First build: Short scale mahogany Paulcaster
- Thread starter Picklemitts
- Start date
Picklemitts
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:blob7: I has arrived! :blob7:
The vintage pearl pickguard against the black body is even more beautiful than I imagined! The satin finish looks and feels like raw wood... really nice work on the frets, too.
I forgot to order the neck screws, capacitors, and pickguatd screws. I'll have to wait until Wednesday to get all of that (busy tonight). I'll post pictures tonight if I can find the time.
A few questions - my truss rod is heel-adjust with another sideways screw in the bottom of the heel. Is it ready to mount as-is, or do I need to pre-tighten the main heel screw before installing?
The string ferrules are too tight to risk tapping them in. What to do? Enlarge them with a sandpaper-covered dowel?
Same thing with the tuner ferrules... they are extremely tight. Do I tap them in with a dowel or something?
The vintage pearl pickguard against the black body is even more beautiful than I imagined! The satin finish looks and feels like raw wood... really nice work on the frets, too.
I forgot to order the neck screws, capacitors, and pickguatd screws. I'll have to wait until Wednesday to get all of that (busy tonight). I'll post pictures tonight if I can find the time.
A few questions - my truss rod is heel-adjust with another sideways screw in the bottom of the heel. Is it ready to mount as-is, or do I need to pre-tighten the main heel screw before installing?
The string ferrules are too tight to risk tapping them in. What to do? Enlarge them with a sandpaper-covered dowel?
Same thing with the tuner ferrules... they are extremely tight. Do I tap them in with a dowel or something?
AutoBat
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Please pre-tighten the heel before you attach & string it up (like it says in the pamphlet that came with the neck)Picklemitts said:
The Gotoh side-adjust is for small adjustments, the butt-end is for major. I've never had to mess with the butt-end adjustment more than giving it a good turn before attachment.
The tuner ferrules are always a bit tight. They should be able to be pressed in with finger pressure, so in sand-papering the holes please check fitment often! Tight is better than loose!
I know nothing of string ferrules though. There at least 3 ways to go about fitting those in.
Picklemitts
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JCizzle said:
I wish. $666was the original order. I upgraded to a finished body from the showroom and paid a $45 restocking fee. Still, it came it at a very reasonable $800, plus I bought pickups separately for $130. So I have an American made guitar that is not available in this form at any price, for less than $1,000 - soup to nuts.
Picklemitts
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Picklemitts
Junior Member
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I chose the larger of two pilot bits for mounting the vintage style tuners to the back of the headstock. I normally would have used the next size down, but a lot of people on this board seem to have problems with stripping the screws. I wish I would have followed my instinct - the tuners are snug and secure, but I would be more comfortable if the threads were a bit tighter. The screws showed no signs of stripping or snapping. I think that those who have had this problem are usually the type who have six thumbs on each hand!
The tuning ferrules were very tight. I used a C-clamp and two blocks of wood to press them in. Worked perfectly.
Tonight I have to make a run to Guitar Center or Sam Ash for a set of neck mounting screws. I'm hoping Radio Shack has the capacitors I want in stock. I'm thinking about using 0.01uf instead of 0.22uf. My Les Paul's tone control runs out of useable range below '7', and I'm hoping the 0.01 will fix this.
The tuning ferrules were very tight. I used a C-clamp and two blocks of wood to press them in. Worked perfectly.
Tonight I have to make a run to Guitar Center or Sam Ash for a set of neck mounting screws. I'm hoping Radio Shack has the capacitors I want in stock. I'm thinking about using 0.01uf instead of 0.22uf. My Les Paul's tone control runs out of useable range below '7', and I'm hoping the 0.01 will fix this.
Cagey
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That's a sort of specious conclusion... perhaps the reason your screws showed no signs of stripping or snapping is because you chose the right bit to drill your holes.
Tuners should be tight. The strings are attached to them. You don't want them moving, and you do want a solid connection to the wood.
When you buy the cap(s), buy at least 2. If the .01 turns out to be too small, simply putting another .01 in parallel with it will turn it into a .02 and you're back to where you started.
Tuners should be tight. The strings are attached to them. You don't want them moving, and you do want a solid connection to the wood.
When you buy the cap(s), buy at least 2. If the .01 turns out to be too small, simply putting another .01 in parallel with it will turn it into a .02 and you're back to where you started.
