Mickguard

Well, why do you want to sand the finish off?

I almost bought one of those Yamahas...it was quite cheap (99 euros) and really beautiful (black with white binding). But the wife was with me.... In the meantime, I tried using a cap on the ground leg of the killswitch -- the result is, well, basically an on-off tone control. And it still clicks! So back to the drawing board.... But I also replaced the initial set of Fender (?) pickups, since I really hated the sound. Instead I used a set of pups and harness from a Pignose strat. Except I replaced the bridge pickup with another one I had here --it's from a Mosrite Mark II reissue, so I'm guessing it's a Dimarzio Fs-1. So now the guitar sounds really great -- especially the bridge, which gets closer to a tele sound (especially overdriven) without losing the Strat bloom. I like the Pignose pickups too, especially the neck, which remains quite bright.

Well, I'd really like that upper horn to have the tele shape to it, instead of the strat shape. I like the Strat curve on the bass side, but I see what you mean--it'd look great if the pickguard's curve caught the curve of the body there, so it'd be nice to get that in. Good call. Don't know if I'd make my own though, I don't like working with plastic....I'd probably have it custom made. But I have plenty of time for that-- I don't really have time to launch a new build this year (got a new band--we're getting ready for our first gigs). One thing I like about this guitar is that the belly carve makes it more comfortable than a Tele, and the more squared lower bout makes it more comfortable (seated) than a Strat. On the next iteration, I'd want more of a forearm carve too. But still keep the binding -- I really love the look of tele with binding.

Nothing is ever is all they say it is... but I like the trem a lot. You can get really aggressive--really-- with it and it stays reasonably well in tune --at least, all the strings go out about the same amount. But these strings are already abused from getting things set up, so I won't make a final judgement until I've got new strings on there, a new nut and probably better tuners (these are okay, but I really like Grovers locking tuners better. I need to find a 10mm reamer before I can change them though). I agree about the tele control plate. I was tempted to incorporate the tele bridge plate in there too. I've seen a video about using a square button switch from Radio Shack -- it looks more supple than this one. This one is really old--comes from an old Mattel FX box from the early '80s! It has two metal tongues, each with its own contact --when you press the button, it pushes the top tongue down onto the bottom one, shortening the signal to ground. Where would I attach the cap? Just to one of the contacts? To both? It's a fun effect, I have to say...great with feedback. I don't think I like these pickups all that much --they really lack the clarity I want, they get too growly in the mid-range. I have another set here, so I'll try those out when I change the strings in a couple of days.

Introducing...the F3nder Stratobastard This is a modification of a modification I made to a factory-built guitar. The original guitar was alder, I added a maple top (and faux binding), the carve, the swimming pool route, the trem route. I prepared the logo using Photoshop and ALPS-compatible decal paper. The (very nice) neck is made by Goldo (Germany), has a 7.25" radius that I really like. I wanted a chimey Strat-like sound in a Tele body, and I got it. The Trem King works really well, the killswitch less so (clicks a lot, but it's fun anyway).

Okay, it's done Still setting it up (haven't adjusted the pickup heights for one thing). Sounds pretty great already, very chimy, which is what I was looking for. That's a faux binding --this is the telecaster I modded a while back, put a maple top on it. Kind of rough around the top, the finish isn't perfect either. But it's 'relic ready' thin nitro finish, so that won't matter in a couple of years. The carve makes it really comfortable to play. Swimming pool route, so it's very lightweight. Great neck (Goldo, 7.25" radius). Pickups are supposedly Fender, but I'm guessing either Korean or Squier (or both). Since this is only a prototype for the 'real' Stratobastard (I won't use the tele control plate, just a standard strat pickguard). I want to build later on, I'll leave these pickups as is. That's a Trem King on there. It works pretty well. The kill switch is fun but dodgy --makes too much of a clicking noise in use. It's nice to have the volume control where it 'should' be.

