We do a fair amount of research when we are working up the design for a new module.  That research takes numerous forms at different stages in the process.  Sometimes we purchase boards or kits from some of the "build your own pedal" companies to build their version of some circuit we are considering.  That gives us some experience with the circuit - not just building and hearing the result, but figuring out which components we like, where to source parts, and other activities that we take on during our R&D before we can complete our own designs.  Often we will use these builds to test modifications, tweaks, or other changes that we will offer in our designs.  Sometimes we end up with extra wiring, controls, messy hacks to try mods, or other abuses that yield a build that we would never use due to the resulting dodgy construction.  Those eventually find their way to the salvage bin, then the scrap pile.

However, most of the time we end up with a nice pedal that sounds great, works properly, and is reasonably constructed.  Of course, these are not built on our boards and are not designed by us.  These are third party boards and designs, built mostly to their instructions, using their recommended parts or other parts we decided to try instead.  That is not to say there is anything second-rate about them.  They are just different from what we do and how we do it.  These board/kit companies have been selling hundreds or thousands of boards and kits for years and have a large and loyal following of builders in the DIY community.  The pedals that result from their builds can be as good or better than you can find from the big name and boutique pedal companies.  We have quite a few of these pedals we've built.  But they have served their purpose for us and end up sitting around unused.  That's a waste, so we're offering them for sale so they can find a good home.

There's not a lot we can say about them in general.  Each one is its own unique build.  However, one thing we can say is that they certainly haven't been painted and finished on the exterior.  They are "naked" on the outside, with hand-written labels, or no labels at all.  Of course, that has no impact on how they sound or operate.  You can leave them "as is", or you can paint and finish them to be works of art.  The labels are written with markers.  The ink usually comes off easily with some alcohol or acetone (fingernail polish remover).  Sometimes it just rubs off on its own.  

They are all very lightly used.  Some have battery connections, but most do NOT have battery connections.  Unless noted otherwise, they all take standard 2.1mm, 9VDC, center negative, standard "Boss style" power connections, though internally some run at higher or lower voltages, some at mixed voltages, some at negative voltages.  Some of the circuits are positive ground internally, but utilize proper power circuitry so that they still run on "normal" power and do not need separate/isolated power feeds.  Note that in nearly all cases, there is one photo that shows the location of the power jack, as well as input and output jacks.

We priced them at about the cost of the parts.  The best to way to think about them is to suppose you bought a pedal kit and had someone build it for free for you.  Each one is described in some detail, including some information about the components used.  Many of these builds include rare and expensive parts, as noted or as seen in the accompanying pictures.  All the pedals have been tested and work, the controls behave as they should (unless modified, as noted), etc.  These are not rejects, just unused "homemade" pedals.  However, as such, they come with no warranty or guarantee of any kind, and there are no returns, exchanges, or refunds.  All sales are final.  Ask any questions before you buy.  They do not come with manuals or any documentation of any sort.  Many of the boards or kits are still sold, so if you search for them, you may find the build manuals, schematics, and other info that goes with them.  Those searches will lead you to websites with lots of great DIY products, information, and excellent communities of experienced pedal-builders.  If you have ever thought about building your own pedals, these are the places to start.

It's first-come, first-serve.  We do not recommend buying these pedals with a plan to modify them.  Many of the boards are tightly packed, not designed for desoldering and resoldering.  Some do have ICs or other parts that are socketed.  If you are knowledgeable, you might be able to swap out some of those socketed parts if you want to try some changes.  If you catch us at a guitar show, we may have some of these pedals with us and you are welcome to try them out.  

When these pedals were built, there were no plans to sell them until we started running out of room, years later.  Due to that, we didn't document these builds as closely as we would for a product.  Some part types, particularly diodes, are sometimes unknown now.  We include best guesses for unknown parts when we know what the options would have been for us at the time, but those guesses could be wrong.  Also, as we wrote up the descriptions for these pedals we introduced two additional potential sources of errors.  We opened up the pedals to identify the parts inside.  But sometimes it is difficult to see part numbers in a fully-populated pedal.  There could be mistakes, although we were being very careful.  The second source of possible errors is that the webpages were copied and modified as we added more pedals.  Again, we were careful, but that's a lot of cut, paste, and modify.  We may have missed something.  If something seems incorrect or you have any questions, or specific details are important to you, please check with us first before you purchase them.  We're happy to answer questions.

The pedals are loosely categorized as Boost, Drive (overdrive, distortion), Fuzz, and Other (flangers, phasers, chorus, routing, reverb, etc).  Click on the categories below to see the details of the pedals available, including pricing.  

To purchase, send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to arrange details, payment, etc.  Shipping and sales tax are included in the prices, as shown.  PayPal and US shipping only.  If you purchase more than one pedal at the same time, the shipping may be a bit less.  We'll likely use a USPS Flat Rate box that runs around $16.  Depending on the pedals selected, from 2 to 4 should probably fit in one box.  For 1 or 2 pedals, we'll try to be eco-friendly and recycle boxes and packing material we've received from our suppliers if they are in good condition.