LukeR

Hahaha, thats true! Ed is one 'unique' cat. In terms of tattoos over scars, I have found that time is the healer of all wounds. I had a scar on my arm (years old), and had a tatto that went over it. No problem at all. If you look at it in the right light, you can see where the texture of the skin is different, but made no difference to the tattoo at all. That said, last year I did something stupid with a soldering iron, and managed to 'stab' one of my tattoos with it when it was on (one of those stupid, negligent accidents that happen in a blink of an eye). I ended up with a scar in the middle of my tattoo (in a red part of my tattoo, so its not really noticeable). After it was healed, I went and got it touched up. However, now (about 12 months later) the ink has gone from the scar area (so it looks as though it was never touched up at all). I dont think the scar was settled or faded enough when I had it touched up (it was only a month or so after the soldering incident). I think it would be OK now, so when I get it touched up again (soon) Ill let you know how it goes. Cheers man, Luke

I wear a suit to work, so all of my tattoos are hidden, haha. Its definately a good idea to keep your tattoos 'T-Shirt coverable' until you have a few, and/or are used to it. Somewhat off topic (rant here) Do not get a 'semi permanent' tattoo. It does NOT work (the tattoos that supposedly last for 3 or so years, using vegetable dyes). They do not fade out completely- they leave a mess. They end up looking terrible- the only option is coverup, or lazer removal. I have to say, lazer removal does not return the skin to 'vigin, untattooed' quality- its never the same. The skin CAN be damaged (scarred) by the tattoo process- if you look closely at a few tattoos (over a few years old or so) you may see it (not tattoos over scars, mind you). Everyone is different, but if you scar easily, it is something to think about. Removal is not better than not having a tattoo in the first place Cheers all, Ed Roman (I mean, Luke)

Yes, never, EVER go to a backyard tattooist. No matter how 'clean' he/she tells you they are, OR how good their work looks. Once you have Hep C or HIV, its too late. It is much more worthwhile to have the piece of mind that goes with knowing you are safe. A good sign is an Autoclave- if they dont have one, I personally wouldnt get any work done there. I also wouldnt go to anyone who appears 'annoyed' when you ask about their saftey procedures. Remeber, YOU are paying them- its in their interest to give you piece of mind. Tattoos tend not to look their best on a corpse, in my humble opinion. Cheers all, Luke

Thats really cool man! I have nine tattoos (at last count). I have a small one on my chest and on the back of my neck, one on my f'orearm-wrist area (the inside wrist, about the size of a packet of cigarettes), both sholder to elbows' (not sleeves, just tattoos from those points) and one on my left side from my armpit to my waiste. Good night all, Luke

I have alot of tattoos, and I hear on a daily basis 'You know they dont wash off, do you!?!'. Happens everyday. Every single day. Luke

In terms of sound, I had the extreme pleasure of hearing one of the 'expensive' BC Riches on Monday night. I saw the Velvet Revolver (Slash's new band, for those not in the know), and he opened the show with a BC Rich. I have to say, I thought the tone of that guitar was magnificent. I thought that this was the best tone he had all night, even though he used many, many Les Pauls as well. I prefer a 'traditional' looking guitar myself, but I have to say, that BC Rich had an amazing tone, which I must admit, surprised me greatly. Cheers all, Luke

Hahaha, have you seen the movie 'Clerks'? That was me, and nearly ALL of my friends. I lived that movie. Luke

Yes, DEFINATElY! Hahaha, I know that feeling! People tend to feel sorry for you and give you a TM. However, I much preffer my 'Champion Ruby'. I also use filters as well- Do you guys? It seems to take the remaining harshness away, AND you dont get those stains on your fingers. I wouldnt go back to unfiltered hand rolled cigarettes- filters are definately the best option. No bits of tobacco in your mouth either! (I used to hate that!!!!!!!!!!!!) Luke

Its nice to see you get one pick with it as well.

I too am a smoker, and smoke far too damn much for my own good. I smoke around 40 cigarettes a day, and have been smoking for over 10 years. I did quit smoking once, for 3 months, about 3 years ago. I had all sorts of promlems conentrating on things, studying, and remembering things (as well as many other probs). Anyway, even though I no longer craved cigarettes (physically or mentally), I thought that not smoking was the cause of my problems. I deliberatly started smoking again and, lo and behold, the problems didnt go away. After a few months, I went to the doctor, had some scans and 'stuff'... it turns out that I had epilepsy, which was triggered by Zyban, the drug I had used to stop smoking. By this time, I was hooked again, and have decided to to quit for another year or so. I guess for me, I know that I CAN quit, because I did it before, and stupidly CHOSE to take it take it up again (I was 'fully quit'- no cravings, completely no interest in smoking-'mentaly quit' as well as physically). I plan to quit smoking around June next year. Out of curiosity (for those who cant remember what it's like ), once you have quit smoking (after the withdrawals) you feel the same was as you do after you have finished a cigarette ALL the time, instead of just for 10 minutes or so. That was one of the scaryest parts of quitting smoking for me- the withdrawals DO stop. I am glad that I know was techniques and stratagies do/dont work for me. Cheers all, luke

