Shop Startup Fund

Help me get the shop off the ground

I'm building St John Guitars from zero. If the work means something to you, there are a few ways to help — but the best one is a paying job on your guitar.

The best support isn't a donation — it's business

Local to Whatcom County? Skip the tip jar and bring me your guitar. Setups, fret work, rewiring, restorations, custom builds. Free estimates, and I'll do trades at fair value. Cash, Venmo, or CashApp. That's what actually keeps a shop alive.

Book my bench time

I spent 20+ years as an engineer building big systems — the kind of work where you measure everything, document everything, and there's no faking it. Music was always the other half of my life. In 2009 I had a near-death experience and it rewired me. Building guitars came right behind the playing. Engineering brain plus guitars. That's the shop.

This year hit me hard. I'm coming back from diabetic ketoacidosis and a heart attack. I'm recovering, getting my strength back, and doing a lot better now. I'm unemployed, and instead of grinding out resumes for jobs that aren't there, I'm putting what I've got into St John Guitars. My shop, my rules, my standard.

There is no such thing as a practice guitar.

Every instrument on my bench gets hand-wound pickups measured on an LCR meter, full copper shielding, real CTS pots, paper-in-oil caps, frets polished like chrome. Stuff nobody sees but every player feels. The number on the tag reflects the parts and the hours. I don't cut corners, period.

Starting a shop with no paycheck coming in is expensive. Tonewood, fret wire, pickup wire, tools — it all costs money before the first dollar comes back. If you want to help me get this off the ground, here are the direct rails. No GoFundMe, no middleman taking a cut. It goes straight into the shop.

Send directly

CashApp

$thetrainsmith

Venmo

@davidstj

PayPal — Tip Jar

Scan to send

Shows "BTHLCorp" — that's the parent company. See below.

PayPal

Scan to send

Shows "BTHLCorp" — that's the parent company. See below.

A few plain answers

Why do the PayPal codes say "BTHLCorp"?
St John Guitars operates under BTHLCorp, the parent company. Same hands, same shop — the PayPal account is just held under the business. It's legit.

Is this tax-deductible?
No. This isn't a charity or a nonprofit — it's a working guitar shop getting started. Support here is a personal thank-you, not a write-off.

Where does it go?
Straight into the shop — tools, tonewood, fret wire, pickup wire, parts stock. No platform fees, no middleman.

I'd rather just hire you.
Even better. Book bench time or email dstjohn@stjohnguitars.com.

Thanks for reading. If you know somebody with a guitar that needs work, send them my way.
— Dave · St John Guitars · Lynden, WA