Ledzendrix1128

what i dont understand about this method is... how do you go about sanding back the grainfiller without cutting into the actual black paint... i would think if it scratches the base coat you put down... it would ruin the color of it.. or show scratches even when you put down the nitro...ive never done this before... but im thinking about doing it on my next project, and i was just wondering if there was a step by step process. I was also wondering whats to stop someone from sanding through the base coat of paint. Thanks again.

- Louis

  wasn't it blue before?

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yeah... the lighting really changed the look of it... and it hasnt been buffed yet.. so ill get some more pictures that look better within the next week or so, maybe after i buff and polish it

ok cool, ill probably try to wrap it around one of the bridge mounting screws or something... that makes sense though.. thanks guys

Got my hardware today. I test fitted it. The nitro still has about a week left to dry though. I put a small dent in it. Does anyone know how to fix these? can i get some nitro softener or soemthing? or will it come out in buffing... I say its small... but its small and kinda deep. Due to the fact this is my first finishing job im not expecting it to come out perfect. But whatever... anyway heres a pic...

and heres my pickgaurd wiring

http://www.geocities.com/ledzendrix1128/Saturday_Night.jpg

I tested the wiring out with an old string by stretching it over the pickups... and it all works good. The pups that are in there now are cheap epiphone pickups off an LP standard. These will definately be replaced when i get the cash for them.... I would be committing a crime by leaving them in this guitar

EDIT - Looking at this pic i realized how hard it is to see the quilt in the artificial light... the next pics i take will be in sunlight so hopefully youll get to see it. Oh yeah, the neck from warmoth is shipping out on tuesday supposedly. Thats gonna be Goncalo Alves with a Pau Ferro fret board, and abalone dot inlays. Hopefully this will be finished within the next few weeks... I have to get surgery on my knee this friday though... so i dont know what ill be able to do after that...

wait... it needs to be exposed?... couldnt you just solder it to the bridge where the hole is so it just hangs down?

Oh yeah... and how do you solder to a gold bridge... am i gonna have trouble getting the solder to stick or do i need to sand it or something

This is a pretty straigh forward question... i just need to know where to put the ground on a hardtail strat since there is no trem-claw to ground on. If i sheild the inside of the cavities can i just ground it to the copper tape? or is there a better way

Does anyone know what kind of wire i should buy at radio shack to wire my pickgaurd for my strat. I have this crappy thin wire here but it seems too weak and the coating around it is old and kinda brittle. Is there anything you guys have used that seems to give good results? (i.e. cloth wire, or sheilded wire)

-Louis

yes a maple top is... but the maple used for necks... doesnt it tend to be a harder species... i mean im probably not understanding something... im in no way disagreeing with anyone... but i always thought the "hard" maple used in necks didnt take to stain very well.

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if any of you guys have ever ordered wood from here. Or if you have any opinions on what you think of the prices... they seem really good in my opinion. Anyway... check it out

http://www.roberto-venn.com/RVStore/electricwoods.htm

There certainly ARE people who like the concept of communism, Ledzendrix.    Legions of them.  But I think you'll discover is that the problem is that communism has NOT worked.  The countries that adopt communism as a political goal inevitably become fascist states, instead. 

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lol.... yeah i was just kidding about that... but anyway... can you get a set of needle files suitable for carving nut slots with at a hardware store? or are they more a specialty thing that ill have to get online?

Communism has worked for a long time too mark... and nobody likes communism....

that kind of a poor design by fender though... doesnt that effect the tuning/intonation if the strings are sliding around constantly?

I just tried to use black stain on mahogany... not bad results... but ive read somewhere that the maple for necks tends to be so hard that some times it is VERY hard to get the wood to take the stain. So in my opinion i wouldnt stain maple black... it is going to take a lot of work to get it to work right most likely... and when its all done there will probably be subtlties wrong with it that you'll want to spend more time fixing. Id go with thegarhanman's idea of just a headstock veneer. The maple on the back shouldnt be a huge problem... ive heard of entire necks being made out of ebony though... warmoth sells them... i dont know if youve made the neck already or not... another option is just to laquer the neck black... but staining that hard maple i dont think would give you the results that your picturing in your head

really?... gosh i feel like an idiot... i never knew that... Ive been doing all kinds of mods on strats now, not for a LONG time... but enough that i should know that... i sorta figured it might be enough tension but i dont know... it a good thing i didnt start filing away at the saddles.. lol

do the saddles curve down in the middle at all? because like marksound said, most vintage style tremelos dont have string slot, just a U shaped saddle keeps it in place

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Nope, its straight across... the saddles arent the kind that are solid... its the type that is a flat peice of metal bent up... ill try to find a picture of it

**EDIT... heres a picture of the saddles that are the same style as mine, except mine are gold

So, is it possible to get a relitively inexpensive file at a hardware store that i can notch the saddles with, and possibly a nut? Or am i gonna have to pay for shipping from a luthier's supply store online. Im still waiting for my finish to dry on my guitar so ive got about another week before i need to have the bridge ready, and even then i still dont have a neck due to the fact i cant work right now... so no paychecks are commin in

sorry, i shoulda been more specific as to what kind of bridge it is. Its the Vintage stratocaster hardtail model from warmoth. so i can adjust string hieght with the individual saddles versus having to carve it out to suit the radius. My main concern is that i dont want any buzzing to come from it like the first nut i tried to carve without the right tools

yeah... im kinda angry...

I got my bridge from warmoth today... and it has no slots... i guess this wouldnt be a HUGE problem if i had known i was ordering a bridge with no slots... but it doesnt say anything about it on their website... i dont know when the last time i saw a bridge sold without slots was.... it also wouldnt be that bad if i had a set of slotting files and a little experience slotting bridges... so does anyone have any advice on what i should do... other than buy a new bridge?

**EDIT - the bridge is gold... and im not sure if its gold plated or not... so if i end up filing the bridge myself i dont really wanna hit a silver part... maybe i should just buy new saddles...cuz i really have no experience doing this...

no.. i would be putting a top on the oak... but i just looked at the boards... i think its a no go... it might good for building a dog house... but theres sooo many knots in it. I think it would be less heart ache to find somethin at a lumber store that i really want. Oh well, they get a lot of wood in there.... im sure there will be another opportunity.. .im on pretty good terms with my shop teacher... he said hed give me some Ash for no charge at all. Who knows though.. maybe ill pick a peice thats good

hey guys im at school right now. My shop teacher just offered me all the red oak i want... its thin... so ill put a lam top on it... but its a whooolllleeee lot of boards i can pick from. Is this any good for guitars? thanks

Louis

yeah maybe set neck is the way to go... i like the way PRS does it with the set neck in the pickup cavity

yeah, thats what i sorta feared.... maybe ill just make my own neck to avoid all the problems with accomodating different premade parts

Hey everyone,

Ive noticed that alot of people seem to be using the carvin necks now. I plan on building a through neck guitar as soon as I get surgery on my ACL, and im back working again. But i was wondering if these can be used with a tune-o-matic bridge. I know the tune-o-matic is set pretty high, thats why les pauls have the angled neck. I was wondering if you have to use a flat mount, or recessed style bridge with that carvin neck. Or maybe some body design to accomodate the Tune-o-matic vs. a flat mount. Thanks in advance

-Louis

sounds good... i have the bible to guitar building.. Melvyn Hiscock's "Build Your Own Electric Gutiar." Ill thumb throught the electronics section tonight.

yeah the same thing happened to me modding it... theyre pot hole that are 1/4".... except i didnt drill all the was through so i think it would be better to use wood filler... but you said just paint worked fine... i might be going to the craft store to them... lol...