Thinking about a 40th bday guitar

[tfarny]

1. It's got to be a tele! The perfect, ultimate tele. Which does not = two high output buckers and a Floyd, for those wondering! The perfect tele sounds and looks like a tele but has the flaws removed - good intonation, body contour, etc.
2. Just ordered the neck, pics below. VM '59 canary / pao ferro. Already have gotoh vintage-look modern-construction locking tuners.
3. The bridge will be callaham compensated 3 saddle and the bridge pickup will be a SD Jerry Donahue, at least for now, based on several recommendations.
4. The body will be under 4 lb, the switching will look traditional but will have an extra option or two on a five-way.
5. Up for debate: black, white, or possibly a metallic copper or orange. I'm leaning towards basic black or white though. I'd prefer a showcase finished piece for convenience and cost sake.
6. Also debatable: which neck pickup - either a low output P90 or a minihumbucker, or less likely, a strat. I have a spare lollar blackface strat pickup sitting around as well as an area T neck pickup and pickguard, so I can install one of those for now and make a decision a bit later. No more nashville setups - two pickups are plenty.
7. traditional or carved top shape? If traditional, how about a gut cut or other contour? If carved top, I have to commit to a neck pickup shape.

I've got about two months to get the body picked out and put the thing together.Yer thoughts, gentlemen & Hannaugh? Color, body shape, neck pickup?

 

[DangerousR6]

1. It's got to be a tele! The perfect, ultimate tele. Which does not = two high output buckers and a Floyd, for those wondering!

Well then you've lost the battle already before you've begun... :dontknow:

Nice neck BTW... :icon_thumright:

 

[Mor Paul]

I think a Mary Kaye body, swamp ash flat top can fulfill your weight requirements, and look good doing it. The p90 neck would be my choice.

 

[DangerousR6]

:headbang1:

 

[elfro89]

That body is sweet Doug. +1

 

[DangerousR6]

That body is sweet Doug. +1

I know, I may just have to buy it myself.  :laughing7:

 

[jackthehack]

"6. Also debatable: which neck pickup - either a low output P90 or a minihumbucker, or less likely, a strat. I have a spare lollar blackface strat pickup sitting around as well as an area T neck pickup and pickguard, so I can install one of those for now and make a decision a bit later. No more nashville setups - two pickups are plenty. "

If you're going that route on the bridge pickup, you should go:

http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/antiquity/telecaster/1102421_neck_rh/

or:

http://www.riograndepickups.com/scart/ProductPage.asp?ImageLink=VTTNCRN&ProductName=For+Tele

for the neck...

 

[Cagey]

Sounds like fun. That neck is going to be great. But, you talk about removing flaws, then specify one of the crummiest bridges known to the guitar world. Nothing against Callaham; they're a good company that makes high-quality hardware. But, the only reason they offer some of the stuff they do is to satisfy the less discriminating market that doesn't know any better. Sadly, that's the largest market out there so they have little choice. But, the traditional Tele bridge design just isn't very good, no matter how much care and quality control is put into making one. It's a bad design to start with. It's best feature is that it's better than nothing.

If you must use a Callaham bridge, I'd suggest you consider one of these...

Although, they use roll-formed/stamped saddles, which are again a part whose best recommendation is that they're better than nothing.

If it was me building a Tele, I'd be using one of these...

You get the general appearance of a Tele bridge without its numerous drawbacks. Each string has a well-designed saddle that's adjustable for both height and intonation, mounted on a heavily-plated 1/8" thick brass base. At $44, they're certainly not expensive, so there's no excuse to suffer anything less.

Next, why would you use vintage-appearance tuners? if you want high performance, use high-performance tuners. You put vintage-looking things on there, and regardless of how they perform, people will think you don't know any better. If you don't care what people think, then why do the vintage appearance? Besides, how many people pay any attention to what kind of tuners you have installed? Only other players, and we all know how goofy they are <grin>

As for flat or carved top, I'd do the carved top. I have Bagman's carved-top Tele here now, and I gotta tell you, it's a thing of beauty. Forget the finish, it just feels and looks good. Anybody can pull a slab out of a tree; it takes some work to get it into a pleasant shape. Gives it a quality that no flat top could ever have no matter how pretty the wood/finish because it adds a third dimension with an analog shape. And definitely do the relief cuts. You gotta play the thing; may as well make it comfy.

