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RestorationAD

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Posts posted by RestorationAD

  3. Another Kl Les Paul

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    already glued up and cut to shape. was using the wrong tape measure(have 2 identical ones, one is off by 1/8") and thought it was good until i glued it up and used the good tape. i guess i could just scrap the whole neck. but i will see

    If you have a table saw I would go with Setch's idea except that I would cut it into 3 strips. Buy a set of second unbent acoustic sides and glue in 2 nice Rosewood stingers.

    Heck I would let them run all the way through the fingerboard and everything. You can always use StewMac Fretboard dye if you didn't like the stingers showing through.

    Don't trash it though. I am sure one of us would pay the shipping to have it and fix it.

    BTW Your work looks good, don't be so hard on yourself. I keep one of the first necks I built in the closet <a real POS>... it reminds me how much better I am at this now.

    lastly Xanthus is the only one who really cares about my builds.... :D

  4. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Live King Live!

    King V is basically done. I have some minor things to fix like backplates, etc....

    So how does it play? FAST. I was able to set the action so low it is uncomfortable. I had to raise it. The Jackson neck is WIDE and FLAT with a composite radius. I am really glad I used the JT580 tremolo instead of a standard Floyd as it matches up to the neck perfectly. The frets are BIG, makes the neck almost scalloped in feel. Without an amp the guitar is pretty loud and resonant. Not as loud as my Gibson V but much clearer in tone. Almost bell like. This thing rings like an D28 acoustic on the low E. It is on...

    I think the maple top on the padauk is much brighter and tight <ash like> sound than a maple on mahogany body.

    The JB Seymour sounds like Dave Mustaine big time. It is articulate and resonant and sounds good tapped with the push/pull Volume knob. It is clear on the low end and growls like a demon when pushed yet backs off nicely when needed.

    In general this sounds different than everything else I own... it is going to be a great addition to the arsenal.

    as always pics and blog...

  6. Another Build And I'm Bored With Pickup Selection.

    in Electronics Chat

    Posted

    I have used the Tom Anderson H3s before and they rock.... Hard edge controllable distortion. I usually get them locally.

    I have never bought them from here so you are warned.

    http://www.gtrheaven.com/pickups/pickups.a...nderson+Pickups

    I have a set of Ultrasonics. They reproduce with true clarity the sound of the guitar and amp. They are impossible to find since they went out of business in 1991 but if you can score a set they are great!

    Not sure how to get them in the US... but Bare Knuckle are some I want to try

    http://www.bareknucklepickups.co.uk/

    The other is Lindy Fralin

    http://www.fralinpickups.com/

    Lastly from what I understand the Rockfield are good cheap pickups...

  7. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Ok pictures are in the albums. Blog is updated.

    King V is still curing... and it looks like it is dirty. I am not happy with the finish at all. I hope hardware makes it look better.

    Beater:

    Great News: I fixed the Ultrasonics>>> They were severely out of phase. I spent an hour with banana clips and a soldering iron till it was fixed.

    Bad News:I have to move the Kahler back about 1/8-3/16", The damn intonation is right at the end of the adjustment for the Low E. Also am going to move it to 10s as the Kahler springs do not handle the tension of the 11s well at all.

    Pictures - http://public.fotki.com/restorationad/

    Blog - http://smithlx.blogspot.com/

  8. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Beater Update:

    I actually like the Relic paint job on it. I thought I wouldn't. Wired up all the electronics and did a full assembly last night.

    The W. German made Ultrasonics are a no go.... I think they are toast. Anyone got a wiring diagram?

    I will put the JS30 Jackson pickups in it for a while <no need to waste good pickups on it until it proves worhty>. . The Kahler has to come out and I need to look at the route for it. It seems to be rubbing or it really does not like the 11s I put on it. The neck is straight and plays pretty well. However the R3 Floyd nut is really high making it feel like the action is bad. I am not going to lower it though as I am planning a refret for the neck.

    King V update: I now have 3 coats of High Gloss Tung oil on it. I will let it cure until next week....

    What is the best way to polish out Tung Oil?

  9. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Staining ebony to bring out the grain is a good idea on anything but ambrosia. It is a good thing this is just a practice build to get the skills back in order. It swallowed the Ebony stain and turned Black. Sanding back the black was a bad idea for this project. So I did my best to salvage it. Stained it vintage amber after I sanded it back... I am not worried though as this V was for me. I didn't use any of my highly figured wood on it.

    Padauk is not my favorite wood to finish. It is nice to work <except for the tear out, splitting, tool burning, and chipping.> and looks good stained dark.

    Ok so this one is nearing completion. I have some other plans but they are simple also so it will be a while before building the real deals... neck-thru Maple/Wenge/Mahogany Vs.

    Pictures soon...

    I got tired of screwing with the Beater V so I just relic'd the black and white finish. It looks like I have owned it forever. I will put it back together when it finishes curing.

