Warmoth routing

[primi]

Guys, I had no idea until very recently how addictive Warmoth web page is. Now I'm seriously considering building me a nice guitar but after weeks of research there still seems to be no end to possibilities, options, decisions... I could still go 10 different ways and end up with a stunning guitar and I don't think I'd be able to chose one over another in a hurry.

The drilling bit scares me a little of course but I've watched some videos and read some advice here. I suppose I could do that. Lots of holes are covered anyway.

There are so many beautiful bodies out there with rear routing and I think I'll go with that first. To save me some money I'll definitely go with a showcase body, not custom built. I'm expecting them to be brand new and in perfect condition, just "mass made" with certain features to save some costs (at least finishing I suppose).

What I'm not sure about yet is if those bodies are already finished and there are options for pickups and controls etc that probably means they are drilling and routing finished bodies. So how does that look? For a front routed guitar it's not such an issue really but for a rear routed one - you have at least pickup cavities exposed. Does it look good, does it chip, are those edges rough? I don't suppose they do any additional finishing after routing? I don't fancy those single coil trim rings very much so I'd like to avoid that if possible. Should I be worried?

 

[line6man]

I'm expecting them to be brand new and in perfect condition, just "mass made" with certain features to save some costs (at least finishing I suppose).

:icon_scratch: :icon_scratch: Please explain.


Since you should be shielding your cavities, there won't be any visual difference between painted and bare wood pickup cavities. If for some reason, you choose not to shield, you can dye the bare wood black with leather dye, if you want.

Finish chipping shouldn't be an issue with single coil routes, unless you tend to hit the edges of the cavities with your pick, when you play. If it really worries you, you could always finish the cavities yourself with some spray polyurethane. Or even just brush something on, if you don't want to spray.

 

[bagman67]

The routing Warmoth does after a body is finished is clean.  They maintain their tooling very well, yielding such results as this:

Like line6man, I recommend you color the cavity if it's a rear-rout guitar and you don't want the innards to show.  Leather dye works well, as does india ink.

 

[primi]

I'm expecting them to be brand new and in perfect condition, just "mass made" with certain features to save some costs (at least finishing I suppose).

:icon_scratch: :icon_scratch: Please explain.

I mean it's cheaper if you 'mass finish' 5 guitars in red at the same time and 4 guitars in tobacco burst. As opposed to finishing 1 red and one burst and back to red again... At least it is where I come from (printing).

The other part of that quote that perhaps needs explaining is my 'brand new flawless' statement. I think it was on this forum somewhere a guy saying that 'screaming deals' is where you could find less than perfect stuff so I take it 'showroom' should not be like that at all.

Sorry for any confusion and thanks for your quick answers including the picture.  :icon_thumright:

 

[bagman67]

Screaming Deals is where the finishing flubs go to be sold, but it's also full of bodies and necks that have just been in stock for a long time and haven't moved - no defects at all.

 

[line6man]

I mean it's cheaper if you 'mass finish' 5 guitars in red at the same time and 4 guitars in tobacco burst. As opposed to finishing 1 red and one burst and back to red again... At least it is where I come from (printing).

The other part of that quote that perhaps needs explaining is my 'brand new flawless' statement. I think it was on this forum somewhere a guy saying that 'screaming deals' is where you could find less than perfect stuff so I take it 'showroom' should not be like that at all.

Actually, the showcase is where they put all of their one-off experimental finishes that you can't usually custom order. The paint crew is always putting out something exceptional for the showcase.

There are a great number of plain finishes and common routings, as well, to appeal to those who just want to order something and receive it quickly. You will find plenty of solid finish SSS top-route Strat bodies in the showcase, for example, because they are inexpensive to make, and sell like hotcakes.

The "screamin' deals" section is for returns, items with defects (which will always be specified and photographed), and old stock that needs to be cleared.

 

[Cagey]

What I'm not sure about yet is if those bodies are already finished and there are options for pickups and controls etc that probably means they are drilling and routing finished bodies. So how does that look? For a front routed guitar it's not such an issue really but for a rear routed one - you have at least pickup cavities exposed. Does it look good, does it chip, are those edges rough? I don't suppose they do any additional finishing after routing? I don't fancy those single coil trim rings very much so I'd like to avoid that if possible. Should I be worried?

To answer your question directly, no. Don't worry about it. They have a vested interest in providing a top-notch product, and they're pretty religious about seeing to it that they do. They're sorta like Carvin, where reputation is everything because they do all their business online, so everything has to be impeccable. If they move off of excellent, they're dead. People love to trash talk, so you don't dare give them any ammunition.

Also, it's not that tough to do a good job - all you gotta do is throw money at it. Buy the best tools and use them properly, and you're there. Best shot I've got is of some control holes I drilled a few years ago during a build for a member here...

That's a high-gloss poly finish from Warmoth. I used a Forstner bit to drill those holes, and as you can see, there are no chips or other anomalies marring the surface. You get similar results if you need to do any routing if you buy into carbide bits. They're sharp, and they stay that way.

 

[primi]

Thanks guys!

I have my eyes on a certain showcase body, I just need to decide what I want to do with tremolo. I will not be ordering any control button and switch holes because I find the volume knob to be just a little bit to close the the bridge PU cavity and there will most likely only be two knobs anyway and spaced differently. No 5-way switch either, it will be more like Schecter dream machines with 3 switches - one for each pickup.

I have a certain headstock idea as well, will be posting in the appropriate section about it, I don't think they are offering that option and I'm not sure how to deal with it.

