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String through
I want to make my guitar a string through..any templates out there so I don't
screw up?
Re: string through
No template...lay it out and practice on scrap with your ferrules. Practice,
practice, practice!
Good luck,
John
Re: string through
Listen to John. I asked for his advice but didn't understand exactly what he was
trying to tell me. After drilling the holes, I understood what he was telling me
because the drill bit wandered but luckily not far enough to make the body
scrap, just doesn't look professional.
Tone Freak is Freaking!!
Hey John,
Wondered if you can make some suggestions for me, as I'm really bummed with my
new/old Charvel I just bought. It's a cool guitar, but it sounds like a dog.
Very muffled and muddy ( on both pickups ). It's a short scale - 24.75" and the
bridge pickup is angled forward like a Kramer's, which doesn't help. I believe
it's made of Basswood.
The pickups are a Screamin' Demon bridge and a Hot Rails up front. Electronics
is the original ( ? ) 500k mini-pot, a weird 5-way switch that looks like two
5-way switches side by side, all of which goes into a mini-switch, which can
also switch to the Jackson Firestorm gain system with a 25k pot. Although they
claim the 25k pot isn't muddying the mix when off because the circuit takes it
out of the loop. However, the pickups sound under-powered, muddy, and with no
"oomph", "punch", "drive" or "clarity." I'm using my POD 2.0 on Manual,
High-Gain, High-Drive, I think the Soldano setting, etc. I tried mounting the
pickup on Mahogany, but no appreciable difference. I know what the Demon should
sound like and this is not it.
I'm thinking maybe bypass all the hot-rodded wiring and try a no-load pot
straight to the output jack. I've done the 500k straight to volume pot before
with good luck, and this is a Basswood guitar, so probably needs some
brightening up. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Re: Tone Freak is Freaking!!
Jim -- I know what it is like to suffer from "cardboard tone" with a new guitar.
There may be two possibilities: First, the complicated wiring rig has such a
high capacitance that it is sucking the high end out of your tone. Try hotwiring
the pickup straight to an amp and play it - I guarantee the sound will be
different..probably more open.
The second possibility is that the Lynch pickup is too hot for the body. You may
want to backpedal to a PAF style and try that. The Demon is a ceramic 12K+ rig
that tends to be very midrangey. I also recommend mounting the pickup directly
to the body for some more coupling.
Let us know, and good luck,
John
Horrible action
I've gotta First Act guitar..and the neck angle is horrible..It's so obvious
too. At the nut end of the neck, the action is fine. At the heel however...Its
virtually unplayable. I've got the saddles on the bridge screwed down all the
way, and the only way to fix it now (I'm guessing) is to fix the neck angle. How
do I fix it though? Can I just replace the neck, or do I have to do some body
work to it? Thank yall.
Re: horrible action
Check out our articles on setup under "repair techniques". You may find what you
are looking for.
Good luck,
John
Re: horrible action
Thanks. I looked at the repair pages and I think I've found the problem. I put
the capo on the first fret, and held down the string on the 15th fret to test
the gap over the ninth fret, and the gap was within the specified range. So I'm
thinking maybe its the neck cavity, or I'm just completely wrong. Luckily I have
other guitars to fall back on and I'm not out of commission because of this one.
Fender Clay Dots
I was just wondering what kind of clay Fender used as their clay dots on pre-cbs
guitars?
Re: Fender Clay Dots
I've done some research on these, and the dots are not really clay -- they are a
plastic called "Ivorine". Ivorine was developed by the Steinway piano
company as an alternative to using real ivory for piano keys.
You can buy the "clay" dots from several sources online. Let us know where you
get 'em.
Good luck,
John
Re: Fender Clay Dots
where could I find some Ivorine?
Re: Fender Clay Dots
Check this link:
http://www.callahamguitars.com/partsstr.htm
The dots are near the bottom of the page.
