Build Log
My progress notes on assembling a custom strat from parts. This came about
after continually running the racks at every guitar store in town and
not finding anything even close to what I'm after. It is an act of desperation
and a gamble. I don't recommend it to anyone.
Note: My latest entries are at the bottom
May 2, 2006 10:08:00 PM
I'd been studying all the neck woods at www.warmoth.com and became interested in getting a bare wood neck that didn't require a finish. I had a jazz bass with a shaved neck that just was a dream to play. Tone was amazing and it had gobs of mojo going on. So that's the setup as to why I started my search.
When this Palisander Rosewood One-Piece Neck popped up on eBay, I contacted the seller to talk about it. You can read his response to my question at the bottom. All in all, it sounded like an incredible wood for a one-piece design.
May 7, 2006 02:25:04 PM
Here's a body I considered but opted not to get: ocean turqoise body.
May 14, 2006 10:01:49 AM
Well I broke down and bought a body from eBay today. I'd been watching a bunch of them and this one was ultralight. My decision to go light has to do with the fact that I only play sitting down (including live) and balance is not as much an issue as keeping my leg from falling asleep.
The decision to build a Franken-Caster came after playing an EJ Strat for three days straight and just not being satisfied with it. Also, I played an American strat that a friend owns and it was closer than anything I've come across yet. He ran the racks during his career in a cover band to find this one and it was really good despite a 2-point vibrato, poly finish, non-Klusson tuners, EMG hot rails etc. It shouldn't work according to all the guitar myths but it does.
May 14, 2006 11:21:19 AM
An interesting thread on body woods: TGP Thread
May 14, 2006 11:30:18 PM
A friend of mine thinks that Fender never built a basswood body. It's now a total mystery what the body is made of. Part of why I went light was playing a couple of ultra light tele's lately that I really liked. I'm already second guessing myself.
I'm pretty confident that I'm going to emulate the EJ neck specs by ordering 1 11/16", Clapton V, 12" straight radius fretboard from Warmoth. I'm going to depart spec with the Graphtec nut and stainless steel frets. I'm pretty sure I can sell this if need be for just about what I put into it, maybe more.
I may rig a little test pickguard also that will allow me to swap/try neck pickups without any disassembly. More later.
May 15, 2006 07:37:46 AM
Time to order parts from Callaham...
Here's the overall plan.
May 15, 2006 05:21:24 PM
One of the guys on TGP recommended www.guitarmill.com for finishing. They specialize in nitrocellulose. Solid body colors are the most: $190.00. Necks are less than $100.00.
Some alternate body wood testimonials appeared on this thread:
Any fans of strat bodies not made of alder/ash?
It appears that Basswood still has some fans out there. I'm beginning to think that mine is basswood again. Oh well, we'll see.
May 15, 2006 10:47:06 PM
I tried ordering the neck today from www.warmoth.com but I was too close to closing time.
Bunches of good threads regarding body weight, materials, built guitars on TGP have me feeling a little more confident. Several myths were explored such as heavy=sustain, ebony=bright, rosewood=mellow etc. There is no absolute formula. I have just as much chance of my weird combination of components working as anything else.
May 16, 2006 02:41:47 PM
Dropped into GC today and played the EJ again for a while. I'm liking the wide neck as well as the contour. I'm pretty sure that it's just stickiness of the finish that's putting me off (the most common complaint).
I made sure to try some other guitars also. In particular, a Musicman hardtail EVH Wolfgang at GC (Spokane) that had a dark woodgrain body with a binding. It had the belly contour but not the arm contour in a strat. The model number was 310 92 RW 00 WC Axis SS HH Std RW (serial number G30429; MSRP 1640.00; List 1239.99).
This instrument had an unfinished rosewood neck with a rosewood fingerboard (2 piece laminated not one solid piece) and it played and sounded great!
It also had a staggered nut like an earvana. It totally sounded like a Tele in the single coil mode. Switching into humbucking sent it into a fuller round LP like tone. It was pretty versatile.
Apparently, it had been around for a while though but one of the sales guys says that several people come in from time to time just to play it. I think it finally sold but it was a statement all around.
Specs: Neck width at the nut is 1 5/8 and the scale is 25 1/2" (std Fender). It also had a staggered nut. I'd like to get it on a strobe tuner and see for myself. This one had a hard tail made very thin like an old jazz bass and it totally sounded like a Tele in the single coil mode. Switching into humbucking sent it into a fuller round tone.
They offered it to me for $1200 out the door tax and case included with a two day deadline. I'm thinking I want to grind lower; more like $1000.00.
May 16, 2006 04:23:31 PM
Talked to Dan at www.warmoth.com just now. We talked about the Palisander and he said it was a little unusual not to have it in. Regarding it's characteristics, it is lighter than Indian Rosewood and doesn't tend to get neck heavy. One of the guys at the shop has one and it's on a thin line Tele and works fine. The SS frets are also liked by everyone at the place and they all have them on their guitars. They are supposed to be a little brighter but no one has complained about it. Since I like bright guitars, I'm likely OK. I'm supposed to email back to sales@warmoth.com to check on availability.
Meanwhile, I'm just going to go ahead with the body and all the components. I'll put my Austin neck on it for now and probably see a big improvement in tone. That neck actually plays as good as some of the best strats I've been on lately; however, it needs upgrades everywhere else. I wonder what I'll get with that direction for the time being?
May 18, 2006 05:47:06 PM
I got an influx of cash this week when I sold a synth module and my Vox Tonelab. I got reamed on the synth. Keyboards are junk technology; they only depreciate. I would hate being a keyboard player. What a consumer nightmare.
May 18, 2006 09:12:14 PM
I found out that the 72 body is indeed basswood so that explains the lightness of it. I'm convinced that light weight doesn't necessarily mean anything regarding tone. It's all a big gamble at every step. I'm letting go of some of the fear.
May 19, 2006 07:01:37 PM
I sent in my order for the Callaham parts today. They only allow faxing or mailing of the order. There's no web page ordering system in place.
Also, I found an online seller (acmeguitarworks) on eBay that does prewired pickups. They have different variations using Fralins. The price works out to 20-30 dollars for the assembly and soldering.