Stay away from my body, don't want anybody snatching this one please.  :icon_tongue:

P

 

[Cagey]

My experience with the discrete pickup switches vs. 5 stop blade has taught me a lesson: don't do it. It seems like a good idea on the face of it, but the reality is a pain in the shorts. It's just too much work to live with in a live situation, and the few extra choices it allows don't bring anything to the party. If you want to try it on for size, I'd build a top-routed Strat where the controls are mounted on the pickguard, so if you decide you're less than thrilled with the reality of such a scheme, you can always buy a new 'guard and set things up differently. If you do it on a rear-route, you may end up stuck in a loveless marriage.

 

[primi]

Yeah, top routed would be indeed ideal for testing. It's even more complicated you see, those pickups are tapped so it's not just on-off. Up is the first coil for a standard Strat sound, in the middle position the pick-up is off, and in the down position you have the full coil. As you can combine the three pick-ups in any coil position, you will get 27 individual sounds this way. I take it you're not thrilled?  :doh:

 

[ihavenothingprofoundtosay]

Yeah, top routed would be indeed ideal for testing. It's even more complicated you see, those pickups are tapped so it's not just on-off. Up is the first coil for a standard Strat sound, in the middle position the pick-up is off, and in the down position you have the full coil. As you can combine the three pick-ups in any coil position, you will get 27 individual sounds this way. I take it you're not thrilled?  :doh:

Technically, it's only 26 options, since one of the arrangements will be all 3 pickups being off.  :icon_jokercolor: :laughing7:

Which I know because I'm actually modifying an old Carvin bass I have to 3 pickups with on/off switches wired to a Stellar Tonestyler.  They don't have coil splitting options for the pickups, so I'll only have 8 6 options, but clearly, great minds think alike.  :icon_thumright: 

Edit: math fail, particularly shameful given my auditing dayjob.  With a six position Tonestyler, though, it jumps to 36 combos.  :toothy12:  I think my head would explode with a 10 position one.

 

[primi]

Technically, it's only 26 options, since one of the arrangements will be all 3 pickups being off.  :icon_jokercolor: :laughing7:

Oops, right, so let's call that 'bedroom mode' then.  :laughing7:

 

[Cagey]

If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice!​

Zero counts.

 

[Great Ape]

Y'know, somehow I really can't bring myself to believe that ANYONE actually uses those ''27 different tonal options''...I just picture--"OK, Smedley, it's your solo!", and Smedley going "no, not that one...maybe this one....no, no, how 'bout THIS one...no, that's not it...umm, let's try this...nooooooo, not that! Here? No! This? NOOOOO! Maybe here? Aaaaah,SH*T!! Where the hell was that damn sound?!?" Eventually he finds it (maybe), gets to wanking his epic solo, finishes it, and realizes the band has ended its set and has almost finished packing up after the gig! Know what I mean?  :icon_biggrin:

 

[Cagey]

I don't think anyone does. But, there comes a time in every player's life where (s)he knows just enough about pickup wiring to be dangerous, and gets the urge to set a guitar up so that it's the "ultimate" tone machine with every option known to man.

It's kinda like how every generation thinks they've discovered new things about sex for the first time.

 

[drewfx]

I'm not saying that all 27 options in the OP's case will be useful or get used, but I can say that I absolutely use the (carefully chosen) extra options I have on various builds.

And I have discovered :icon_jokercolor: that people on the interwebs often confuse their personal preference with some kind of universal truth.

 

[SustainerPlayer]

And I have discovered :icon_jokercolor: that people on the interwebs often confuse their personal preference with some kind of universal truth.

OMG!!! 

 

[Strat Avenger]

A 5-way switch is plenty of options. If you need 26 different sounds, get a guitar synth.

 

[primi]

Hmm, thinking more about it maybe you're right. Nobody needs 27 different pickup options on a guitar. I'll just build myself 6 guitars (that's 5 ones with different 5 way options and another one for the other 2).  :toothy12:

On a more serious note, I'd like bridge + neck so that already get's me past the usual 5 way switch capabilities. Can be solved with a push pull poti I know. Then there is full/tapped option that I don't think you can make any easier than with the said 3 way switches. Of course I'll never probably use all 27 of them but a select few of them for sure and they don't always need to be those 5 some of you guys are happy with (or less if you're on something else than a strat).

Oh, and don't tell me it's much easier to have 43 different guitars with a few PU combinations each than it is to memorize a couple of odd switch positions on a single one. And add effects on top of that if you use any and then your amp settings. It's not an easy proffession is it.

A 5-way switch is plenty of options. If you need 26 different sounds, get a guitar synth.

Really? And you people are switching tremolos and pickups and blocks, and saddles and fretboards and frets and why is that so? Because you don't like the look of your tremolo springs? Because your blue wire connecting your poti and jack is of a funny color? Come on! You're claiming it sounds different. SS frets don't sound as nice as nickel. Brass saddles sound different to steel. White nut sounds different than black. Don't tell me I don't need 26 different sounds. I'm not as experienced as some or even most of you are but I'll go out on a limb and claim that the difference between SS and nickel frets is not as prominent as the difference between one of those 27 options.

I don't need anything. I don't even need a new guitar. I WANT one. I suppose there's a difference.

With this off my chest, thanks for your comments of course, I appreciate them, even those not so helpful or even cheeky ones. I need advice more often than not. But I'm going to build a guitar with those 3 switches one way or another. It will be different to what I have now and the next one will be different again. No point in building them all the same is it.

Cheers!  :rock-on:

 

[Cagey]

The heart wants what the heart wants and there's no arguing with that. Understand that most of us have "been there, done that" when it comes to ridiculous control schemes, and we're just trying to save you the trouble of climbing that learning curve yourself. If you still want to strap on the cleats and ropes, then by all means - have a blast. Let us know how that works out for you, so we can all laugh together.