What brand is your guitar (Tele, Strat, Soloist?)

[Strat Avenger]

I built my Soloist because I wanted a custom guitar, and I didn't want to (nor could afford to) pay the price of a custom-shop guitar from Fender, Suhr, Tom Anderson, ESP, etc. It cost me around $1400 to build. 'Would have been more if I had ordered a figured maple top or some other exotic wood.
I got exactly what I wanted and for a fraction of the cost of having it built for me by one of the aforementioned companies. But aside from the cost savings, I also wanted something that I could be proud of assembling myself, and being involved with every aspect of its creation. I personally selected every component. I had the heel contoured. I had my paint guy paint it exactly the way I wanted. I performed almost 100% of the assembly myself.
That in itself is something that creates the addiction of wanting more.

My guitar is one of-a-kind (as are all the guitars you see featured here).
Yes, you will see other guitars with the same body shape, pickup configuration, and Floyd Rose bridge, but that's where it ends.
There's not another guitar on this planet that is 100% identical to my Warmoth/Soloist/USA Custom.

I want to build a Strat and a Tele in the future. I know I can build one for $900 to $1000  that will be as good as, or better than a Fender.
I could get a real Fender, but there's always something that I want to change or modify on production guitars, and Fender does not offer the color I want ("Vintage White") in their American Standard or Deluxe models.

To some players, a guitar is a guitar. Those people would not benefit from building a Warmoth guitar. Their tastes could easily be satisfied by a $500 off-the-rack Ibanez or Mexican Fender. The Warmoth thing is not for everyone.

 

[Strat Avenger]

Oh, and one other thing;

It irritates me when people mention "resale value" in discussions like these. I did not build my custom guitar (with Warmoth parts) to sell it.
I built it to keep until I die, and hopefully, whoever ends up with it will take good care of it, and be able to play it better than I can.

 

[Torment Leaves Scars]

Oh, and one other thing;

It irritates me when people mention "resale value" in discussions like these. I did not build my custom guitar (with Warmoth parts) to sell it.
I built it to keep until I die, and hopefully, whoever ends up with it will take good care of it, and be able to play it better than I can.

+1 on that.

 

[Ace Flibble]

It's not as if the wood fender use in their custom shop is somehow superior to the wood Warmoth uses.

I would argue that. A bigger company obviously has bigger buying power. Fender can afford to buy in simply far more wood than a company like Warmoth can. Wood varies so much, as we all know, that the more you buy in the better your chances of getting one of those really legendarily nice pieces. Fender buys in more so it's got a better chance.

Which is why Warmoth can potentially be just as good as a Fender custom shop if it has been set up properly.

Again, I'll stand that if you think that then you either: are delusional; are in denial; have only played CS guitars that simply did not have a spec that met your needs; or have never played a CS guitar at all.

Warmoth builds can be great guitars, there's no doubt about it. Better than anything you can buy right off the shelf for sure. But play a CS Jaguar Strat, play an R9, play a Private Stock Modern Eagle, a Mayones Regius, a Feline Lion. One is driving a BMW with the highschool prom queen in the passanger seat, the other is pulling up in a Ferrari with a Scandinavian supermodel.

 

[elfro89]

We will have to agree to disagree then Ace.  :icon_thumright:

 

[riverbluff]

I cansider my Warmoth's to be Warmoth Guitars. 

For the most part folks have been impressed with the guitars, especially after playing them. 

So far I have built 2 LPs, 1 Tele, 1 VW, and 1 Vee.  I have a Strat in work.  I built each because I wanted something special that no one else would have.  I have achieved that with each of my builds.

Bill

 

[Torment Leaves Scars]

It's not as if the wood fender use in their custom shop is somehow superior to the wood Warmoth uses.

I would argue that. A bigger company obviously has bigger buying power. Fender can afford to buy in simply far more wood than a company like Warmoth can. Wood varies so much, as we all know, that the more you buy in the better your chances of getting one of those really legendarily nice pieces. Fender buys in more so it's got a better chance.

