History

Sharing an interest in resonator instruments, Steve Evans, a luthier, and Bill Johnson, an engineer, set out to replicate the best features of the originals while also making adjustments and improvements. By 1991, Beltona was the only business producing quality, handcrafted metal resonator instruments - tricones, single resonators, ukuleles, mandolins along with the innovative electro-acoustic resonator guitar and mandola.

Beltona continued to break new ground by developing instruments with carbon and glass fibre bodies in the mid-1990s as they discovered that resin has many benefits over metal particularly in the areas of sound projection, weight, strength and affordability. By 2002, Steve was sole owner of the business and, with the success of this innovative design, Beltona has since focused only on producing quality, handcrafted resin bodied resonator instruments. Guitars, ukuleles and mandolins are all made to order with a particular distinction being the unique and colourful paint work on the bodies.

Beltona was born in the UK and is now based in Steve’s native New Zealand.