avengers63

The variation in quality from piece to piece is to be expected when there are that many being made. They are a factory after all. I'd agree with the QC of PRS. The only reason I can't include them with Fender & Gibson in the age of the company. In all other aspects, they're at minimum equals. It's a real shame that all the true innovations are left by the wayside or just too dang expensive for anyone but the rich. You're right that the accepted innovations are largely invisible. Active pickups fall into that category. FWIW: I'd love to hear the Alumitone pickus. Getting away from the wire is a real step forward. Let's hope they catch on. You know, I think the original point that was trying to be made was that mahogany is just fine for a neck. Gibson has been using it forever, and it's been doing just fine with it. This whole think went way off topic, but in a fun way. Here's a thought: jatoba is around the same price as mahogany, but a dang sight harder. I bet it'd make a great neck.

First, I'm glad you took this the way it was intended. A debate is great. If I wanted an arguement, though... I certainly don't go looking for them. I have an ex-wife that' brings me plenty. With the added explanation, I can see some of your points. My general thought is that they're one of the industry leaders, and have been for 50+ years, for a reason. True, they sell more on tradition than innovation. The same can be said of Fender. PRS hasn't offered any real innovation, just a well made product. The way I see it, the last true mass-market innovation came from Steinberger, and that was over 20 years ago. Now it's not even in showrooms. The traditionalists (Gibson) killed it. In that light, one can say the entire industry sells itself on tradition. It's all just variations on a theme. A new body shape isn't innovation, it's repacakging. The construction techniques, electronics, hardware, it's all the same. The bells & whistles change, but nothing else. This is not to disparage any manufacturer or to say there are no quality differences, but to say the basic product is fairly static. All things being the same (which they aren't, but let's go with it for a second), what's the real difference between an Les Paul and a BC Rich? A Fender Strat and a Peavey Strat? The wood, the finish, maybe the wiring setup... you get the point. What's the REAL difference? Quality. The big names earned their reputation. With so many options out there, they need to make dang sure they live up to the expectations the customers have based on the reputation their name is associated with. They've earned their spot on the top of the chain, and they ned to work hard to stay there. That they remain is, to me, testimony to the consistency and quality of their product. All that being said, every guitar has design flaws. Most of those so-called flaws are left because to change them makes the guitar into something other than what it is. Les Pauls are dang heavy and the upper register of the neck is difficult to access. But that weight and design gives the guitar it's character. The SG solved those problems, but it's just not the same thing. Fender makes it's guitars out of really inexpensive wood. They always have. But that wood helped give it the characteristics and affordability that built the company. You just can't monkey with a proven 60 year formula for success. The flaws are necessary for their product. Unfortunately, many of them are also left there because of financial considerations. A tilt-back headstock is just fine. You can get more necks from the wood if you make the headstock out of a different piece, so two pieces it is. It doesn't matter if a one piece neck is better, because it's more expensive. The Sumarium Cobalt magnets (supposedly) eliminate the 60-cycle hum without changing the characteristics of a single-coin pickup. They are a LOT more expensive, though, so Fender only offers them as a pricey custom shop aftermarket product. The customer can just do what they've been doing tor decades - deal with it - because there's a bottom line to be met. Ultimately, though, there is a certain high level of quality in the major manufacturers. No one design is perfect, but these proven design have survived the test of time. While I will not say Gibson=great or Fender=fantastic, I feel they've earned the benefit of the doubt. In the long run, I don't think anyone would argue this: If you want the best possible quality and workmanship, go to a private luthier. They're made one at a time, by hand, by folks who have an unrepentant love of the instrument. I happy for you that you have $5000 to spend on something that 's going to sound almost identical to a Gibson or Fender.

Now, I'm not trying to start a flame, but I have to comment on that. Everyone is allowed their opinion, Likewise, everyone is allowed to voice it. But... Taking either of the big 2, Fender or Gibson, and saying that they make a crap product... the statement just lacks credibility. Sure, we could all point out a flaw in just about anything, but to try and say that there are that many issues with the products of the top-flight makers doesn't jibe with me. If that statement was made about Epiphone & Squire, or about the lower end models of the main lines, I probably wouldn't argue it. But to make a blanket statement like that.... no.

Anyway, I think Gibson made a bass with a slideable pickup..... I found it. I'll give Gibson credit. Every once in a while, they went out on a limb. Sometimes we got the flying-V. Sometimes we got this thing. But at least they were trying.

