ItsaBass
New member
After hearing about them through Ayrton, I checked out Guitar Mill, and ended up purchasing three pre-made discount bodies from them. They had exactly what I wanted at killer prices. The bodies should be here Wednesday. Here are the initial plans for the three bodies:
1. Vintage-correct hardtail '50's Strat, ash. I'm going to try to get a paint color that matches a '50's white vinyl pickguard as closely as possible. I am going to try Alpine White and Olympic White, and see which one gets closer. It'll be my first ever true hardtail Strat.
2. Tele-Gib, something like this. The virtual guitar builder didn't have all the features that the guitar will have. I'm also not so sure about the matching headstock; I'll probably not do it. It's thin (1.5") alder, only 3.5 lb. before routing for the humbucker. The fretboard will be ebony with bright white dots. The neck pocket has a 2 degree back angle routed into it. Also, the virtual builder didn't have a three ply white guard, so I went with single ply white for this sketch. It'll actually be 5-ply W/B/W/B/W, with the old style 30 degree bevel cut, and 8 holes. The knobs will be different; they'll be three Gibson speed knobs on the control plate (V/T/T), and one of the new 3-way super switches out on the pickguard instead of on the plate. The super switch will be wired so that it gives me a virtual middle humbucker in position 2. That is, it will steal one coil from each of the humbuckers. The pickups (which I already have) will be EJ Customs, which are supposed to sound like Gretsch humbuckers in a Gibson humbucker form.
3. My own version of the $2,300 60th Anniversary '58 Jazzmaster that Fender put out this year. Lightweight ash, black over 3TSB. Will have an ebony board (not available in the virtual builder), but other than that, it will be very similar to the original JM prototypes (including the small Strat headstock, I think – but maybe not).
Thanks, Ayrton! Guitar Mill seems like a killer place for almost everything! I will report more fully once the bodies arrive.
1. Vintage-correct hardtail '50's Strat, ash. I'm going to try to get a paint color that matches a '50's white vinyl pickguard as closely as possible. I am going to try Alpine White and Olympic White, and see which one gets closer. It'll be my first ever true hardtail Strat.
2. Tele-Gib, something like this. The virtual guitar builder didn't have all the features that the guitar will have. I'm also not so sure about the matching headstock; I'll probably not do it. It's thin (1.5") alder, only 3.5 lb. before routing for the humbucker. The fretboard will be ebony with bright white dots. The neck pocket has a 2 degree back angle routed into it. Also, the virtual builder didn't have a three ply white guard, so I went with single ply white for this sketch. It'll actually be 5-ply W/B/W/B/W, with the old style 30 degree bevel cut, and 8 holes. The knobs will be different; they'll be three Gibson speed knobs on the control plate (V/T/T), and one of the new 3-way super switches out on the pickguard instead of on the plate. The super switch will be wired so that it gives me a virtual middle humbucker in position 2. That is, it will steal one coil from each of the humbuckers. The pickups (which I already have) will be EJ Customs, which are supposed to sound like Gretsch humbuckers in a Gibson humbucker form.
3. My own version of the $2,300 60th Anniversary '58 Jazzmaster that Fender put out this year. Lightweight ash, black over 3TSB. Will have an ebony board (not available in the virtual builder), but other than that, it will be very similar to the original JM prototypes (including the small Strat headstock, I think – but maybe not).
Thanks, Ayrton! Guitar Mill seems like a killer place for almost everything! I will report more fully once the bodies arrive.
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