I Hate Being The New Guy!

[scottishstrat]

Hi guys, I'm your newest member . . . somebody else join please I hate being the new boy! So much info here I don't know where to start looking and what you guys are doing puts my efforts to shame.

I got back into guitars after a break of more years than I care to remember, used to play an acoustic, decided to go electric this time. I have what started out as an abandoned Strat that had been slowly decomposing in a mate's attic for years. It is now a clone of Ritchie Blackmore's late '70s Sunburst Strat, right down to the scalloped neck and trick wiring etc. That wasn't the original intention, it sort of took on a life of it's own and headed off in that direction with me as a passenger! Being an avid fan of Blackmore's late '70 playing with Rainbow I suppose I should have seen it coming! It's my first project and I have to admit I'm quite proud of it, didn't have a clue when I started it, I'd never even looked under a pickguard before. I think I spent as much time searching the net for "how to" sites as I did working on it

My mates now regard me as something of an expert As long as you want a Blackmore Strat clone I am, everything else I am still finding my way I enjoyed working on my Strat so much that I want to get more into working on guitars, studying furiously although you can never learn everything, back to the "how to" websites again!.

Anyway, enough for now. look forward to picking everybody's brains and adding my twopenny worth where I can.

Steve

[erikbojerik]

Welcome to PG Steve

You'll find this is a pretty open place. Make good use of the Search, and have at it!

[fryovanni]

Welcome Steve!

Have fun, there are a lot of great people around the board.

Peace,Rich

[scottishstrat]

Thanks guys. Welcome appreciated.

Productive evening, apart from joining here also finally got round to making a stainless steel tremolo arm for my Strat out of 1/4" rod. A lot of heating, bending, thread tapping, polishing . . . cursing . . . but came out quite well. Waiting for a new tremolo block before I fit it to the guitar. One on the guitar was modified for a 6mm arm, not enough to play with to cut a 1/4" thread in it. Biggest problem I had was finding somewhere I could get 1/4" stainless steel rod in sensible lengths, most places wanted top sell me enough to rewire the Golden Gate Bridge

Heading for bed now, after midnight here!

Oh, just noticed, I ain't the new guy anymore. Thanks and hello Umar!

Edited September 25, 2007 by scottishstrat

[Rick500]

Welcome!

And Scotland is one of my favorite places on Earth. I consider Edinburgh my second home.

[scottishstrat]

Hi Rick500, yeh, Edinburgh is a nice place, full of history. I live about 8 miles east of the city.

[CrazyManAndy]

Welcome, friend!

Have fun, and be sure to pick up a copy of Melvyn Hiscock's "Make Your Own Electric Guitar" if you can.

CMA

[scottishstrat]

Melvyn Hiscock's "Make Your Own Electric Guitar", I'll watch out for that.

At the moment I've got "Complete Guitar Repair" & "Electric Guitar Setups" both by Hideo Kaminoto, just to get a general grounding on the subject. My Strat is my first project and although I've aquired a lot of knowledge doing it there's a hell of a lot I don't know! I'm a long way off building my own guitar, modifying, I've got a fair idea, building from scratch, wouldn't know where to start

[ToneMonkey]

from scratch, wouldn't know where to start

Big bit of wood, some music, couple of cans of beer and some power tools. The essentials for all shed work.

[willy]

Hi.

[djhollowman]

Hello from another Scottish would-be luthier!!!

I'm way up in "sunny" Orkney, where you at?

See ya 'round the forums here!

DJ