May 20, 2006 08:52:27 AM
A good thread on wood combinations:
Ash/Maple strats?
May 21, 2006 12:04:51 PM
The waiting game begins...
Also, I'm wondering if I can find someone in town who can do the soldering for the same or less than paying for an assembled one from a company back east. It would be better to keep my dollars in our local economy if possible.
May 24, 2006 12:24:25 PM
Callaham confirmed my order via email. It went out yesterday via USPS. Their turn around was really quick considering I mailed the form in 5 days ago.
UPS tried to deliver my body yesterday. I'll get it today.
Another Ocean Turquoise body showed up on eBay today. It's 5 lbs. 15 oz., better than the last one, though it's a '62 reissue version. I want it.
May 24, 2006 06:16:59 PM
The body arrived today and it's awesome. I wish I knew what to look for in tone tapping but it sounds lively to my ear--a nice resonant sound when I knock on it with my knuckles--so it doesn't seem to have an obvious lack of resonance or something strange going on. I'm thinking it would be cool to record the sound of the tone tap test for posterity.
May 24, 2006 10:56:30 PM
I weighed the body at the post office and it's 3 lbs 9.8 ounces. I think that's a good body weight but the ad said "the lightest Strat body I have ever come across, weighs little more than 2 pounds" so I'm not sure what to put on the feedback. On the one hand, it is a fairly light body but a little more than 2 lbs is not 3.5 lbs?
May 25, 2006 06:31:03 PM
The Callaham stuff arived today. That was pretty fast turnaround--six days. I don't know why their bridges go used for full price on eBay because they aren't in any back order state? Nice to know I could sell it quick and for full price though.
May 25, 2006 08:00:34 PM
Alright, here's where it gets a little more daring. I purposely bought a 70's version body because of it's light weight. I knew it had the three hole mounting system and that I'd be doing some drilling and refitting to make it work. I've measured and the distance from tremolo mounting centerline to the first neck mount holes appears to be 7 1/2". This makes sense because engineers tend to stick to even measurements when designing stuff and Leo was first and foremost an engineer. Neck mounting holes appear to be 2" apart (running the length of the guitar) and 1 1/2" wide. I'm floating a thread on TGP to see if anyone can confirm these measurements.
One of the things I've read about Strat necks is that the tolerance in the neck pocket are what keeps the neck from shifting; the mounting screws are not enough to keep a tightened neck from shearing sideways. Hopefully, this body mates tight with the Warmoth neck I'll be getting. Measurements appear within tolerance (according to Warmoth spec sheets). If all else fails, I'll just end up getting a Warmoth body with a neck mounting relief.
May 26, 2006 09:56:53 AM
Some good links to discussions about Strat projects:
Anyone use ReRanch products?
Strat Wiring: Vintage, Modern, Blender or ?
Amber Neck finish other than Reranch
Your opinions: Best Strat Pickups
Here's a web reference on Strat pickguards:
Pickguards
May 26, 2006 10:42:58 PM
Measuring and doing the layout has been pretty stressful. I've done it 5-6 times from different starting points and triple checked all the centerlines. I'm starting to feel more confident. In the end, I'm just going to put some modeling clay in the neck slot and press the neck into it. Then I'll check those centers with what I think it should be and if they match, begin the drilling from the back side. I'll start with a tiny bit for the starter hole.
As an aside, I think that Fender really blew it with the three point mounting system. I know that's the consensus but just looking at it makes me cringe. I'm sure that I'm devaluing the body but actually I'm saving it. Resale will suffer though.
So here's the secret Fender Strat layout dimensions:
Tremolo screw centerline to closest neck plate holes.... 7 1/2"
Rear neck plate holes to back of neck pocket............ 5/8"
Neck plate hole front to back centerlines............... 2"
Neck plate hole width centerlines....................... 1 1/2"
This guitar end of body pocket to tremolo centerline.... 9 13/16"
Rear neck pocket to tremolo centerline.................. 6 13/16"
Neck pocket length...................................... 3"
May 27, 2006 03:23:11 PM
The Sperzels showed up today. Turn around time from close of sale to delivery was 8 days. This guy, potbelly2000, has some good deals on guitar parts.
May 27, 2006 07:46:16 PM
Been reading the thread, Your opinions: Best Strat Pickups , and I'm leaning toward the Lollar Blondes at this point. Discussion included the phrases "piano-like", "smooth", "creamy".
May 28, 2006 09:24:18 AM
www.acmeguitarworks.com has a complete reference of MP3's comparing Fralin, Lollar, Fender CS, Lace pickups here:
Pickup Comparison Clips
Here's a little Windows shell program and a script that will pull them all down onto your computer (I wrote both these so they are safe from viruses). Put both of these files in the same directory and run the one called get.bat.
To use them
- right click on each and choose, 'save target as...'. put them in the same directory.
- Run the one called get.bat
- Say 'yes' to any warning messages.
get.bat
gethttp.exe
May 28, 2006 11:01:52 PM
I've listened to all the clips (308 mp3 files) from the www.acmeguitarworks.com site and I'm really liking the Lollars. They have the piano chime and are well balanced. Listen to the country blond clips and you'll see what I mean. They don't have too much mid or high/mid tone either. I'm listening to Third Stone From The Sun as my benchmark as to what I like in a Strat. That was one glassy sounding guitar/amp combination.
There's significant differences that are very audible in the sample clips. I think I could match a set to a guitar to tone down mid range, create a more dark sound etc. now that I've spent some time with them.
May 31, 2006 08:05:29 PM
The waiting game continues--I call Warmoth next Tuesday about the wood.
My friend talked to a guitar tech the other day and found out that the Warmoth necks and bodies are a better fit than the Fender ones. He said he had built three of them and each one was an excellent guitar.
June 02, 2006 01:42:01 PM
Phoned Warmoth... still no Palisander Rosewood in yet. I can see that the neck is the hardest part on this whole deal.
June 08, 2006 08:49:51 AM
Phoned Dan at Warmoth again today and he says that they might have the wood in a couple of weeks.
