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djhollowman

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Posts posted by djhollowman

  1. Paw Jem Build & First Neck

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Also, great to see that us imperialist islanders are all trying to steal each others guitars still. Not that i'm 100% innocent of that myself.whistling.gif

    ...well, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for the moment, since voicing intent isn't actually deemed to be a crime yet in these parts (but hey, it's a-comin'!)

    DJ

    Imperialist?! Bow to your sensei!

  2. Paw Jem Build & First Neck

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Hmm, that's interesting - never seen that stuff afore!

    I'm lucky - I have a mate who runs a body shop, and he'll clear coat anything for me. He does it whilst spraying a door/bonnet/whatever and reckons that it uses so little for my needs that it's basically just overspray and would have been wasted anyway! Then he gives it a polish with the big slow-running mop-thingy and it looks awesome! I always offer to pay, and sometimes he'll accept a little cash, but other times he doesn't think it's worth charging for.

    DJ

    BTW - Andy, can I have this guitar when it's done............please?

    Notice how I ask nicely..........rather than hint that I'll steal it........???:D

  3. Paw Jem Build & First Neck

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Man, I love it....LOVE IT!!!!

    There's nothing I don't love about this one!

    I will undoubtedly be making something very very similar soon.

    Will you be going with the clear pickguard too?

    Hopefully we will also see gloriously gaudily-coloured pickups and knobs etc?????

    DJ

    EDIT: "also made the pickguard" ~ I really should learn to read!

  9. Project Chibanez...

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    well that just looks amazing now! I really like how you moved the jack. I never thought about doing that. It gives me hope if i don't like the jack placement in any future builds!

    Thanks, but I can only take credit for the execution, not the idea: it's where the jack normally is on a real Jem. It's just an aesthetic improvement I wanted to make for some added "authenticity".

    In practice, I'm finding it works well when you're plugging/unplugging cos you can see it more easily than an edge-mounted socket further around the body. However, if you want to set the guitar down on it's bottom edge whilst still plugged in, the position of the cable jack makes it a slight balancing problem!!

    Overall, I reckon I still prefer the good old fashioned jack point, coupled with an angled jack plug! Then you just loop the cable thru next to the strap button and you'll never do the old "stand-on-me-cable-and-wrench-it-out" dance!!

    Steve and his mad ideas, eh??? :D

    Whatever next? You watch, he'll be adding a seventh string or something equally daft! Tsk! Maybe even a swirly paint job like melting ice cream........

    DJ

  12. Project Chibanez...

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Dan doesn't harp on about tuning stability any more - just coupling and Stewmac.

    <i just noticed the irony in that last statement>

    Arf (and indeed) arf!!

    You say that the pu's are very microphonic. Did you change them, or are these the original?

    If they're the original, the fact that they're even working is a wonder!

    Original. They work well enough. I'm not 100% sure that "microphonic" was the correct word I should have used - I don't want to lead you down the wrong path!

    What I'm finding is that they seem to pick up any subtle movements I make with my hands when using high gain settings on my amp. I have other guitars which have active EMGs and DiMarzio Evo 2s etc so I'm well used to decent high-gain pickups, but this is something different. It's more like it's amplifying the unwanted background noise rather than the string noise. Maybe I should try sheilding the pickup cavity - bound to help! D'oh! Should have done that already!!

    DJ

  15. Project Chibanez...

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Yeah, the tuning is relatively stable, in fact, surprisingly so given the fact that it's a cheapo Floyd copy. I'll be honest, it's not 100% every time, but it's really very good for what it is!! :D

    And yes, you're right about the posts - well spotted Obi-wan! The gold posts I got with the Floyd copy just don't fit as well as the ones I got with the repair bracket-thingy, so I went with the chrome ones "to maximise tuning stability" (bound to be copyrighted by Dan Erlewine or someone??)

    DJ

  16. Project Chibanez...

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    That is a great recovery from an originally bad instrument....when are you out of the house this week? I only need five minutes as i'll probably raid your fridge too. :D

    A round of applause is definitely in your near future Mr Hollow.

    I believe this makes three times that he has mentioned stealing your guitar. :D

    I know! It's become something of a theme. At least I have my two ninja stealth assassins primed and ready! OK they're only 5 and 2 years old, but they should not be underestimated (or was it Dubya who said "misunderestimated"??)

    Anyway, thank you for the compliment Prostheta!

    (BTW you can have the sliced salami from the fridge...it stinks!)

    DJ

  18. Project Chibanez...

    in In Progress and Finished Work

    Posted

    Bump!

    Right, I can call this one "done" now.

    Bridge posts fixed by installing mounting plate, as described earlier in this thread:

    DSCF0207.jpg

    (Ended up replacing the bridge as well!)

    Frets replaced, and fretwork and fingerboard finished:

    DSCF0221.jpg

    And some other views:

    DSCF0218.jpg

    DSCF0215.jpg

    Jack socket now moved to correct position.

    Well, that's my four-photos-per-post limit reached!

    I'm quite pleased with the end result. It looks better than it actually is, of course! But it does play well enough, thanks mainly to now having a properly-working and supported bridge. The pickups are average at best. There's a lot of (I'm not sure if the correct term is...) "microphonic" noise, is this due to the "swimming pool" rout for the pickups perhaps?? (It does have quite an acoustic sound when unplugged.) When using high gain, the whole guitar is quite touch-sensitive: you can hear your hand rubbing against any surface of it etc. I've never had this happen with my other axes, none of which have pickguards...hmmm. :D Even the crappy locking nut works surprisingly well! I've added a battery compartment rout on the rear, next to the jack cavity, cos at some point in the future I wanna try a sustainer pickup. I've made a little blanking plate for this rout from the leftover pickguard material I bought to make the trem spring cavity and jack cavity plates. Originally the guitar had a plain white "standard Strat" style trem cavity plate (complete with 6 string holes!) and it looked soooo cheap'n'nasty!!

    Incidentally, here's a good tip for a cheap but very effective make-over: simply replace all the visible screws if they're damaged or corroded. You'd be surprised how much difference it has made when viewed next to the fresh white paint!

    Anyway, it was good fun to work on, and I've gained more valuable experience. I especially enjoyed the refret and neck dressing parts.

    DJ

  20. Floyd Rose Installation

    in Solidbody Guitar and Bass Chat

    Posted

    Here are some photos of a guitar I converted from fulcrum to recessed Floyd, which may help.

    I know you're asking about a build from scratch, but the principle is identical, esp. as this guitar also had no neck angle!

    Mine was cut using a large CNC milling machine, and using dimensions which I found on the internet eg. Jemsite, Ibanez, Floyd Rose sites etc.

    (I even remember looking at the spec drawings in an eBay listing for a FR bridge, which was very useful actually!)

    So, it started like this:

    PC300090.jpg

    Had to install a hardwood block to compensate for some gaps, then onto the CNC:

    04-04-07_1305.jpg

    Job done!

    P4100013.jpg

    The depth of each rout is easily calculated.

    Following the success of this one, I've had a set of three routing templates made for me (in thick perspex) using the same dimensions, like so:

    P2260012.jpg

    Each template corresponds to each different routing depth required.

    As a guide, here are the depths I used:

    Template 1: 6.35mm (shallowest rout; and determines overall "footprint" of recess)

    Template 2: 15.85mm (this is mainly the area at the back of the the bridge under the fine tuners)

    Template 3: 46mm (this is the hole for the sustain block, and goes right through the body and into the spring cavity on the rear)

    The depth of the holes for the bushes can be calculated by measuring the actual bush to be used.

    As you can see, I had them made to include centreline guide marks, and holes for locating pegs to ensure correct placement!

    Haven't had the chance to try them out yet, but I expect no problems.

    I also had templates made for the rear spring cavity and recessed cover.

    Maybe not 100% what is being asked for here, but I hope it helps anyway!!

    DJ

  21. Installing A Locking Nut On A Neck Not Designed For One

    in Solidbody Guitar and Bass Chat

    Posted

    Sure! Now that I look at that particular guitar again, I remember I'd actually removed some of the headstock surface to create a flat area for the nut. I used an offcut of ebony fingerboard to make a platform for the locking nut.

    P2200002.jpg

    P2200003.jpg

    It works perfectly!

    These might also help in the discussion about other styles of locking nuts etc:

    Here's a pic of the locking nut and Graphtec Strat-style nut fitted as standard to my Westone Spectrum:

    P2200004.jpg

    As you can see it features a locking nut behind the main nut, on a non-angled headstock.

    And here's a pic of a similar arrangement on my BC Rich STIII which has an angled headstock and a plastic main nut:

    P2200005.jpg

    Hope these help!

    DJ

    (Ugh! Doesn't camera flash make everything look awful??!!)

  24. Please Advise On Best Way To Finish Crack Repair

    in Inlays and Finishing Chat

    Posted

    Bump!!

    Well, basically finished this bad boy now:

    P2130121.jpg

    P2130125.jpg

    Flash photography makes it look worse than it is!

    Having got the repaired area stained to a nice colour match, you can imagine my disappointment when the act of applying the finish actually removed the stain and made the colour-match look terrible!! :D

    So, I sanded off all the coloured stain from the neck and refinished with Tru-Oil; nice and smooth but not sticky. And the colour is exactly the same all over the neck! (...and it's a nicer colour now!)

    I'm really quite pleased with this repair now, especially since it's my first attempt at a headstock re-join. I've had it strung up and been playing it as well. I left it overnight, strung up to tension, and it was still perfectly in tune the next day, so I'm happy that the join is structurally sound. (Actually I could lift up the entire guitar by the repaired headstock end - I did try it!!)

    So, now either the former owner can pay for the repair, or if she doesn't want it back I'll have an inexpensive keeper.....I can't lose with this one! :D

    DJ

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