Thanks!
I built this guitar to recreate the sound of my very first guitar (a then new 1980 Matsumoku factory built Strat copy). A lot of very nice guitars came and went while that Japanese Strat remained as my #1. It saw far too many gigs to count, until 1988 when it finally needed a complete refret. The tech to whom my local shop farmed the refret out botched the job and that was the end of the neck.
I took measurements of everything (including several cross sections of the neck) and made detailed documentation, which I still have to this day. I then gave the guitar to a very close friend who sourced a new neck for it and he still plays it to this day.
In 2005, after going through many Strats over the years looking for a replacement I decided to build one. I took my notes down to USA Custom Guitars and they made an Alder body from wood I picked out at their shop, and a neck that very closely matched the original in profile, but with a 10" fingerboard radius and a 25" scale length (the guitar that became my primary in 1987 was a pre-production Alder bodied PRS CE24, one of a limited number of hand-built then 'PRS Classic Electric' guitars to gauge market interest for bolt-on neck PRS guitars).
Pickups with similar impedance, wire, and magnets were used (I had replaced the bridge single coil with a PAF that my uncle had sitting unused so a Lindy Fralin Unbucker was installed in this guitar). Body weight is a near dead match for that of the original. Fret wire is the same width and height of that used on the original neck, and a vintage type single action truss rod was used. The hardware is an area where this guitar is a clear upgrade (Hipshot trem bridge and locking tuners, bone nut, cream Tusq string trees, CTS pots, PIO tone cap, 180pF poly film treble bleed cap, position 2 on the 5-way selector switch auto splits the bridge pickup to single coil). USACG upgraded the neck to beautifully uniform flamed maple without up charging for the wood used (nice surprise!).
The fingerboard edges were rolled to give the neck a well played in feel. The body has 50's contours. The headstock is a modified Tele profile with a milled out, clear epoxy filled USACG logo. All wood is finished with Fornby's Tung Oil - much softer feel than raw wood or clear coat, and fast when hands sweat. The parchment pickguqrd gives a 'vintage' vibe to the look. The black hardware is a nod to the 80's.
The resulting guitar's sound and vibe are very close to the original when the two guitars are compared side-by-side, with this new one being the more nuanced and soulful of the two. I couldn't have imagined a better outcome.
In 2009 I decided to build a 4-string bass with a similar look. This instrument takes a more modern approach in body style (Dinky-J body) with a modern/vintage electronics package. It sports a Dominger late 50's spec P-Bass pickup, a Nordstrand Big Single bridge pickup (Dual Coil shown, pick taken before the Big Single was installed), a Nordstrand active/passive 3-band preamp with master passive tone control. Once again, no charge for the flame maple neck. This thing nails the '58 P-Bass sound, and covers a lot of sonic territory otherwise. Same look (colors, finish, feel). Neck profile is that of the 4-string MusicMan Bongo bass. Definitely the most versatile bass I've ever played!
My new MINI GIANT system..
Best Regards
Thanks!
I built this guitar to recreate the sound of my very first guitar (a then new 1980 Matsumoku factory built Strat copy). A lot of very nice guitars came and went while that Japanese Strat remained as my #1. It saw far too many gigs to count, until 1988 when it finally needed a complete refret. The tech to whom my local shop farmed the refret out botched the job and that was the end of the neck.
I took measurements of everything (including several cross sections of the neck) and made detailed documentation, which I still have to this day. I then gave the guitar to a very close friend who sourced a new neck for it and he still plays it to this day.
In 2005, after going through many Strats over the years looking for a replacement I decided to build one. I took my notes down to USA Custom Guitars and they made an Alder body from wood I picked out at their shop, and a neck that very closely matched the original in profile, but with a 10" fingerboard radius and a 25" scale length (the guitar that became my primary in 1987 was a pre-production Alder bodied PRS CE24, one of a limited number of hand-built then 'PRS Classic Electric' guitars to gauge market interest for bolt-on neck PRS guitars).
Pickups with similar impedance, wire, and magnets were used (I had replaced the bridge single coil with a PAF that my uncle had sitting unused so a Lindy Fralin Unbucker was installed in this guitar). Body weight is a near dead match for that of the original. Fret wire is the same width and height of that used on the original neck, and a vintage type single action truss rod was used. The hardware is an area where this guitar is a clear upgrade (Hipshot trem bridge and locking tuners, bone nut, cream Tusq string trees, CTS pots, PIO tone cap, 180pF poly film treble bleed cap, position 2 on the 5-way selector switch auto splits the bridge pickup to single coil). USACG upgraded the neck to beautifully uniform flamed maple without up charging for the wood used (nice surprise!).
The fingerboard edges were rolled to give the neck a well played in feel. The body has 50's contours. The headstock is a modified Tele profile with a milled out, clear epoxy filled USACG logo. All wood is finished with Fornby's Tung Oil - much softer feel than raw wood or clear coat, and fast when hands sweat. The parchment pickguqrd gives a 'vintage' vibe to the look. The black hardware is a nod to the 80's.
The resulting guitar's sound and vibe are very close to the original when the two guitars are compared side-by-side, with this new one being the more nuanced and soulful of the two. I couldn't have imagined a better outcome.
In 2009 I decided to build a 4-string bass with a similar look. This instrument takes a more modern approach in body style (Dinky-J body) with a modern/vintage electronics package. It sports a Dominger late 50's spec P-Bass pickup, a Nordstrand Big Single bridge pickup (Dual Coil shown, pick taken before the Big Single was installed), a Nordstrand active/passive 3-band preamp with master passive tone control. Once again, no charge for the flame maple neck. This thing nails the '58 P-Bass sound, and covers a lot of sonic territory otherwise. Same look (colors, finish, feel). Neck profile is that of the 4-string MusicMan Bongo bass. Definitely the most versatile bass I've ever played!
My new MINI GIANT system..
This year I went down the custom Grado headphone build rabbit hole and came away with several custom headphones I consider to be among the best I have ever heard (the credit for this belongs to Symphones for the Magnum V8 drivers that I used for all the Grado mods and custom builds.
The stack of Schiit on my desk is sounding fantastic and I've no plans to change anything for a good while. For my budget I believe I'm at the point of diminishing return (he said, having no idea if this assumption holds any truth). I like the Schiit I have now.
That’s an amazing story. I had my first custom guitar made this year. It was quite the experience. Probably the most interesting was just how many choices there are to make. But the waiting and wondering process is a big thing, as well as the drama of knowing there is zero guarantee in the end. When it’s done; it is what it is. Lol
