jpdoane

Thanks! Thats really helpful. I know that I need to consider very carefully the process and order in which I do things, and I will probably need to ask more questions as my plan develops. It does seem like the neck needs to be mostly finished before the wings are glued on, but that will certainly make the carving and finishing of the guitar a challenging process. I'm still considering a set neck option, as it seems a little more straightforward. What are the playability and tonal issues involved here? Is a through neck going to be work the hassle? Also - anyone have thoughts on trems? More specifically, I'm looking for something like a FR or a Kahler. This is going to be a full blown 80's monster, so I want to be able to go crazy without any tuning problems. Rather than just blindly picking out a random model, I'd like to do some reasearch on what people like, what features are important/nice, and what to avoid. I've searched this forum and the web, but haven't come across this sort of info.

Nice Bass! One of the things I'm specifically concerned about is putting (and subsequently carving) a top on a neck-through. Am I right to believe this might be something to be avoided for my first build?

Ok - I've been reading up and want to get serious about starting my own project. This forum is great, and what previously seemed incredibly intimidating now seems quite possible. I want to make a superstrat along the lines of a Soloist or an RG. What I want: 25.5" scale, 24 frets floyd-like trem Neck SC, Bridge HB (tapped?) Carved curly maple top I have a few questions: Obviously the standard superstrat has a neck-through. But there don't seem to be as many examples of people making these, and I'm thinking that I can still get decent access to the high frets if I do the carve right on a set neck. What are the advantages/disadvantages of a through neck build? How difficult would it be for me? Any good example threads to point me towards? What would you recommend? What wood would you suggest for the Body and neck? What would you think about using a denser wood like mahogony on this? Also, what are your thoughts on directly copying an existing design vs creating a custom/hybrid design for a 1st build? I'd like to make some modifications (body shape, pickup configuration, wood choice, etc) so that the guitar is my own, but I also wonder if it would be better to simply copy a previous design to minimize the variables, and to ensure that the design is good. Can someone point me towards a good thread or resource which discusses and compares different trem manufactures/models to help me pick one out? Thanks for your help -Jon