Strat Avenger
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Just curious; has anyone built a Warmoth Tele to resemble the Mad Cat (like the one Prince was known for playing)?
"Mad Cat" Tele?...
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Spud
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Yes I certainly did!
Ace Flibble
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Warmoth don't offer construction that would match the original Mad Cat; the closest you could get would be chambered plus a swimmingpool route (which has to be ordered by e-mail/phone; it's not on the website form). That's assuming they'd still do the unusually close strat pickup routing, too. Even then, they only do the flattened jack area on the vintage bodies, which aren't available with the non-vintage routings and construction.
You could hold out for one of the Warmoth limited runs to be resold, but from what I remember those weren't accurate either, as they were ash with flame maple laminates and a walnut pin stripe, rather than the complicated maple, ash and walnut interlocking layers of the original. A wholly maple body is actually closer to the Mad Cat's construction than an ash one with veneers.
Then there's the issue of getting the neck right, which in the case of Warmoth requires vintage construction but with some options they only offer on modern/vintage modern construction. They might do it if you call, but I wouldn't bet on it and/or expect a big upcharge.
FWIW I did put together a 'Prince-esque' variation using Warmoth parts for someone, many years ago. Chambered maple, flame veneer, routed for a Strat bridge pickup and hardtail, and since it wasn't going to be a 100% authentic replica anyway, we went with a transparent purple paintjob and white pearloid for ther binding and pickguard. The bridge mounting plate had to be specially made, and the bridge pickup wasn't in quite the right position. But it did the job in the sense that it was a Tele shape with a Strat sound. So I can say if you want something which is simply in the ballpark, you can definitely make a guitar work with Warmoth parts. It's if you want a real replica that Warmoth is a no-go.
There are several very accurate replicas being produced around the world, both high-end ones and quite cheap ones, so I wouldn't bother with a parts build if accurately replicating the original is what you want, anyway.
You could hold out for one of the Warmoth limited runs to be resold, but from what I remember those weren't accurate either, as they were ash with flame maple laminates and a walnut pin stripe, rather than the complicated maple, ash and walnut interlocking layers of the original. A wholly maple body is actually closer to the Mad Cat's construction than an ash one with veneers.
Then there's the issue of getting the neck right, which in the case of Warmoth requires vintage construction but with some options they only offer on modern/vintage modern construction. They might do it if you call, but I wouldn't bet on it and/or expect a big upcharge.
FWIW I did put together a 'Prince-esque' variation using Warmoth parts for someone, many years ago. Chambered maple, flame veneer, routed for a Strat bridge pickup and hardtail, and since it wasn't going to be a 100% authentic replica anyway, we went with a transparent purple paintjob and white pearloid for ther binding and pickguard. The bridge mounting plate had to be specially made, and the bridge pickup wasn't in quite the right position. But it did the job in the sense that it was a Tele shape with a Strat sound. So I can say if you want something which is simply in the ballpark, you can definitely make a guitar work with Warmoth parts. It's if you want a real replica that Warmoth is a no-go.
There are several very accurate replicas being produced around the world, both high-end ones and quite cheap ones, so I wouldn't bother with a parts build if accurately replicating the original is what you want, anyway.