Good luck,
John
Re: Fender Clay Dots
actually I've used these "real clay dots" and their more gray than cream. And I
confirmed that your right in what they used the "Ivorine" I just cant find where
to buy any? thank you for your help
Re: Fender Clay Dots
Hey Cole -- Talk to a piano restorer in your area. I bet one broken white key
would provide enough dots for several guitars.
John
Saga neck pocket Wrong?
First let me tell you this is a excellent site, very helpful. If anyone can help
me; I just finished building a saga S-Style . most of the holes that were pre
drilled did not line up . The neck holes did not line up and when I installed
the neck the action was really high and the bridge adjusters were maxed out just
so the strings cleared the frets, so my friend read that the neck pocket had to
be routed deeper. We sanded it down and I believe we might have gone to far. The
guitar will play now but we have fret buzzing at the 8th fret. we checked the
tress rod and it seems to be right at .010 clearance at the middle fret. My
question is did we take too much out of the neck pocket 1/4 inch? Can we add
shims to help or is the neck frets height off? What is the standard neck pocket
measure? I hope we didn't mess up too bad! Any help would be much welcomed THANK
YOU
Re: Saga neck pocket Wrong?
Karl -- First, thanks for the kind words on the site.
The buzz at the 8th fret just might be a high fret. Make sure you don't have one
that is just a little higher than the rest. Check this first!
You may have taken a little too much out of the neck pocket, but it sounds more
like you have a neck angle problem. I make my shims out of manila folder
material, and usually add them one by one.
Check the frets and let us know how it goes.
Good luck,
John
Re: Saga neck pocket Wrong?
John, just wanted to say thanks after many hours I finally found the problem it
was fret #7 that was installed to deep. I had to heat it a little and pry it up
on both ends and that solved the problem plus shim the neck a little , now the
action is real low and no more buzzing. I hope this helps out anyone else with
this problem. THANK YOU Karl
Mounting pickups directly to wood
I'm about to put a
seymour
duncan JB trembucker in a Kramer focus 6000 that I have. I want to mount the
pickups directly to the body to get as much tone and sustain as I can. I've
heard in order to do this you would want to take a strip of wood that's long
enough to stretch to both screw clips on the side of the pickup but just only as
wide as those clips so that the wood doesn't obstruct the pole pieces sticking
out the bottom of the pickup. Do I have the right idea here, or would it be
wiser to just use two smaller pieces of wood: one at either end of the pickup
for the mounting screws to go through before they go into the body?
Another idea that I've heard is to not have the mounting screws go through the
wood spacer but rather to just have the mounting screws going from the pickup
directly into the body.
thanks in advance as any input would be appreciated.
Re: Mounting pickups directly to wood
David -- This is how I mounted the pickup in my VH guitar featured on the site.
First, measure exactly where you want the guitar to sit -- this is the distance
under the strings. Next, I would use two pieces of suitable wood -- probably
basswood in your case, but you could use mahogany -- and cut and sand them so
they sit under the "feet" of the pickup at the appropriate height. They won't
interfere with your pole pieces there. Finally, when you are satisfied with the
fit of the pickup on the little wooden platforms (this may take a while), glue
the platforms in place. Once the glue is dry, use small wood screws to affix the
pickup to the wooden platforms.
This is how I did it -- please be careful if you give it a try. If you find a
better way to do it, let us know.
Good luck,
John
Re: Mounting pickups directly to wood
Before I suggest you look at this site, I want to make it clear that I'm not an
Ed Roman fan, but it is good information:
www.edroman.com. Go to
tech articles then Direct Coupling.
Re: Mounting pickups directly to wood
Hi,
This is the lazy man's way to mount a pickup directly to the body of the guitar.
