A Cowes musician is raffling his first hand-crafted electric guitar to raise funds for the charity supporting his friend, David Baker, who is living with Motor Neurone Disease.
Carl Blenkinsop says,
“My friend and biggest musical influence David Baker is living with Motor Neurone Disease.”
He explains that their friendship goes back decades,
“Ever since we became friends in high School, we have shared a love of music and music making.”
Raising funds through craftsmanship
Carl has spent the past couple of years learning to build electric guitars. He says,
“Over last few years I have started to make electric guitars and I am offering my first build to be raffled in aid of the charity that is supporting Dave.”
The beautiful guitar itself carries personal and creative touches throughout its design and construction.
Every component tells a story
Carl says,
“This guitar is my first and is made mostly with timber that has accumulated in my workshop over the years.
“The body is made from a single piece of hollowed-out beech (old shelf from my dad’s conservatory) with a book matched walnut top (left over piece from a boat interior project).”
The neck also features reclaimed materials. Carl says,
“The neck is a made from multiple strips of mahogany (from a staircase removed from a 1970s house) and birch (an old IKEA venetian blind).”
It includes a 25.5-inch scale rosewood fingerboard. He adds,
“The headstock design is a subtle homage to the Isle of Wight and contains 6 locking tuners.”
Designed for sound and performance
Carl fitted the guitar with Jazzmaster pickups.
He says,
“The pickups are Jazzmasters and are wired through a three-way selector switch to a tone and volume knob and a treble bleed circuit.”
Grab your ticket
You could win this stunning hand-crafted guitar by purchasing a ticket for just £5.
They can be purchased through the Raffall website. The raffle ends at 8pm on Monday 1st December 2025 or when the last ticket is sold.
One hundred per cent of the donations will be passed onto MND Association.
Follow the journey
Readers may remember OnTheWight’s feature in 2024 about David’s experiences with MND.
He and his wife, Alice, write a blog called ‘MND Can Get In The Sea!’, which documents their MND journey. It’s a thought-provoking and uplifting journal of living with MND.
The couple, as well as their family and friends, have been instrumental in fundraising thousands of pounds for research into this devastating disease.
Island record company Wight Records have also released a four track 10″ vinyl record and digital download of songs by Bobby I Can Fly (which David performed in) with all proceeds going to MND Association – available online.
The local branch of the MNDA can be contacted at [email protected]
