Two Voodoo Squier Strat

[zjokka]

hi all,

this really looks like a strong board, so here's my first post. I did searcht the internet thoroughly but didn't find an answer to my questions.

I bought two Affinity Squier Strat, one lefthanded the other righthanded. Originally I wanted to make just one for my lefty friend, but in the end it turned out cheaper to just score a righthand copy and switch the necks.

so here they are, just to give you an idea, they aren't assembled yet

Now the problem: If I assemble the necks on the bodys, the screw holes are only slightly off. So I should fill the old screw hole is the necks, because just drilling in the new hole just makes the original hole broader.

What should I use to fill the old screw holes to be sure that the screws won't move if I drill in the new holes? A friend suggested sawdust and glue, but really want to check with the assembled knowledge of this board first.

Epoxy? Glue? Something else.

Thanks so much for reading this

ZJ

[Nekul]

I often thought about doing the whole "buy 2 and swap em around" trick. I am a sucker for a reverse headstock. I just got a strat pretty cheap and made a new body out of silky oak (1 piece). I used the Fender neck on that body, along with the pickups and bridge etc. Actually the only thing on the strat I kept was the body itself. I got new EMG SAs, new gotoh bridge with string saver saddles and am almost finished a reverse headstock neck.

As for your question about filling the holes, in my opinion you should fill it with a dowel, preferably hard wood, maple if you have some. Previously I have cut some maple scraps roughly to size, put them in my drill press and turned them down to size with sandpaper. A bit of glue and a light tap and alls well. Just wait for the glue to dry and then use a sharp chisel to level the dowel then sand smooth.

Good luck.

Luke

[Nekul]

I forgot to mention, the decals you have look fine but if you want them to flow with the edges of the headstock do a search on Ebay for "stargodz". These guys sell decals for reverse headstocks so the stickers go with the curves.

Peace.

[crafty]

You'll want to fill the neck holes with maple plugs, not dowels. Using dowels may cause tear-out with the screws. I'm really surprised the holes are off by that much, but then again it is a lefty-righty conversion on a couple of Chinese guitars, so it's probably to be expected.

[zjokka]

thanks for the advice, but as I understand "a dowel" ( http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=dowel ) is a wooden pin. I'm not native English speaking, so had to look it up.

The new holes will be only so slightly off that the new drillings will overlap the original ones. That's why I was really thinking about filling it up completely, maybe using a pin and some glue + sawdust combination. I don't think it's possible to make a wooden pin that fits exactly, as the the holes are the result of the screw. I am afraid (half certain) that if I drill into the pins, the will be pulled out by the drill's traction.

I know these are crappy strats... , but had to find out for myself. Just a fun project, but the necks are really chunky and fat, not really my liking, might still dump them, but at least want to have tried switching them around.

Don't know whether switched necks should allign? As anybody ever tried this with Japanese, Mexican or US strats?

Will get more graphics in a minute.

Johan

[zjokka]

here is a picture. I made guide holes by driving the screw a little in:

zj

[Mattia]

Plug 'em with wood. If need be, get wooden dowels/rods from the local DIY store, drill out the holes, glue in the dowels, then drill new holes. You will not strip out the filled holes when drilling; a good glue joint is as strong or stronger than actual wood, so don't worry about that.

Another alternative: put some glue in the holes (wood glue), then jam in as many toothpicks as you possibly can, using a hammer to keep cramming them in. Many more will fit in there than you think!

[Guest AlexVDL]

.

[soapbarstrat]

I'm so freakin' ****, I even make the plugs out of maple with the grain going the same way as the neck (because I worry that having the grain going the other way could influence the drill-bit to wander away from where I want it to stay)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/soa...kplugs12051.jpg

Then I clamp the neck on with the 2 outer strings as already stated above, and shift the neck until I get that right, then clamp tight.

Then mark the new holes.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/soa...eckinserts2.jpg

Now, if you don't already think I'm way too **** about making the "same grain" plugs, this will certainly let you know I tend to take things maybe a little too far : on this neck, the new maple "same grain" plugs were even totally drilled out, because I installed threaded inserts (was the plan from the beginning).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/soa...ckinserts13.jpg

[tasty]

Soapbar, those are awesome! Where did you get the hardware for the threaded inserts?

[Mattia]

Soapbar, those are awesome! Where did you get the hardware for the threaded inserts?

My local 'mom and pop' type hardware has various types. So does LeeVelly, so doe McFeely's fasteners if you want an online source

[soapbarstrat]

Must have been McMaster or Enco. I just add stuff like that when I buy machinist tools when I go nuts building my own tools. Stay the hell away from J&L industrial supply, they're liars. I have a handful of wrong sized drill bits to prove it.

[zjokka]

I have to drill out the screw holes first in order to make the cylindric plug fit tightly, right?

What type of glue should I use -- that doesn't affect the wood?

Thanks for the tip about stringing it up in order to allign the strings before drilling. As a matter of fact the LH neck fits very thightly into the RH body (which is cool), buth RH neck sit very loosely into the LH body. For the latter some adjustments will have to be made in the LH body neck pocket. On all guitars (JP CN squier/fenders) I've removed the neck from I found some tape in the neck pocket for adjustment.

I've already made a new nut for one of the guitars, but haven't slotted it yet. So logically, before I can string up and check alligment of the neck, the nut should be ready. In order to made the nut slots, the neck should be on the guitar. looks like a double bind!

ZJ

[Mattia]

Yes, drill out the holes, glue in matching plug with wood glue if it's tight, with epoxy if the fit's a bit sloppy. Titebond's my preference.

For checking neck fit, the nut is completely irellevant. Put on the high and low E strings (or, in fact, just use string! Don't need to tune the guitar), clamp the neck to the body, and tighten the strings until they're straight, no play, forming a line from the nut to the outer bridge saddles on each side. Just hold/tape them in place at the nut, where they need to go. Then line up the neck so the strings stay over the fretboard properly, tighten the clamp up, and mark the new hole locations. Then undo the whole deal, drill, screw, and test-fit again.