I taped a piece of white paper onto the bottom of my pickup cavity. Then I put
the pickguard on the guitar and positioned it where it would eventually sit. I
traced the outline of the pickup hole onto the piece of paper as carefully as I
could. ( I have copper shielding and didn't want to screw that up - hence the
paper ). I positioned the pickup and lightly screwed it in. It was positioned
correctly, so I got my piece of mahogany and cut that to fit. Then I placed it
underneath the pickup and screwed them both to the bottom of the cavity, using
the existing screw-holes. Voila!
It sounds KILLER! I got the mahogany idea from John and the way he did his VH
guitar. This was in an inexpensive Squier Strat, with a $20 distortion-type
pickup, and now it's my best-sounding guitar! Thanks, John!
Weird bridge problem
For years I've had a problem with my guitar where after I've put new strings on
it and reset the bridge and tuned it to an E, it drops to almost an E flat all
the time. All strings go down in tuning by an equal amount. This has been going
on for probably a good five years or so if not longer.
Due to a medical condition I had to stop playing for a couple years. I'm back to
playing again and have noticed an even bigger problem with my guitar. It still
does the same thing it used, with all the strings going flat, but now if I pull
the vibrato bar up my strings will all go a little sharp and will still there
until I use the bar again. If I push down on it the strings drop about 3/4 of a
full step in tone and will stay that way until I use the bar again.
Does this sound like anything anybody has ever heard of before? All the guitar
players I know and have asked have never even heard of this happening before.
Any help would be appreciated.
Re: Weird bridge problem
Soooo many possibilities. Before I give you a few things to try, it might be
best to take it in to a technician to diagnose. Or you can try these...
Make sure when you re-string, to wind the strings 4-5 times around the tuning
pegs.
Are you using a graphite (or other slippery) nut? if not try a little pencil
mark in the string slots.
Is your tremolo in good repair? is it clean? does it bind anywhere?
Re: Weird bridge problem
how many springs do you have on your tremolo, if you use a heavier string you
need more springs, my brother was having that same problem so I thought I might
ask.
Re: Weird bridge problem
Well ... I've done a lot of reading up on this subject lately. I grabbed my
whammy bar and dove as low as it would go and then let it go back to it's
"natural" resting position. I then removed the locking system and tuned it to an
E. That seems to have solved most of my problems. The guitar still does not hold
at a perfect E ... it drops a little bit. Now I'd say it's only dropping about
1/4 of a step. But every time I tune it back to an E (with the fine tuning) and
play it for a bit it drops again. And of course every time I have to tune it
back up the bridge lifts a bit.
I use light gauge strings ... the high e is .09 or whatever. I have not opened
the back to see how many springs are there yet or the position in which they
are.
Re: Weird bridge problem
Angel -- Two things come to mind. You've got a problem with the nut, and you
need to adjust your tremolo bridge. Try some
Big Bend's nut sauce
on your nut (or some lanolin/graphite mixture), and think about another spring
or adjusting the claw on the back.
I recommend taking it to a tech and letting him set it up. I also recommend
Ernie Ball strings.
John
Re: Weird bridge problem
This may be a bit simplistic, but do you stretch the strings as you're
installing them? When I restring my guitars I always tune them to pitch, then
pull them up gently off the fretboard a few times then retune. I do this until
stretching stops making them go flat, then retune the whole guitar. Sometimes
the guitar will go flat one more time, but usually it stays in tune really well
after that. If this is something that you already do, and you still have your
problem, then I apologize for wasting your time.
Fretboards and Inlays
Hello,
I am going to buy one of the Les Paul Saga kits. What I want to do is put a
mother of pearl inlay in the head stock. How much trouble would this be? I also
have found the fret boards on eBay with the inlay already done, how hard is it
to get the fretboard off? If that is too much trouble how hard is it to pull the
inlay dots out of the fretboard and put in the mop dots? Last question I to am
wanting to stain the quilted veneer on the top. What would you suggest using to
get the sealer off?
