scott from _actual time_ Posted August 28, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2006 finally got around to staining this. i used Trans Tint stain, red mahogany color. i pre-stained the alder with half-strength wash coats in a (vain) hope that it would make the staining more even. then i stained several coats at double-strength, which had worked well in my tests. i ended up backing the color down a little bit by wiping with wet rags. now to spray.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted August 28, 2006 Report Share Posted August 28, 2006 It needs something... I think you should add a dark red burst around the edge with the dye, just another coat or two, something subtle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted October 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 what it needs is several cans of Deft sealer.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yahilltrade Posted October 9, 2006 Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 more more more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted October 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 (edited) more more more ok--here's a shot of the back: Edited October 9, 2006 by scott from _actual time_ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yahilltrade Posted October 9, 2006 Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 why is the picture under your name a picture of this guitar finished? why dont you just post the whole build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel Sorbera Posted October 9, 2006 Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 why is the picture under your name a picture of this guitar finished? why dont you just post the whole build. His name is scott from actual time. But he is really scott from the future Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted October 9, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 9, 2006 (edited) why is the picture under your name a picture of this guitar finished? why dont you just post the whole build. it's not the same guitar. the one under my name is a pro custom with H/S/H pickups; this alder one i'm building is H/S. and it's not done yet--i still have to wetsand and buff. His name is scott from actual time. But he is really scott from the future heh! _actual time_ is my math/prog/metal band. Edited October 9, 2006 by scott from _actual time_ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maurits Posted October 10, 2006 Report Share Posted October 10, 2006 Thats a lovely sleek guitar you have there Scott. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted November 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 halfway through wet-sanding, with micro-mesh papers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wwwdotcomdotnet Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 what brand of stain is that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElysianGuitars Posted November 30, 2006 Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 killer job man, like it better than any ibanez s i've ever seen, gotta love the neck single... are you gonna do anything like have the middle position coil tapping the bridge pickup and combined with the neck to make a big humbucker? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted November 30, 2006 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2006 what brand of stain is that? it's Trans Tint, bought from Woodcraft. i used the "Red Mahogany" color. i had trouble with the alder staining unevenly in spots, which apparently alder will do. i wiped it back with a wet cloth to even it out as best i could. killer job man, like it better than any ibanez s i've ever seen, gotta love the neck single... are you gonna do anything like have the middle position coil tapping the bridge pickup and combined with the neck to make a big humbucker? thanks man! that means a lot, because i've seen your really tight work over on sevenstring.org. i do have a fancy wiring scheme in mind, as much as i can do with only two pickups. i definitely want bridge humbucker, bridge rear coil, rear coil + neck in parallel for that notched Tele sound, front coil + neck in parallel for a Strat sound, and neck alone. i'll either use a superswitch to get them in that order, or i might use a stock 5-way and wire the bridge series link to the neck pickup tab on the switch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted January 22, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 22, 2008 i finally finished wetsanding this, then finally assembled it. full guitar. body at an angle. the body and the finish aren't perfect--this was my S7 prototype--but it sounds awesome. the Anderson single-coil is really crisp and clucky like a Strat. with the bridge pickup, a DiMarzio Tone Zone 7, modded with an Alnico 8 magnet, the alder has a huge super-thick sound on high-gain amp settings. i don't get why more people don't use alder for 7-strings. i'll definitely use it again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xanthus Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Wow, oooold build It looks snazzy, how did that custom wiring setup go? Did you figure out how to do it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted January 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Wow, oooold build It looks snazzy, how did that custom wiring setup go? Did you figure out how to do it? yep, very old build--i'm slow and lazy. i ended up taking a short-cut on the wiring. i usually design my own fancy custom wiring schemes with multi-pole switches, but i got lazy on this one, and i didn't want to have to deal with fitting a larger-bodied switch into the narrow control cavity slot. so i used a standard 5-way switch, wired to coil-cut the humbucker in position 4. i wired the neck single to the middle tab and the humbucker series link to the neck tab. so i get: 1 (toward the neck) - bridge humbucker split (bridge coil) 2 - bridge humbucker (bridge coil) + neck single 3 - neck single 4 - bridge humbucker split (neck coil) + neck single 5 - bridge humbucker, full series the positions are not in the normal order, but wiring the humbucker series link to a hot tab on a 5-way is a neat trick that gives all the combinations i would have wired up in a fancy custom scheme. it does take a second to remember the weird order when i start playing this guitar, but it makes sense pretty quick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 The heel looks a little weighty! Did you not want to sculpt it back slightly? That is a gorgeous guitar though man. I like it a lot and it gives me guitar hankering you know? The best guitar I owned was alder (ESP Mirage) not that I ever stop kicking myself for letting her go years back. I might have to make an eight or a seven myself in alder to relive the sound of that wood :-\ See what you made me do? Any chance you can post some clean/dirty sounds from the Tone Zone 7? I'm considering a pair of those myself for an extended build. Great work man. Been good to see this one completed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott from _actual time_ Posted January 23, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 The heel looks a little weighty! Did you not want to sculpt it back slightly? That is a gorgeous guitar though man. I like it a lot and it gives me guitar hankering you know? Any chance you can post some clean/dirty sounds from the Tone Zone 7? I'm considering a pair of those myself for an extended build. Great work man. Been good to see this one completed. thanks. the cast-metal neck plate makes the neck heel look weightier than it feels, and i have big hands so it's not a problem for me. i don't have any clips of the TZ7, but i can give you the basic lowdown: it's high output [not super-high] with solid/moderate treble range, but it has a very dark midrange. people who like sharp, cutting high gain tones often find the TZ7 too dark or muddy, especially in less bright woods like mahogany. i like dark sounds, and the alder body of this guitar gives the TZ7 a bit of extra brightness. if you don't like dark tones and/or your body wood is not bright, you might consider other pickups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prostheta Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 (edited) The Mirage I mentioned had a Tonezone in the bridge position with an OFR bridge. I'd like to build something like an S in a seven or an eight myself but the crazy large radii across top top, behind the bridge and across the back are a challenge. An eight would mean getting a custom pickup made, which I don't think DiMarzio dom unlike SD. I scored a neck-through blank of honduran mahogany today which I might put to this very use, although I do think that alder body wood in combination with a maple bolt-on neck has just as much character as a through-neck of course. This is what I meant about the heel. Those are dust flashes by the way, not dings :-D Your staining is crazy! In the photos it makes it look almost like an oiled wood like bubinga or padauk. Lost in action. Edited January 23, 2008 by Prostheta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xanthus Posted January 23, 2008 Report Share Posted January 23, 2008 Man, what a sweet ESP. I don't think you'd have any problems carving around your parts if you used a neckthrough blank. You wouldn't have the neck heel to worry about, of course, and the curvy shape of the body would flow naturally with the neck. If you wanted to use a trem still, why not look into Kahler? The route only has to be 1" thick, and no back routing, which would give you more leeway when carving out the body shape. A 7 string seems much more feasable to me, unless you're planning on going with a high A for your 8th string, instead of a low F#. I myself am not one for playing super thick or floppy strings, which is why I feel like something like an 8-string should probably be fanned, to even out the tension. Also, the money saved by not custom-ordering a pickup could be put to good use somewhere else. I love the S shape, though, so whatever you do, post pictures! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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