Building a Lefty Jazzmaster ... maybe (care to sway me?)

[Corey P.]

Definitely assemble it to the point you're comfortable doing on your own.  Even if you aren't comfortable installing the electronics, play it acoustically and live with it for a good while at first and learn its quirks.  Most any player is capable of performing a very acceptable setup, and there are some great guides online, plus as said you may find it's perfect for you as-is, but if you encounter any dead spots or oddities a proper fret leveling/dressing & setup will likely cure all those ills, and especially with stainless steel frets where they wear so much less (if at all), you'll really only need to make minor truss adjustments seasonally.  This forum has the "Find A Guitar Tech" forum, and I'm sure there's at least one reasonable tech in NY, or one worth his/her high prices.

I can say with absolute certainty it will be well worth your while to get your guitar professionally set up since this'll be a guitar that'll be with you for the long haul.  Most likely one of many, given most of our tracks records.

 

[reluctant-builder]

I'm pretty tight-fisted, by nature, but I'm doing my absolute best not to be with regard to this build. I don't want to skimp and become a fixture on the "build regrets" thread. So, I'm buying precisely the parts I need to make the most of this thing, most notably the significantly expensive Mastery bridge. Since I'm no light-touch player, there's no sense in not buying the damned thing.

As for the fret-dressing, leveling, etc. ... I'll cross that bridge if I come to it. I can do a pretty decent setup by this point, but it's all moot anyway until I actually build the thing.

My current concern is pilot holes for the tuning machines. I saw some posts about a screw-hole guide that's sold at Stewart MacDonald. Read, too, tfarney's mention that a screw broke off in the headstock of his new Tele ... So I'm trying to gauge what is the best tool for the job.

Does it need to be a seriously serious drill or would something like a Dremel suffice for making pilot holes?

Also, I'm going to do a search right now, but I figure it doesn't hurt to ask what gauge of wire goes into a guitar. Is it 18 or 22, or something else?

Or, you can ditch the whole silly "rhythm circuit" idea...

I haven't made up my mind yet about the "rhythm circuit" ... I kind of like the quirkiness of it and I'm no knob twiddler anyway. I pretty much set my tone and volume and play. I haven't gotten into "knob trickery," to this point.

 

[Cagey]

The screw hole guide is really most useful when you use tuners that have locator pins instead of screws to prevent them from turning under tension. So, it sorta depends on which tuners you decide to use whether you really need the thing. Tuners that use screws necessarily have the holes exposed, so you can mark them without a jig pretty easily.

As to what you use to drill them, I wouldn't use a Dremel motor. While you can drill with them, they're not really designed for that sort of thing. They're more of a grinding/polishing/cutting tool, and their suitability for cutting is questionable. Plus, the collet isn't designed to compensate for different diameter drill bits. If it's not an 1/8" bit, it's not going to fit right. But, just about any regular drill motor will do, preferably with variable speed.

While screws get broken off in tuner holes all the time, it's usually because the hole isn't big enough, deep enough, or lubricated. Use the proper size drill and either put a depth collet on it or mark the depth with a piece of tape so you don't drill all the way through the headstock, and you're good to go. Wax the screw, use the proper size screwdriver, and you won't have any problem. I've installed hundreds of tuners in all kinds of different woods, as well as those really tiny bastards they give you with LSR nuts, and have never broken a screw off. Actually, the last time I broke a screw off, it was a 1/4" lag bolt. Lucky I didn't break my wrist instead. Those Milwaukee drill motors are wicked! <grin>

 

[tfarny]

The screw hole guide is really most useful when you use tuners that have locator pins instead of screws to prevent them from turning under tension. So, it sorta depends on which tuners you decide to use whether you really need the thing. Tuners that use screws necessarily have the holes exposed, so you can mark them without a jig pretty easily.

As to what you use to drill them, I wouldn't use a Dremel motor. While you can drill with them, they're not really designed for that sort of thing. They're more of a grinding/polishing/cutting tool, and their suitability for cutting is questionable. Plus, the collet isn't designed to compensate for different diameter drill bits. If it's not an 1/8" bit, it's not going to fit right. But, just about any regular drill motor will do, preferably with variable speed.

While screws get broken off in tuner holes all the time, it's usually because the hole isn't big enough, deep enough, or lubricated. Use the proper size drill and either put a depth collet on it or mark the depth with a piece of tape so you don't drill all the way through the headstock, and you're good to go. Wax the screw, use the proper size screwdriver, and you won't have any problem. I've installed hundreds of tuners in all kinds of different woods, as well as those really tiny bastards they give you with LSR nuts, and have never broken a screw off. Actually, the last time I broke a screw off, it was a 1/4" lag bolt. Lucky I didn't break my wrist instead. Those Milwaukee drill motors are wicked! <grin>

Word.

