Drak

Anyone ever use these two Rocktron rack pre-amps, the Pirahna or the P.R.O. Gap? Comments compared to other, more recent rack pre-amps? I know they're not cutting edge new technology, but I'd still like to hear any comments. Thanks.

It snowed here yesterday, so a lot of my favorite videos came out while I was doing other things. Combat Tour ('85) Live w/ Venom, Slayer, and Exodus. Crash and Burn, which has Fate's Warning, Sacred Reich, Heretic, and Angkor Wat. Gwar Skulhead Face Rory Gallagher's Rockpalast shows SRV's El Mocambo show.

WoW. Never seen one of those before. Very Cool! Thanks for the pics Alex. I've had a very wide board (14") of Northern (baseball bat) Ash here for awhile now, I keep looking at it wondering what to do with it, this looks like a pretty cool way to go. This place rocks. Where's Blade? I'd bet he'd have some more info on this. Uhhh... RODNEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Post a pic. I gotta see this.

I was thinking of throwing something in the ring this month too, and I was going to do the same thing, (e-mail them to Brian) as I'm in between pic hosters at the moment. And I think if you're actually trying to win the contest, it just seems to come off better to have the pics pop right up in the thread here instead of linking. Probably a subconcious thing...but I think it makes a difference...maybe not...

Oh well...on to the subject... I thought the tea staining thing was a good idea 'cuz it was 100% coverage and permanent, you can use shoe polish to cover everything and it will actually permanently stain? I'm having a hard time imagining shoe polish getting into all the nooks and crannies on the knobs. Just wondering aloud...believe me, I haven't a clue besides what I've read others have done. I can see it working on the neck for wear marks, but having a hard time imagining it on the knobs and such...

I think rye would have a better shot if the guitar had a bit better presentation (better pics) The guitar looks damn kick, but those pics really aren't showing it at it's best I don't think... rye, can you just e-mail some really good pics to Brian and let him post them here, or do a direct link? Something a little bolder, clearer and brighter than those MSN pics?

I'm such a retard-o. I start a Carriburst competition, and I have YET to do an exhaustive pictorial search on Carribursts. You guys have posted a lot of really good examples for us to peruse and choose from. That last one is also nice Jeff. In every one, I can pretty much visually break down what they did and 'see' how they got there, I appreciate the pics a lot. I am now (well, I do still have 3 weeks) going to do a search of my own and see what I come up with. But the examples already posted here are really nice. Personally, I really like the ones that border on an almost yellow-ish light green for the center, and have the nice peacock blue on the edge. Not too fond of the mid-to-dark green shades, but it's probably necessary to add it in as a 'passing' shade. Thanks for all the pics.

I think we should all stop hijacking Alex's relic'ed Strat thread. That's being disrespectful of all of us eh? If we want to discuss the merits/drawbacks (which I wouldn't mind weighing in on) of relic'ing, let's start a thread about it huh? OK, back to subject-at-hand... Alex, are you going to do the coffee or tea staining thang to the 'guard and pkp covers? Orange Picoh or French Roast?

Well dammit, there is an upside to this whole stankin' mess. Lookin' at that pic of Rory made me whip out my Rory videos, so it's snowing here today, I'm workin' on guitars, drawing some new guitar designs and watching Rory Gallagher rip that SOB'in relic up! Thanks Alex!

Uses for guitars as in tone quality, or just general uses?

Everyone has a right to speak their opinion without the fear of being 'banned' for chrissakes. Some just speak their opinions a little more eloquently than others at times. It's not that big a deal. I don't like relic'ed guitars either. But I also don't go around calling people, or their efforts, stupid. But that kind of political correctness in speaking comes in time as we get older. If anyone gets banned from here for openly speaking what they believe in, I'm outta here like yesterday's news. That's just a tad too heavy handed folks. Actually that's a LOT too heavy handed. Dosage: One chill pill fo' everyone.

You should be able to get the CA 'Hot Stuff' superglue tho, eh? The red (runny) label will seep into the pores like water, it will go deep and harden that punk right up. I try to avoid using it if it's humid tho, CA accepts moisture when it's drying and will turn opaque whitish if it's humid when you use it. 2-part clear epoxy would work also, but epoxy is kind of thick, not sure it would really seep in very well, although if you used the 1-hour set epoxy, that's a lot of time to allow it to seep in...I'd use a plastic spatula to push it in the pores.

Jimi Hendrix is in the RnR Hall of Relic'ers. Rory Gallagher was the Master Relic'er. SRV was an OK relic'er. Joey Ramone was a pretty good relic'er, reportedly going thru a new Jaguar (or were Jazzmasters his chosen poisen?) every year or two, and tossing the last one in the trash as no longer even usable. Pete Townshend was a good amp relic'er. Roy Buchanan, who reportedly either lost or never had a case for his beloved '53 Tele Nancy, was the epitome of the blue collar relic'er. Hey look, in '72, it still had a little tiny bid 'o paint left on it!