HI, A good tip is to speak (not sing) the lyics, in rhythm, as you play along. Once you get THAT down, them try concentrating on singing, not speaking. This way, you do to steps. Much easier. luke

Good for you, man! I am glad you did try out the Super Distortions though- your findings are the same as mine! Actually though, I forgot to mention that I have a Dimarzio Virtual PAF in my SG- I think its a really great pickup. I liked it a bit more than the other PAFs Dimarzio offers. good luck with it, Luke

Hi Idch, As you know, Ive really enjoyed watching this project- I cant wait to see how it comes out-exciting stuff! Luke

Hi man, You mentioned that you were married- I remember a thread ages ago saying not to solder around pregnant women or babies due to the toxins and fumes. Dont know if its correct, but its probably better to be safe than sorry. Hope you stick with it, Luke

Hello, Monkey, go to http://www.smallbearelec.com/home.html What you want is the dallas rangemaster kit. Cheap, easy(ish) to build- GREAT pedal (I am willing to bet its as good as the crossroads pedal) AND the guy who runs the company (Steve) is a really nice, helpful guy. The dallas rangemaster was used by clapton on the beano album- 'Hideaway' is a good example of this tone. I have made one, and it is REALLY cool. Luke

Hi, This might sound silly and obvious, but can I ask where you do your soldering? Maybe the bench you are working on is too high/low (making it difficult to hold the soldering iron at the correct angle- making your hands seem shaky). I had this problem- it is so obvious when you think about it, but the bench I was working on when I started was too high to comfortably work on. Another mistake I used to make was to sit up till all hours trying to 'get it right'- and drinking cup after cup of coffee (as you can guess, even more shakey). My asthma medication doesnt help much, either. Light is another one- is the light where you work to bright/ too dark? When you work, does your shadow fall over your work? I found that a combination of all these practical things caused me alot of problems when I started soldering- they may not seem like much, but they do compound the issue. Hang in there man- once you have the skills down, they will be invaluable for so many things. Hope it all goes well for you, Luke

Hi man, on the front page there is a tuturial (in the tutorial section) called 'How to build a Les Paul the hard way'- he goes about building a carve top using a router. it is a Les Paul (not PRS) but it might be worth a peruse. Cheers man, luke

Southpa- thats a great idea! Ill try that on the guitar Im making. Thanks man, Luke

Hi, As Jeremey and others have said, it looks as though the law is very differnent between juresdictions. Which is confusing for all of us. Obviously, the law where YOU live is the most applicable. The US and Canadian system is obviously very differnt to Australian law on this point. Which makes life fun on an international forum. Not posting this to stir up the flames; just trying to correct inincorrect information- One final note- in regards to copyright in Australia (garagerocker), that entire qoute is from the text. If you doubt its validity, you should talk to them. In regards to caselaw, there is a multitude of Australian cases- anyone interested (with nothing better to do) give me a PM and Ill point you in the right direction. Not posting this to stir up the flames; just trying to correct inincorrect information. NB- this is AUSTRALIAN information. Cheers, Luke

Hi Idch, Thats what I have... only no where near that long! Mine are MUCH shorter, but they do the job. Cant help you with that, sorry. Luke Here's a photo from an ebay auction -- Screws --or RAILROAD SPIKES?!? ←

Another little tip I was told (in regards to soldering to cases) is to sand (with course sandpaper) the area of the case that you want the solder to stick to. It wont really do to much to help the soldering itself, but, once you have managed to solder it, the solder will be far less likely to fall off. Worked the trick for me, andway! Do you have one of those 'solder sucker' things? they are great for sucking up exceess solder. Also when soldering, remeber not to apply the solder to the tip of your iron- you want to heat up the wire with your iron, and apply the solder to the hot wire. Doing this you shouldnt have to many dry solders. All the best with it- its frustrating to get the hang of, soldering! Cheers man, Luke

sorry- my mistake!

Hi Idch, Maybe its time to try your hand at a re-wind? I had a similar problem a few years ago, and I decided to rewind the pickup. You should be able to test if the coils are still intact using a multimeter. Just attach the probes on each end of the wire (the coil) and get a read. You should check each coil individually (its a humbucker, right?) and see if there is a problem. It sounds to me like this is the probably the cupret, but it may be less drastic that it seems- I had a broken wire to the LED of my flanger for 5 years before I found the prob and fixed it- AND I had the same thing on my accutronics tank on my Marshall. Please let me know how it goes, Luke

Hi man, The mounting screws? I have a cheap copy roller nut on one of my guitars, and the screws arent very long at all- probably about 5 mm. I havent ever had any problems with it at all. Probably not the answer you were looking for though, sorry! Luke

Oh god, not again.... 1. Lets not get into name calling. 2. I am trying to help, not cause people to to egt upset 3. Just to clarify, this is an extract from an Australian text; were both Perry and I live 4. Please read the final sentence in my quote -'even if the item in question is not in itself an artistic work'