Thanks,
Chris
Re: Fretboards and Inlays
The inlay on the headstock would be pretty easy. As far as the neck goes, you
can pull the fingerboard, but this is a job for someone with experience because
you kind wind up wrecking the neck...I don't recommend a casual builder try
this. You can drill out the old dot markers and install new ones. The only
challenge is to get them flush with the fingerboard -- imparting a curve on them
--without removing the frets.
I use CitriStrip to strip my Saga guitars. One word about the maple tops. The
sealer gets into the wood, and if you want a real PRS maple "pop" effect, it
probably isn't going to happen.
Good luck,
John
Re: Fretboards and Inlays
While we're on the subject of Saga LP kits, I just built one and I have a few
tips for you...
1. Make sure to dry fit the neck before you paint.
2. When attaching the neck, I found that the screws that Saga included were only
long enough to get about 2-3 threads into the neck. I bought some longer screws
that allowed me to get a good "bite" into the neck. Be careful though, even the
longer screws felt like they wanted to strip out the wood.
3. Make sure you can put the pots and p-up selector through from the back and
have ENOUGH threads to get the ring nuts on. I didn't do this and after
painting, I attempted to assemble the electronics. I found that the milling shop
at Saga did not bore the cavities deep enough to allow the threads to clear the
front side of the guitar. I had to go out and get a 1-1/2" Forstner bit and bore
the cavities out enough to do so.
4. When you set the Saddle and Bridge pegs in, have the saddle and bridge handy.
Because of the curvature of the body, the pegs will want to "lean out" as you
pound them in. I actually had to use the bridge and saddle on the pegs as I
drove them in to keep them straight so I could get the saddle and bridge on the
pegs. That was kind of tricky. I used a rag over the pegs to prevent marring and
taking the cheap "chrome" covering off.
5. Apparently the new generation of LP kits don't have the harsh lacquer on the
fingerboard like the old kits, mine didn't have it. I was able to uses a high
grit paper and just sand the finger board down well, wipe clean with a damp
cloth and apply some rub-on poly immediately. This may not be the case with
yours, you'll find out. It seems like a crap shoot with Saga's kits.
6. Finally, if you have decent soldering skills, I suggest re-doing ALL of the
wiring and soldering. You can tell the cheapest wire, solder and labor was used
when the "pre-made" electronics were assembled. I opted to use shielded wire and
high quality Kester solder.
Anyways, I don't want to scare you away from what will be a very rewarding
project. I just want to warn you of some of the problems I ran into with the
Saga LP kit. After this one, I am hesitant to buy another, but I am tempted to
try the Tele kit.
After all of that, here is a link to the pictures I took during the whole
building process:
http://www.ke4nyv.com/guitar/lespaul/
Good luck,
Jason.
Re: Fretboards and Inlays
I have built two of the Saga kits. The S-Style kit guitar is the one I always
reach for out of my whole herd. A couple of things though. The neck I think
plays like a 75.00 guitar. I went and bought a Mighty Mite maple neck. I also as
time went by changed the pick ups, the ones that came with it just didn't have
the kick. After those changes the thing is in my opinion just ducky. The PRS kit
is an ongoing process. It takes a lot of work to get these things just right,
and maybe you may have to settle for "just close enough". The maple top on the
PRS is maybe .01" (10 mil) thick In an attempt to strip the
armor plated clear coat off I actually went through the veneer(so much for a
dyed finish). But I've had a grate deal of fun building them, I've also learned
a lot as well. If I'm correct, the same guy on eBay that sells raw inlays also
is selling inlaid necks for both strat and LPs these days. Perhaps you could buy
a whole neck and save a lot of trouble. Anyways, good luck.
Re: Fretboards and Inlays
Inlay is and art and needs to be practiced. I am learning myself and can still
only do basic designs. If you have the tools, practice on scrap wood, start
simple and go up. Your first try should not be on a neck, unless you have that
much money!
Saga Kit questions
I'm new to guitar playing and I'm looking for an el-cheapo type electric to get
started with. I kind of thought that it might be fun to build one.