June 17, 2006 05:56:47 PM
Interesting link to a custom pickguard maker:
Terrapin Guitars - Custom Pickguards
Other Links
July 16, 2006 09:54:59 PM
Played another EJ Strat today and I'm starting to hate them. This one was so stiff feeling. I was hoping that I would bond more with the candy apple red but that didn't have anything to do with it. I'm rethinking the neck shape but I'm still pretty sure that the V is a good choice. It's almost the same thickness as the one I have now (.8125 to .9).
Back to the EJ, I don't like the tone wiring. The pickups don't jump out at me. I recently played a Highway 1 Texas Tele (Serial Number Z4009398) that I really bonded with. It was hands down the best feeling Tele I've ever played. It needed new pickups right away though. The body was one piece and really light. Talk about a comfortable guitar. If I'd had the money, I would have bought it. I think that I'm more impressed with the Highway 1 Strats than I have been with the EJ. I don't know what that's all about? Pickups would need to be changed out right away though... maybe the bridge and block too.
I'm having to hold off because I'm still unemployed right now. However, I've got a pending job that could make it possible to get some new stuff soon.
July 22, 2006 01:29:35 PM
Played an SRV for the first time today and it was soooo right. The fat neck works with the slightly wider nut. It had the vintage wiring too. This is the neck shape I'm going with. In fact, this the strat that I've most bonded with so far. I'm not into the color or the gold hardware though at all. The unbeveled pole pieces are also a source of irritation when I play. It seems like I'm always catching a pick or nail on them. I'm curious about the left handed vibrato; I wonder if it's really better?
There's a strange phenomenon I'm beginning to notice and it happened on this guitar. The strings felt like they were .008's. Now I didn't measure them but the guitar suppossedly comes with .010's on it like the EJ but this one felt like they were light as a feather. The last two EJ's I've played felt really stiff, almost like they had .011's or .012's on them? Suppossedly, they both are setup with with the same strings? There was some discussion of this on thegearpage.net and I'm becoming more and more curious what's going on here. I may have to start carrying around a set of calipers and checking. Or maybe have the store put new strings on?
SRV Specs:
- Alder body
- Pau Ferro Fingerboard
- Vintage wiring (the best for tonal options
- 12" radius
- 6105 Narrow Jumbo Frets
- Left hand tremolo
- Nut width 1.650 (in between std 1 5/8" and 1 11/16"; about 1 21/32")
5/8" = 10/16" = .625
11/16" = .6875 - Fender Super 250R, Nickel Plated Steel, Gauges: .010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046, p/n 073-0250-006
July 26, 2006 11:59:04 AM
Well, I ordered the neck today despite still looking for work (how's that for faith?). I went with the SRV radius instead of the clapton like I thought in the beginning. Turn around is 4-6 weeks. Here we go...
Wood: Solid Palisander Rosewood Nut: Graphtec Graphite Neck width: 1 11/16 Contour: SRV Alt Frets: SS6105 Stainless Med Jumbo Truss Rod: Vintage Radius: 12" constant
July 27, 2006 09:07:33 AM
I've decided to go with the Fender Custom Shop 54 pickups instead of the lollars. I found a deal on some and can save about half vs. cost of the blondes. This will work for now until I have a little more money. Then I can swap them out for the Lollars and experience the difference first hand. Selling the CS54's is easy, they go for almost full value on eBay.
July 28, 2006 03:13:15 PM
I've come to some conclusions about what makes one guitar stiff and another really loose. I believe it has to do with the smoothness of the fingerboard, the smoothness of the frets, string spacing, the stickiness of the fingerboard, the string gauge and string height. While playing a really nice SRV strat this week, I noticed that the padouk fingerboard is fairly slick. In addition, the frets are high and the tips of my fingers barely contact the finger board. Furthermore, the frets appear to be well polished. The American string spacing means that the next string over is further away and gets involved later in the bend. Also, the strings are not too low so the nails go under the next string up and push it up and out of the way. Conversely, the EJ Strat fingerboard seems to react with my slight perspiration and it provides too much resistance through tip contact; it is one of the stiffest feeling instruments I've ever played.
July 28, 2006 05:44:11 PM
I started thinking about the truss rod strip and wanted to make sure that they used something dark. I've seen a lighter yellow looking wood used on one of the rosewood necks and I didn't like the appearance of it. So I called and the guy that I talked to said that they can't specify the wood used here and that there is no way to enter it "into the system." Well, as an computer programmer, I know that there is usually some place to put notes on orders so that sounded kind of strange to me.
July 29, 2006 03:13:04 PM
Fender Custom Shop '54 Pickups are on sale for $129 shipped.
Product: Fender Custom Shop '54 Strat Pickups
List: 239.99
July 30, 2006 05:06:15 PM
Played another SRV at GC. This one was good but not as good as the one at Hoffman's. So even though it's close, I would start running the racks for the right one if I were zeroing in on it. I also realized that I could part out all the stuff that I don't like on it and replace them and keep the cost about the same. Yet another option in the grand scheme of things.
I was playing through a Vox AC30 Topboost with the SRV and my ear has gotten spoiled since playing my H&K. The Vox colors the tone of the instrument too much for my taste. Maybe this one had some other speakers in it or something because it was really annoying. I couldn't tune out the midrange honk. I prefer transparent amps (like a stereo) to this sort of thing. The SRV and this Vox was a bad combination.
July 31, 2006 10:38:49 AM
Well, over the weekend, I thought about the truss rod strip some more and I decided to phone again and see if I could negociate for the color of wood I want there. I talked to Aaron about it and he said that they would likely use a dark wood but it's arbitrary... they use whatever wood is lying around the shop for it. He said that usually ends up being walnut or rosewood but it could be canary or maple. He even verified this with his boss who happened to be standing there at the time. The official policy is that they don't allow specifying which wood is used here. This still seems strange when you consider that they allow every for every other conceiveable feature to be chosen? Who would have thought?
Also, it just dawned on me that since I'm using this neck unfinished, that the strip should probably be something that doesn't require a finish either. The guy from the other day said they would probably use canary or even maple. This sure is taking the fun out of this part of the project.
July 31, 2006 09:48:37 PM
Here's the response I got from Warmoth from an email I sent a few days ago:
Mark,
Actually with this neck being Rosewood, the skunk stripe will most likely be Walnut; however there is no guarantee on what type of skunk stripe this neck will have because the neck crew picks the wood at their own discretion.
