Telecaster Double Trouble
- Thread starter Cactus Jack
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stratamania
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JaySwear2 said:
There is a whole thread about it.
https://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=19901.0
Cactus Jack
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JaySwear2 said:
It was an SRV. I'm not sure what Warmoth will do with it, but if you like an asymmetrical shape, keep an eye out because it is gorgeous.
Definitely check out the link Strat posted. A member named Cagey really brought burnishing to the forefront, and I'm very glad he did, because the results are unlike anything you'll see/feel on on a guitar neck. In short burnishing is a progressive sanding process. I normally spend 2+ hours and work my way from 320 - 3000 grit. In my experience you hit diminishing returns around 1800, but I enjoy the process so I keep going. I've burnished Roasted Maple, Rosewood, and Wenge with awesome results.
It's pretty darn neat to turn raw wood into pristine glass with a bit of sand paper and elbow grease!
Cactus Jack
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I decided to tackle the Aqua Marine Tele, which my son named "Kokomo" after one of his favorite Beach Boys songs.
As you can see, I opted for the Wenge neck, I landed on a modern Gotoh bridge, and included chrome pickup rings. The pickups are Seymour Duncan APS-IIs in the neck and middle, and a Jerry Donahue in the bridge. The wiring is a variation of the Mike Richardson scheme.
For those at are interested here are a few observations I picked up along the way, otherwise enjoy the pics below.
Wenge: I really like Wenge. I briefly had a standard cut Wenge neck, but it was so porous it was distracting to play. I remember that neck feeling almost hairy. This neck is quarterswan and felt different from the start. Burnishing put it over the top. Be careful with Wenge however as it can splinter. I found this out the hard way when a 1" shard lodged into my hand during the burnishing process.
Gotoh Bridge: I'm impressed. I wanted to find a custom bridge for this project, but the quality and value Gotoh brings to the market is impossible to ignore. These modern bridges are thick, solid, and if you're in the market for something similar you can't go wrong.
Direct Mount vs Suspended Pickups: My APS-II's were previously used in a direct mount guitar. As such, the height adjustment holes were too wide to use with a traditional pickup ring hardware. My simple fix was to make my own nut out of a medium gauge guitar pick. I cut it to size, drilled a small hole, added a dab of glue, and boom, perfect height adjustment. The right way to do this would be to solder a nut, or fill the hole and re-drill, but the pick trick worked like a charm.
Jerry Donahue: Duncan fans rave about this pickup, and after two strums I now know why. It's awesome. The pickup has country picking to Rolling Stones rocking within it's DNA. To my ear the pickup checks the vintage tone, but has a unique underlying rudeness to it. It's tough to describe but there's something sneaky about the pup that grabs your attention in a good way.
Mike Richardson: Mike Richardson is a member of the Guitar Nuts forums and I used his scheme for this build. If you're into guitar wiring please check him out. This scheme provides 10 awesome tones and is controlled by a simple toggle or pushpull. With the toggle down you get standard Nashville Tele wiring which is the same as a Strat but the middle position is Neck + Bridge vs. Middle alone. Flip the toggle and you are greeted with 5 new, usable, and distinct tones. You get all 3 pickups in parallel, Neck + Middle in series, Neck + Bridge in series, Middle + Bridge in series, and all 3 pickups in series. By far, this is the most versatile and best sounding Strat style wiring I've tried. Bravo Mr. Richardson.
Below is a pic of Mike's wiring diagram and a link to Guitar Nutz verified wiring diagrams. In my opinion this this the best, most creative, wiring resource I've come across. Also, check out their page dedicated to Phostenix. He contributed some excellent and fun Strat/Tele schemes with crystal clear diagrams.
https://guitarnuts2.proboards.com/thread/8129/quick-links
As you can see, I opted for the Wenge neck, I landed on a modern Gotoh bridge, and included chrome pickup rings. The pickups are Seymour Duncan APS-IIs in the neck and middle, and a Jerry Donahue in the bridge. The wiring is a variation of the Mike Richardson scheme.
For those at are interested here are a few observations I picked up along the way, otherwise enjoy the pics below.
Wenge: I really like Wenge. I briefly had a standard cut Wenge neck, but it was so porous it was distracting to play. I remember that neck feeling almost hairy. This neck is quarterswan and felt different from the start. Burnishing put it over the top. Be careful with Wenge however as it can splinter. I found this out the hard way when a 1" shard lodged into my hand during the burnishing process.