I'm nearly to the point of getting the electronics. I'm still undecided on which to get. The only thing I'm certain of is that I don't want active. I want that classic Tele twang, lots of bite, but not the single coin hum. I don't want twin rails, though. I know... you can't have the best of both worlds. But if I wanted humbuckers, I wouldn't be building a Tele, now would I. I've been thinking about Kinman's Samarium Cobolt pickups, but they're dang expensive. If only the Lace Alumitones were available for teles... So - does anyone have any suggestions?

They look like really easy projects for a beginner to get their feet wet on.

DUDE!!! My wife had to come in and see what I was laughing about. That was great. As long as I have a couple of guitars, I'll be OK in the Land of the Lost. I just hope the blue screen effects get better. (Yes, I remember the show well) Rick500: This is Granadillo. I guess odd twists & swirlies are one of the perks of using Mexican & South American rosewoods.

Hmmm. Drill the hole at an angle & recess the ferrules. That'd reduce the pressure on the string at the angles. It'd be an interesting visual as well.

I'm an unrepentant pedal junkie. For amplification, I use a Crate power block and a 2x12 cabinet. Everything else comes from my 3 pedal boards. In order, they are: BOARD 1 Rocktron Big Crunch compressor BOSS Acoustic Simulator VOX wah Digitech RP-50 used only for reverb & as a tuner old DOD 6-band EQ BOARD 2 (all distortion) Digitech Bad Monkey Marshall Gov'ner Marshall Jackhammer BOSS DS-1 BOSS Metal (I think it's the HM-1, but I'm not sure) Danelectro Fab Metal BOARD 3 MXR Phase 90 DOD Flanger DOD Chorus Rocktron Short Timer delay Rocktron Hush BBE Sonic Maximizer I'm pretty sure that all of these have a true bypass switch, so the tone isn't TOO muddied. The only ones that are always on are the reverb, hush, & maximizer. The others are all determined by the song. I play a wide variety of styles, so I need a wide variety of distortions. The two Marshalls are my favorites. I use them for medium & heavy OD. I rarely use teh DS-1. I'm considering taking it out completely. For Sunday morning service, I leave the distortion board at home. I just bring an old yellow Digitech pedal that has two different distortion settings. The music director doesn't let me go too crazy, but he does let me use distortion. I've been playing with him for about 6 months, and I'm still amazed that he lets me do what I do. We've been pulling them kicking & screaming into semi-modern music. I have a Danelectro Free Speech that I've been learning how to use, but I'm not quite there yet.

Here's a thought. Run the strings through the body and have them go into the tuners on the back of the body. The knobs would be on the top & easily accessable. Would that create issues with the strings gong over hard angles twice as they pass through the body & the edge of the feurrels?

As you can see, it's on the 11th fret, E & B strings, smack in the middle of prime soloing real estate. Would this create any real issues, either in playing or in future stability?

This may sound really ghetto, but just pack the hell out of it with wadded up newspaper. Do that inside the case and as a layer of padding between the case & shipping box. It's lightweight, dense, and can usually be found for free.

Dude! Myka is just sick & wrong. Ya gotta love his work, but hate him out of principle. Really inspiring stuff.

I'm having visions here. Incorporate the knob placement elements of Gander Guitars with the almost headless neck and tuning gear placement of Scott French. I'm thinking to have the tuners along the butt end of the body on some kind of shelf or lip. French has them in a recessed cavity. Now, I know I just made an empassioned plea to think outside the box. Before anyone jumps on my case, I'll admit that I'm just not the guy for the job. I really don't have an original bone in my body. The best I can do is take an existing idea and incorporate into something else. That being said, this concept would be really cool to see!

Has anyone here tried this yet? Why do we limit ourselves like we do? Just because the knobs have always been put on the front of the body pointing up, is that the only place they can be? Ned Steinberger pretty much gave the guitar design traditionalists a swift kind in the sack in the mid 80's. We're still trying to catch up. It seems the radical re-designers stay hidden for way too long. I'm getting really inspired to buy some tools and make a whacked-out body. Maybe next year... around tax time.

Uh, guys.... I think it's time to step back and take a breath? Might I suggest that y'all agree to disagree and drop it before it turns really nasty? Just walk away and leave it alone.