Regards,
Jay Davidson
Warmoth Guitar Products, Inc.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Henri [mailto:mark@canhelpyou.com]
Sent: Friday, July 28, 2006 6:27 PM
To: Jay Davidson
Subject: RE: Order 111084
What about the truss rod strip? Can I have purpleheart? Actually, any wood will do as long as it's not yellow or orange.
Thanks,
Mark
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Jay Davidson [mailto:Jay@warmoth.com]
Sent: Thursday, July 27, 2006 4:22 PM
To: smart@markhenri.com
Subject: RE: Order 111084
Mark,
It checked your order again and it does match the specs listed in your E-mail. We’ll do our best with the Palisander we have available, but I’m unable to vouch for how purple we’ll be able to get this neck.
Let me know if you need anything else.
Regards,
Jay Davidson
Warmoth Guitar Products, Inc.
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Henri [mailto:mark@canhelpyou.com]
Sent: Wednesday, July 26, 2006 2:43 PM
To: Warmoth Guitar Products
Subject: Order 111084
Jay:
Thanks for taking my order. There were so many options that I just wanted to reiterate them so I didn't accidentally overlook something. Here they are—
Solid Palisander Rosewood (One piece neck)
Early Fender headstock (the vintage looking smaller one)
Graphtec Graphite Nut
1 11/16" Neck width
SRV Contour
SS6105 Stainless Med Jumbo
Vintage Truss Rod
12" constant Radius
Sperzel tuner holes
Also, if you can choose for color, I would like to go towards purple. In fact, the more purple the better with the palisander wood for me. If you can go with purpleheart for the truss rod slot piece I like that. I'd rather avoid any orange tones here if possible.
Thanks.
Mark Henri
August 01, 2006 06:23:12 PM
Bought the pickups today at Musicians Friend online. They were on sale but I used my Paypal account to pay for them because I thought it would be convenient and they dinged me a service charge for it. Next time, I'm using a credit card.
August 02, 2006 08:17:49 AM
Musicians Friend charges sales tax in Washington. Next time I'll call and place my order so I don't get surprised like this again. :-(
August 04, 2006 10:22:59 AM
Pickups arrived; that was quick shipping (the one advantage of having MF in my state I guess).
However, I didn't realize it but the poles are not beveled. I must have been thinking of the Lollars or something. Oh well, I can always carefully grind them. Resale may suffer though.
I might need two guitars at this point.
August 09, 2006 10:17:01 AM
I had a strange revelation in my playing and it's probably going to change what I want in a guitar neck. Argh! All these years and I finally learned the technique for playing Superstitious from www.dolphinstreet.com. The muting is all in the left hand. I've been doing composite muting all these years and never realized how hard and fast you have to swipe the strings with the pick to get that sound. The SRV stuff is suddenly working too... same technique. I would imagine that I'll be able to do fairly passable versions of Hendrix tunes now also now.
The point is that now I think I want a 1 5/8" nut with wide string spacing, a Clapton back, 9" constant radius (or less!), and tall frets.
August 11, 2006 01:38:17 PM
Argh! Another dynamite guitar showed up at Mark's Guitar today. It was a satin black Highway 1 Strat (A6029558 made in USA) with a 70's headstock. It also had a maple and rosewood neck and the rosewood turned a beautiful burgundy at the 12th fret. It had high frets and just played like a dream. List is 999.00. It also has the 60th anniversary little 1/4" medallion on the back of the headstock. It also had the modern wiring (I'd change that immediately to vintage) and some hotter pickups with non-beveled pole pieces. Everything about the thing screamed funk and Hendrix. The riff to Superstition just jumped out of it. This is the one I would have bought had I waited even though I prefer the smaller headstock. I think I'm also going through a Hendrix phase right now a little since I've been concentrating on my left hand muting so much lately.
Important stuff:
Framptone Amp Switcher
Plek Fret Dressing
RS Guitar Works deals on pots
August 15, 2006 08:02:27 AM
I bought the pots and wiring components yesterday at Mark's Guitar. I got a push pull pot for the 2nd tone control. I'm going to wire it vintage style but I'm going to have a little treble cut for the bridge pickup. I haven't figured out the cap/register values for it yet. I'll ask for advice on thegearpage.net about it shortly.
August 15, 2006 01:30:53 PM
Wiring your own pickguard is educational. I didn't really understand what was going on with the vintage scheme until now. The main thing that's relevant is the way the pickups are configured in the in-between positions. Basically, highs are shunted from them (2 & 4 positions) both simultaneously. I thought that they were controlled individually before. I'm wiring a push pull switch into the mid tone control so that I can enable treble roll off with that pot. I see why I like the vintage system even more now. When you shift to the bridge pickup, you get no treble control or roll off. This way, you can leave the middle tone control part way and not have to twiddle knobs jumping pack and forth.
Also, I got word from Warmoth that they are shipping the neck today. It's supposed to be here tomorrow. There was some mixup on the address also. The moral: confirm, confirm, confirm.
August 15, 2006 11:14:00 PM
I pretty much finished the wiring and I've concluded that I need to do a lot more before I have any style or really do a neat job. I should have looked at the ones on www.acmeguitars.com to pattern the runs after instead of following Fender's little "blueprint" diagram because they do a more artsy job of it.
Anyway, I wired in the push-pull tone circuit that introduces the tone control to the bridge when you pull on the mid knob. I can see that I have a lot more experimenting here because the standard tone network is really primitive and I am sensing that it could be done way better. The deal is that there isn't much usable tone control in it. Things seem to happen at the extremes and not at all in some positions?
Special Note: Fender Custom Shop Pickups have a known issue with the screw holes. Mine came untapped and too small to put the 6-32 screws through. One of the guys on thegearpage.net just said he encounters this all the time and to simply ream them out and sometimes grind the screw tips to cone shape to get them to fit.
Instead, I drove over to www.gotbolts.com (aka Fasteners) today and got some 4-40 X 3/4" oval slotted stainless steel screws for the pickups (pn: 40132 code: 5003.0440.0075.11). These fit the existing holes perfectly and if they were to strip, I've still got the 6-32's that came with it.
