Fan O' Zakk

I used a standard low-stick painter's tape to mask off the entire body of the Telecaster when I was striping it, save for the spots I wanted to paint blue...didn't pull of a thing on the entire body.

"Each guitar is unique and different" Ya think so?

Bingo...I could see someone going to a 12AU7 or a 12AT7 for a softer gain, but you won't gain anything by using another 12AX7 tube. It's not run hard enough in the first place...

What was that??

Ground the works...as clean as an environment may be of RFI, it still happens, and you do not want that in a recording situation...

Just so's you know...your EVH LP was 100% my inspiration for this!

Motomaster brand Non-Metallic Surface Primer. Sprays on clear.

Thanks man. For starters, I used a sealer/builder/primer type stuff (I think it was Killz brand???) once that was prepped, I sprayed it with a non-metallic surface primer for extra adhesion (It's designed specifically to bond automotive type paints to non-metal surfaces). From there, I shot the entire body in 3 double coats of Smoke Grey Metallic, and sat that for about half an hour. From there, I masked 3 different widths (6, 12, and 18 mm) using various painters tapes. I sprayed the Sunfire Black on, again, 3 double coats. I gave that 5 or 10 minutes to set up, and immediately began removing the masking tape from the body. From there, I gave the whole deal almost an hour to cure. Finally, to set up the blue stripes, I used 6mm masking tape to mask the outsides of the blue lines, then used wider masking tape to mask off the rest of the guitar. Shot the blue in 4 double-coats. Pulled mask off after 5 minutes of setup. Allowed 20 to cure. Shot 3 full cans of clear, in a lot of double-coats. The guitar was hanging for the duration of the painting process, and I had a 300 watt halogen light shining on it from a distance of aboot 2 feet. As was mentioned above, I used all rattlecans, but I attached a painters handle on the guns to get a greater degree of control and accuracy. Oh, and I heated the cans on a wood stove to warm the inner contents for each layer. That makes for higher can pressure, and better spray properties.

I just shot the whole thing this past Saturday, so I'm gonna sit it for a week or two before I sand and polish it...

Well, sort of a Tele, at least. Body shape certainly is consistand, but the headstock is another shape altogether (pictures of that coming soon) http://www.mts.net/~klharlow/pics/EVHTele/Guitar7.jpg http://www.mts.net/~klharlow/pics/EVHTele/Guitar8.jpg http://www.mts.net/~klharlow/pics/EVHTele/Guitar10.jpg http://www.mts.net/~klharlow/pics/EVHTele/Guitar11.jpg Paint job took 'bout 12 hours total, with around 7 of that being spend doing the masking...paint order was grey, black, then blue. Used Dupli-Color Automotive paint for the colors, and Dupli-Color Automotive clear laquer. Please forgive the quality of pictures...the camera really did a poor job of capturing the metallic paints!

The SG was designed to be the followup to the LP design. Les hated it, so they renamed it to SG, and started making LP's again. Now, there's a difference in sound due to the differently shaped body and thinner, lighter body on the SG.

Two words: TIN EAR Might wanna se 'bout that.

It's like anything else, really...you can build a Champ clone for a few hundred...or a Marshall clone for 9 or more...but you'll put a sick amount of time into a project that won't necessarily work terribly well, depending upon your talents...building amps involves melding MANY different skills, and the end product is, as always, the sum of the parts.

C'mon guys, can I PLEASE get a reply or two here?

At one point, I recall that EVH had a strat with a LP neck/headstock...now THAT is weird!

Or how about tap the 120V AC line coming into the amp, and run a small transformer with a 14VDC secondary? Safest way to go, IMO, and gives you loooots of options for your lighting!

Alright, I'm gonna be stripping my Epi LP Custom and doing a custom paint job on it using automotive rattlecans, but there's a few nagging questions which I'd like to get cleared up before I put the guitar out of service temporarily... 1) Right now it's got multi-ply binding on it...does anyone know if it's binding and purfling, or a solid piece of binding? I want solid ivoroid binding, and assuming it's purfling and binding, would my best bet be to route the channel to a rectangular shape and use uber-fat binding, or use ivoroid purfling with binding? 1B) Does anyone have any clue what size of binding this guitar uses? The clear kinda screws up my measurements... 2) I've come upon a Krylon Crystal Clear Acrylic laquer which seems to be a decent product...it dries up fairly hard, builds nicely, is cheap, and sprays rather well. Does this sound suitable for the job? 3) Should I go right down to bare wood to start the painting, or can I just sand down to the colour, thereby eliminting the need for a sealer and primer? 4) Will the aforementioned clear be compatible with standard automotive rattlecan paint? 5) How long should I let the clear cure before wetsanding? 6) Do you advocate hanging the guitar up for the clear coatst, or would I get better flow if it were laying down? 7) Does anybody have a clue as to what size of fretwire is used in these things from the factory? 8) I'm going to be re-painting the sides and back of the headstock, but not the front...what is the best way to blend the clear with the existing clear on the face of the headstock, assuming that I don't remove the finish? 9) Is a hairdryer/heat gun considered to be an acceptable method for heating the buinding/purfling as it's laid down? Thanks a TON for all your input!

Amen. A watt is a watt is a watt.

1. It's a helluva lot better than what I started on. You CAN do a lot worse for the money. It's entry-level equipment...keep in mind that all the people who complain about it are a lot more than entry-level players....a package with all the stuff you need in it ready to go for that cash is great for someone who knows nothing about playing. 2. To all who feel like making a dig on Estaban...let's hear what you can do. For a guy who came out of a car wreck unable to play for years and years, he's incredible. Boing!

LOL. Sorry, but I've been a bit tied up over the past few days here...I'm gonna be ordering up a load of binding, fretwire, and some hardware in the next few days I hope...

Great call! Very, very good thinking!

If you're using the PA-2, then use the EMG 25K ohm pots.

Anything can be done...given enough time, money, and talent. Search around for schematics for a "tube preamp" and then you can go from there...basically, mod the circuit so that it overdrives the preamp's sections a bit more...PM me if you have any questions or need help. I'll be glad to offer whatever knowledge I can...

Best way to do this is use EMG's PA-2, which will match the impedance and output of the humbucker to that of the singles, enabling you to use the 25K ohm pots and have them all switchable.

I really don't recommend using polyester resins to pot a pickups unless you're EXTREMELY proficient at using the stuff... Because unlike wax, which can be re-melted, you've got one shot to pot the pickup in properly...if there's a void present by the time the resin's halfway cured, it's gonna be next to impossible to fix...and another dip of resin won't do a thing for you.