Well, I admit I'm surprised by this too. But it kind of makes sense to me....when you're fretting you're not pushing the string all the way down to the wood, you're just pushing it enough to make contact with the fret. Now with the low slot you run the risk of pressing the string too far past the fret, lowering (or increasing the tension of) the string just that much beyond the string to make it buzz against one of the next strings. Just conjecturing here. The more relief you have the less likely you'll run into this problem. The higher the nut slots, the less likely you'll have this problem. Combine a low slot with too little relief, and you're much more likely to have a problem. Especially since you also have to deal with the potential of varying fret heights. By raising the string in the nut slot, I've been able to make the guitar accommodate my grip--I tend to fret harder than I should--despite not being able to get the relief exactly where I want it. The plus side is it forces me to lighten up my grip a bit, which I've been working on anyway. I also think there might be something about the overall angle --the sharper angle created by the raised nut slot helps to raise the string, even beyond the fretted note-- not a lot, just enough. I don't know if this is the problem with your guitar -- on mine, the buzz started with the open string and progressively lessenend from fret to fret. But it only costs a scrap of aluminum foil to find out.

Okay, fryovanni, I think you've put me on the right track. The buzzing is worse on the open string. It's pretty much confined to the D string, and to a lesser extent to the A string --the E string seems fine. And the unwound strings too. Which makes me want to look at the nut first of all. The nut is a temporary drop in that I had to shim to get to the correct height, and the nut had previously been adjusted for a different neck with a different radius. So what I've just done is use a bit of tin foil to raise the D string slot --and not only does that solve the open string buzz, but it seems to have solved the buzz on the first couple of frets too. Which is something I hadn't expected or thought about...but it makes sense to me now. Just because the string is fretted doesn't mean it isn't affected by the height/depth of the nut, at least on the first frets. From the setups I've done on other guitars, I've always been surprised at how the most minute changes have a pretty dramatic impact on the playability. I'm looking for that 'transforming' moment, if you know what I mean, where all of the sudden the guitar just feels....right. For me, getting the relief right is the first step toward that. I'm still interested in trying out a heavier gauge string, because I've been curious about what effect that will have on the tone too --especially if I can get a chunkier rhythm sound. And I do feel that the truss rod should be engaged--and the heavier gauge should allow that. And hopefully the store will have a replacement nut too!

I'll never understand what people have against plain maple. I think it's one of the prettiest woods there are. Think Rickenbacker! I can't believe it's possible to replace the top of an archtop though. I mean, you might as well build a new guitar in that case. As for the fretboard-- what about defretting it, sanding it back a bit, then refretting it. You might be able to preserve the binding that way too. Back then they had access to better woods than you'll find nowadays (don't know if Eko used the good wood though). I think it'll be cool if you can bring the guitar back to life, I've always liked those Ekos.

I'm assuming it's rosewood, until I have proof to the contrary. It feels like rosewood, anyway. But I do have a couple of ebony boards with quite pronounced grain, almost identical color and very similar pore structure. The nut turns just fine, that's not the problem --the problem is that it's at the end of its useful movement --that is, turning it any more has no further effect. I can tighten the rod (in order to counteract string tension and reduce relief), but since it's not a two-way, I can't use it to push the neck in the other direction (in order to add relief).

Well, it's an archtop, so you can't really replace the top. I really don't see the point in veneering it either. I bet if you sand off the existing finish, you'll find some nice grain anyway. Easy enough to paint the back and sides black. Is the binding damaged? You'll want to replace that if it is. It's hard to tell, your pictures are pretty lousy. I see no point at all in changing the fretboard, assuming it's in good condition. I'm not sure what you mean by 'original neck/headstock' --you mean you want to reshape things? Please don't. Hardware can be any color you like. To be honest though, I don't see why you'd want to butcher this guitar. Sell it on to a collector, someone who will restore it to what it once was. Those Ekos had a charm all their own. If you're really itching to mod a guitar, do it to some cheap new import.