Also, I picked up an 3/8" internal lock washer (pn: 240 code: 1107.037.0.11) for the input jack. Read this excerpt from an article on www.acmeguitarworks.com site about how to never have your input jack come loose again:
Tighten the jack. Wait, add washers to it first if needed, then tighten it. You want a star washer (internal-tooth lockwasher) on the inside, between the jack and the jackplate, and a flat washer on the outside, between the nut and the jackplate. The fact that Fender doesn't use a flat washer indicates that they have no one on staff who has ever studied bolting technology. That's why their jacks always come loose. They come loose, and then people try to tighten them from the outside of the guitar, but the nut doesn't really tighten because the jack just rotates inside the guitar, twisting the wires, which ultimately break. At this point, the guitar is taken into the shop with the complaint that the pickups don't work, but really the pickups are fine, the jack wires have just broken.Total expenses on all the switches, pots, cap, and wiring stuff in the last couple of days:
So the sequence is: make sure the jack is a Switchcraft jack (did I mention that? if it isn't, consider replacing it; they cost $2.50 and will last you for the next 40 years; we ship ours with the correct washers), make sure you have a star washer on the inside and a flat washer on the outside, put a drop of Loc-Tite on the threads, and then hold the jack with one hand while you tighten the nut securely with a 1/2 inch wrench, socket, or nutdriver. There. Fixed forever.
$40.42
August 16, 2006 01:00:00 PM
Rethinking Guitar Electronics
Everyone here knows that microphones with a tube preamp in them are superior. I think it's time for tube preamps inside guitars. The guitar will plug into a standard microphone cable with phantom power and be capable of long runs without signal degradation. Eventually, amps could include phantom power. Sound engineers wouldn't even consider a microphone that didn't have balanced connectors. Are guitars somehow less than a quality microphone? How long must we live in the 50's?
August 16, 2006 02:25:48 PM
My neck arrived about a 1/2 hour ago.
pictures
August 16, 2006 11:25:15 PM
I'm doing the layout for the tuners. Sperzels use a pin that protudes from the gear body to hold position (a #36 bit). They provide a cardboard template but the hole in it was just a little too big. I spent an hour making sure that my drilling punch marks are accurate and used a caliper to ultimately mark them. The centerline was established by eye (both right and left/visual and feeling) and I'm confident it's correct because I redrew it a 2nd time. I can see why a careful setup would make a guitar cost a lot more. I'm even more amazed at how low guitar prices are; the builders at the various companies must get pretty fast at putting them together.
Also, I established the drilling punch marks for the body. As you know, I'm converting a three-point neck mount to four. The upper two holes, that is, the ones nearest the headstock are not as wide as the normal four screw layout. I don't get why Fender did this, it looks unstable. It's too bad they didn't have a six point mounting system with machine screws.
It's my feeling that there is nothing sacred about the body. Changing the mounting holes has no significant bearing on it's ability to hold a neck in place nor does it weaken that area. The holes are only there so the screws can pass through. The neck plate positions the screws and compresses the neck and body together so that energy is transferred between them. Granted, I'm not a luthier, but I've looked at this long are hard and I'm not missing anything here. Neck pocket fit is excellent and this is where the action is from what I've learned. I believe it will work. However, if it doesn't and the neck will not stay securely in position, I'll just have to get another body like the '57 reissue in turqoise.
I also had this idea for a new product: Rocks for Guitar. Little jem stones in a double pyramid that you embed between the neck and body. They dig in and make the connection really tight like the audiophiles with their cone shaped feet. There would be a prep of creating a little indentation slightly undersized to put them in on the neck side and then comes the bolt up, unbolt and prepare the other side then final bolt up. It would probably need to be installed by a luthier because the indents would need to be just enough to compress the wood without either going too far or having a gap in the joint. It would probably be a good idea to build some sort of jig also to do the line up.
August 17, 2006 10:59:26 AM
I'm having a time trying to find someone with a drill press. None of the family here has one and one is a professional carpenter. I guess it's a machine shop sort of tool though I never thought of it that way before.
August 17, 2006 10:28:39 AM
Body drill sizes: #50 for the starter hole and #18 for the finish. I'll use a tapered countersink reamer to get through the gel coat on the back side so it doesn't chip coming through.
August 18, 2006 03:11:39 PM
OK, I'm shopping for a drill press. Sears has one on sale for 99.xx that would be adequate. I'm checking pawn shops now.
August 18, 2006 04:34:11 PM
Alright, my mom comes through. She has a friend at her senior community that has one.
August 18, 2006 11:24:21 PM
An interesting post on tgp about bridges.
"I had a similar experience to some of you. I replaced the steel block in my Suhr with a Titanium and the swamp ash/maple neck combo became too thin and shifted the harmonic content up too much. I lost some of that bass thump. I went back to the steel. But on a darker sounding guitar, the Titanium could be just the thing to perk it up!!!" -bluehugh2, thegearpage.net, August 18th, 2006
August 19, 2006 03:39:07 PM
The drilling for the tuners is done. Four came out perfect. Two were just a little snug but within tolerance. I think I would practice on another piece of wood next time by drilling a tuner hole and then the alignment hole. It's still difficult because doing part of the layout after the fact is the hard part. There's got to be a better way of doing this... maybe a jig of some sort or a better layout template than their little punched paper thing.
I'm lining up the body with the neck now and it appears to be straight. The strings converge a little at the nut but not much. This seems to be a standard thing with the vintage bridge width.
August 19, 2006 07:10:18 PM
False Alarm - I'm Panicing Over Nothing Here (added later)
Marrying the neck to the body is becoming a project in itself. The neck pocket is shallower than a 57 RI for example (they must have made the necks a little thinner during this period?). So do I hook it up and have the neck a little high out of the pocket or ?.
Options include
- Milling the pocket a little deeper - this is more doable that it seems and I've got a really cool trick for doing this that I've used before in another guitar.
- Getting another used body, this time a 57 RI like originally intended.
- Getting a Warmoth body and having to pay for paint.
August 20, 2006 12:10:47 AM
OK, I put on the pick guard and it changed everything. The neck fits. It could be about 1/16" lower but I've seen them like this so I know that nothing's wrong here.
