Richard Wrote:

"Wilkat Guitars", If you have not heard the name before, you will in the future. I first met Bill about six or seven years ago. He sort of twisted my arm to start playing bass again, after not playing for twenty years. So, I found and bought a "Yamaha" bass from a friend. After a bit of practice, and some jamming with Bill, I soon realized why I hated most of the basses I had owned in the past. I went through 11 basses in 12 years. Why? Because most of the basses were factory built, or used equipment, and they just didn't feel right.

I showed Bill a guitar that my friend Phil and I built a few years before. He was impressed with what we had done and was wondering why we had not finished it. We had a problem with the neck pocket and the neck angle. He soon found the problem and repaired it. I told Bill he should start building his own guitars . I knew he had the talent for it. I saw some of the other instruments he had made. What he did to our guitar was amazing.

I told Bill about my dream bass. It was just an idea at the time, but not for long. We sat down, made up some plans, found the parts I needed, and away he went building a neck through body design. Helping him build my dream bass was a great thrill. Bill has a knack of making you feel at ease. He plans every move and does not leave anything to chance. From beginning to end, Bill put his heart & soul into it . Even on nights that I was not there to help him, he gave a daily report. I always knew what progress was made that day, or week. When the bass was finished, all I could do was stare at it. I could not believe he built the bass of my dreams! It looked fantastic, and the playability was perfect. The selection of wood:  purple heart, maple, and butternut was awesome. The combination of woods gives the bass great tone  It's the best investment I've ever made. If you're looking for a great bass or guitar, do yourself a favour:  Go to the "Wilkat Guitar" site and take a look -- you wont be sorry. If you want quality, and good service,  Bill is the man to talk to. If you want custom handmade guitars built with tender loving care, and real customer care, "Wilkat Guitars" is the place to go. You can see my bass on his web site "The  Élan Bass" .I may be a little biased, but the bass he built for me was better, and less expensive, than a lot of high end brand names I looked at.

If you have any questions about the bass, you can e-mail me at:

r_duperron@hotmail.com

Sincerely,
Richard Duperron

PS:  I also had an old Strat style body that I was going to throw out because somebody had tried to re-work the neck pocket, and it was badly butchered up. Bill took a look at it, and before long the pocket had been repaired, and Bill had made a custom maple neck for it, complete with a rosewood finger board. I bought a new bridge for it, and got some other parts, and today I own a great guitar that stays in tune, and plays great. He finished it off with a nice blue stain and a clear gloss lacquer, and set up the action so the traditional tremolo system works as well as a locking one (and there are no string tees required)! And to think that I was going to throw it out!

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Bill's Comments:

Élan: Definition: Verve, Dash. In other words, striking, stylish, and performance oriented. That's what Richard was looking for, and I was eager to try and satisfy that goal. This is a very special instrument, and I was happy to be a part of its development. More over, it never would have been created were it not for Richard's ideas, his choice of woods, and his dream to own a fine bass, and I owe him my gratitude for asking me to help him build it -- it was a labour of love to work on such a wonderful bass, and although it was truly experimental, the end result was remarkable. One of the greatest pleasures I derive from this bass, is the first time anyone sees it, the first thing they always say is "Wow!".