 

[tfarny]

Cagey - thanks! But I'm not interested in hearing alternatives to my tuners - I already have them, they are light and work great, and look cool to me. I see no reason to buy different ones. I have schallers and planet waves, etc. - no better in any way, just heavier and the PW are kinda ugly. If I were to buy tuners at this point they would be the non-locking Gotoh butterbeans that W sells - great tuner at a great price.

Bridge - I have a traditional bridge and a gotoh bridge. The old one looks cooler and intonates just about as well with the slant saddles. It also may, in fact, contribute to the tone - bridges definitely contribute more than the typical alder v. swamp ash. The saddles have half as many moving parts in total, and since two strings hold down each one and they are more massive, they may contribute to sustain etc. I may possibly cheap out and get the Joe Barden bridge however - it works great and costs $40.
Oh, and I have one of the callaham hardtail bridges - I hate the extra wide string spacing. Poor choice - it's now on the bari strat, where the slightly wider neck works well with it.
A tele needs a tele bridge and bridge pickup to sound like a tele, and the basic tele shape. The rest is negotiable.

Carved top - yeah I've never seen one in person but they do look real classy. Rear route is nicer, too, because I tend to make my wiring complex behind the scenes - I may try a 5 way rotary tone control again, for instance. White carved top with a black P90 and black controls might just do it.

 

[Cagey]

FINE! BUILD A POS! SEE IF I CARE! <grin>

Seriously, I understand. As long as you're happy, that's all that matters since you're going to have to live with it. But, do yourself a favor and get the carved top and relieved body. You won't be sorry. I truly like the rear-route option as well, although it tends to make any control option you start with permanent. If you have a pickguard or control plate, you can always change that, but digging holes in finished wood is sorta irreversible. Of course, those are mutually exclusive schemes anyway. You usually don't do 'guards or plates on a carved top, Les Pauls notwithstanding.

 

[rapfohl09]

I think your deffinately off to a good start with that neck! It's beautiful! As I am putting together my first tele now, im not much help, but I dont know about the white/black thing. I think metallic copper would look pretty good! Although I am quite partial to black/yellow burst on flamed maple :icon_thumright:

 

[jalane]

Have you considered binding?  I think black w/ white double binding, or white w/ black double binding, is a phenomenal look.  If you're just doing flat top, no binding, the copper would be really nice too.

 

[jackthehack]

For your 40th birthday you should be thinking about something hot in a Nurse Judy costume instead of a guitar:

 

[tfarny]

Um, Jack. I think about that about once every 14 seconds - down from once every 12 seconds at 20 yrs old. But thanks for the concern! It's the first time I've seen anyone try to talk someone out of getting a guitar on this board!  :help:
:icon_thumright:

 

[SustainerPlayer]

It's the first time I've seen anyone try to talk someone out of getting a guitar on this board!  :help:
:icon_thumright:

Why not THINK about the hot nurse ... and get the GUITAR ... because the opposite would be ... ... ... hey ... wait a minute?!  :icon_jokercolor:

 

[lafromla1]

Its your 40th man.....GET BOTH!

 

[bagman67]

Or have a decal made and put it on the guitar...

 

[tfarny]

OK, I pulled the trigger on a showcase body - it had 95% of what I was looking for, and at a good discount. Going with the Gotoh 6-saddle bridge too, because really this isn't going to look like a vintage tele. I'm thinking Lollar 50s wind P90 and black rubber knobs with pointers, and a dangerous custom neckplate...

 

[Torment Leaves Scars]

For your 40th birthday you should be thinking about something hot in a Nurse Judy costume instead of a guitar:

She has an amazing tailpiece.  :toothy12:

 

[DangerousR6]

For your 40th birthday you should be thinking about something hot in a Nurse Judy costume instead of a guitar:

She has an amazing tailpiece.   :toothy12:

I wonder what the knobs look like..... :laughing7: