VanKirk

WoW! Very Cool! I could use some lessons on how to sharpen my scraper like you have as well as carving that sweet top. Keep us posted, plz. I'll be carving my top soon so I'll keep an eye on your progress.

"The Thing That Should Not Let It Be" HAHAHA!!!

I do love strats but my favorite sounding strat guitar is my G&L Leo Fender signature model S-500. I think Fender sued ol' Leo for putting his name on the front so they went to the George Fullerton model now. I also have to mention that Schecter is putting out some nice playing, sounding and looking guitars for the $.

All in fun Sorry, not meaning to insult anyone (You'd get a chuckle outta me & my wardrobe I'm sure, hehe ) I was impressed by how well it turned out and with basic tools.

Well, since your not sure if you'll continue to play then I agree that you don't need to spend more than $300. I would advise that you try out as many guitars as you can at a few local stores. Just to get an idea of how nice a guitar can sound and feel, try out a higher end, expensive guitar (avoid salepeople if you can, especially most Guitar Center sales people). Then jump down to one about half the price and continue on down until you find one that feels and sounds right for the price. The tone will be something that you'll have to decide on but as for the playability, I try and play each string on every fret and listen for any strings that buzz annoyingly. You shouldn't have to press the strings down so hard that it hurts your fingers or hands. Try learning a couple 'bar chords' and try to play those at different positions along the neck as well. Since your budget is limited you probably will have to deal with a certain amount of string buzz. I think that 'test driving' is the only way to go . You can try getting an inexpensive guitar that sounds good with just a small amount of buzz and then have a local luthier work his magic with a 'fret dressing' and/or new nut installation. A good luthier can make a low end guitar play pretty nicely. Most music stores either employ or contract luthiers. When you are ready to purchase a guitar you can ask the store to have it 'set-up' before you buy it. Long winded but I hope this helps. Good luck! P.S. Keep us posted on what you get.

I installed my Sperzel tuners with the small pin towards the top of the headstock. I installed these on my Fender style neck from USA Custom Guitars (shameless plug for a great company ).

Same here. The shirt really gave me a chuckle. Looks pretty good though. Talk about 'hand built'!

That does look sweet. I think black pickup rings would be cool but I may think differently after seeing a finish on it. I can't wait!

He posts on the ReRanch Forum. Can't say I've seen him here. He's the Danish oil finish king. Anyways, I was unable to view your pics. All i see is an MSN log-on page Edit: I guess he does post here too now that I looked ...and now I can see it. Very cool!

stevie was inhuman....that's how That's the truth. I saw him live in '89 during the In Step tour. Talk about a guitar god! I play now because I watched him. I've heard many say that. I tried usin 12s, bein the SRV wannabe that I was when I began playing. I needed to adjust the action and replace the nut. I could get through about 4-5 songs, bending alot and couldn't play anymore for a couple of days I was getting annoyed with my fast Angus, BB quick vibrato and I found that heavier gauge strings did allow me to slow and deepen my vibrato a little. I changed my action and went back to thinner strings (10s)and I started breaking them constantly. Had to get used to them all over again.

I like the way the paint looks in the lower right hand corner on the front of the body. If it looked that consistent throughout the body I think it would look pretty cool.

Jehle, Would the developer of this web-site have any info that may help you and your case? Copyright Disclaimer

Are you set on getting a steel string acoustic? When I began playing I started with a classical guitar. The thinner strings are made of nylon and are MUCH easier on the fingers. They generally have a wider fingerboard but it helped me make my fingers more limber. Don't confuse nylon strings with a cheapo guitar. They sound beautiful if it's made decently. As for a steel string, I bought a Martin DX-1 for $400. I know it's more than you wanted to pay but with a good set of strings it plays VERY nice and sounds excellent for a low end Martin. You'd be happy with it for years to come I think. I have noticed that as soon as the strings get old it loses some sound deffinition and gets a little 'muffled' or 'muddy' sounding but I still play it alot so the strings wear faster. I've always been happy with my purchase (had it for...5 years now?)

It seems to me that it has to do with availability, price & strength of the quartesawn wood that guitars are more commonly made from 2 or more pieces.

AAhhhh! Thanks for the heads up. Was gonna try them on my Fiance's bass.

WoW! Excellent as usual, Hyunsu!

Am I understanding correctly that your new trem is too tall by a 1/4"? I have a vintage 6 hole trem in my MIM Fender Strat. It's about 1/4" too short for my 1 5/8" body. If you want we can make a trade if yours is gold and is a 6-hole as well. Mine is in good condition. We can trade pics of the trems. Mine has small intonation screw marks under the saddles from adjustments but they aren't noticable. I can send high definition pics.

Another method is to saw the nut from one edge to the other leaving a groove right in the middle of the nut. Do what Danny says with the exacto knife then use pliers to squeeze the nut together. This will collapse the nut into itself and you can remove it in a few pieces without as much risk to your headstock or fretboard. Obviously, this method assumes that you want the nut out more than you want to keep the original nut intact.

I've heard arguments that if the break angle (angle of strings from pickup side over the bridge) is not enough than the strings may buzz or rattle in the saddles but I think most all bridges with string through bodies don't have to worry about it. I would think that you'd want more angle on the thinner strings than the thicker ones but I don't think it's much of a problem.

I was planning on using Tru-oil for my first finish. It's a polymerized tung-oil and there's a sealer made specifically for it. I hear that it builds a shine and has better protection than straight tung-oil. I haven't used it myself. I'm just passing on information that I've gathered in trying to figure out a good quality, easy to apply finish. Take a look at this thread for more info Applying a Tru-oil finish Edit: Tru-oil is a polymerized linseed oil not polymerized tung-oil

More than 1? If he's all that then one song, heck 1 note, oughtta be enough to prove to me that he's 'groovaliciously funky and down-home-grits-and-gravy-extra-cornbread-if-you-please'. j/k I am gonna check him out though

The Duane Allman songs that I REALLY enjoy is all the stuff done with King Curtis and Herbie Mann but it's hard to find. I'll borrow a Little Feat album (eh em...CD)from a buddy of mine and listen again

Played a strat with the neck postion pup and it had that classic Texas blues sound.

Dean Markley 'Blue Steel' strings I found were a noticable improvement from slinkys or d'adarios for me. 10-52. Fat bottom, medium high strings. They sustain well and don't break as much for me.