Those darn Canadians! (this is the first time I've ever heard anyone cast aspersions on Canadians even in fun- whose next - Australians? )

To avoid confusion you should just pick a name you like (and other's might like) that someone else hasn't used.

he could start a virtual online band with people of the same name who had a similar interest in music and played various instruments (if he could get them to go along with it).

I run shop as a sole proprietor so legally my shop can be nothing other than my last name "Howard" and what I do "Guitars" so "Howard Guitars" is the only name I can legally run a shop under.... I have an EIN to protect this right.
My instruments are however always marked and sold as "Brian Howard Guitars" to make myself distinct from the others who use my name. After all I don't want anyone to confuse the other crap with my exceptionally fine instruments....

I was rather surprised that Bond Instruments was across the aisle from me at VIGF...at least he makes pointy metal guitars...

Goodman Guitars-"They're good, man."

Have any of you folks heard of Mansfield Guitars? From what I can gather, this was a name used by a Canadian distributor of Japanese-built guitars from the 50's to the 90's.

This also happens to be my name. I'm a hobbyist builder, so doesn't matter much, but when inlaying a "M" in the headstock or making a label, I'm aware that someone owner the rights to my last name for guitars. (At least in Canada, I guess.)

I'd be surprised if the distributor owned any rights in the name, even in Canada.
US law is fairly similar so far as trade marks are concerned.

Distributor owned brands in the USA? I can think of a few....
Danelectro, Hammer, Washburn, Aria, Paracho..... Even Dean whom Gibby is suing is owned by Armadillo enterprises which is more a distributor than a manufacturer.

I named my efforts after the street my shop was on. We recently moved to a street called Bear Creek which is perfect given my name. I was sad when google informed me that there was already a Bear Creek Guitars. At least now I don't have to print up new soundhole labels.

I have a funny story regarding this...

I'd be surprised if the distributor owned any rights in the name, even in Canada. They may have had an unregistered trade mark while they were distributing the guitars, but if they haven't used it for years then that will have lapsed because it lost its distinctiveness. You could search to see if they registered a trade mark and kept it going, but if they stopped distributing I'd be surprised if they paid the renewal fees.

US law is fairly similar so far as trade marks are concerned.

Of course, you might feel there are some "moral" ownership claims you should respect, or commercially you don't want to use the same name as another guitar seller, but that's not the same as legal ownership rights.

It's a common misconception that the first to use a name gets some kind of rights by doing so, but I don't know of any national law which grants such rights. You can get rights by building up a reputation over time, or registering the name as a trade mark, but to otherwise.

But this was a low-end name from over 20 years ago, and it would have cost them money to keep the trade mark registered. Firms tend to do that only with out-of-use names which they think will have future value, based on past reputation. This doesn't seem that kind of name. A search of the Canadian trade mark registry would tell us, of course.

I agree with your wife. BM Guitars is outstanding and easy to market ....

'Find your music to be a little binding? Transitions from one movement to the next just not happening? Clear the air once and for all, get a BM Guitar.