  11. Build #2

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    One volume knob always solves the "Are my pots lined up problem..." <grin>

    <opinion> 5 way switches mean you have to many pickups... Use a push pull knob to wire one bucker/split or do up = neck and down = bridge. </opinion>

    As for how to cut the 5-way.... A dremel and a straight edge will work... drill 2 - 1/8" holes and play connect the dots.

    On build 3 ... So you are going to waste a lot of Mahogany? Every time I think about a semi-hollow I think "Man hate to wast good wood by routing chambers in it so maybe it would be cool to buy a back and sides for an acoustic then bend them.... then I .... well I .... ummmmm... just build another solid body.

    Let me know how you fare hollowing out the body. It looks like it should shred. Make sure it has a Wizard neck like my 80's RG470.

  12. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Decided not to donate a kidney.

    Bought the JB... if it is good enough for Dave it is good enough for me for now... I think I have a SD Jazz pickup laying around somewhere if the JB doesn't work.

    I used Dimarzo for years <they came stock on my Parker Fly Deluxes (94&95)> with my Boogie amps they always worked well.

    For the record I have filled the grain and stained it Ebony. I will be sanding it back tomorrow <I think> and finishing it with a Vintage amber. Then it gets 2 maybe 3 coats of Formby's High Gloss Tung Oil....

    The beater V has received 2 coats of Flat White and a coat of flat black. I am going to sand back the black and see what I can come up with. I lowered the neck pocket by 1/16" and changed the angle to 1 Degree. The string height is now right for the Kahler... I probably won't finish this one this week as I am concentrating on the King V.

    post pictures soon.

  14. Build #2

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Hope your tear out sands out... mine didn't fare well.

    Looks good so far. Can't wait to see it finished.

    As for a hard clear finish.... Thinned epoxy? Super Glue? Not sure what to tell you as I am using tung oil on the King V... IF I break a point off... oh well. All I can say is Build 2 then you won't care as much. You can never have enough Vs....

    I am doing the dark grain filler/ebony stain/ sanding back/amber stain in hopes of bringing out the figure in mine. The dark wood filler is a pain but it looks really good.

  15. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Fixed the trem route, sanded the final curves and edges in. Progress.

    Ordered some vintage amber stain from stewmac... it seemed too dull after sanding last night. Plain tung oil will not do it justice.

    I am going with high gloss Tung Oil.

    So the guy over at TK Instruments talks about polymerized Tung Oil? It sounds like he heated it in a crock pot before applying it. Anyone got any ideas?

    Ordered a Duncan JB for it. IF It sucks I am getting an Iommi Gibson for it.

    Updates later...

  17. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    King V updates:

    Strings and trem fitting. Also going to adjust the Locking nut as it is too high and screwing with the open string action....

    overall it plays well and is loud without a pickup. Sounds very maple and hard. I am going to use a nice clear pickup like a Duncan Custom or a PAF or a Jazz. I have several Seymour Duncan Jazz pickups and enjoy the clarity... My theory is get the signal to the amp clean and true let the Boogie takes care of the rest.

    small_king_v_project_072.jpg

    Tested the finish by wetting the body and taking pictures. I am thinking I will tung oil it after a vintage amber stain?

    small_king_v_project_068.jpg

    I also test fitted the electronics cover. Really think I am going to use magnets instead of screws.

    As always the images are here

    http://public.fotki.com/restorationad/king-v-project/

    And the blog is here

    http://smithlx.blogspot.com/

  18. Solid Maple Body Questions

    in Solidbody Guitar and Bass Chat

    Posted

    If I am not mistaken George Lynch had several Maple bodied strats over the years.... His first tiger stripe was supposed to be a Mighty Might Maple Body. The Kamikaze is Maple. I would say that predicting the sound is going to be tough as every electric guitar I have built is a sum of the parts with most of the control in the electronics. I recently rebuilt my Model 5 and ditched the original Jackson active pickups for a very old Seymour Duncan SH-6 and I can tell you that guitar is a different animal now.

  20. Custom Alexi Build

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    I used a nice Stanley #4 plane for the straight bevels on the King V I am doing. My bevels are not going to be as aggressive as a real Jackson or Alexi but getting the same results is easy. If you start at the point and cut towards the neck using heavy pressure and easing up as you reach the neck you should get the desired results and keep your fingers. With the hand planar you can control how much you cut. AND it is easier to remove more wood than it is to put back. Sometimes hand tools are just the better option. Nothing worse than destroying weeks worth of work with a slip. A router will not care if it destroys the top of your guitar.

    Good luck. And if you do use the jig post some pics...

  24. Terror Twins V

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    The King V was a sacrifice... Like a phoenix she will live again.

    In white with 80's parts... it will be great when she lives again.

    Should I put flames on it? Like the new Michael Schenker model or James ESP?

    The Model 5 is now a favorite guitar of mine. I destroyed its historical worth... but from my research it was not a collector anyway.

    Wait till you see my 88 RG470. She is a real beater with 3 hums.

    For the record I bought the Model 5 for $200.00 in a pawn shop in 1995.

    I bought my 88 RG470 for $100.00 at a pawn shop in 1992.

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