The issue I'm facing now is that the screw holes for the neck only go 19/32" and their's room to go another 1/4" and still have 1/32" before the lowest point in the fret slots. Here's the message I sent to Warmoth:
Technical Staff,
I'm almost ready to bolt the neck on my body. I noticed that the holes aren't drilled very deep (19/32"). I'm using Callaham's screws and I think they need to be longer because only 5 threads will make it into the neck. Then again, it is a pretty hard wood being solid Palisander Rosewood and all. There's room to go another 1/4" and I'm still a 1/32" away from the lowest point of the fretwire.
What's your philosophy here? The deeper the better? Don't go deeper than ___ or else?
Thanks,
Mark Henri
August 20, 2006 10:34:20 AM
I'm looking at lowering the neck slot 5/32" now. I know it's hard to believe but this is not as difficult as it sounds. First off, I'll score the finish with an razor knife. Next, I'll use a router bit with a reverse taper, fine cutting ridges and a flat bottom. This bit goes in the a drill press which is adjusted to stop at 5/32" below the current surface. Slowly, you just press it into the wood taking little 1/64" or less bites and blowing out the material. Doing the center and up to about 1/32" of the pocket sides is the first pass. The last thing is to under grind the edges. This way the pocket width is not touched. I've used this technique in the past when routing through thick poly and it makes a perfect edge without splintering or cracking.
70's body thickness : 1 25/32" Neck pocket depth : 21/32" Screws protrude : 17/32" (just a little over 1/2") Pickguard thickness : 3/32" Neck screw hole depth : 19/32" Existing Neck overhang : 6/32" (tight with the calipers) Maximum pocket depth : 51/64" (3/4" + 3/64") Balance Point : Between 3rd & 4th Frets exactly (with Sperzels)Another thing: The vibrato cavity needs some additional clearance on the side with the bar. 1/16" should do it with the dremel.
August 21, 2006 08:18:40 AM
Another Ocean Turquoise body in case my changes don't work out.
August 21, 2006 11:07:45 PM
I finished grinding the pickguard. Steve LaCombe had a grinder and I finished it up with my Dremel. It looks pretty good and it's a passable fit with the neck overhang now.
August 22, 2006 09:06:12 AM
Well, it's a new day. I've realized that I just have to lay back now and see what's going to happen. This is flow with the universe time and the right tools will become available when they do or I'll find a job and be able to buy them.
Today, I'll go and measure the neck pocket on some vintage strats.
August 22, 2006 02:41:42 PM
Craftsman Lazer Drill Press on sale for 89.99.
Stanley Fatmax Mobile Project Work Center 119.99
Shamrock Pawn - Nutdriver Set for $4.50.
Power Tools Rental on Sprague just east of Theirman
August 22, 2006 02:50:08 PM
Mark, the owner of Mark's Guitar Shop in Spokane died today of Melanoma skin cancer.
Specs on that black Highway 1 I like:
Fret to neck pocket : 1 1/16" Fingerboard to pickguard : 1/4" + 1/32" Fret Height : 1/16" Slight relief Body thick : 1 3/4" Neck : 1 1/8" Nut width : 1 11/16" String cuts e - e : 1 3/8"
August 22, 2006 05:19:17 PM
It's the wierdest thing, my guitar specs out almost identical to the magic strat I've been playing at Mark's for the last couple of weeks. All the measurements appear so close. The neck pocket is fine on this body? The poly finish appears to add 1/32" to the entire guitar but other than that, fret height is the same or actually lower to the body by a 1/64" or so?
The only thing that appears wrong is the neck screws, I just don't like that they only go in five threads? I think that this is probably how everyone's mounting them. I'm going to go to Fasteners and get some stainless steel 2" ones, grind the tip just slightly about 1/32" because it's not needed, sink the pilot holes 1/4" deeper on the neck (by hand) and mount the neck up.
August 23, 2006 07:20:39 AM
I'm getting ready to mount the neck.
Neck Specs (continued):
Neck Screw Hole Depth : 1/2" Max Possible Depth : 27/32" Target Depth : 25/32" Stock Screws Protrude : 17/32" (just a little over 1/2")I'm thinking that if I could get a 1 7/8" screw, I wouldn't be risking going too deep but it would be significantly stronger than the 6 threads that are making it into the neck as it is.
Drill Sizing Chart
The size appears to be about a #31 or #32
August 23, 2006 08:11:18 AM
Talked to lady at Sperzel about ordering separate parts. I want to go with either a black barrel nut and washer or the tuners in nickel to match my bridge better.
August 23, 2006 06:33:44 PM
The screws for the neck only come in 1/4" increments so I went with 2". it's pretty deep but still about a fret wire's thickness from the fingerboard. I was really careful with the drilling and setting of them and everything is OK. In fact, the connection is so secure given the extra length, that I'm confident that they will never strip or have problems. Here's the size and ordering information from Fasteners:
#8 x 2" Oval Hd Phillips T/S 18-8 SS PN: 15596 Id: 5313.8.0200.11
August 24, 2006 08:38:32 AM
I talked to Steve last night and he said "I don't like chrome... too shiny." I concur. It turns out that Sperzel has Nickel plated. This would look a lot better on this guitar.
All About Sperzel
Another Source
August 24, 2006 11:20:44 AM
String Tension Calculator
Another
August 25, 2006 07:58:56 AM
Well, it's together and it plays OK. I've dialed it in by ear and it tunes up good. I also floated the bridge. Steve LaCombe, a setup guy in town says that many people are afraid of dealing with floating a bridge but I think it's pretty easy to do. I wouldn't install a back plate though because it needs adjusting with a screwdriver while tuning to really nail it down.
I'm still getting used to the thicker neck. As it is, it doesn't have the magic that that Highway 1 has yet but I'm not a setup guy. I'm using Fender bullets on it and I hate those strings. They feel really stiff and lifeless compared to the Snake Oil ones I get online. Nonetheless, it's as good as any Eric Johnson I've played so that's saying something.
The one problem I'm having is in the tone control. The neck pickup tone control appears to just shut the volume down. I'm using a 47 pf capacitor and it works fine for the mid and bridge pickups. I'm wondering if the value just isn't right for the neck? The wiring appears correct. Very strange.
