G&L Guitars is gone. Although the guitar makers’ website still appears to be business as usual, rumors about the company’s demise, which have been circulating since the summer, seem to have recently been confirmed. Let’s take a closer look at how this came about and how Leo Fender’s second company got started.
ADVERTISEMENT
The History of G&L
How G&L Guitars Came About
Leo Fender at his workbench at G&L · Source: G&L Guitars
G&L Guitars (George and Leo) was founded in 1979 by Leo Fender, George Fullerton, and Dale Hyatt. Leo had been forced to retire from guitar making in the 1960s due to health reasons and sold Fender to CBS in 1965. Since the mid-1950s, he had been increasingly affected by severe bacterial sinusitis, and with no successful treatment available, he felt the need to take this step.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
But a guitar fanatic like Leo couldn’t sit still for long. More than ever, as his health improved dramatically after changing doctors and treatments in the years following the sale. So, in the early 1970s, he began advising Tri-Sonix, later known as Music Man, through his company, CLF Research.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
At the end of the 1970s, Leo Fender teamed up with George Fullerton and Dale Hyatt. Fullerton joined Fender in 1948 and played a key role in the company’s first solid-body designs, including the Esquire and Broadcaster. Hyatt also knew Leo Fender from his Fender days.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
It goes without saying that Leo Fender continued to develop and improve his babies, the Stratocaster and Telecaster, at G&L Guitars. Many classic features were retained, while Leo improved on perceived weaknesses such as the tremolo system, and the pickups.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
Innovative developments such as the MFD pickups, the PTB tone system, the dual fulcrum vibrato, and the saddle lock bridge quickly earned manufacturer G&L an excellent reputation. Leo later referred to some of the models released by G&L as “the best instruments I’ve ever built.”
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
These more upscale series were manufactured until recently at the factory on Fender Avenue in Fullerton, California, in the immediate vicinity of the Music Man factories. However, G&L Guitars was never a mass-market brand.
A glance at G&L Guitars’ latest roster shows that the manufacturer had some real gems in its range. Series such as ASAT, Comanche, Legacy, and S-500 were among the best Strat and Tele models on the market. The workmanship and materials used in these US-made models made G&L an insider tip. However, the manufacturer’s main source of income was the Tribute series, which was manufactured in Indonesia and aimed at beginners.
G&L CLF Research L-1000 Bass · Source: G&L Guitars
In addition, G&L also produced a couple of very popular bass models, including the Fullerton JB jazz bass, the CLF Research L-1000 and L-2000 models, and the Fullerton Deluxe SB 2. When developing these models, Leo Fender drew inspiration from the popular basses he developed at his old company.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
G&L also had a few signature models in its range. The most prominent of these was the Rampage model by Jerry Cantrell (Alice in Chains). G&L also released modified guitars based on the specifications of session musicians such as Will Ray and John Jorgeson.
The End of G&L Guitars
In late summer 2025, posts appeared on Reddit, Talkbass, and TheGearPage suggesting that the manufacturer was nearing its end. More and more sources emerged describing the company’s difficult situation. And then everything happened very quickly.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
Steve Araujo, who worked at G&L for over ten years and runs the YouTube channel The Bass Hand, described the process as follows: He himself resigned on August 1, 2025. The remaining employees were furloughed for two weeks on September 15, 2025, with management ensuring them that work would resume on September 29, 2025.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from YouTube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
But things went in a different direction. On Friday, September 26, 2025, employees were told to come in for meetings on the following Monday, September 29, 2025. There, they learned that G&L Guitars was finished, and they were laid off with severance pay.
In the wake of G&L’s demise, it also became public knowledge that Fender had secured the naming and image rights of Leo Fender from the remnants of the company at the beginning of October. So, there will very likely be a whole series of special edition models on the market soon.
Better guitars than Fender, but just not Fender. Unpopular headstock, but innovative features and high-quality workmanship. Leo Fender’s signature, but hardly any brand profile. These contradictions seem to have finally broken the manufacturer in the summer. In contrast to orders for their premium series, sales of the Tribute series have reportedly stagnated recently, which may have been the final nail in the coffin for the financially stricken company.
Fans are expressing their grief in relevant forums. How do you feel about this? What do you associate with the manufacturer? And which models did you particularly like? Let us know in the comments!
This article originally appeared on Gearnews.de, translation and additional information by Julian Schmauch.
*Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links and/or widgets. When you buy a product via our affiliate partner, we receive a small commission that helps support what we do. Don’t worry, you pay the same price. Thanks for your support!
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Facebook. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Instagram. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
You are currently viewing a placeholder content from X. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.