I see that some have been built here and I was wondering what the general
impression was. You've built more than one, so I'm guessing they must be at
least passable.
Anyway, I'm not exactly handy - What is the skill level of these kits? My wife
took all of the tools out of my toolbox and replaced them with business cards
from local contractors.
I've seen a few sites that have built them. Most seem to throw in a few extra
tricks or parts. Is the base kit worth the trouble?
Saga is the only kit company I've found, are there any others out there that you
can recommend?
Re: Saga Kit questions
Chuck -- The Saga kits are fun to build, and I recommend them for the
curious/fun seeker as well as luthier wanna-be types. Put it together before you
put a finish on it...you'll be glad you did.
Follow the instructions on our site, and we are ready to help you out.
Good luck,
John
Re: Saga Kit questions
The Saga kit is indeed fun to build, but if you're "not exactly handy" it may be
a frustrating experience. Also, they are probably pretty difficult to assemble
using contractor's business cards
A much nicer kit is available from Carvin at
www.carvin.com , but you'll pay for the improvement, more than double the
Saga kit.
That said, I'm helping my son-in-law to finish his Saga kit, and it is
beautiful. We're having some trouble with the neck, as some of the frets are
choking the strings on bends, but I don't think that it will be anything
insurmountable.
Take John's advice, and build it dry before you finish it, find any problems
before you paint it, it will save you trouble in the end.
Have fun!!!
Neck relief nightmare
Well, the Saga kit is pretty much finished, and now that I've been crowing about
how any problems with this kit are minor, we've come across a major one: The
neck has significant back-bow that is not being relieved by loosening the truss
rod. I've read and followed the method for adjusting the relief of the neck, to
no avail.
Is there a way to adjust the bow of the neck itself, independent of the truss
rod? Remove/replace the rod? Is it the rod or the neck or both that is bad?
Please help!
Re: Neck relief nightmare
If you can wait a few days we are going to post a feature on how to accomplish
this task. Seems that a T-Style Saga we built has the exact same problem.
Bottom line -- You can clamp the neck and heat it to try to get the backbow out.
If it doesn't work, major surgery is involved -- removing the fingerboard and
working the wood. Always try the easy route first!
Good luck,
John
Les Paul intonation
I recently had my les paul set up, and the tech mentioned that he COULD NOT get
the 'A' string 'IN'. 1. Just what does that mean?
2. Can it be bad for my guitar?
3. Can this be fixed?
Thanks
Re: Les Paul intonation
He was telling you that he couldn't adjust the "A" string to fret properly at
the nut and the 12th fret. This means the string is sharp or flat when sounded
at the 12th fret. Without looking at the guitar it is tough to tell, but
assuming it is a Gibson Les Paul, it is hard to imagine that a good tech
couldn't get it to intonate properly. I would start at the nut -- but again, I'm
only guessing.
Good luck,
John
Using tape to make a design?
I am planning on using tape to make a checkered design on my guitar body. (It is
a Saga tele, if it makers) I am going to use the dupli-color auto paint.
My questions are: How many coats should I put over the tape? And how soon after
I paint should I remove the tape?
I don't want know if the paint will chip or peel if it hardens before removing
the paint.
Anyone feel free to add any suggestions.
Re: Using tape to make a design?
Put just enough paint over the tape to cover the paint below -- don't really
load it up. I would remove the tape as soon as it feels dry to the touch.
Good luck,
John
Pickup Winding & Potting
Hello All
Guerilla wax potting!
We didn't have a guerilla wax potting rig, so that will have to wait until we
get home.
-
I bought at the local Mills Fleet Farm a:
One Quart, Crockpot for $9.
It has Low/High on the temp dial.
It has a Metal Base and a Ceramic Insert.
-
I have potted several pickups on "High" using cut up bits of coat-hanger wire to
hold the pickup one inch from the bottom of the Ceramic insert and it seems to
work well for me so far. I buy monster candles at the local hobby store for a
dollar or two to use as my potting wax.