 

[SustainerPlayer]

My current concern is pilot holes for the tuning machines. I saw some posts about a screw-hole guide that's sold at Stewart MacDonald. Read, too, tfarney's mention that a screw broke off in the headstock of his new Tele ... So I'm trying to gauge what is the best tool for the job.

Does it need to be a seriously serious drill or would something like a Dremel suffice for making pilot holes?

A Dremel will suffice for making the pilot holes. You can get the drills made especially for the Dremel-collet. Choose the drill-size that is just smaller than the screws. Put some tape on the drill to mark the drill depth and you are good to go. Use wax as lupe on the screws - just to be 112% sure.

 

[reluctant-builder]

Ordered everything except wire and caps; I'm going to get those locally. All told, a combo of items from Warmoth, Darren Riley, StewMac and Mastery.

Oh boy...

 

[Tipperman]

mastery Bridge! YES!

 

[Corey P.]

Congrats, man!  Do your best to keep the build timeline out of your subconscious, it can literally be maddening, lol.

 

[reluctant-builder]

I just had an epiphany. It may be one of the dumber, more useless epiphanies, but I had one.

What would be the harm in drilling another hole in the Jazzmaster tremolo in the mirror position to the hole in which they've put the right-handed colette, so to create a left-hand position hole into which the arm would go?

I took a look at these images: http://www.webrocker.de/jaguar/cms/2007/05/12/setup-the-tremolo-system/

And it looks like there is already a symmetrical hole (second image, top row) in the portion of the tailpiece that receives the string-ends and goes beneath the trem cover (which, I suppose, makes this piece of which I speak the trem, itself).

Obviously, I'd wind up with an empty hole where the arm used to go in the right-hand position, but would there be a detriment beyond that? Besides potentially hamfisted tool usage causing something other than the intended results?

 

[Cagey]

They make press-in hole plugs that you could use to fill the leftover hole so nicely it would almost look like it was designed that way. Something like this...

...would snap right in and look just fine. Might have to drill the hole out a bit more to fit a standard size plug, as I'm sure they don't come in a million diameters like screws do, but that's not a big issue. That picture is of one from Grainger that wants a 1/4" hole, which may be pretty close already.

The other thing you could do is learn to use a trem arm that's mounted on the wrong side. SRV did it in the opposite direction you're looking to do it in (left hand trem on right hand guitar), and he makes it look so effortless you're tempted to try it to make sure you're not missing out on something.

 

[reluctant-builder]

Parts that I didn't buy from Warmoth all came today, but still have to wait on the body and neck, and parts to be shipped along with them.

It was pretty nice going down to the super's office and seeing a big box with my trem and assorted items, the StewMac box and the Mastery tube all together. Christmas in August.

 

[reluctant-builder]

I just got home from hockey so I'm pretty wired. Adrenaline's still high, so it's time for a late-night post, I guess.

I ordered two Fender decals, but I'm not sure anymore if I want to put a Fender decal on my Jazzy. I'll definitely put one on the replacement neck I'm getting for my Strat, since it IS a Fender ... but the Jazzy won't be, so I've been considering an alternative decal route.

I mocked up a possibility. I went with my neighborhood because it starts with an F that looks cool in that Brush Script font. An alternative "brand name" could be a portion of my last name that's often used as a nickname ... but I'm not the kind of guy who gets off by putting my name on things.

I'd appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

 

[Corey P.]

Kei and Tonar used a Warmoth decal in the spaghetti font that's my all-time favorite:





I also love the swirls in the Jazzmaster headstock decal:

So if you can incorporate those with Warmoth in the spaghetti font I think that'd be killer.

 

[reluctant-builder]

Ha! I love the "Erotic Body" and "Self-tuning Tuners." Very cheeky.

I do like the Jazzmaster swirls, too, but I was thinking of going with one of the designs like the black Fender text and the bolder JM font. I guess I wasn't feeling quite "vintage" enough.

I did include those swirls on my mock-up for my Musiclander headstock, though: http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=17395.msg255774#msg255774 (fourth image attachment)

 

[dNA]

Kei and Tonar used a Warmoth decal in the spaghetti font that's my all-time favorite:

I think that looks excellent!

 

[reluctant-builder]

Just got the UPS email that says: "electronic shipment information below has been transmitted to UPS." However, "the physical package(s) may or may not have actually been tendered to UPS for shipment."

But it's progress! It's coming!

Whew...

 

[Cagey]

If it's coming from Puyallup, Washington you'll have to wait while they feed, water and rest up the mules they use to pull the wagon train UPS uses to get things from there to anywhere else.