Picklemitts
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That's the thing - they feel like the screws might pull out if I really crank on them. The tuners are snug enough that they will not move, but not much more.
I have no experience with these vintage tuners. It was a surprise to me that the ferrules do not thread into the tuner body like the more 'modern' style tuners do. They rely entirely on the screws on the back side. And the lack of a hole is weird, too. I guess you're suppised to just lay the string in the notch and start cranking.
I have no experience with these vintage tuners. It was a surprise to me that the ferrules do not thread into the tuner body like the more 'modern' style tuners do. They rely entirely on the screws on the back side. And the lack of a hole is weird, too. I guess you're suppised to just lay the string in the notch and start cranking.
Cagey
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Well... that's why vintage-replica tuners aren't ideal. They're not attached in the most efficient manner, they don't hold the strings very well and force you to wind up all sorts of slack in a near-futile effort to get a grip on the post, they have built-in frictions that prevent consistent fine tuning, and have fairly low gear ratios which allow for more backlash than is convenient. On the plus side, they look like poorly-designed old pieces of crap, so it's all good <grin>
Picklemitts
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I bought them because I like the look of them. Shoulda just got the Schaller lockers like I have on the Strat.
Cagey
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I understand. We used to like the look of Cragar Mags on our hot rods back in the day...
Problem was, they weighed a ton and so were difficult to balance and made the car ride like a truck because of all the unsprung weight. Caused a lotta wheel hop, which was no good for acceleration or traction in a turn. Pretty enough (at the time) but not practical at all. Nobody in their right mind would put those on a car today if they expected any performance out of it. But, a lotta guys will still put them on for appearance's sake, to get that "vintage hot rod" look.
Technology improves because a need exists. Guitar tuners have done the same thing.
Problem was, they weighed a ton and so were difficult to balance and made the car ride like a truck because of all the unsprung weight. Caused a lotta wheel hop, which was no good for acceleration or traction in a turn. Pretty enough (at the time) but not practical at all. Nobody in their right mind would put those on a car today if they expected any performance out of it. But, a lotta guys will still put them on for appearance's sake, to get that "vintage hot rod" look.
Technology improves because a need exists. Guitar tuners have done the same thing.
Picklemitts
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Excellent analogy! I guess it's one of those mistakes you have to make for yourself.
Am I the only one who feels like punching a baby seal in the face every time the word "Vintage" is thrown about on guitar forums?
Am I the only one who feels like punching a baby seal in the face every time the word "Vintage" is thrown about on guitar forums?
Picklemitts
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So..... I stayed up late last night and got everything slapped together. It still needs a setup and I have to install the strap buttons and string tree.
There are a few issues that I can already see: The bridge was supposed to be humbucker spaced, but the high E string is nowhere near the pole piece on the bridge pickup. The low E lines up perfectly. I'll have to contact Warmoth and see what can be done about this. Their salesman said that they would open up the body holes to accomodate the narrower string spacing. I can do this myself if need be.
The high E string runs wide from the nut to the 22nd fret. It's over the beveled part of the fret at the 22nd fret. Hopefully I can loosen the neck bolts, tweak it a bit, and re-tighten.
I had to raise the saddles all the way up until they were out of their adjustment range just to make the strings ring. The bridge just seems too low. I think I may have tightened the main truss rod a bit too much, or maybe I will need to shim the bridge. I ran out of time last night so I'll see what I can do with this tonight.
I haven't had a chance to even plug it in yet other than a quick test with a screwdriver before the neck was bolted on.
There are a few issues that I can already see: The bridge was supposed to be humbucker spaced, but the high E string is nowhere near the pole piece on the bridge pickup. The low E lines up perfectly. I'll have to contact Warmoth and see what can be done about this. Their salesman said that they would open up the body holes to accomodate the narrower string spacing. I can do this myself if need be.
The high E string runs wide from the nut to the 22nd fret. It's over the beveled part of the fret at the 22nd fret. Hopefully I can loosen the neck bolts, tweak it a bit, and re-tighten.
I had to raise the saddles all the way up until they were out of their adjustment range just to make the strings ring. The bridge just seems too low. I think I may have tightened the main truss rod a bit too much, or maybe I will need to shim the bridge. I ran out of time last night so I'll see what I can do with this tonight.
I haven't had a chance to even plug it in yet other than a quick test with a screwdriver before the neck was bolted on.
