The Astroghini Can Be Yours! For The Low, Low Price Of…

We don’t call you guys the Best & Brightest for nothing.

When I talked about finding the Astroghini in Kalamazoo a few years ago, it never occurred to me that anyone would remember the van, or the story, for very long. But as it turns out, elephants have nothing on our readers… except, possibly, nose size.

I can’t decide if $3400 is a screaming deal or the equivalent of paying $5000 for an early 928 that ran when parked. The Astro part beneath the ‘ghini part should be reasonably reliable, but the rest of it is likely to be a nightmare. Reality shows rarely bust their asses to make sure their one-episode star-cars are built to the late Henry Royce’s standards. I suppose the best thing you could say about it would be that Astroghini ownership would be a relatively cheap way to get attention, but the same can be said for streaking at a baseball game.

One thing remains to be said: Aaron Cowles, the guitar builder briefly profiled in the original story, is no longer well enough to work. In addition to the Heritage Spruce Eagle discussed in the article, I also had Mr. Cowles rebuild a carved-maple Heritage H-575 and replace the original mahogany neck with a three-piece flame-maple affair.

Oh boy, look at those solar lights. I put those in for a party. I guess I wasn’t sober before the party, either. Anyway… we’re all praying for Aaron’s recovery, but no matter what happens, the peerless quality of his work will be apparent long after he, and I, are long gone. That’s the difference between a guitar rebuilt for a lifetime of use by a master of his craft and an Astro van rebodied in a hurry for a television show by a bunch of people who couldn’t care less. The difference between craft and junk.