August 25, 2006 04:14:37 PM
I took it into Mark's Guitar to compare it side by side with the magic strat. They adjusted the bridge so it's resting on the top of the body and I think it lost some of it's zing. If there's one thing this project did, it got me over any fear of doing adjustments on the vibrato (aka tremolo) tailpiece.
Anyway back to the comparison... it did pretty good. The whole guitar feels bigger than a standard strat. The body is thicker and so is the neck. I let the guys play it and no one was blown away but I'm not sure if this is simply because it's different, it isn't fully setup or they simply aren't into it. Everyone did like the feel of the unfinished rosewood though.
The biggest issue I see at this point is the relief. The neck is so rigid that it's not bending at all up near the fifth fret. I've loosened up the truss rod and then just snugged it up expecting it to shift overnight but it doesn't move.
Once again, I have to say it... I don't like Fender Bullets. I got some Slinky's for it and until I can order some SOS strings, I'm not really going to know if I like this guitar.
August 26, 2006 09:53:59 PM
OK, it's a new day and this guitar is getting better? I don't know what it is but I'm suddenly playing fast on it? In fact, I'm going faster than I normally do. I don't know what it means or why it's happening. I've been continually tweaking the saddle height, intonation, and vibrato height. I put a capo on the first fret and the action suddenly got really good. Conclusion: the nut is too high. I've still got some problem with the neck tone control. I swapped out caps and it still doesn't work? I think I've just got a bad pot because the other one is great. 47 picofarads is perfect for the middle and bridge pickups. The .1 microfarad I've got on the neck doesn't do much.
I also went down to Hoffman's and played a couple of other thin skin Highway 1's. They are consistant. Even the maple neck one played great. That one had railroad ties for frets too; they looked like bass guitar stock. I came home and mine wasn't that far off. I'm thinking that what I like in a strat is low action with some buzzing and a floating vibrato. Could this guitar be working out?
August 27, 2006 11:42:09 PM
Sperzel Detailed Specifications
August 28, 2006 07:30:21 PM
Either it's sounding and playing better and better or I'm just deluding myself.
August 29, 2006 07:22:33 AM
August 30, 2006 06:34:54 AM
Talked to Allparts and it turns out the the EP 0085-000's are the correct ones. He thinks that I've got metric knobs and that the push-pull (EP0285-000) is probably foreign made (metric). So there's metric and American knobs. Argh!
August 31, 2006 08:50:28 AM
Went to Fasteners yesterday to get internal star washers (pn: 240 code: 1107.037.0.11) for the volume and tone pots. These washers will allow me to get the knobs a little lower on the face of the pick guard.
Also, I stopped by Mark's Guitar to play the magic Strat again and now that I've had mine for a while, the tone is different. Mine is a little fuller! Mine also resonates more and the body and neck are more lively. I still like that one though and I would buy it or one like it if I had the extra money. I can see myself with a couple of Strats, a PRS and a Tele in future.
August 31, 2006 02:49:30 PM
I talked to Bob at Mark's Guitar and he said that the .1 mf cap should have more rolloff than the .047 pf cap. In other words, the higher the value, the more roll off.
Another thing I realized is that I could make a little box/breadboard that plugs into a guitar and then tune the tone network by swapping parts in and out of it. It would have a 3 position switch and a 250 and 500K pot to work with. I could then add resistors to the PU's and try different cap values without even having to open up the guitar.
September 01, 2006 01:04:41 PM
Talked to my friend Rich and he just got a PRS 513 with a unfinished rosewood neck and it raving about it. Sounds like a good instrument. I think it's funny that we both went this direction. His was about $4000 more though and probably is that much more guitar but I love mine now. It's really growing on me fast. I played the magic strat and it wasn't as big a thrill as before. This one's evolving as I dial it in further and further.
Elizabeth at Sperzel said they would take my tuners in trade for the nickel ones. What a great offer. However, I don't think I can be without my guitar that long. The though of playing my old one was suddenly a real drag. I'm going to just wait till some come up on eBay and get them and then sell mine later.
September 01, 2006 08:48:24 PM
Played guitar at Steve LaCombe's and he was on it for a bit. The verdict is that it's a great sounding strat and plays good. As a guitar tech, he's a good source for comparison. Also, the tones are strat in the SRV vain. In between positions are classic. Quack is good on the bridge/middle combination. I'm still not getting the treble roll of I want from the neck pickup though?
I think I might have figured out why the neck pickup tone control is acting like a volume control. I've got the pot before the capacitor. Oops. However, this is how the vintage wiring scheme did it? I should just take my other one apart and look. I don't see many good wiring schematics on the internet.
September 02, 2006 12:29:05 PM
Nope, it's not hte ordering of the caps and pots, it's a bad pickup. The neck one is shorted out and has no resistance? What's weird is that it does have some output to the amp though it's much less than the other two. I raised it as high as I could into the strings and it's like at half power. Electronics are strange sometimes?
Musician's Friend was cool about a return but I have to send the whole set back. Looks like I wont be jammin' much though an amp here for a week or so. Maybe this is a good time to swap the Sperzels?
September 02, 2006 01:08:53 PM
No Load Pot
Twelve Way Mod (ala 513?)
All About Capacitors - Stalefish
Capacitors have an impedence that's indirectly proportional to the frequency of the signal passing through it.. The higher the impedence, the In English, that means a capacitor actually blocks off lower range sounds.. The higher the value of the capacitor, the lower the impedence at a specific frequency... What this means is if you put a capacitor with a big @ss value in series with a pickup, nothing much would happen 'cause the low impedence would let everything through.. Put a small value capacitor in series, though, and you've got a high pass filter (ie knocks off the lower range)..
When you put the capacitor in parallel, it does kinda the opposite.. A large value capacitor in parallel would block off almost everything while a small value one would act as a low pass filter (ie knocks off the treble).. A tone control works like that.. You've got a capacitor in series with a pot which are then both in parallel with the pickup..
Practically, having a higher value capacitor in your tone control would bleed off more treble when you crank the tone all the way down.. The down side is that your overall tone would be muddier due to the fact that some signal will still pass through the capacitor even when the tone is maxed out..
Usually, when your tone pot value is high (500k), you'd use a higher value capacitor such as a 0.047uF or a 0.033uF one.. With a smaller pot value (250k), 0.022uF or 0.01uF capacitors are usually used.. No hard and fast rules here, though..
