About marley guitar

Custom & Handcrafted Acoustic Guitars By Jim Marley

“The man who works with his hands is a laborer.

The man who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.

The man who works with his hands, his head, and his heart, is an artist.”

– St. Francis of AssisI

Master Luthier

Meet Jim Marley

Hi, there! I’m Jim Marley, owner, and luthier at Marley Guitar Co. in Dacusville, SC. There I build custom steel & nylon-string acoustic guitars, including OOO/OM, Dreadnaught, Archtop, Classical models, and acoustic basses. I also provide repair services. 

Like many luthiers before me, building guitars first started as a hobby that grew into a passion. When I build a guitar, I provide my customer with what will become a part of their legacy, the next generation’s heirloom. I also have the honor of creating a piece of art that will be transformed into the fine art of music in the hands of yet another artist, the musician. How cool is that?

I grew up in rural western Pennsylvania and earned a BA and MA from Kent State University (’85 & ’87, respectively), along with a minor in music (trumpet and voice from 7th grade through college). I served as a US Marine from ’91 to ’95 and earned an MBA from Webster University in ‘94. While stationed at the Marine Corps Air Station in Beaufort (SC), I met my beautiful wife, Ronda. We settled in the Upstate in ’95 and have never regretted the decision . . . it’s a great place to raise a family. We have two sons in college, one attending the US Military Academy at West Point and the other at the US Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs.

our support for veterans

Founded in 2014, Marley Guitar Co. is a Service-Disable Veteran-Owned Small Business and supports Guitars-4-Vets, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to providing relief to struggling veterans through the healing power of music and community.

G4V provides Veterans struggling with physical injuries, PTSD, and other emotional distress a unique supportive program, sharing the healing power of music by providing free guitar instruction, a new acoustic guitar, and a guitar accessory kit in a structured program run by volunteers, primarily through Department of Veteran Affairs facilities and community-based medical centers throughout America.

Marley Guitar Co. is committed to donating $200 for every guitar we sell to G4V. $200 is needed to send one Veteran through the G4V program.