Yes, it does indeed look to be a Carriburst finish.

I've been a member of the MIMF for about 6 years or better. That's really the first guitar-builder on-line site I started hanging at initially, although I had started building completely on my own first w/ no on-line assistance. I see where Maestro is coming from, but I don't consider any of the things listed as bad things, I've gotten an awful lot of help there over the years. Structure and discipline are not necessarily bad things. Also: The FDP (Fender Discussion Pages), TDPRI (Telecaster Discussion Pages ReIssue) TFF (The Fender Forum) And not so often, but occasional lurking done at the PRS forum and lately, Moser Shredder. Some others, can't remember them all now... All of the above have a section or a contingent of builders somewhere inside the forum, and most also have an amp section too. I re-hab amps also, new speakers, baffle-boards, tolex jobs, hardware modifications, faceplates, everything except the hard-core teching. I've got some fantastic techie guys I use for that. I am 'into' old vintage amps also.

Uhhhh... Cowbell. I got a gut the child will turn the cowbell world on it's collective ear! I can see jr. doing duo gigs with Zamfir, ...Concerto for Cowbell and Pan Flute! Congratulations Jeff!

Just so's you know, he wets the wood for the pics, and he knows how to use a flash to his advantage. What would appear at your door would be a rather mild-brown looking wood. I bought a huge piece from the same guy about 2 months ago. Still sitting here getting acclimated to my climate (west coast to east coast) For the first 2-3 weeks, it was bending and warping and cupping up to 1/2" a day. It would cup itself about 1/2", I would flip it, and it would bend 1/2" the -other- way the next day. I flip it again, etc... It's finally starting to settle down now somewhat. Mine is 2 years dry, still not ready to do anything with until it settles it's ass down for good.

Is it Fender Month around here or WHAT?

That Mahogony Tele is drop-dead gorgeous Ben, I LOVE it. As much as I HATE relic'ing and relic'ers (just my personal opinion folks) ...I think that Tele would look sooooo cool with some old, aged-looking, ambered-out lacquer-worn neck on it. The body has a very very comfortable 'pick me up and strum me' quality to it, I am VERY drawn to it like that, ...but the neck has a very 'new' look to it. I wish it had a more natural ambered look. It's kind of like the body is of an aged, older mature man, and the neck is more of a boy/teenager. Doesn't that sound completely retarded? Beautiful guitar man, the natural binding kicks MAXIMUM ASS, and you did a completely awesome job of showing people the natural, absolutely Raging beauty of Mahogony. The pickguard is really elegantly done for a Tele, and compliments the natural binding perfectly. God I bet that thing ROCKS! I'd love to hear it. Very very sweeeet!

Damn you Wes! Bottlecaps??? ...you one mad geen-yus. That one should go in a tips and tricks section, that is one 'Kewwl' trick! One day I'm gonna thank you for that one.

I'd recommend a pair (or even three) of Jorgenson-style bar clamps. Leave your wing pieces squared so they will be parallel to the neck blank for clamping. It's easier to jigsaw or route the extra off after everythings dried properly and evenly. I would take some extra time to make sure the body halves are the -exact- same thickness as the neck blank, and I would clamp both halves onto the neck blank at the same time, and clamp them on a -very flat- tabletop. Once you clamp them on, use a wet towel to wipe off the glue squeezout, check that all surfaces are very even and level, as if they're not, you're in for a LOT of sanding to level everything out, it's just much easier if you take the extra time to make sure it's all level to begin with. I mean Dead-level, not even as much as 1/16" rise from one piece to the next one. Keep a hammer with you, if one is a bit higher, lay a small piece of scrap wood on top of the high one a rap it down with the hammer until it's level with the one next to it. You might have to slightly loosen up one or more clamps to re-level everything... Once you've clamped everything together, take a long level piece of wood and lay it across all pieces at once, checking that everything is level and flat. If you tighten up the clamps too much, sometimes they will 'pull up' the outer edges of the wings, laying a piece of wood across everything will be your check against that happening.

Snork... Dude: I know you are full of wild and outrageous ideas, that's a great thing and will fuel your building for years to come. Don't lose that. But: You'll learn, either the hard and expensive way, or the more gradual and softer way, that there really are Much better, more recommended places to start your journey. It's kind of like you are backing yourself up against the hardest tree you can find to start off with. Really not the best idea...but you'll learn a lot! (but it will more than likely be an expensive lesson) Buying green (wet) Redwood and wanting to instantly build something out of it is about the Worst way to start off building guitars I can think of. The biggest lesson I've learned since I started building...is...get this... PATIENCE!!!!!!!! I have f*ucked up so many bodies, so many finishes, so many everythings, because I was always in too much of a hurry. Now, under the right circumstances, you CAN build in a hurry. Like using a hunk of Alder or Mahogony, maybe a Birdseye top...standard woods that lots of people have and that work pretty easily, almost goof-proof woods. That's the best way to guarantee that your first project will actually come out a winner, an intonatable, playable, stable instrument. ...but buying green redwood ain't it my compadre... I just can't see you buying this Redwood and sitting on it for 2 years, which is what you need to do. And to dry wood out, there are proper ways to go about it. If you must use Redwood (I wouldn't for starting out) ...then make sure it is FULLY DRIED first, 'cause I just don't think you're gonna let it sit around for a year or better. The rule is 1 inch per year for natural drying. There are ways to speed the drying up at home, like building a drying box with a light-bulb or two inside (and even that will only speed things up but so much, and it has it's own dangers), but do you really want to exert all that energy building a drying box when you could go right to building a guitar instead? My only recommendation would be this: if you want to go down the Redwood path, I hope you have NO temper at all, are not subject to frustration, and can shrug off failures without batting an eye and just keep moving. If you are -that- easy-going, then go ahead and give it a shot. Most folks aren't.

