Harden Engineering is a small Chicago shop that specializes in hand-made instruments in a variety of shapes and sizes and aims to bring a custom approach at affordable prices. Its Muddy Waters model is a single-cutaway with a body made of paulownia. Let’s dig in.

The Muddy’s medium-C shaped neck is maple capped by a 14″-radius rosewood fretboard decorated with catseye inlays and 22 jumbo frets over a 25.5″ scale.

For electronics, look for two hand-wound Harden pickups. On the Muddy Waters, they’re single-coils, but the bridge slot can accommodate any standard-sized humbucker (including Harden’s own). Other details include a metal logo plate on the headstock, hand-etched metal armrest, and light relic’ing on the edges and back. The finish is called Distressed-Barn Brown.

Amped up, the Muddy Waters impressed right off the bat with a combination of its light body and quick feel thanks to the neck carve and setup. In a word, it was “lively,” with a bright persona emanating from the resonant paulownia and Harden single-coils. It’s certainly not a traditional Telecaster, owing to the uncommon body wood and custom pickups, but it’ll cover a lot of the same ground – rock, blues, country, and all combinations thereof. Clean, the Muddy Waters delivers lots of sparkle, while dirtied up, it cuts through a mix with its potent top end. No question, it likes to rock and roll.

Shipped with a hard case, the Muddy Waters is competitively priced and offers wicked custom touches in a guitar that looks old-school and plays like a modern plank should. There’s plenty of value here and it would behoove any guitarist to check out Harden as an alternative to the tried-and-true solidbodies on the market.

This article originally appeared in VG’s December 2024 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.