Look a little closer a the picture. The input jack is in the same block as the puckup. If you have multiple pickups on multiple pieces, all sliding along the rails, how would you wire it? Perhaps each p/u has it's own jack, all connected with some kind of long Y cord to a main jack.

Don't get me wrong, dude... I'm all about the 80's. I have great memories of the mullets, hair metal, and renaming 'punk' to 'new wave' to make it more acceptable. If you want a nostalgia project, I'm all for it.

Now THERE'S a candy cane I'd take in my stocking! It's very... 1983. I'm having visions of Quiet Riot So... do you just have your heart set on multiple alternating stripes? Here's what I've seen on eBay a few times. multiple wood body 1 multiple wood body 2 I really don't think they look so good. You're on the right track, though. There's nothing wrong with multiple woods on the same body. Quite the opposite - they can be very handsome indeed. Too many woods or too many stripes... not so good. striped star striped tele The tele is just two kinds of wood, but still has a "butcher block" look to it, which is what you'd end up with the way it is now. If that's what you're wanting, you're there. If not, keep refining it. I don't think you're too far off.

I'd imagine it'd have almost no resonance and a fairly sterile tone. For sustain, you'd need to use a super dense wood like jatoba. You wouldn't need to worry about weight with a dense wood since there's really nothing there. You could use whatever type of metal you want for the rails - the stronger the better. I can testify that the bass weighs less than any guitar I've ever played, except for my Steinberger. Go figure. If anyone has any serious plans in the future to make a guitar like this, I'll gladly take some pictures of it. You can see from the back how the construction is. I'd imagine it'd be pretty straight-forward. The most difficult thing would be measuring everything. With a normal body, you can measure everything and drill for the bridge where you need it. This would take a bit more planning.

Well, yeah, Westone did. Since you already know it's a great bass, what's the problem? Good one. There isn't a problem. I was thinking of making a guitar like this - one p/u on rails - and I was wondering if anyone here had tried it yet.

After you told him your age, I'm surprised he got back with you too. We're our own worst critics. We're all really hard on ourselves because we easily see what we did wrong. It stands out like a zit on the end of your nose when we look at it. In reality, it's not so bad. BUT... that self criticizim pushes us to better things. I concur with jaycee: remember that HE came looking for YOU. Get plenty of advice from anyone you can on how NOT to be raked over the coals. When it comes to making the product don't be lazy. The work you do is a representation of YOU. You put out this work and say "This is me, this is what I am, what I love, what I do." Work with integrity, and don't cut corners. Good luck.

This is a Westone Rail bass. It's an obscure, cheap asian knockoff of a Steinberger. Oddly, it's a GREAT bass! The controls are simple - one volume knob for the one pickup, and one position knob. The pickup is mounted in a wood block, which is in turn mounted on a pair of rails. The knob locks the block in place. You can slode the block along the rails and have the pickup wherever you like. Has anyone ever tried making a guitar like this? I'm heavily considering trying this next year, but I'd love to see someone elses results first.

For the extended warranty portion of this thread, I agree that it's best used on cars & electronics. There is probably something else I can think of, but these tow were mentioned, so I'll add my +1 to them. Of the three computers I've bought, all three had the extended warranties on them, and all three have ended in major upgrades when they imploded. FWIW: Dell has the best customer service I've seen in a while. After working with their VERY polite East Indian techies, the end result was that it blew up and I needed a replacement. Both times it was totally replaced & upgraded, no hassles, no problems. All I had to do was go through the motions with customer service. For CG, I didn't have any bad experiences. Not yet, at least. You can tell right away if the dude knows what he's talking about and if you want to talk to him or not. Now granted, all I've ever bought from them is a couple of pedals and come strings, but I've fiddled with the gear and talked to folks there plenty. I think the lesson for us all to learn is pretty clear. Be careful who you're talking to and don't be snowed into buying something you don't need. Since we basically know more than most of the goobers working there, the most help we'd need would be in finding something. It we'd actually need help or questions answered, we should know better than to ask the college age kids working their way through school. If I've been playing longer than they've been alive, I don't want to talk to them.

I think there's a little too much going on. It looks like it's going to be a butcher-block kind of laminating. I haven't seen this look good on a guitar yet. Take out the extra two strips of the core wood and let's have a look. Maybe a maple core, mahogany after that, then walnut on the edges.