Jump to content

Double V Project Completed...


Recommended Posts

This was the first guitar I ever saw on MTV way back in 1986.

vv1.jpg

vv3.jpg

vv2.jpg

The body was cut from two-piece alder, drawn on a computer and then cut on a CNC machine by a friend in Michigan. In all honestly, the only real work I had to was sand in the bevels and detail-sand the body for paint.

The neck (NOS Jackson neck, meant for a Jackson DXMG) and the EMG-89 pickup that went in.

neck03.jpg

The hardware came from a parted-out Jackson Randy Rhoads, or so the EvilBay auction claimed.

hardware2.jpg

hardware1.jpg

A screw broke off in the neck while I was re-drilling the neck holes, and the broken screw had to be drilled out. I cut a cross-grain plug (thanks to this forum's advice!) and the repair went smoothly.

neck02-1.jpg

Here it is, test-assembled and fully set-up, just before it went to paint. It was so much fun to play, I hated to tear it down for paint.

vnme.jpg

The jigsaw puzzle this past Monday night, when the body came back from paint. It turned out immaculate!

vv042109-01.jpg

From the back...

vv042109-02.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And finally...

vv042109-07.jpg

The color just doesn't pop until you put it in natural light. I painted it "Sonic Blue", a Ford color. The guitar was painted to match my Mustang coupe. I haven't taken a picture of the two together yet. I'll do that later today when I take the Mustang out of the garage.

after07.jpg

vv042109-06.jpg

vv042109-05.jpg

vv042109-08.jpg

So that was my first guitar build. Total cost came in just under $600 - unbelievably cheap, and it plays as well as my collection of high-end Ibanez and Jackson guitars that cost much more. My next project is a 7-string strat based on a fixed-bridge Ibanez RG7621, already in progress. I can see how this can become addictive!

-Roger

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was really ambivalent towards the build in its first stages, but the color makes the piece great, and you can't beat EMGs and no pickup rings.

On a side note, who the hell is Vinnie Vincent and why does she have a man's name? (Read: I am a product of the 80s in a very literal sense)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On a side note, who the hell is Vinnie Vincent and why does she have a man's name? (Read: I am a product of the 80s in a very literal sense)

Seriously?

Vinnie Vincent replaced Ace Frehley in KISS. VV was the guitarist on "Creatures Of The Night" but the album cover showed Ace. VV went on to record the album "Lick It Up" with KISS but was fired after the tour. VV then formed Vinnie Vincent Invasion and recorded at least one album, "All Systems Go". This album also included Mark Slaughter as lead vocals before he went on to form Slaughter.

Saw VVI open for Alice Cooper on the All Systems Go tour. Pretty good show.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Way cool. I thought I was the only one to have a guitar to match a car (cheap Yamaha fat strat to match my blue WRX).

Eventually, I'm going to build one to match my 30th Anniversary Trans Am. :D

I was really ambivalent towards the build in its first stages, but the color makes the piece great, and you can't beat EMGs and no pickup rings.

I debated long and hard about the pickup ring. All the real McCoys had pickup rings supporting an EMG. I prefer guitars w/o mounting rings these days, so I gambled and it turned out perfectly.

Seriously?

Vinnie Vincent replaced Ace Frehley in KISS. VV was the guitarist on "Creatures Of The Night" but the album cover showed Ace. VV went on to record the album "Lick It Up" with KISS but was fired after the tour. VV then formed Vinnie Vincent Invasion and recorded at least one album, "All Systems Go". This album also included Mark Slaughter as lead vocals before he went on to form Slaughter.

Ah, cut him some slack. :D Even if he was born in '80, he was barely two years old when Vinnie took over Ace's spot in KISS in '82. Unfortunately, as talented as he is/was, it seems that Vinnie was such an asshole that he ran himself out of the music business. He all but disappeared after about 1988 when the record company pulled the deal for VVI and gave the contract to Mark Slaughter and Dana Strum. Unless you're a mid 30-something (or older) and a KISS fan, you probably don't know who Vinnie Vincent is... even most young guitarists don't. Sad to see so many talented 80's shredders like Vinnie being forgotten by the upcoming generation of players.

I like KISS, but I'm not their biggest fan. I'm more of a Paul Gilbert, George Lynch, Vai or Dream Theater fan. It just so happens Vinnie Vincent was on MTV at the right time to inspire me to want to play guitar back in '86, so I have a soft spot for the dude, cheesey as he is. I think the most entertaining part about building this guitar has been showing it to a few diehard KISS fans - and most of them surprisingly had no clue whose guitar it was!

Thanks for the compliments, guys.

-Roger

Edited by Bluestreak
Link to comment
Share on other sites

That turned out really great! I'd never seen that guitar on MTV.

Vinnie Vincent is to you what Steve Stevens is to me (the dual-name similarity being a total coincidence), he's the first guitar player I really remember digging on MTV.

I found the video on YouTube! It's called "Boyz Are Gonna Rock". I knew YouTube would have it... they have everything. You can see Vinnie's original Jackson Double-V guitar in the video.

Just a suggestion, but the mods on this boards ought to think about enabling YouTube in forum posts so we can more easily share videos and music, our own works included. :D

I like it even more cos its built by a dream theater fan!!!

:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...