Which is why Warmoth can potentially be just as good as a Fender custom shop if it has been set up properly.

Again, I'll stand that if you think that then you either: are delusional; are in denial; have only played CS guitars that simply did not have a spec that met your needs; or have never played a CS guitar at all.

Warmoth builds can be great guitars, there's no doubt about it. Better than anything you can buy right off the shelf for sure. But play a CS Jaguar Strat, play an R9, play a Private Stock Modern Eagle, a Mayones Regius, a Feline Lion. One is driving a BMW with the highschool prom queen in the passanger seat, the other is pulling up in a Ferrari with a Scandinavian supermodel.

So, Fender has more buying power than Warmoth.  If the wood's coming from the same place, convince me that the Fender CS guitar is better than the Warmoth.  I'm not convinced.  Just because a guitar is supposedly "hand-crafted" doesn't make it superior to a guitar that is CNC'd.  In fact, there's probably more room for error with a "hand-crafted" guitar than a CNC'd guitar.

 

[swarfrat]

It's not as if the wood fender use in their custom shop is somehow superior to the wood Warmoth uses.

I would argue that. A bigger company obviously has bigger buying power. Fender can afford to buy in simply far more wood than a company like Warmoth can. Wood varies so much, as we all know, that the more you buy in the better your chances of getting one of those really legendarily nice pieces. Fender buys in more so it's got a better chance.

Which is why Warmoth can potentially be just as good as a Fender custom shop if it has been set up properly.

Again, I'll stand that if you think that then you either: are delusional; are in denial; have only played CS guitars that simply did not have a spec that met your needs; or have never played a CS guitar at all.

Warmoth builds can be great guitars, there's no doubt about it. Better than anything you can buy right off the shelf for sure. But play a CS Jaguar Strat, play an R9, play a Private Stock Modern Eagle, a Mayones Regius, a Feline Lion. One is driving a BMW with the highschool prom queen in the passanger seat, the other is pulling up in a Ferrari with a Scandinavian supermodel.

So, Fender has more buying power than Warmoth.  If the wood's coming from the same place, convince me that the Fender CS guitar is better than the Warmoth.  I'm not convinced.  Just because a guitar is supposedly "hand-crafted" doesn't make it superior to a guitar that is CNC'd.  In fact, there's probably more room for error with a "hand-crafted" guitar than a CNC'd guitar.

Nobody buys more maple than the hardwood flooring industry. I've seen some beautiful birdseye and flame in gym floors, precisely because they get it cheap because they're buying in bulk, and sorting through all the 'run of the mill' (literally) wood to sort out the figured stuff makes the cheap stuff cost more too. 

 

[llmtelecaster]

To my surprise, when I tell people my strats are "Warmoths", the reaction is usually "Oh cool. I've heard of these but never seen one." They see the select fingerboard wood, stainless frets, compound radius, etc. and just think it's really cool. So I just say they are Warmoths. And if they've got no clue what I'm talking about I just say it's a little company in Washington.

 

[MikeW]

I think it's not so much the woods, although W's wood selection is exceptional, but the components and the setup of the guitar that makes the difference. I can go to any guitar shop and find something that is interesting, but it's the way that it plays that I find to be the biggest difference. Invariably, I wind up putting whatever it is that I'm trying out back thinking, it needs a setup, or I'd swap that neck pickup for something cooler/hotter, etc.

So when I talk to people about my strat, I justI tell them it's a custom strat. If there are more questions after that I'll go into the specifics and tell them about Warmoth. I've found that the people that know guitars are familiar with the name, even if they've never played one. I think it's the fact that I spec'd it and built it that they find interesting rather than the name of the parts manufacturer.

I was at a jam that a friend hosts not too long ago, and I left my strat sitting onstage for anyone to play, at his request. Afterward I got several compliments on the playability. Only one comment on the quality of the wood or the sound. It was the playability that really made the difference. Funny thing was that his G&L Legacy strat was onstage next to mine and mine got more play than his.