Les Paw

[fretless]

Precision kit '57 LP . I did this kit a couple years ago . It's a tribute to our 2 x 18 year old kitties Yin & Yang who both have passed on and as we prepared to see them off I took the chance to tribute them in the build.













Yang did the paw painting with "milk paint" and I used that for the BOX ELDER inlay .

It's a one piece back with "plain" top , She has a killer Mojoaxe compensated wraptail and a Sheptone tribute pickup . Very light too as it's weight relieved.
R.I.P. kitties...

Oh they passed before this was complete and we rescued a beautiful little Tabby and she helped with the final setup . Finished in Shellac & Minwax wipe-on satin and Wax .

 

[alterbridgefan]

Beautiful!

Losing a pet is always hard... It's horrible knowing that two of my cats are older than me and I really don't know when hey're going to go. You just have to enjoy them, spend as much time with them as possible.

Great build!

 

[fretless]

Beautiful!

Losing a pet is always hard... It's horrible knowing that two of my cats are older than me and I really don't know when hey're going to go. You just have to enjoy them, spend as much time with them as possible.

Great build!

Thank you . It sure is , words can barely describe . Much can be done to help with long and healthy lives for them . When they reach those ages it's like a 100 years for them not bad for a little rascal .

 

[alterbridgefan]

Haha, it's surprising ours have lasted 15 years, they're just both so stupid. :laughing7: The princess fell out of a tree when she was 2, bounced off the roof and hit the ground, she's been attacked by dogs, and her brother has eaten rubber so many times that we've sunk thousands of dollars into putting him through life threatening surgery. We've got ourselves an energetic two year old as well, so at least we'll have him for a while.

 

[fretless]

:icon_biggrin: yeah so crazy Cat people rule !  :headbang1:

 

[Day-mun]

We've got Mojo, a Cornish Rex, that is a bit over nine years, -hates music. If he sees me pick up an instrument, he gives me the stink-eye and leaves the room. If he catches me whistling, he jumps to the highest point of furniture near me and bellows out these meows that sound like he's say "Hey!-NO!". -I should get him up here in some pics; too bad I don't have a piece as sweet as your Les Paw for him to accompany. Then again, Mojo may not wish to be caught dead near a guitar/bass... unless he gets to use it for a scratching post!

-Love the simplistic beauty of all your builds! I hope to get more chances to emulate that same raw elegance in my own builds!

Hats-off to you as you bid old friends fare-well, -and best wishes and long-life to your new companions, The Paw and the Tabby.

 

[alterbridgefan]

The 2 year old kitty loves loud music. I play my harmonica, or plug in my guitar, he comes running. Hates the drums though, they scare the sh!t out of him. :toothy12:

 

[fretless]

We've got Mojo, a Cornish Rex, that is a bit over nine years, -hates music. If he sees me pick up an instrument, he gives me the stink-eye and leaves the room. If he catches me whistling, he jumps to the highest point of furniture near me and bellows out these meows that sound like he's say "Hey!-NO!". -I should get him up here in some pics; too bad I don't have a piece as sweet as your Les Paw for him to accompany. Then again, Mojo may not wish to be caught dead near a guitar/bass... unless he gets to use it for a scratching post!

-Love the simplistic beauty of all your builds! I hope to get more chances to emulate that same raw elegance in my own builds!

Hats-off to you as you bid old friends fare-well, -and best wishes and long-life to your new companions, The Paw and the Tabby.

Thanks man , That is funny ..Mojo pics !  :glasses9:

 

[Tonar8352]

Cool stinger; nice touch. I put a Mojo Axe bridge on my 2009 R4 and l love it, you made a great choice on that also. There is a real simple elegance to your guitar, very nicely done!

 

[Day-mun]

Questions:

Is that just a STP you are using like a wrap-around bridge? How close is that for intonation? (Les -er, Less is more, so, if it works, that is an improvement in my mind; fewer things to fiddle with and adjust.)  :icon_thumright:

Also, talk abit about the finish if you don't mind. I thought I read that shallac isn't good under other stuff like poly, etc. (I'm assuming the wipe-on ya used was Minwax poly...), so curious what/how ya did it. -Oh! color on the headstock! Back and front! what did you do there? (-Love the red on the back!)

 

[fretless]

Cool stinger; nice touch. I put a Mojo Axe bridge on my 2009 R4 and l love it, you made a great choice on that also. There is a real simple elegance to your guitar, very nicely done!