Gotoh Bridge: I'm impressed. I wanted to find a custom bridge for this project, but the quality and value Gotoh brings to the market is impossible to ignore. These modern bridges are thick, solid, and if you're in the market for something similar you can't go wrong.
Direct Mount vs Suspended Pickups: My APS-II's were previously used in a direct mount guitar. As such, the height adjustment holes were too wide to use with a traditional pickup ring hardware. My simple fix was to make my own nut out of a medium gauge guitar pick. I cut it to size, drilled a small hole, added a dab of glue, and boom, perfect height adjustment. The right way to do this would be to solder a nut, or fill the hole and re-drill, but the pick trick worked like a charm.
Jerry Donahue: Duncan fans rave about this pickup, and after two strums I now know why. It's awesome. The pickup has country picking to Rolling Stones rocking within it's DNA. To my ear the pickup checks the vintage tone, but has a unique underlying rudeness to it. It's tough to describe but there's something sneaky about the pup that grabs your attention in a good way.
Mike Richardson: Mike Richardson is a member of the Guitar Nuts forums and I used his scheme for this build. If you're into guitar wiring please check him out. This scheme provides 10 awesome tones and is controlled by a simple toggle or pushpull. With the toggle down you get standard Nashville Tele wiring which is the same as a Strat but the middle position is Neck + Bridge vs. Middle alone. Flip the toggle and you are greeted with 5 new, usable, and distinct tones. You get all 3 pickups in parallel, Neck + Middle in series, Neck + Bridge in series, Middle + Bridge in series, and all 3 pickups in series. By far, this is the most versatile and best sounding Strat style wiring I've tried. Bravo Mr. Richardson.
Below is a pic of Mike's wiring diagram and a link to Guitar Nutz verified wiring diagrams. In my opinion this this the best, most creative, wiring resource I've come across. Also, check out their page dedicated to Phostenix. He contributed some excellent and fun Strat/Tele schemes with crystal clear diagrams.
https://guitarnuts2.proboards.com/thread/8129/quick-links
Cactus Jack
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Here's a sneak peak of "Mama Bear."
Early impression are WOW.
Early impression are WOW.
Cactus Jack
Senior Member
- Messages
- 484
Finished.
It's kind of funny that neither ended up exactly like I envisioned, but in many ways, and especially now that I can play them, they have far exceeded my expectations. They are both imperfectly perfect and I'm excited to add them to my Warmoth collection.
A few parting words.
Kokomo (Auqa Marine) - I'm continually impressed by the tones this instrument puts out. The Mike Richardson diagram produces 10 very usable, easy to find, and unique sounding tones. By far this is the most versatile and easy to use SSS type harness that I've used. One toggle unlocks an entirely different guitar. The pickup configuration is also a big part of the story. You get the iconic Strat neck tone AND the iconic Tele bridge tone, plus quack, plus rock... Combine everything, the wiring, pups, this could very well be the only guitar I'd ever need.
Mama Bear (Tiger Eye) - I've been playing AC/DC Highway to Hell for 72 straight hours! I have one kid on the drums, one on the bass, one rocking the piano, my youngest belting out the lyrics...and one a very pissed off wife
. Never in my life have I plugged a guitar straight into an amp and instantly captured a recognizable rockstar tone. These TV Jones pickups are the REAL DEAL. Holy smokes. This instrument is FUN to play. I had never played any "Tron" style pickup before. As such, I placed several calls to the good folks at TV Jones and they patiently helped me pick out an absolutely awesome combo. The SuperTron is unlike any neck pickup I've ever heard. It's warm, yet clear, yet edgy, but crisp. It feels similar to riding a tube amp just at the edge of breakup. That feeling is what this pickup sounds like. The Classic Plus in the bridge is an absolute home run, and combined with the neck are phenomenal together. However, the superstar of the combo is the T-90. There is pure voodoo magic in that pickup. It mixes perfectly with the humbuckers and sounds so cool on it's own. It's not P90, it's not Tron, it's not humbucker, it's something incredibly unique. I'm so impressed with TV Jones, I'll build another guitar around their pickups. I kept the wiring simple, standard 5 way with a bridge on push pull, and I wouldn't change a thing.
Some folks will love these guitars, others will hate them, but these guitars are why I love Warmoth. Warmoth allows guys like me/us to dream up random ideas and turn them into custom creations. I'm hooked
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