Flaxwood Äijä, made in Finland 2014, sandblasted black. Scandinavians eh? They're better looking, better educated, richer and more progressive than the rest of us... and apparently, they can engineer the pants of a guitar, too. Flaxwood build the guitars from their own unique tone material, dubbed 'Flaxwood'. It's basically wood with the grain structure completely broken down, then bonded back together and injection moulded into shape. That creates a material that resonates with equal force in every direction, so it rings more evenly and truly than a regular guitar body. The hollow construction means it's super lightweight, plus the resonating backplate adds a whole lot of volume when unplugged. The material is extremely sturdy and rigid, so it feels very reassuring in the hands despite being under 3kg. This one shipped out with EMGs, but a previous owner has fitted a pair of mid-output passive Duncan humbuckers, really allowing the natural tone of the guitar to come out. The tone is really incredible, it's hard to draw comparisons to other familiar guitars as this really has it's own 'thing' going on. There's an immediate, strong attack; it's very rhythmic and expressive, and combined with incredibly tight and full natural lows and low-mids, you get an absolute monster riff machine. Normally guitars with this much low-end can be a little vague or muddy, but this has a brilliant clarity and spank, it's very satisfying. Harmonics come out with exceptional ease and vigour, you don't need a hap of gain to get delightful pinch-harmonics flying out. The neck is slim and round, it's more similar to a Gibson slim 60s or PRS Santana in profile than the wide/thin Ibanez style shred machine. The sleek and unique finish is cool too; it's hard-wearing and looks instantly different to a standard gloss or matte black. This is definitely a weird guitar, but gosh... it's really, really good.

Model: Flaxwood Äijä
Made: Finland, 2014 (Serial 02141286)
Finish: sandblasted black
Body: 'flaxwood' composite material, hollow with resonating Flaxwood back plate.
Neck: 'flaxwood' composite material, 1-piece, 'natural rock' finish
Weight: 2.8kg approx
Mods: pickups replaced
Case: original Hiscox 'Liteflite' hardcase, excellent quality and condition
Pickups: Seymour Duncan JB/Jazz passive humbucker set

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. There's some very light marks on the end of the headstock. Neck and back are pretty clean, just some minor scuffs/rub-wear from play. There's a couple of very minor scuffs around the sides. The front is pretty clean, just some play scratches above the strings and near the knobs. Overall: excellent condition.

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. All electronics tested and working properly. Frets have minor wear only, 9/10 for life left. Wearing fresh 11/49s.