I'm facing a similar issue here. The neck is new, supposedly (the ebay seller says he bought it in February, so at least it's more or less unplayed). It's really a great neck, one of the nicest I've ever played. Made by Goldo. It's maple with a rosewood fretboard --although it might be ebony, because it looks a little too dark to be rosewood (?, and because of the stiffness issue). It's vintage style with the truss rod adjuster at the heel end. And apparently the truss rod is one-way. Neck is 7.25" radius. Strings are .10 -.46. (what I normally play) The neck has been under string tension for a week now. At the time I put the strings on, I had to loosen the truss rod to add in a bit of relief. But I didn't measure anything, I wanted to wait. Today I used my guage to set the relief where I like it-- .25 mm at the 6th fret. It's almost there -- it's just shy of .20 mm. But it seems the neck is too stiff -- beyond that, the truss rod just spins. I can tighten it up of course, so I know it's not broken. Anyway, even with the action a bit higher than I like, I'm getting a bit of buzz on the D string, mostly (the A will buzz too if I pick hard enough). It's still on the 'musical' side of things--that is, the note still rings out, and louder than the buzz. The buzz is only on the first and second frets. After that it's okay. Everything rings out--all the way to the 22nd fret. So it's clearly an issue of not enough relief. Still, I'd like to lower the action just a little bit more, which means I'll need to get the relief where I like it. So I'm thinking I should try to move up to a higher guage string set -- the question is, which? How big of a difference is there in terms of playability between a set of .11s and a set of .12s ? My hope is to increase the string tension enough to allow me to use the truss rod to set the relief. Will the .11s be enough to give me that nudge, or should I go straight to .12s? I'm guessing the seller got rid of the neck because of this issue (he took a big hit on the price too). But like I say, otherwise, the neck is great. It's one of those necks where you pick the guitar up to play just for a couple of minutes, and an hour later, you're still playing.

I have the feeling that it would cost a manufacturer much more to install a CNC production line capable of churning out those guitars than it would to pay 300 workers to do the same thing. The only time it makes sense to automate is when the wage scale rises.

Wow...never really seen that before. It looks like he's just whacking the handle though --- so maybe it will still work with the Trem King? There's the bar, sure, but I don't see that interfering with the string rattle, since the bar will just vibrate too. I'll try things out once I get the electronics in (I'm waiting on some pickup screws, they'll be here in a couple of days). As for the high saddle thing, I used to only play Gibson/Tom-type guitars, so I'm used to having strings up pretty high. For me, it's not a big deal, it's actually easier for me to play that way (I don't do solos, I play a kind of rhythm thing). But I have a feeling the high saddles is related to the radius more than the Trem King. Like I said, the Esquire has its saddles up really high too.

Mine's installed, I'm still working out some kinks to the guitar, since this is a modification of a modification of a modification. And this one was a rush job, since I was looking at it more as a prototype for a full-fledged build. Things I like: they really seemed to take on--and solve-- all the flaws of the original trem design. It's really impressive, the more you look at it, and it's obvious they spent a long time in developing this unit. Too bad they didn't spend as much time preparing a proper installation diagram, because the one they provide is just confusing (to me). Anyway, each time I look at it, I find another cool feature, like the saddles lock down (using a retainer bar over the intonation screws). And the strings ride a smooth curved surface up to the saddles, instead of rubbing against the sharp edge of a standard trem plate. Okay, let's be clear. In order to make this trem work with an existing guitar, you MUST modify your guitar. Because no one wants 'half the motion'. The Trem King really needs more space at the back wall. This is because there's a stabilizer bar that fixes behind the trem block. This bar is pretty important for helping the trem come back into tune, of course. But it's pretty thick and definitely gets in the way. Luckily though, the designer(s) seemed to have been prepared for this issue : the retainer bar fits to the center spring, which has a longer hook to it than the other springs. My first instinct was to slip the retainer bar all the way to the base of the hook. But I just now pushed the bar to the end of the hook --i.e., farther up the trem block. Which of course gives more play to the block. On my guitar, which I re-routed for the Trem King, this is enough to make it work pretty well. Still can't get the trem handle all the way down to the body, but that's where my sloppy routing job comes in ... like I said, I rushed this one (actually the problem is I had to reroute the neck pocket, then placed the bridge according to that, which placed the neck/bridge line slightly different from the original...which puts the trem at a slant to the route for the trem block)... I'll be able to fix it by routing an extra groove into the wall. Anyway, no such issues with pulling up. And I don't tend to dive-bomb much anyway. Last quibble: the trem handle attaches to a housing that uses a set screw to tighten the handle down. They give you an allen key that is cut especially short at the end, so apparently they think you should be able to get in there and tighten/loosen it. But I haven't been able to do that, it's just a pain in the butt. Instead, I tightened the set screw down pretty firmly, but I can still pull the handle out (in order to case the guitar). I can't really report yet on the rest, since the guitar isn't finished yet. Playability seems great though --a nice smooth movement, no jerks. Although if you like more resistance, you might have to find stronger springs. For me, it feels great. You can indeed bend strings with this, and overall the string tension feels really nice. As for staying in tune...can't say yet. I'm not sure what a detent (what detent?) has to do with flutter. But do you mean the Bigsby type flutter?

