Dunlop Manufacturing - Background and Early History

Background and Early History

Scottish immigrant Jim Dunlop founded the Jim Dunlop Company in 1965 as a part-time business while working as a processing and chemical engineer, first creating the Vibra-Tuner, a small device that attached to a guitar with a suction cup and would display whether the guitar was in tune with the vibration of a small reed in the tuner. While going from music store to music store trying to sell his new product, he was told by someone that what musicians needed was a good capo, pointing out that if anyone ever made a good capo that would securely clamp on a 12-string guitar, that person could make a lot of money.

Using his broad engineering background, Dunlop was able to create the toggle capo, and then worked with a local machine shop to build his first capo dies, eventually manufacturing what is now called the 1100 series capo. Starting from his living room, Dunlop later moved construction to his garage, and then to a location outside of the house.

On March 19, 1972, he moved into the pick market, reading every issue of Guitar Player magazine and noting musicians’ comments concerning what they liked and didn't like about picks. His first picks were made from nylon, which continue to be produced to this day. That same year, Dunlop left Dymo Industries to focus on his new company full-time, moving his family to Benicia, California and setting up shop in at Benicia Industrial Park. A few years later, they had outgrown that building and moved onto Industrial Way.

Dunlop products now range from the capos and picks to slides, fret wire, strap retainers, and a wide array of electronic effects, including the original Crybaby wah-wah pedal, the Univibe, Heil Talkbox, and the MXR and Way Huge lines of stompboxes.