My First Build - Any Advice?

[itookacanuk]

Hey, All. I am excited for my first project build and am hoping to end up with a guitar that will be my main instrument. I am looking for a versatile instrument I can play 3 days a week at church, for about 3 hours at a time.

Our team has a Foo Fighters / Pink Floyd / Jeff Buckley kind of sound that occasionally delves into DADEAD heavy rock (not unlike Collective Soul, Evanescence, or Creed). I am hoping I can get those tones with this guitar. Please hit me up with thoughts and advice on project design as well as whether or not this design working for that type of sound. (My current main guitar is a Fender American Strat and has tremendous cleans through a Marshall Artist Head and sweetrock distortion in the bridge's SD Lil' 59. The plan is for this VIP to take over the heavier songs.)

Warmoth VIP:

BODY:

WOODS: Solid mahogany, flame maple top

PICKUPS: Humbucker Neck (SD PEarly Gates), Humbucker Bridge (Duncan Custom)
- Question - Do I choose "Humbucker (Bridge or Treble)" or "Humbucker (Wood Mount)" if I plan on using mounting rings?

CONTROLS: PRS non-recessed. I never use my tone so I'll have a volume for each pickup and a standard 3 way toggle.

INPUT JACK: Want to go with the half inch "deep panel jack" but I am having trouble discerning whether or not that's a viable option.

BRIDGE: Looking to do string through body but I am expecting Warmoth to reply that they won't because it's not a flat top. I did see a string through in their customer gallery though, but it may have been drilled at home:
http://www.warmoth.com/Gallery/GalleryEntry.aspx?id=492

CONTOURS: Heel and tummy cut standard with VIP.

FINISH: Green dye front, black gloss back, with this as my model:
http://www.warmoth.com/Gallery/GalleryEntry.aspx?id=1531
I'm not sure if that will require the "custom burst over" option but I am assuming it will. The person who built the guitar said he has "custom burn over" but I bet he meant custom *burst* over.


NECK (I'm hoping it will feel similar to my Strat. If I love the Warmoth neck I'll order an identical one with a fender headstock and put it on the Strat):

TYPE: Warmoth Pro Angled

WOODS: Maple neck with Ebony fretboard (side dots only, no inlays)

TUNERS: Sperzels

NUT: 1 11/16

BACK CONTOUR: Standard thin

RADIUS: 10-16 Compound

FRETS: 22

FRETS: Debating 6150 regular or 6105 Stainless.
- I have trouble bending strings on the Start because I use .11 strings tuned to E. The tone is phenomenal but It's rigid when I bend. I'm reading that the taller frets help with bends but I also do a lot of sliding up and down and don't want to hit speed bumps. Advice?

NUT: GraphTech Black TUSQ XL (to stay in tune as long as possible)

FINISH: Clear Satin Nitro
- Matching Flame Maple pegged veneer with green dye.


Thanks in advance everyone. This is a cool community.
David

 

[AutoBat]

- Question - Do I choose "Humbucker (Bridge or Treble)" or "Humbucker (Wood Mount)" if I plan on using mounting rings?
A - Humbucker (Bridge or Trebel).  The reason you don't want wood mount is because you're not going to be woodmounting them

FRETS: Debating 6150 regular or 6105 Stainless.
A - STAINLESS!

BRIDGE: Looking to do string through body but I am expecting Warmoth to reply that they won't because it's not a flat top. I did see a string through in their customer gallery though, but it may have been drilled at home
- You should call or email for this one as they could give you the definitive answer. It's not a regular option so it's possible that it's one of the unlisted upcharge options.

 

[Cagey]

Do the stainless frets. You won't be sorry. Once you play them, you'll wonder why they aren't standard on all guitars. They're so slick it'll feel like you went down a gauge set. Plus, they last forever. I have them on everything but my acoustic now.

 

[Strat Avenger]

I love the SS frets on My Warmoth. There is no adverse affect on the tone, and I like the fact that they will last a long time.

 

[tfarny]

Sounds great, as long as you are going all-out I'd suggest you consider an unfinished exotic neck like canary, etc. Also you might consider a 24.75 scale to lower the string tension if you like to stay with 11s and don't want to just work on getting stronger fingers. At the same time, you should just get the scale that you prefer to play on. Can't speak to stainless frets as I'm all about the little guys (6130) and SO FAR they don't OFFER SS 6130s. Or anything close. No, I'm not bitter.

Also, you are obligated to post pics of said guitar when it finallly arrives in your hot little hands.

 

[itookacanuk]

Thanks for the input, it's a big help. Seems like a lot of consensus on the SS frets, though I'm with tfarny, I'd like them in my familiar size.

Interesting idea on the scale regarding string tension. I had to look it up. Never knew that before. You got me thinking.

This is a lot of fun. I'll post a picture when it's done. If it goes well I plan on building a metal flake Jazzmaster.

 

[Strat Avenger]

I don't know how any guitar player couldn't be comfortable with 6150s. They're not too big, and not too small.  :dontknow:

 

[tfarny]

Well, I don't know how any guitar player could be comfortable with a wizard neck either, but the whole point of building a custom guitar is you get to choose what you like. I like 6130, I'm happy I get to pick it. I have one neck with 6150, my bass has 6150, it's not too bad, but it's not what I prefer.

 

[Cagey]

Well, I don't know how any guitar player could be comfortable with a wizard neck either, but the whole point of building a custom guitar is you get to choose what you like.

Perzactly. I use 6100s, and many would say those are ridiculous. But, they're what I like, and few manufacturers install those. The only problem I have with them is if somebody else picks up one of my guitars, particularly if they're one of those death-grip players. Thing sounds sounds constantly out of tune to them, so they exercise the hell out of the tuners trying to compensate. Then when I pick the thing up later, it sounds like something off the bottom row of the guitar wall at a music store.