Huh, I always consider neck-throughs to be more difficult. Certainly a bigger risk of potential disaster-- I mean, once the neck's set, you're screwed if it isn't right, right? I tend to use the rail method to make a template, then use that for the actual pocket. I add a layer of tape just to get things a little bit extra snug. From there, a little light sanding (and then what ever finish I use on the sides of the neck) are enough. It's just like anything else--with a little care, you'll get there.

There's no need to change the jack. Just get a cable with an angled jack. I use one all the time --has the added advantage of keeping the cable close to the body and lets you pointing the cable upward (to wrap through your strap). It really doesn't seem worth it to change the jack, just for that. In fact, I prefer an angled plug and flat jack to a strat jack. For the pickguard --buying a pickguard blank will cost you pretty close to what buying a custom guard will, really. And then you'd still have to do the work yourself, which is less fun then you think. Since you have the original, you'll be able to make a tracing of it (or photocopy it) and get a perfect fit. The bridge thing is more important, since it's preventing you from playing the guitar. Chances are Graph-tech makes a set of saddles that will retrofit the guitar just fine. Their posts tend to be a bit shorter than others I've seen. You can also try to find new saddle screws. Or just cut down the existing screws.

You know it'd look so cool, a little bit of tone loss would be acceptable. But I don't see why it should-- people do material finishes all the time. I suppose to be on the safeside, use a bridge that goes into/through the guitar. That way you're still picking up the vibrations from the wood.

Nope...at least not yet. But the headstock has some checking in the finish, I'm not sure what happened there--it came to me that way, the seller said he bought it a couple of months ago, so maybe it got exposed to cold. Must be nitro, to check like that. It's a great neck, made/sold by Goldo in Germany, one of the nicest I've played --the guitar is strung up without the pickups right now so I can get the relief (and the trem king) adjusted. I'm waiting for that to settle in, then I'll get the pickups on there. The truss rod's at the heel, that's why. As for the bastard part...well, you'll see soon enough...

Just a little teaser...should have full photos sometime next week (click)

He wouldn't have needed to sand down to the wood. It would have been enough to scuff the surface of the existing finish. But he would have had to make sure to have thoroughly cleaned the surface --and if there was any kind of silicon product in whatever polish had been used on the guitar, cleaning it would have been that much harder. Really, he should have sanded it back to the sealer coat, takes about 15 minutes. And he should have worn gloves during all of it. But from the looks of it, he doesn't know how to polish a finish either. Do you know what kind of paints/finishes he used? I'm afraid he didn't do a proper job of it. He should give you your money back or redo it properly. You can do this yourself you know-- lots of info in this forum on how to get it done.

The specs on vintage teles (and classic reissues) say they're 7.25" radius. Though I've seen aftermarket necks at 9" too. I'm bringing this topic back up because I'm just recently discovering that I have a true preference for the 7.25" neck shape --started with a 50s Classic Esquire I've been borrowing. And I'm in the process of completing a guitar using a really great 7.25" aftermarket (Goldo) neck. I haven't really noticed issues fretting out, although I tend to stick with rhythm anyway, so we'll see. But this radius actually helps me play better. Easier on the hands too --they don't tend to cramp up as much as with my other guitars. It's funny. I always thought I preferred the Gibson scale (and radius). But lately I've really been sticking to my Fenders. It's almost as if (gasp) I don't need anymore guitars....

I don't think you can stain wood that's already been finished, unless you're willing to sand off a good layer of wood to get to the unsealed pores. Instead, you'll need to look into using tinted lacquer. It's probably easier to get a decent color with lacquer anyway. Besides, it's good to leave the sealer on there--that stuff is rock hard and really level. It's the hardest and most important part of getting a nice shiny finish.

Doubtful. More likely "some dude" either did not prep the body properly (oil/wax/polish/silicon residue), used incompatible paints/lacquer/sealer, or a combination of both. Did you pay to have this done?

Well, then. Better get a couple extra vaseline jars.