How about headless guitars and basses?

[Kadmium]

Sounds doable until you look for the Hardware  at both ends. ABM in Germany have it but
its like trying to get Schaller parts  :dontknow:

This - and the patents thing. 

Yes, there's also hipshot's selection, but the patents that Gibson holds (they own Steinberger now) keep a lot of other bigger builders away from it.  Carvin couldn't do the headless Holdsworth for years because of hardware & patent issues; there's a thread somewhere on the Carvin bbs describing the history of that.

Before about 2008, trying to make a headless instrument was a nightmare. Steinberger were the only company to make anything remotely viable, and you could license the technology (a la Hohner) or try to design your own. Gibson don't really want to license it out to others, and designing and manufacturing your own comes with massive cost and low reward; after all, it's 2012 and only nutcases like me really want one. In my life I've met precisely two people who own headless instruments other than myself. Now, the situation's better. JCustom, Strandberg and Toone/Townsend emerged on the scene, and ABM are slightly more reliable. Even better, Strandberg and Toone/Townsend moved to the present day and make their products from aluminium; JCustom and ABM are still sadly brass.

Incidentally, I own a headless Warmoth. It can be done, but I wouldn't call it a flawless solution. I ordered a Soloist with an EMG 35 pickup rout 45 mm behind where the bridge would go, for headless tuner access. More recent guitars have been from more custom-oriented builders, but I don't regret this one at all.