Founded in Miami in 2016, Cohnway Guitars is the shared vision of Joe and Vinny, two experienced luthiers committed to building premium instruments that exude beauty, playability, and exquisite sound. Together, the partners create custom designs and attempt to reinvent some of the classics.
While the lore of the rosewood Tele is well known (just watch the Let it Be footage or give a listen to Abbey Road), the rosewood Strat perhaps more elusive. As the story goes, the all-rosewood prototype was intended for Jimi, but he never got a chance to play it before he died. Conceptually, all-rosewood construction is an interesting choice for an S-style guitar—it gives clarity and complexity to the treble content as well as sustain.
This 2021 Cohnway All Rosewood ST features the same Rosewood/Maple/Rosewood construction as the mythical '60s prototype. It also has a Rosewood neck. This is a recipe for a heavy guitar, but fortunately Cohnway chambers the ST body, so this one weighs in at 9 lb 14.2 oz.
As for electronics and hardware, this Cohnway is put together properly: Fender Custom Shop '60s Stratocaster pickups, Fender American Vintage Tremolo, '60s-appropriate F-stamped Fender tuners, and traditional switching.
This 2021 Cohnway All Rosewood ST shows some superficial signs of play and use, but it is free of any dings, scuffs, or nasty scratches. In general, the quality of the Cohnway build is well suited to the price point. These are nice guitars with Custom Shop features, so while the fit, finish, and fretwork might not be quite as a precise, they bring a lot more to the table than the price would suggest! It includes a tweed hardshell case and a cushy strap, but the original tremolo arm is not included with the guitar.