- Top Binding: Ivoroid w/ Black/White/Black purfling
- Back Binding: Ivoroid
- Pickguard: Firestripe
- Finish: Natural Nitrocellulose Satin
- Tuning Machines: Golden Age Relic Brass w/ off-white buttons
- Case: Hardshell by TKL