Biography
Chip has Bachelor degrees in Commercial Art and Mechanical Engineering and has taken graduate work in Fine Art, specializing in Sculpture.
He repaired guitars for a local music store while in college and owned a guitar warranty repair facility for Fender, Gibson, Ovation, Martin, and Alvarez, in Houston in the early ‘70s.
He started the Peavey Guitar
Program, designed the instruments and manufacturing fixtures, conceived the
processes, hired and trained the employees, and gave seminars for dealers for
six years. He and Hartley Peavey co-patented the neck manufacturing process
around which the program was built. Hartley Peavey has often referred to his as
“The Father of the Peavey Guitar”. They introduced NC manufacturing of
bodies, gunstock carving machinery to carve and sand guitar necks, simultaneous
pressing of frets, extensive use of die-cast hardware, cases with every
instrument, blow-molded cases for electric guitars, neck tilt mechanism,
out-of-phase switch, tone control coil cancellation, urethane paint, and many
other innovations to the guitar manufacturing process.
Chip held the position of Director of Research & Development for Fender Guitars, Rogers Drums and Drumsticks, Rhodes Pianos, and Squire Strings. He was also Director of Technical Services for Fender Guitars. He was there from 1981-83.
He was consultant for Schecter Guitars for a year and refined their fixturing and processes.
Chip counts as friends in the industry, past and present, Helmet Schaller of Schaller Tuning Machines, Takeo Gotoh of Gotoh Manufacturing, Ted Kahatsu of Moridiari Musical Dist., Takao “Johnny Cash” Saitoh of Fender of Japan, Chuck Keip of Keip Machinery, and especially, Hartley Peavey, mentor and loyal friend.
Chip is “retired”, which means not driving to work, and lives in Austin, Texas. His shop is a fully-equipped machine shop, wood shop, painting facility, with plating, powder coating, firearm repairing, and race engine building
