I have built a series of guitars now.
Two telecasters, three Les Paul guitars from scratch and a semi-hollow from scratch. I ended up giving away all of them to friends except for the two telecasters. With every one of the guitars my biggest concerns were the sound of the guitar and looks. I never paid too much attention to how comfortable it was or if I would like playing it or not. In the end I always reach for the one that is comfortable first, sound second and looks last. I think the reason I have never had that "perfect" guitar is I never prioritized what I wanted in the correct order and second I didn't know what I would and would not like.
With the Les Paul style guitars I hated the weight and didn't like the neck angle.
With the hollow body, the body of the guitar was too large and uncomfortable.
With the second telecaster I learned I do not like raw necks.
I know that last bit is counter to what a lot of people here believe, but I just don't like that fast, slick feel. I like the "stick" you get with a nice shiny gloss neck.
So basically my next dream build has turned into a giant list of things that I want, but they are primarily usability items. So here is my guitar bucket list if you will.
-Gloss maple neck with an ebony fretboard, nickel frets (yep, nickel).
-Planet waves locking tuners (The best thing since sliced bread. I will never put regular tuners on a guitar again.)
-Rear route tele body, tummy cut, humbucker bridge and neck with strat control layout (I don't like the feel of a pickguard and I don't care if I scratch the top) I would skip the contoured heel, I don't like taking my thumb off the back of the neck and a non-contoured heel has never been in the way. Whatever wood I go with it has to be light, either through being hollowed or through the wood being lightweight itself.
-Bridge, fixed bridge with individual string height and intonation controls (I have bridges with and without this and I find it to be a must. Way less finicky for setting up the guitar.) As far as tremolo, I never use one.
-Locking strap buttons (I had a guitar slip for the first time in my life and it was nearly a disaster, locking straps would have made it never happen. They are not expensive so why not.)
As far as looks, I find I can be finicky, but the feel and how something plays always stays them same. I would grab the ugy guitar that I love the feel of over the pretty one every time. I wish I could have told myself that when I was spending so much time agonizing over looks and not enough time thinking about how it would feel.
Two telecasters, three Les Paul guitars from scratch and a semi-hollow from scratch. I ended up giving away all of them to friends except for the two telecasters. With every one of the guitars my biggest concerns were the sound of the guitar and looks. I never paid too much attention to how comfortable it was or if I would like playing it or not. In the end I always reach for the one that is comfortable first, sound second and looks last. I think the reason I have never had that "perfect" guitar is I never prioritized what I wanted in the correct order and second I didn't know what I would and would not like.
With the Les Paul style guitars I hated the weight and didn't like the neck angle.
With the hollow body, the body of the guitar was too large and uncomfortable.
With the second telecaster I learned I do not like raw necks.
I know that last bit is counter to what a lot of people here believe, but I just don't like that fast, slick feel. I like the "stick" you get with a nice shiny gloss neck.
So basically my next dream build has turned into a giant list of things that I want, but they are primarily usability items. So here is my guitar bucket list if you will.
-Gloss maple neck with an ebony fretboard, nickel frets (yep, nickel).
-Planet waves locking tuners (The best thing since sliced bread. I will never put regular tuners on a guitar again.)
-Rear route tele body, tummy cut, humbucker bridge and neck with strat control layout (I don't like the feel of a pickguard and I don't care if I scratch the top) I would skip the contoured heel, I don't like taking my thumb off the back of the neck and a non-contoured heel has never been in the way. Whatever wood I go with it has to be light, either through being hollowed or through the wood being lightweight itself.
-Bridge, fixed bridge with individual string height and intonation controls (I have bridges with and without this and I find it to be a must. Way less finicky for setting up the guitar.) As far as tremolo, I never use one.
-Locking strap buttons (I had a guitar slip for the first time in my life and it was nearly a disaster, locking straps would have made it never happen. They are not expensive so why not.)
As far as looks, I find I can be finicky, but the feel and how something plays always stays them same. I would grab the ugy guitar that I love the feel of over the pretty one every time. I wish I could have told myself that when I was spending so much time agonizing over looks and not enough time thinking about how it would feel.
