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One thing Finns are justifiably proud of is their education system. Take luthiers (guitar makers), for example; Finnish luthiers are not people who had to learn guitar-making autodidactically by trial-and-error, here in Finland there is indeed a vocational institution (or trade college) teaching you how to make guitars. At the Ikaalinen College of Crafts and Design you can study to become a competent maker of string instruments. Finland also has a Guild of Finnish Luthiers to help Finnish guitar makers with networking more effectively.

For me it is always a pleasure to get to know budding luthiers and their handiwork. A little while ago I was contacted by an up-and-coming luthier named Osku Toppinen, who has just started to try and establish his own electric guitars under the banner ”Odes Custom Guitars” – you can contact him via Facebook and Instagram.

He recently took part in a small trade show in Helsinki, and I managed to get an electric guitar for testing. This Odes Custom Guitar is called the ”White Wizard”. It is a modern Tele-style instrument in gleaming white, priced at 1,800 € (sans VAT).

The White Wizard sure is one hell of a looker – an all-white alder body without any distracting pickguard, but with very luscious front and back contours. The body’s gloss finish is fantastic; black and white are the most difficult colours to get right, because every little flaw or dimple shows up like under a microscope. The White Wizard is simply flawless – I like it!

The neck might look like your regular Fender-type rock maple affair, but it is actually constructed from three long strips of maple, glued together lengthwise. The fretboard is a separate slab of maple, and offers 21 gleaming stainless steel frets.

The tuners are high-quality locking machine heads. The top nut is handmade from moose bone from Eastern Finland.

The dark hole at the end of the fretboard is actually the truss rod access. Odes Custom White Wizard sports a rod with a wheel nut – like first seen on Music Man-instruments – which makes adjustments a doddle. You don’t need a special key or other tool to adjust the rod, any metallic object that fits in the holes of the wheel can turn the nut.

The bridge is a modern six-saddle unit, made by Gotoh, with through-body stringing.

The neck joint is the traditional ”bolt-on” job – some players would prefer something rounder, but I’ve never had any problems with vintage-type neck joints. As long as the neck is kept firmly and securely in place, I’m good to go.

The Odes Custom White Wizard guitar comes with a bespoke neck singlecoil pickup made by Osku himself, while in the bridge position we find a coverless humbucker that had once been installed in a Hamer guitar.

In my view, most people would expect thorough shielding in a handcrafted electric guitar – either with conductive paint or using copper-foil – so this would be my only small niggle in this review. The workmanship in itself is quite decent, and everything works just as it should.

For me, the main feature that distinguishes a handmade electric guitar from high-volume bulk production is, without any doubt, the superior playability of a custom instrument.

The Odes Custom Guitars White Wizard’s neck profile is simply unbelievably comfortable. It is a combination of an early 1960s Tele neck – a slender, nice C-profile – coupled with a slightly asymmetrical cross-section, leaving a little bit more meat for your thumb to hold on to. This profile fits me to a tee, and the satin finish of the neck is flawless.

The set-up is fast and slinky. It’s hard to believe you’re actually dealing with a set of 10s here, because string-bending is so effortless.

Acoustically, the White Wizard already sounds strong and full.

Amplified, this Odes Custom Guitar is quite a different proposition compared to your grandpa’s Tele. The neck pickup has a sound that’s woody and nutty, but not too glassy; it’s more Hendrix than Bakersfield. The bridge humbucker makes you want to rock and shred until your better half starts complaining. Additionally, the switch’s middle selection offers some tasty jangling tones.

Odes Custom Guitars’ White Wizard is a great instrument for the modern guitarist. Check out Odes’ social media for other cool creations!

If you want to try out Finnish handcrafted instruments, and you’re able to come to Helsinki at the end of February, you should go and visit this year’s Tonefest exhibition, which runs on the 28th of February and the first of March.

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PS: I used the White Wizard for the lead guitar part in this video, too: