This Strat Brought to you by . . . Pabloman

[B3Guy]

yep! tuner bushings are in, and one hole for screws is drilled, but too small . . . so its off to the hardware store tomorrow!

 

[Cagey]

If you're going to buy a drill bit, get two. Or, three. They break. They're not expensive. You'll save on gas by doubling up.

 

[B3Guy]

yeah, I'll buy a whole set, not just one.

so, this being the first time since getting the neck that I actually have time to write something decent . . .

SWEET BABY JESUS (and I mean that totally in a respectful way. Jesus be my homeboy) Pau-ferro is absolute INSANITY! Silk is an understatement. Its like having silicone/graphite powder constantly lubing up the back of the neck! Its incredible. And the SRV contour? PERFECT fit. That slight asymmetrical shift of the neck's "meatypart" is oh-just-so-righ-where-I-need-it. MOP dots just the right amount of class, work great with the choclatey goodness oozing out of the whole thing (I can smell cocoa, I swear). I don't even have strings on it yet, but I can already tell the SS frets are WAY different, much harder than normal ones! (And I still stand by the 6230 "vintage" size. If you like big frets, you may as well scallop  :dontknow: )

Now . . . to WARMOTH: 100% tippy top notch quality product, no bull. I mean, I expected it to be pretty nice, but DAYUM. Do you look at details down to the nanometer? Seriously, this thing looks like its precision engineered for a spaceship or something! ANYONE with doubts about the big W's quality, lemme just say . . . you could not make better guitar parts. its just not possible, this sucker is already soooo perfect. period. end of discussion. no bull. none.  zip. nada. zilch. no bull. for reals.

 

[Updown]

As soon as I saw that neck .... I said Pau-Ferro  :headbang:
Will play like butter & will love the SS frets ......... Looking good !!

Pau-ferro is absolute INSANITY! Silk is an understatement. Its like having silicone/graphite powder constantly lubing up the back of the neck! Its incredible. 

Now . . . to WARMOTH: 100% tippy top notch quality product, no bull. I mean, I expected it to be pretty nice, but DAYUM.
Do you look at details down to the nanometer? Seriously, this thing looks like its precision engineered for a spaceship or something!
ANYONE with doubts about the big W's quality, lemme just say . . . you could not make better guitar parts. its just not possible, this sucker is already soooo perfect. period. end of discussion. no bull. none.  zip. nada. zilch. no bull. for reals.

*****************  I AGREE WITH YOU TOTALLY  **************

Pau-Ferro is just Perfect.  :hello2:

Warmoth are Perfect.  :icon_thumright:

 

[B3Guy]

quick update: tuners installed . . . . chrome is shiny  :glasses9:

all I'z gotz to sayz for this part is . . . WAX WAX WAX (the other 3-letter word that ends in "x"). Wax makeses all the differences. Work those screws ins and outs, and re-wax if necessary. Use a jeweler's screwdriver . . . you can't hold on to one of those enough to actually break a screw anyway  :laughing7:

HOLY CANOLE PAU IS DENSE!

I gotta say, piecing this together myself is quite gratifying. Pics later, sorry . . .

 

[B3Guy]

Pics  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Updown]

:icon_scratch: Can you make your pic's any bigger  :icon_jokercolor:

I'll need a 200 inch screen to see those  :laughing7:

 

[B3Guy]

yeah, sorry  :doh:

tip: right click and select "open in new tab". most browsers will size-to-fit.

 

[llmtelecaster]

Good job getting the tuners in. Even though I've done it probably 5 times now, it always gets my blood pressure up. But I always have a big sense of accomplishment afterwards lol. Maybe you felt the same.

 

[B3Guy]

Ok, now that the neck is basically finished, I've started to think about the rest of the assembly. So just to be clear:

1. I drop the neck into the neck pocket, snug it up to the body, and bolt it on. there's no special fancy alignment or nothin' right? (I know there's truss rod adjustment, but that's not what I mean.)

2. Wilkinson bridge. I press/tap/whatever the inserts into the body, then I screw in the posts. nothing fancy, right? just get 'em in there. then I get the spring claw in, and the term and springs? Missing anything important?

3. PICKGUARD!!! what am I supposed to take into account when lining this sucker up? line it up with the neck pocket? with the bridge posts? with the lower horn? I don't want to put this on wrong.

Thanks!

 

[B3Guy]

yes, getting the tuners in felt really good  :icon_biggrin:

I'm a big tinker and DIY-er, so this stuff i all right up my alley. I'm in my element and it feels great!

 

[Cagey]

1. I drop the neck into the neck pocket, snug it up to the body, and bolt it on. there's no special fancy alignment or nothin' right? (I know there's truss rod adjustment, but that's not what I mean.)

That's it. Although, I like to get the truss rod set close before I install it, so I can use the heel adjuster rather than the side, if it's a "pro" neck. The side adjuster is more for fine-tuning. Use a straightedge, and just give yourself about 3-4 thousandths of relief at about the 7th-8th fret. It'll pick up some more once it's strung up, and you may even relieve it a bit more to get to around 8 thousandths or so.

2. Wilkinson bridge. I press/tap/whatever the inserts into the body, then I screw in the posts. nothing fancy, right? just get 'em in there. then I get the spring claw in, and the term and springs? Missing anything important?

The bushing are going to want more than a tap to get in. Put the body on something like a cloth to keep from marring it, and make sure there aren't any solid pieces of anything between it and the work surface. Use a shim or something to protect the top of the bushings, and hammer the little rascals in.

3. PICKGUARD!!! what am I supposed to take into account when lining this sucker up? line it up with the neck pocket? with the bridge posts? with the lower horn? I don't want to put this on wrong.

That should be fairly obvious by eye. The cutout at the neck will center it up there, and the cutout at the bridge you can eyeball so it's even, and everything else should be good at that point. Drill one hole at one corner, and one at the opposite corner, screw those in, and the rest of the holes will then act as markers/alignment assistance for your drill. Drill those, then take the whole thing off so you can do the rest of what needs doing as far as wiring, etc.

 

[B3Guy]

Thanks, Cagey!  ccasion14:

those are all pretty much the answers I expected, but "drill once, ask twice" is the rule of the day when it comes to assembling my first guitar.

One more question: are the neck screw holes in the neck the right size holes? They look kinda small, and from my experience with the tuner screws . . . yowza! they might be pretty difficult to get in.

 

[Updown]

One more question: are the neck screw holes in the neck the right size holes?
They look kinda small, and from my experience with the tuner screws . . . yowza! they might be pretty difficult to get in.

Yep all will be OK, the screws should slide though the neck pocket easily.
USE WAX on the screws & put one at a time in from opposite corners, get each one started then go half way or so with each one
then go round doing each one till tight.

Once you have done it once ..... you'll go  :doh: ....... that was easy.

:sign13: **NOTE** if you have a contoured heel ..... you need to cut the screws down slightly, to correct length. Don't want them though the fretboard  :sad:

 

[B3Guy]

Thanks.

body is delivered, but once again, I'm at school. I may drive home tomorrow night to pick up the body, and perhaps to put down my dog  :sad1: it's a bummer, but cancer is a beotch, and its tie for him to go. he's not enjoying life anymore at this point, so it is time.

 

[Nando Vallart]

Thanks.

body is delivered, but once again, I'm at school. I may drive home tomorrow night to pick up the body, and perhaps to put down my dog  :sad1: it's a bummer, but cancer is a beotch, and its tie for him to go. he's not enjoying life anymore at this point, so it is time.

Sorry to hear about your dog, my ex-girlfriend has just 2 dogs down because a virus that eat it's brain... Very sad...

 

[B3Guy]

yeah, he's got cancer, which started in his ankle and is now probably all over. Poor guy's ankle is now bigger than a grapefruit (the bone honeycombs and gets very weak). He can't really walk, and its opening up. Time to end it. If it were my call, I'd have had him put down almost a month ago, but my mother has been in denial until seeing it split open, w which I'm a tad bit frustrated about, but whatever. The vet is nice enough to come out to our house to do it, which will be much easier on Roscoe and the fam. no sense in dragging the poor guy into town to be put down at the vet's office (which he hates). 

 

[reluctant-builder]

I missed this thread until now. I'm amazed at the generosity; quite uncommon. How on earth did you even manage the entreaty for parts? It never would have occurred to me to rely on the charity of any of the board's members, probably because I live in New York. :icon_biggrin: Though, in fairness, New Yorkers can be generous sometimes ...

That body is gorgeous. I love the burst with a tortoise guard. My Jazzmaster is coming tomorrow with a Black-Brown-Yellow burst and a tortoise guard. I hope it comes together as nicely as your build!

Edit: Actually, I can't remember which burst I got. We'll see!

 

[nexrex]

Thanks.

body is delivered, but once again, I'm at school. I may drive home tomorrow night to pick up the body, and perhaps to put down my dog  :sad1: it's a bummer, but cancer is a beotch, and its tie for him to go. he's not enjoying life anymore at this point, so it is time.

Hope it all goes well for you. We had to put down our loved family dog a few years ago due to stomach cancer. It was one of the most heart breaking things I have ever had to do.

 

[B3Guy]

I missed this thread until now. I'm amazed at the generosity; quite uncommon. How on earth did you even manage the entreaty for parts? It never would have occurred to me to rely on the charity of any of the board's members, probably because I live in New York. :icon_biggrin: Though, in fairness, New Yorkers can be generous sometimes ...

That body is gorgeous. I love the burst with a tortoise guard. My Jazzmaster is coming tomorrow with a Black-Brown-Yellow burst and a tortoise guard. I hope it comes together as nicely as your build!

Edit: Actually, I can't remember which burst I got. We'll see!

I kept asking questions about the quality of no-name bodies on ebay, and about this pink squier at GC. I think Pabloman just couldn't stand the thought of that back on a pink squier  :laughing3: