guitarnut

Yeah, I did. My thinking was the same. I've tested it in the studio and there's no difference between the two positions...other than phase reverse. I'll have finished pics up in just a few. Peace, Mark

I did a quick illustration to show the phase change in the PUs with metal plates and with a fiber plate at the neck position. I didn't show strings above the neck PU because they have no mechanical connection to the PU like the bridge does. Hope it makes it clear. With standard wiring and a metal plate on both pickups, you can see how the grounds invert to positive. In the case of flipping the bridge PU, the plate and strings become part of the positive side of the signal which, as we all know, would be like grabbing the end of an instrument cable that's plugged into an amp. The unground/reground procedure accomplishes phase reverse but does leave the neck PU vulnerable to noise and accidental contact. This is the scenario I'm faced with because of the neck PU having a metal plate. This one shows the same conditions but with a fiber base plate that is more common on Tele neck PUs. You can see the same issues with the bridge PU but the neck PU accomplishes the goal since the fiber base has no connection...only the coil inverts.

Same issue...metal base plate. This would actually be a worst case setup. The plate is grounded to the bridge, is grounded to the strings. So, you would be touching the positive side of the signal any time you're in PR. The reason most folks PR the neck PU is because it's far less likely to be touched. The only way I can think of to make it work would be to futz with the thin coil wire by lifting it from contact with the plate. Not something I want to mess with. Peace, Mark

The mini switch has been the plan all along...already drilled. The issue is that the metal cover and base plate ot the '62 PU are part of the ground. Flipping their phase puts them in the positive side of the signal...exposing them to certain pitfalls like noise and accidental contact. It works, it's just not ideal. There's no way to isolate the plate and cover other than removing the thin coil wire from the eyelet and running a new lead for it. The unground/reground, as it's called, works with a PU that has a fiber or plastic base plate because the metal cover is lifted from contact with the coil and regrounded to the circuit by a new ground wire. So, when the PU is phase reversed, only the coil is reversed...the cover stays grounded. The fiber plate is a non-issue. Peace, Mark

Well, my plan to use a phase reverse on the neck PU has hit a snag. I just realized that the '62 has a metal base plate. The unground/reground procedure works great on a fiber base plate. Unfortunately, the '62 cover is connected in 4 places to the metal base plate. The coil is connected to the base plate at the eyelet...so, I can either do a simple phase reverse knowing that the plate and cover will become part of the hot side of the signal when reversed or just stick a placebo switch in the hole and forget about it. With the cover and plate in the hot side of the signal, I could get unexpected noise, a nasty hum if I accidentally touch the PU, or short the PU to ground if I touch it with a string. I guess it's worth a shot...it's a simple fix if I don't like it and the switch needs to be installed either way. Peace, Mark

Thanks Jose. I felt good about this one in the beginning, but it's been out of sight, out of mind for so long. Good to know it's helping out. Peace, Mark

My guitars don't see much movement except from stand to stand...I don't play out anymore. The EM6000 is claimed by the maker to be more durable and resistant than solvent based lacquers. I've had a few slips where a neck has bumped a console of table and I've had zero issues with chipping or cracking and once it's dry, it's a hard shell. I believe Target Coatings has a comparison chart on their site. It might be in the EM6000 MSDS also.

Another build that's been languishing in the vault since May of last year...had to rescue it from page 27 of the forum...sad. Not that anyone cares anymore, but I wanted to document the warp up. So, I got off track on this one because I didn't have PUs that I wanted for it. I decided to go with a set of Vintage Series '62 Customs. Beveled Alnico 3, staggered poles, brass base plate and cloth wrapped wire. I have the bridge, neck ferrules and tuners due in today, so this one should finish up quickly...then on to new, exciting builds. Peace, Mark

Well, my last post on this build was May of last year...talk about lazy. The guitar has been sitting in a rack since then, untouched. After finishing my Tele Challenge build this year, I was bitten by the bug once again. I promised myself I wouldn't start any more builds until I finish the ones I have going. Really, there was no reason not to finish it last year. I had to go back 24 pages to find the thread. Pitiful! So, I've brought it up to this point. Nut cut and slotted. Electronics mounted, strung up and action checked. Dealt with a few minor fret end issues...nothing a touch of CA couldn't fix. The black knobs are temp. I have amber and gold speed knobs coming in, hopefully today.

Thanks! I discovered the Macro setting on our camera...makes for cool close ups. Thanks! Teles are close to my heart too. This is my 7th. 7.75 if you count the hybrid I built last year. Peace, Mark

Thanks! Yes, 3 degrees on the tenon. I'll add this to my first post above. Peace, Mark EDIT: And welcome to the forum!

