The Fool Guy Posted November 15, 2011 Report Share Posted November 15, 2011 I really like the pickguard, it adds contrast to the guitar and just looks cool, like the shape of it too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackdog Posted November 15, 2011 Report Share Posted November 15, 2011 Hey Chad ! Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Tele !!!! I know what you mean about the wood grain, but the pickguard belongs in there. It's not a "proper" thinline without the PG ! That's my vote, anyway... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted November 15, 2011 Report Share Posted November 15, 2011 PG,no doubt... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ljbarbeau Posted November 15, 2011 Report Share Posted November 15, 2011 +1 on the pickguard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diffidentia Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 No PG, no doubt! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 I was doing my best to remain anonymous with the pup thing..... for the record, I vote PG. It looks great! Covers up some of the wood, but in this case its like classy lingerie; You know theres beauty being hidden under there, you can even see most of it, but not quite all of it..... makes it more interesting - IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 16, 2011 Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 Covers up some of the wood, but in this case its like classy lingerie; You know theres beauty being hidden under there, you can even see most of it, but not quite all of it..... makes it more interesting - IMO. Excellent analogy! Gotta have the pickguard now. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted November 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 16, 2011 I think the PG stays...especially after the strong argument from Mike! Hopefully if i don't go up to the city this w/end i will be able to finish everything except for the p/ups. This guitar is sitting in my room taunting me to put it together but i'm just under the pump this week and don't have time to do little things after work each day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted November 17, 2011 Report Share Posted November 17, 2011 I think the PG stays...especially after the strong argument from Mike! Hopefully if i don't go up to the city this w/end i will be able to finish everything except for the p/ups. This guitar is sitting in my room taunting me to put it together but i'm just under the pump this week and don't have time to do little things after work each day. You can't argue with that, fantastic tele Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted December 8, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 Well p/ups came on Tuesday and the Semi is all done...Thanks Mike for the Killer set of Guitarheads p/ups they sound great to my ears. They're the super twang plus set. Bridge is real crunchy with high gain, gets that classic AC/DC Malcolm Young rhythm sound, neck is warm,deep and smooth almost too perfect for what i want for playing some blues and the middle setting is a really nice blend which sounds lovely clean.... i must say i'm very happy with this git Ive been playing it acoustically for a couple of weeks and it's a very lively instrument, i was quite concerned at what it would sound like as Drak early on in this thread mentioned that he isn't a fan of the tone of Tele's with no meat behind the bridge. but i'm happy with it. It has definately helped the balance of the guitar now all the parts are in, it was a little light on the body side before. Finish weight is 3.160kg... a tad under 7 pounds. The guitar sustains beautifully, other Tele's ive played have lacked a little in this department, but the brass compensated saddles seem to do the trick very nicely, they also intonate very well. There's 2 things wrong with it though. When i was hammering in the final string ferrule the finish chipped off, had this have been a build for a customer i would have cried my little eyes out as i would have had to try pull all of them back out and refinished, but as it's mine i moved on and have drop filled the finish, i can't sand it or buff it but at least the timber is sealed. The other problem is a bouncy fret which hasn't quite seated, so when i leveled the frets it would push down leaving the fret a little high meaning fret buzz. Any tips on how to fix this would be appreciated. I figure i could inject a little CA glue under the fret and try clamp it down, it would at least fill the void underneath and give it something solid to sit on and then re-level and dress the fret. A couple of quick pics i took today, they aren't to clear was shooting into natural light and the battery was telling me it was gonna die. I'm now 1 step closer to owning my dream guitars, just need a 335 and ill be set, of course the real deal is what i want but this will do for now!Ill try get a few good shots over the w/end before i ruin it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fool Guy Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 Looks awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 eek - curly lead. all tonal observations about the guitar are now invalid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pritchy96 Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 What a fantastic, inspiring read. Made me fall in love with Tele's, too. Thanks for a brilliant, informative half hour or so Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Workingman Posted December 8, 2011 Report Share Posted December 8, 2011 eek - curly lead. all tonal observations about the guitar are now invalid You beet me to it That is one of the nicest teles I have ever seen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted December 9, 2011 Report Share Posted December 9, 2011 Beautiful tele Chad. I'd love to hear how it sounds. As far as the fret goes, I've done exactly what you've described on my first guitar and it's held up for three years so far. The next option is to pull it, fill the slot, recut and seat a new one, or pull it and swell the wood around the slot like they discussion here: http://projectguitar.ibforums.com/index.php?showtopic=45966. You may as well try the CA and clamp first though. You can always pull it and work on the slot if that doesn't work out. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Our Souls inc. Posted December 9, 2011 Report Share Posted December 9, 2011 Well then ! I love it. So glad to see the pups in such a great looking guitar. But wait... you're on the opposite side of the world, are they reverse polarity down there ? Just funnin.. Excellent looking build Chad. You really outdid yerself this time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted November 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 Just thought i would finish off this thread. Haven't been round these parts for a while... Life is flat out on my end with work. Ever since ive been home from europe, which is going on a year now ive been so extremely busy its ridiculous...The good news is ive sold one of my other builds ( sad to see it go) and there's been quite a bit of interest in building guitars for a couple local musicians. Once ive found some time hopefully in the new year i will be building another semi Tele the same as the one in this thread but for a leftie... ive got to build a bass guitar for another guy and ive been working on another original design for myself. Ive had to make no promises for these builds though as i just don't have any time. Anyway ive manage to scrape a few spare hours together to finish the solid Tele in this pair. All the hardware is the same as the semi except for the pickups which i decided to try a set of golden age Tele pickups with the vintage wiring kit. These pickups are really nice, Alnico 5 mags lots of clarity and are pretty well balanced, i do prefer to roll the tone back to half and just roll the volume off a tad and they sound lovely.... Ive only spent about half an hour playing the guitar as i just finished putting it together on the weekend. Plays alot like the semi, but sounds very diiferent. Has a wonderful thick unplugged tone and chords really ring out nicely. I guess thats the full solid body. Speaking of the body, the forearm bend and belly carve make this guitar a really comfortable guitar to play... ive never really played a strat but probably much the same. Some Pics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted November 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 A Few more... A close up of the binding which ties into the PG. Some sunshine to show up the flame maple Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chops1983 Posted November 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 I Had a few problems with the clear... i was getting witness lines after block wet sanding, so i got a little guidance from the paint shop. The tips they gave me and this is a 2k poly product was to thin to 40% and have a wide and wet fan spray, when spraying nitro it will blend into the previous coat but 2k lays on top, so after sanding back almost fully to bare timber i relayed with the new gun settings and got much better results. The other difference with my finishing technique, i actually orbital sanded starting with 800grit working my way to 2000 and then just added water to the top. Was much quicker easier and i didnt get any swirls. I know cheating right? Last shot of the 2 together! Well thats it! Chad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted November 26, 2012 Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 Man, it's good to see you're still kickin' Chad! Good to hear that business is booming too. This guitar looks FANTASTIC! Beautiful job, mate. Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob123 Posted November 26, 2012 Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 Dude, that flame maple... is so awesome Gorgeous guitars mate, well done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RestorationAD Posted November 26, 2012 Report Share Posted November 26, 2012 Well done! I like those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Workingman Posted November 27, 2012 Report Share Posted November 27, 2012 Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
demonx Posted November 29, 2012 Report Share Posted November 29, 2012 I like that flame top. Very classy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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