Sorry for the long, long post.. Hope it was worth the read!!
September 02, 2006 06:20:44 PM
Some really wild switching options
Sending the pickups back and the tuners is a pain. I'll be without my guitar for days. My old one is terrible to play on. It's difficult to create on because it sounds lifeless by comparison.
December 24, 2006 06:50:53 PM
Well, I've been playing on it for a month more and I really like it. It's my personal instrument more than any other and it really feels good to me. I like the SRV neck more and more. I play some nice ones in the stores but it always seems like there's some compromise I'd be making. I haven't wanted to take one home in a long time now.
There are some outstanding issues. I need different pots on the volume and 1st tone because the ones I got from Mark's Guitar are too stiff for my taste. Also, winter has caused the neck to shrink a little and the frets need to have the ends filed in. This is common up here because we are so dry and I've seen it happen on PRS's and other instruments in town. I eventually want to get a parchment pickguard when I can afford it or have some alternative made. Steve offered to make one out of copper for me and patina it in blue. That could be really cool. I'd also like to have it Plek'd and know that would probably make it into one incredible instrument.
But all in all, I lucked out and got a good one. Tone is really nice and has enough quack to give it an authentic strat sound; however, the rosewood does mellow it a little. The sound really works for me and I'm loving it. For real playing, I have my H&K and it sounds stellar with this guitar. I'm getting the Hendrix Third Stone glassy tones and I'm very happy. I use a Tim, and a Fulltone Deja Vibe II and I have everything I need.
September 27, 2007 12:21:00 PM
I finally had Guitar Frank do a high quality setup on it. The fretboard had shrunk a little leaving the ends of the frets exposed. This is typical up here because we have dry winters that really pull the moisture out of a guitar neck. He worked over the nut, the pickup heights, the fret ends, rounded the frets a little more on the thumb side, cleaned up my wiring, set the bridge saddle heights to get a better arch and used a different gauge of string (9-46). He said the the CS pickups were very finicky and that just a half turn of the screws was enough to totally change the character of the tone.
What I got back was incredible and there isn't a strat in town that I've played that can touch it now though the ones he had were really good and at a similar level. This one is all mine and the tones are very distinct in every position. He said that the neck was so rigid that my bass notes are ringing louder as they go. The guitar is bright and has a scooped midrange compared to one of his benchmark strats. This is what I was after and I suspect that hotter pickups would add this in if I wanted it later. However, I was after a bright chime sound and got it full on. Think Chris Isaak Wicked Game for that early surf meets western tone. He also complemented me on choosing the nickel plated tuners instead of chrome. The chrome ones didn't look right with the neck color so it just seemed necessary.
BTW, here's the current pedal roster now--
Strat > Fulltone Clyde > Tim > Little Green Wonder > Deja II > Loop Station > Echo Park > H&K Amp
February 02, 2008 11:39:44 PM
The dry winter has shrunk the neck and the frets are hanging out a little again. Frank said this could happen and that it's OK because he'll further dial the guitar in as we go and it will get better and better. It's like an old friend now and I love it more than any ones I've played.
April 05, 2008 07:22:32 PM
Here's the breakdown on the cost finally--
| Custom Guitar Pricing | Totals | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware | ||
| Callaham Vintage S Model Hardware Kit | 178.00 | |
| Fender Custom Shop 54 Pickups | 140.00 | |
| Pickguard | 24.96 | |
| Switchcraft CRL 5-way Replacement switch | 11.00 | |
| Pots | 24.00 | |
| Wire & Capacitors (I used two) | 5.00 | |
| Additional Screws | ||
| Tuners - Sperzel | 56.98 | |
| Sell Callaham Tuners | <31.00> | |
| Hardware Total | 408.94 | |
| Neck | ||
| Solid Palisander Rosewood (One Piece) | 237.00 | |
| Graphtec Graphite | 23.00 | |
| Neck width: 1 11/16" | 20.00 | |
| Contour: SRV | 35.00 | |
| Early Fender headstock (vintage smaller one) | - | |
| Alt Frets: SS6105 Stainless Med Jumbo ($20) | 20.00 | |
| Truss Rod: Vintage | 20.00 | |
| Radius: 12" constant | 35.00 | |
| Sperzel Holes | n/c | |
| Tax | 17.50 | |
| 407.50 | ||
| Body | ||
| Fender Basswood 72 Body | 245.94 | |
| Body Total | 245.94 | 245.94 |
| Fret Detailing & Setup (Guitar Frank's) | 175.00 | |
| 175.00 | ||
| Grand Total | 1,237.38 |
September 23, 2008 11:43 PM
I've been playing this guitar for a while now and ever since Guitar Frank worked on it, I've noticed that the high E string was very close to the edge of the frets. Occationally, I'll slide off because he rounded the fret ends a lot. I was checking out a Jeff Beck strat and noticed how perfectly the strings were lined up with the edge of the fingerboard. Mine, on the othe hand, splays a little too wide down at the 22nd fret. It makes playing up there require some care.
So I finally posted on TGP and someone suggested the Wilkenson bridge because it retained the strat sound but the string width was 2-1/8" instead of the vintage 2-7/32". In addition, I checked with Callaham and they now offer a special bridge that is vintage screw set width with the Mexican string width of 2-1/16". That's just a little too narrow though. So I ordered the Wilkenson tonight and I think it's going to tighten up my whole setup. I suspect that it may be more stable also because rumor has it that the mounting screws have little slots in them to accept the knife edge. The Callaham uses std machine screws with a flat barrel. This allows the knife edge to drift up and down a little and supposedly, will interfere with tuning. Wilkenson also has a unique knife edge idea that allows for slightly imperfect mounting screw spacing.
October 12th, 2008
I got the new bridge on and it works great. You can dive bomb the thing and it comes back in tune perfectly. I almost can't believe it. It seemed to add a little mellowness to the tone but it's still sounding good. My screws make this creaking noise that I didn't like at first then my friend Steve was totally into it when I was doing a feedback thing at his house with my new Sunface Germanium Fuzz. I love my guitar.
Also, I got $100 for the Callaham bridge on eBay a couple of days ago.
copyright (c) 2007 mark henri