Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

[WhoFan]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

Or...

Drilling those 1/2" holes about 1" down took about a 1/2 pound off that monsterous '71 hardtail. The haggard semi-swimming pool route was already in place before I aquired it... it was a solid 9 pounds before holes, about 8.5 after. My scale only goes in 1/2 pound increments...

At some point I'm gonna channel a little more for a bridge & neck bucker... maybe add a few more "weight relief" holes too.

Gotta say, there wasn't any noticeable tone change after drilling. VERY negligable at best.

man i can't believe you did that to a 71 strat.... not that 71 strats were highly regaurded guitars at onetime... but these days they are in fashion

 

[J Moose]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

man i can't believe you did that to a 71 strat.... not that 71 strats were highly regaurded guitars at onetime... but these days they are in fashion

Just got in from a gig...

Loooooooooooooooooong night.

Ready for the sack...

I'll tell the ULTRA kool story of that hardtail at somepoint soon.

It was a 'lost child' at one point...

Total "mutt" piece.

I'd NEVER carve up a 'vintage' ride on the sake of modding & experiements.

 

[GuitarSandwich]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

How about this?

 

[WhoFan]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

Just got in from a gig...

Loooooooooooooooooong night.

Ready for the sack...

I'll tell the ULTRA kool story of that hardtail at somepoint soon.

It was a 'lost child' at one point...

Total "mutt" piece.

I'd NEVER carve up a 'vintage' ride on the sake of modding & experiements.

local shop had a 73 strat body and neck in for years.... some kid bought it at a garage sale and left it at the shop but could not afford to fix it up.... it was hanging there for over a few years and kid would not come and pick it up... if he held out much longer i may of had a neck and body for myself... it was a heavy body for sure...

 

[Fender_Punk]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

man i can't believe you did that to a 71 strat.... not that 71 strats were highly regaurded guitars at onetime... but these days they are in fashion

CBS Fenders SUCK when compared to pre-CBS or even a lot of the post-CBS Fenders. I'd rather buy an '07 '57 Strat re-issue than an original '71 Strat.

 

[WhoFan]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

CBS Fenders SUCK when compared to pre-CBS or even a lot of the post-CBS Fenders. I'd rather buy an '07 '57 Strat re-issue than an original '71 Strat.

i would prefer a 57 reissue as well...

but that being said the 70's strats are getting higher and higher on the vintage market.... like it or not... some really beat up POS ones i've seen over the last year sold for big bucks... what used to be cheap worn guitars are now called RELICS and demand high bucks! I saw a 75 Sunburst Hardtail strat with almost a SRV worn finnish look, a brass metal pickguard, aftermarket brass bridge, 2 Dimarzio humbuckers in it, and huge frets in.. it sold for $1800... now a good contition one would sell for $2500 in the same shop... a mint NOS one would be $3000 i bet...


The early 70's ones are getting a little more then the later 70's strats.. example is i saw 2 79 strats over the last year come in on trade ins to a shop.. they never made it out on the floor. They were sold before they were displayed.. one was in rough shape one was in good shape.... $1200-$1700 they sold for..

a POS 73 strat that once had a floyd rose on it, had the wood filled in and paint touched up sold for $2400.... the same shop had some nice ones for $3000...

it's a crazy world out there

 

[J Moose]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?

Yes.

And I'm absolutely DEAD SURE that Mr. Fender Punk has played dozens, if not hundreds of CBS and pre-CBS era instruments and that the ‘opinion’ he stated above is based on personal experiences & NOT interknot heresy…



Riiiiiiiiiiigggght.



Anywhoo.

I first met that '71 hardtail almost 15 years ago when I was talking lessons from this guy named Tom Barth. He mostly did repairs, lessons and other bits but there were always a few guitars around for sale too. That hardtail was one of the ones that wandered through at some point and I would play it & others while waiting for my lesson.

Tommy also taught me a LOT of guitar maintence & repair, introduced me to the world of the 4-track... I was a teenager at the time.

As the story goes, he put that guitar together out of the hardtail body that came with two Greybottom single coils, fitted a late 80's Chandler maple neck, and tossed in an early 80s DiMarzio bridge pup with a HUGE magnet. He built it as a 4-bolt, not a three. Neck pocket is nice & tight actually...

Fast forward to late last year... I was at the local music shop & started talking to this guy who said he had a really heavy 70s hardtail mutt and wanted to sell or trade it for something lighter since he had a bad back & had been through a few surgerys.

I went over to his place a few days later, walked into his music room and when I was about 15 feet from the guitar I said; "Hey, did you get that from Tommy Barths shop"?

"Yeah!"

But yah. The things a mess. No collector value at all. Someone years ago tried to refinish (I think anyway) just the top of the body. The finish on the rear is intact and has lots of buckle wear but there's a rawness to the top and what looks like epoxy runs down the sides...

It's a player!

 

[mark4877]

Re: Can I route A strat body to make it lighter?