Hello all. I haven't been around in awhile though I have been keeping an eye on the builds here. I shook the dust and cobwebs off my tools and my barin and built a Tele for the 2011 Build Challenge over at TDPRI. I was going to copy all the posts over here but the threads on the Challenge have been locked. Here's the link to the thread if you want to take a look. Guitarnut's Challenge Build This one was built like my Maple Thinlne that I completed last year. Made of mahogany with a chambered alder core, bent sides, flame maple bindings, set neck at 3 degrees and wrap-around bridge. Dual HB with series/coil cut/parallel switching on the bridge PU. Bridge PU Sound Samples: Clean Series Clean Coil Cut Clean Parallel Dirty Series Dirty Coil Cut Dirty Parallel

Beautiful as always Crow. The carve is very nice! The fretboard inlays make me think of Bootsy Collins. I've been doing my carves with an Ibex plane but I'm very interested in learning to use a chisel like you do. What types and brand of chisels do you use? Peace, Mark

Hooked up to the X3 Live.

Thanks!

It came out pretty nice except for one small design flaw. I located the LEDs so they reach the near side of their respective switch. What I forgot to account for is that the switch, in either on position, lights the opposite set of contacts. So, when the switch is up, the lower LED lights and vice versa. No big deal. The option would be to make 12 little jumpers to reach the other side of the switches. I may go back and do that to have it to have it indicate properly. I'm going to hook it up tonight and see if I have any ground loop issues between any of the amp combinations...fingers crossed. Peace, Mark

As my amp collection grows and the studio shrinks, I decided it would be nice to have a signal switching system in place. This way I can leave all of the amps cabled and just power up the single or pair I want to use on a particular part. So, first step was to design the circuit. It's pretty basic but allows for all combinations of left and right signal to go to any amp as well as an off position for each amp. I used a separate load resistor for each LED just to make sure I didn't overload anything in case 3 or 4 switches got turned on at the same time...this design will handle all switches at the same time. The main ground is a buss that tags the ground on each signal jack as well as the negative terminal on the DC jack. Then it was just a matter of connecting each LED cathode to the buss by way of it's load resistor. The entire box is earthed thru the amp grounds by way of the signal. I decided to change the DC voltage to 12vdc since I had a wall-wart laying in the drawer...no need to buy a new one. I also opted to use looms for DC, and left/right signal.instead of series jumpers from switch to switch. This way if one switch has an issue, it doesn't affect the others. Here are some shots of the various stages of the build.

If it were me, I'd start with the red and not use the white as a base. Anything you gain by building up with white may cause you trouble by having to cover it with additional red coats. If the 3 cans are of different suppliers, I would make sure you have 3 compatible products on some scrap or cardboard before you start on the body. This would also give you a chance to see how well the red covers the white if you still want to that way. Lacquer burns in on every coat so it re-wets the previous coats and flows them out a bit. Unless you're having issues with the color laying down smoothly, wet sanding between coats is not needed. It just takes away finish build up that you'll need when you do wet sand. A cool trick is to get a can of blush remover, which is mostly thinner and retarder, and spray the body after color coats. This will flow out the top coats reducing the need for wet sanding. And, of course, address any blushing issues you may have. Let it dry for 48 to 72 hours, wet sand and then start your clear coats. Peace, Mark

I can't tell from the pic for certain, but it looks like you may have sanded thru a thin veneer layer that was used to cap a less expensive body core. If you're going opaque with the new finish, it should be no problem at all. Peace, Mark

My pics are self hosted on my domain. Should be around as long as I am. Peace, Mark

Great idea! If it helps and the Mods can make duplicates of them available to me, I'd be happy to go back thru my builds and clean out the "questions" and "atta boys". Could probably add some additional details as well. Peace, Mark

Beautiful! Love that spalted maple! I'll be watching this one closely. Peace, Mark

It's nice to have my name called in such company. I'm still around. Life has become very busy and I still have several unfinished builds...promised myself I wouldn't start anything new until I finish those. Into last fall, I spent alot of time resawing and prepping body blanks, tops, neck blanks and fretboards. I'll be back in it this spring for sure. Although it's not a guitar per se, I have been working on a cab conversion for a Vox AC4TV. Laminated spalted and flame maple. I didn't care for the stock 10" speaker setup so I'm building a 12" cab and a head for the chasis. Wasn't sure it fit the forum here so I haven't started a thread. ??? Peace, Mark

I haven't shown this yet but the bottom of the neck heel has a 4 degree angle milled into it. I did this on a router sled like I used on my PRS build. With the neck set into place, the bindings all tie together well. There;s just a sliver of mahogany separating the neck binding and the faux binding on the body. Peace, Mark