Guitarfrenzy

It seems like we have a discussion like this at least once a week. Yes, the wood you use makes a difference in your tone, but so does pickups, pot values, cap values, etc. etc. even down to the amp you use. If you want a general idea of what certain woods will sound like, go try out guitars at a local music store, and find out which wood, pickup, combinations sounds best to you. Then you will have a better idea of what kind of wood you should build a guitar with.

Okay, good to know...thanks! I actually got the idea for a zero fret while dreaming/drooling over an old Gretsch... Are you going to do a sorta Buzz Feiten mod like we talked about in a previous post. Read the next to last question and answer on this link to see what Feiten himself says about the use of zero fret for this purpose.

lol.. How could I have forgot that option?

You have two ways to solve the problem. 1. Get out the file and go to work.. 2. Refret the guitar and use a fret tang nipper tool to remove a small portion of tang from both sides of the fretwire. Like Mattia was mentioning in a previous post. A close-up picture so you can see what we are talking about better.

I've seen great prices on inlay like that before, and then realised how thin it was, so I never bought any of it. You have to read all the fine print to really understand what your buying.

Good job on the guitar, I at one time had wanted to build a replica of Brian May's Red Special also, but never got around to it. You definitely did it well. I'm also curious about the intonation, but if you say it is intonated we'll just have to take your word. Again, congrats on the great build!! Matt Vinson

Very nicely done, I love it!! The paint job looks very well done, and I personally like the color you used. Good job bro... Now if I could only learn to play a fretless bass better, I'd ask to borrow it.. haha

I wouldn't mind having a Toneport also, especially if you can do like the Guitarport and become a member where you can actually jam with Backing Tracks, take Lessons, etc. Speaking of Line 6, I got to take my AX2 apart again, for some reason it gets a crackling tremelo sound out of the blue, and the only way I can get it back to normal is take it apart and reconnect all the ribbons, tighten the screws that hold the mainboard down, etc. Then it will work perfect for about 6 to 8 months and then out of the blue it will happen again.. lol The bad thing is they won't sell me a schematic for it, so I might just need to get it worked on. Nah, I'll tear into it again tomorrow.. BTW.. it's been a great amp, it's just getting old... p.s. Great to see you back Drak!!! Matt Vinson

Dust in a metal working shop is killer, I can definitely see their reason for concern.

Our sound guy made all his speaker cabinets himself, with Madison speakers. They sound great, and I wish I knew how to explain how he builds them, but I don't have a clue.. lol Nice links though.

Not bad at all, I like it. Good work.

I don't know if I'd recommend you doing your first fretjob using stainless steel wire. The only problem with stainless steel is that it's rough on your tools, and takes longer to work with. If you can get the fingerboard near perfect level, and press the frets in, you shouldn't have too much problems with leveling the frets. Diamond files make life a lot easier when working with stainless!! For your first fretjob, I think you'd learn more to start with regular fretwire before trying stainless. Just my opinion though.

Although I didn't find any local Luthier Supply places for you that carries those videos, I do know that Stew Mac does ship to Australia, talk to Perry though, since he should know approximate pricing for shipping. You mean you didn't see the tape of me and Paris yet? lol..

A great way to learn inlay work is by buying Larry Robinson's Inlay Video's. It's very helpful to watch an expert in action. At least buy his book, "The Art of Inlay". It shows you techniques that will help you do fast and accurate inlay work. Plus, search the web, there is a lot of information you can find on the subject. Good luck..

I just think it would be cool to make an old classic Fender amp if possible. I'm in no hurry though, since I don't have any parts.. lol Just something to do in the future.. BTW, I'd definitely be interested in any info you have on making amps..

Happy Birthday Brian!!!! Hope you have a great one, and many more!!!

On the JV-1 guitar I made, I used the same pickup configuration as your talking about. Seymour Duncan Jazz(SH-2) for the neck, and JB(SH-4) in the bridge, and sounds great to my ears. I personally like the sound of Seymour Duncan pickups, but there are a lot of great pickups out there, so it pays to be open minded too.

If you want that minty smelling finish for your guitar, use Crest Minty Fresh toothpaste!!! Just don't use one that says "Whitening" on the label, or it might bleach your finish... lol.. But seriously guys, these products might work good, but like Perry said why not use something that is made for the job. Then again, if it works for you, then use it. I would come near using Brasso, than toothpaste though. Why hasn't anyone mentioned Baking Soda yet? Wouldn't that subsitute for coarse compound? See, I've got my thinking cap on too.. lol

Mahogany, like everyone else has said, is one of the most used tonewoods for guitarbuilding, not only for acoustics but equally for electrics. It's a proven wood for electric guitars too. If your worried about neck stability, and don't want to use Carbon Fiber Rods, then definitely make sure it's quartersawn. I always use CF rods though, since it adds so much more stability to the neck without any extra weight.

True, I have a friend who has an original Chrome Boy and the paint job started flaking off, and on the newer ones they used a different method to prevent this from happening. At least, I guess they held up better, I don't own one, so I don't know. I know of only a few guitars with a chrome look that will last forever, and one of them was fromMetalcarver (member of PG).. Made out of aluminum though, but I still think it's a cool idea.

Speaking of Fender Champ Amp, I have a 1963 one that I got with my first guitar, the guy who sold it to my dad said that if I ever wanted to get rid of the amp, he wanted to buy it back. The guitar was crap, and I don't have it anymore, but you can bet I still have the ole' Champ. lol So you made one? I've always been interested in building amps, but just when I got all geared up, Line 6 amps came out. So I bought one of those, and figured I could never build one with such electronic chips as that, so I kinda gave up the amp building idea. But, yeah, It would be cool to build an old replica. I know Paul from Specialty Guitars can build old amps, very nice too.. I actually have an electronic tech degree, but I don't use it anymore, so I'd have to brush up on things.. hummm.. anyone have any spare tubes.. haha

Not a late starter myself, (been playing since I was 10), but have seen late starters do excellent quickly. It all comes down to putting the hours of practice in. Just be patient and dedicate at least an hour a day to serious practicing, learning new things and you'll be suprised at how quickly you can learn. That is, if you have any rhythm at all.. lol When I was still in high school, one summer I practiced approximately 8 hours a day, every day, and I started to get real bad pains in my left hand. Ironically, I received a new guitar magazine in the mail, that had exersices for warming up your hands, and I started using them. It helped out tremendiously, and I still do them all the time. Another thing that I found out helps more than anything, is that when I started getting into weight-lifting, it seemed I never had a problem with my hands anymore. Nothing scientific, but just speaking from my own experience.

I like it a lot, also enjoyed reading the detailed explaination you gave with each picture.

Check out the Guitar Building Photo Gallery link here.. You can see that the exact method used, was to spray the guitar yellow basecoat first, then taped it off, sprayed the black just like you thought. Basically whatever color you want the stripes, that's what color you should do first. As far as tape used, just use different sizes of masking tape, and if you use the right kind of paint you won't have any peeling when you take it off. Just make sure your clear is compatible with the basecoat paint, if not it could give you problems. In other words, stick with the same kind and brand of paint to make sure it's compatible. If in doubt call the company and ask. Practice on scrap, etc. Just don't paint the guitar until your sure. Also, if your going to use spray cans to paint your guitar, you might want to buy the video from PaintYourOwnGuitar.com ... Good luck

Someone else from Arkansas on the forum finally.. lol Anyway, to my taste the body your designing is way too wide, but if it's like you want it, go for it. Remember a design means every aspect of the build, from how it looks, how it functions, how it sounds, etc. It should be comfortable to play, as much as anything. Good luck on your project!!!