I completed my first build!

[djd]

I completed my first partscaster this week. The body, neck, and bridge came from Warmoth. Most everything else came from StewMac. The neck is quartersawn maple with poly finish. It is something else when it comes to stiffness. The body is roasted alder with a brown to clear burst finish. The pickups are Mojotone Johnny Winter signature Firebird pickups. The bridge is Warmoth's narrow spaced fender flat mount bridge. The tuners are vintage style Gotoh. It doesn't sound like anything else I own. I call it the Bird Free because it has Firebird pickups without the Firebird body.

Let me know if you have any questions and I would love to hear comments.

Hopefully, this will be the first of a family of similar guitars with different pickups, P90's, mini PAF's, PAF's, JB/JAzz. etc.

 

[PhilHill]

Welcome and Great Job on the build........... :icon_thumright:

 

[Flufene]

Looks great. Congrats. How does she play ? 

 

[stratamania]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your build.

 

[djd]

Looks great. Congrats. How does she play ?

I am having trouble getting a balance between the bridge being too high and big bends up high on the neck fretting out. I am going to keep tweaking it and if I can't get it squared away I will take it in to the shop. But below the 14th it is great. The neck is patterned after my Clapton Strat so it is like old boots.

 

[Rick]

What minis did you use.

 

[djd]

What minis did you use.

The pickups are not mini humbuckers, they are Mojotone Johnny Winters Firebird pickups. I plan to build the same guitar with mini humbuckers later this year. I haven't settled which brand I am going to use though.

 

[NedRyerson]

Looks great. Congrats. How does she play ?

I am having trouble getting a balance between the bridge being too high and big bends up high on the neck fretting out. I am going to keep tweaking it and if I can't get it squared away I will take it in to the shop. But below the 14th it is great. The neck is patterned after my Clapton Strat so it is like old boots.

Maybe shimming the neck pocket might help a touch. I have a set of the StewMac shims that I bought for my Tele, but have yet to actually install them to try

 

[Rick]

As a neck pickup I really like the Dimarzio dp240 vintage neck.

 

[djd]

I don't understand why smaller humbuckers are not more common. They are great in the neck, not boomy at all.

 

[TBurst Std]

Firebird pickups are constructed TOTALLY different than mini hums.  If the resemble anything construction wise, the closest might be the Staple.

 

[bagman67]

Beautiful work.  Once you get the action dialed in you'll be a very happy camper, it seems to me. 

 

[OV7]

I love those small humbuckers!  Nice looking build!