Thanks man ! Yeah what a fine piece huh , just holding that mojoaxe in your hand you can tell the quality . If I ever get another guitar that has a angled wraptail I'll get another one fast .  It's perfect too , just as he claims . I'm a sucker for good hardware .

 

[fretless]

Questions:

Is that just a STP you are using like a wrap-around bridge? How close is that for intonation? (Les -er, Less is more, so, if it works, that is an improvement in my mind; fewer things to fiddle with and adjust.)  :icon_thumright:

Also, talk abit about the finish if you don't mind. I thought I read that shallac isn't good under other stuff like poly, etc. (I'm assuming the wipe-on ya used was Minwax poly...), so curious what/how ya did it. -Oh! color on the headstock! Back and front! what did you do there? (-Love the red on the back!)

Shellac is the best for a wash coat  / sealer coat, even for some classic finishes totally finished in shellac ( French polish). It's been used for many many years in sealing and finishing wood . That is a mojoaxe wrap tail it's a compensated Aluminum bridge / tail , check'em out
http://www.mojoaxe.com/

I used dyes for the back and front then sealed it again with Shellac , sprayed on with a preval . That was somewhat of a noOb mistake because the alcohol in the shellac made the dye run . I managed though but yeah , water based dye would have been a better choice , I didn't know at the time  :dontknow:
I just gently brushed the black dye on the headstock face for a kind of vignette effect .

 

[Great Ape]

...Cool guitar, nice idea...if only humans were as honest and dependable as the rest of the animal kingdom...

 

[fretless]

:icon_biggrin: ccasion14:

 

[Day-mun]

Questions:

Is that just a STP you are using like a wrap-around bridge? How close is that for intonation? (Les -er, Less is more, so, if it works, that is an improvement in my mind; fewer things to fiddle with and adjust.)  :icon_thumright:

Also, talk abit about the finish if you don't mind. I thought I read that shallac isn't good under other stuff like poly, etc. (I'm assuming the wipe-on ya used was Minwax poly...), so curious what/how ya did it. -Oh! color on the headstock! Back and front! what did you do there? (-Love the red on the back!)

Shellac is the best for a wash coat  / sealer coat, even for some classic finishes totally finished in shellac ( French polish). It's been used for many many years in sealing and finishing wood . That is a mojoaxe wrap tail it's a compensated Aluminum bridge / tail , check'em out
http://www.mojoaxe.com/

I used dyes for the back and front then sealed it again with Shellac , sprayed on with a preval . That was somewhat of a noOb mistake because the alcohol in the shellac made the dye run . I managed though but yeah , water based dye would have been a better choice , I didn't know at the time  :dontknow:
I just gently brushed the black dye on the headstock face for a kind of vignette effect .

Thanks for that! I gotta get over my fear of violating the product use directions (when it makes sense to) on the back of their respective container labels!

-You find/install some of the coolest hardware! -Thanks for the link!

 

[anorakDan]

The shot of the top of your Les Paw made me go. "ooooh!" Very nicely done. Thank you for sharing the guitar and pics of your dearly departed friends.

 

[fretless]

Thanks guys ! You know this guitar with it's natural beauty inspired a Warmoth build I did just a couple months ago .
a 32" Single Cut Warhead in Maple & Padouk

 

[LushTone]

Awesome guitar and good tribute. That bass is badass too, and that neck plate is one of the nicest I've seen.

 

[fretless]

Awesome guitar and good tribute. That bass is badass too, and that neck plate is one of the nicest I've seen.

Thanks man ! Yeah cool plate huh . I got that from here
http://www.ebay.com/itm/3D-Stainless-Cross-neck-plate-for-guitar-bass-fits-Fender-Stratocaster-Strat-/261251417826?pt=Guitar_Accessories&hash=item3cd3cc46e2#ht_287wt_1399

 

[Day-mun]

Thanks guys ! You know this guitar with it's natural beauty inspired a Warmoth build I did just a couple months ago .
a 32" Single Cut Warhead in Maple & Padouk

-Oh! You just had to bring that one up again!  -That Shorty had me GAS'ing in the worst way, and I was just getting over it... now, between the Paw and the SCG4SSB, I am about to explode with an intense desire to rub goop into naturally pretty wood, and sand it, and spray it, and polish it, and...

:icon_jokercolor: Kidding. Thanks for sharing some of your other work; others may not have seen it yet, and it is really worth getting a look at!