I almost always pre-amp my guitars these days, adding in an EMG Afterburner after everything else. If you wanted a really outstanding setup, (IMO) use the Holy Grails with an on-board Afterburner and either, or both, the SPC and/or EXG control. The Holy Grails will give you the great cleans they're known for, the A-burner (turned up) will boost those bastards up to 'holy ****' land levels. The SPC control fattens up the mids to make them sound like a HB. The EXG control rolls off mids and fattens up highs and lows to give you unbelievable clean bell-tone. All the EMG controls run around $40.00/each or so... Now THAT'S my idea of versatility, and pretty much the way I'm wiring up all my guitars these days. From Bell-Clean to Screamin' Mean, all on-board. I don't use much in the way of pedals anymore, and I like a lot of versatility right at my fingertips on the guitar itself.

Hmmm..what a strange and interesting turn of events, not exactly what I had at first envisioned (read the early posts) but the tutorial idea makes perfect sense for the forum-at-large. ...I'm digital-camera ready and loaded for bear! Grrrrr! Thanks to Brian for giving this some 'forum structure'. ...and for PRIZES!!!!!! WOO-HOO!! Snork, what you described would make a KILLER guitar, great ideas all around...but not for a Carriburst I'm afraid. Redwood is very much like Spruce, very soft, great for archtops and acoustics, but it's a pretty far cry from a Carriburst. I would vote that a no-go for a C-burst. Redwood can take stain sort of splotchy, much like Spruce, that's one reason why almost all people clear finish it. You could spray toner on top of a clear coat...but it's really not meant to be Carribursted, believe me. No normal luthier would ever use it to make a Carriburst, no way. And if you are a 'thrasher-basher', rough on your equipment, Redwood is not for you either, it is really soft and no matter what finish you use, it will dent pretty easy. Just tossing some info out for ya...you can easily put a thumbnail dent right into the raw wood. Under the right circumstances, it's great stuff tho. And I will toss out this bit of info...when dying a piece of wood blue of any shade, it had better be pretty damn close to white to begin with. Any hint of red, brown, that kind of thing...will frustrate the hell out of you. The blue will come out SUCK. So if your wood is in any way red or brownish, be prepared to BLEACH it first if you're going to put any kind of blue on it. And bleaching wood is a chapter all unto itself. That's why good quality clear Maple works so good for this kind of thing, good clear Maple is about as white a wood as you're going to find, and your blues will come out grrreat!. Eastern Birdseye Maple can be found to be -even whiter- than quilted, as long as it is mineral-streak free (mineral streaks are kind of common in Birdseye, and they don't come out even when bleached). AND it's a great TONEWOOD too, it's very hard and adds a nice bite to the tone. So if you're entering the contest, Birdseye Maple (which I haven't seen mentioned yet) is a great way to go, it's usually much cheaper than the high-test Quilt, and a lot of Birdseye boards have a good amount of quilt in them also. I love Birdseye Maple, it's great to work with, I would really recommend it to the Carriburst guys working on a budget. It is the right color to get you started off right without having to bleach your wood first. The three things I look for when I buy Bird is: 1) No mineral streaks, nice clear white boards. 2) LARGE eyes, the bigger the better. 3) QUILT around the eyes. If you look at a lot of birdseye boards, you'll notice some have almost no quilt, some will have a little, and some will have GREAT quilt around the eyes. Those are the ones that will make great stained tops. Buying a dark wood (even a light brown or light red) to do this is almost like starting from behind, ...but whatever floats yer boat... Check out this guy, he's got a lot of *almost* good enough boards, but if you look at all his bird boards, you'll see the differences. Boards with GREAT eyes, GREAT quilt, ...but too much mineral stain to 'make it' for me, but maybe OK for you. He's got some nice stuff there, just nothing that's 5A top rate bird. Boards with great FAT eyes...but no quilt... some that are clear, but have suck small eyes and no quilt some that are nice, good quilt, good eyes, but too thin widthwise... some that one side is PERFECT, but the other side is mineral stained... you get the idea...