-
As always your results may vary.
-
Next Project:
A 69 Thinline!!!
Rock On!!!
Greg
Re: Pickup Winding & Potting
Greg -- You should have gone by the $1 store and bought some marbles. A great
way to keep the pickups off the bottom of the pot!
John
Pickup Winding & Potting
Ok, I know this is a stupid question, but.....what exactly is potting and why is
it done?
Re: Pickup Winding & Potting
Potting the pickups encases them in wax to prevent the windings from vibrating,
thus preventing microphonic feedback and squealing at playing volumes.
Note: The original PAFs and Fenders from the 50's were not potted, and I think
potting pickups changes their tone. Just my opinion.
Good luck,
John
Chipped Enamel and Hairline Cracks in Basswood
My Ibanez RG 320 DX guitar has chipped enamel. After a while this caused
hairline cracks to form in the basswood.
Re: Chipped Enamel and Hairline Cracks in Basswood
Wow, is that just the paint that's come off the body? It looks like there's a
giant chunk of the horn missing. I read somewhere on Guitar Attack that super
glue (cyanoacrylate or CA to us RC car guys
) will really glue wood together when it's cracked. I know that it works for RC
airplanes, they have all different thicknesses of CA, plus gap filling materials
at most hobby shops.
Re: Chipped Enamel and Hairline Cracks in Basswood
Commander -- There are two thing you need to accomplish: stabilizing the crack,
then repairing the finish. I would use water-thin CA glue, available from a
hobby shop, to stabilize the crack. Once I was satisfied with the stability of
the crack, I would touch the poly finish up with a comparable color poly from
http://www.paintscratch.com/ .
They'll have your color.
Just my opinion...try at your own risk!
Good luck,
John
Filling wood grain?
Do I need to fill the wood pores on a saga kit to get a good finish? I read the
re-ranch instructions and he said that it's needed, but I didn't see you mention
on the Mattocaster and other saga kit projects.
Thanks.
Re: Filling wood grain?
Jake -- The bodies are basswood, which normally don't require filling. The Sagas
come with a thick sealer on their bodies. If you do manage to get it off, there
will be very few pores to fill. Make sure you prime the body, though. I still
prefer BINS shellac.
Good luck,
John
Tele Headstock template
John I was wondering if I could get a copy of the template for cutting out the
Tele headstock that you used? I getting ready to build one for my daughter.
Thanks
Re: Tele Headstock template
Big Dave -- I don't keep those templates around. I normally make them one off
because I don't have much of a demand.
What I did is go to the Fender site and find the instrument I want to use as a
guide:
http://www.fender.com/support/
Once I find what I am looking for, I blow the drawing up until the tuner hole
spacing matches the Saga neck. I use some artistic impression, sketch the
outline on the paddlehead, and start cutting. I usually make the outline
"close", but not exact, and I mark the necks with my mark. I don't want folks
selling them as the real thing.
Good luck,
John
Just a thought / saga kit quality
Frankly, for 50$ more than the average Saga kit, you can usually buy a decent
guitar. The only reason to go with a kit like Saga's is so that you get to enjoy
the build process, and that part doesn't seem to be working out these days.
Maybe a good alternative would be to source the parts individually from the
internet/eBay?
its just a suggestion, but maybe someone knowledgeable could post a check list
of the parts necessary for someone to build a "saga-type" guitar? Then we could
roll our own kits. Who knows, maybe even save some money?
Re: Just a thought / saga kit quality
I had the same thought. On my Black T-Style project I changed the tuners,
changed the bridge, changed the pickguard, stripped and repainted the entire
neck and body, and rewound the pickups. Other than that, the Saga kit was
killer.
Just kidding -- I agree...the reason to buy a kit is to enjoy the process and
learn something about the guitar. Modelers have been "kit bashing" for years to
get what they are looking for. I suppose we should be happy to do the same
thing.
Good luck,
John
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